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CoffeeLabZ

Espresso with a grinder and machine

Weigh, grind, stir with WDT, tamp, and pull a timed 1:2 shot.

⏱️ 10 minTakes practice

Starting recipe

18 g coffee → 36 g espresso in 25–32 s at 93 °C (199 °F).

Grind: Fine, like powdered sugar that still feels a little gritty

You need

  • 18 g fresh whole beans per shot
  • An espresso-capable grinder
  • Your espresso machine, double basket and a tamper that fits snugly
  • A kitchen scale (0.1 g is ideal) and a timer
  • A WDT needle tool (a few thin needles in a cork works)
  • A cloth and a knock box or bin

Step by step

  1. Warm everything up

    Switch the machine on with the portafilter locked in. Give it the full warm-up your manual suggests (often 15–30 minutes for heavier machines). Set the brew temperature to 93 °C if you can.

    A cold portafilter steals heat from the first shot and makes it sour.

  2. Weigh 18 g of beans

    Weigh the beans, not the grounds, so you know exactly what goes in. Start your grinder near its espresso range, or where the app's starting point says.

  3. Grind and check the dose

    Grind into the portafilter or a dosing cup. Weigh again: a little coffee always stays in the grinder. Aim for 18 g in the basket, give or take 0.2 g.

  4. Stir with WDT

    Push the needles to the bottom of the basket and stir in small circles for 10–15 seconds, covering the whole bed and the edges. This breaks up clumps so water flows evenly. Finish with a gentle tap to level the surface.

  5. Tamp level

    Set the portafilter on a flat edge, hold the tamper like a doorknob and press straight down until the coffee stops compressing. You don't need to lean your whole body: firm and level matters, extra force doesn't. Don't tap after tamping.

  6. Flush, lock in, start

    Run a 2-second flush through the group head to rinse it, wipe the rim of the basket, lock in, put the cup on the scale and start the shot and the timer together.

    30 s

  7. Stop at 36 g and note the time

    Stop when the scale shows about 36 g. Write down the time. 25–32 seconds is the target window. A good shot starts dark and thick and gets lighter towards the end.

  8. Taste and adjust

    Sour? Grind finer. Bitter? Grind coarser. Move the grinder by small steps and change only one thing each time. Log it in CoffeeLabZ and follow the advisor's next step.

  9. Clean up

    Knock out the puck, rinse the basket, flush the group head and wipe the shower screen. A clean screen means even water every time.

Common mistakes

  • Changing grind, dose and yield all at once, so you can't tell what helped.
  • Skipping the dose check after grinding: grinders hold back a little coffee.
  • Tamping crooked, or tapping the portafilter after tamping, which cracks the puck.
  • Judging shots before the machine is fully warm.
  • Using very fresh beans (roasted 1–3 days ago): they're gassy and channel easily. Wait about a week.

Tastes off? Fix it

If it…Try this
Sour and fast (under 25 s)Grind finer by a small step. The water will slow down and pull out more sweetness.
Sour but slow (over 32 s)Keep the grind and let the shot run longer: try 40 g out instead of 36 g.
Bitter and slowGrind coarser by a small step.
Bitter but fastKeep the grind and stop earlier, around 32 g. Then look for channeling: stir longer with WDT and tamp level.
Weak or wateryStop the shot earlier so less espresso dilutes it, for example 32 g instead of 36 g.
Too strong or thickLet the shot run longer, for example 40 g out instead of 36 g.

Words you'll hear

Dose
The weight of dry ground coffee in the basket, in grams. 18 g is a common starting dose for a double shot.
Yield
The weight of liquid espresso in your cup, in grams. Weighing beats measuring by volume because crema makes millilitres misleading.
Ratio
Yield divided by dose. A 1:2 ratio means 18 g of coffee becomes 36 g of espresso. Longer ratios taste lighter, shorter ones more intense.
Extraction
How much flavor the water pulls out of the coffee. Too little tastes sour and thin; too much tastes bitter and dry. You're aiming for sweet in the middle.
Crema
The reddish-golden foam on top of a shot, made from gas and oils. Fresh beans make more of it. It's a nice sign, not a measure of taste.
Portafilter
The handle with the metal basket that holds the coffee and locks into the machine's group head.
Tamp
Pressing the ground coffee flat and firm in the basket so water can't sneak through loose spots.
Puck
The packed disc of coffee in the basket. After the shot it's the damp cake you knock out into the bin.
Channeling
When water finds a weak path through the puck and rushes through it. The shot runs fast and tastes sour and bitter at once.
WDT
Stirring the grounds in the basket with thin needles to break up clumps before tamping. Short for Weiss Distribution Technique.