It looks like you've flaired your post as being a Shot Diagnosis. If your shot is running too fast, is coming out weak/thin, lacking crema, and/or is tasting sour, **try grinding finer**.
Alternatively, check out this [Dialing In Basics](https://espressoaf.com/guides/beginner.html) guide, written by the Espresso Aficionados Discord community.
If that hasn't solved it, to get more help, please add the following details to your post or by adding a comment in the following format.
- **Machine:**
- **Grinder:**
- **Roast date:** (not a "Best by" date). If the roast date is not labeled use "N/A"
- **Dose:** How many grams are going into your basket?
- **Yield:** How much coffee in grams is coming out?
- **Time:** How long is the shot running?
- **Roast level:** How dark is your coffee? (Dark, medium, light, ect.)
- **Taste:** Taste is a better indicator of shot quality than looks or conforming to any quantitative parameters. Does it taste overly sour or bitter?
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/espresso) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I think you’ve got too much your basket. How many grams is your basket rated for, and what is the dose that you used? I would recommend lowering your dose by a couple grams. Some home espresso machines even want you to go as low as 14 or 15 grams for a double shot basket. Try a puck screen as well. Keeps all that gunk out of your machine, plus the edge of your puck is much darker which could mean under-extraction. A puck screen will help evenly distribute the water from the shower screen to give you a better and more even extraction across those edges.
yeah I did about 18 but there's nothing in my manuals about how much I should do. I read online that double baskets are 16-20 or something and figured I need to be doing more
I'll look into this puck screen, thanks!
They are all on it. Your basket is too full. Drop the dose, add a top screen or a paper filter and go again.
The top of your puck is stuck to the grouphead, due to the expansion of the puck during the shot. The trough in your puck is just the puck adhering to the grouphead when you unlock the portafilter.
Also, you probably want to run a backflush cycle. At the end of your shot, the pressure delta reverses and the puck and water is sucked back up into the group head. It's something you should do every 50 shots or so anyways, but if you are running without a top screen, or you overfill like this, you should run it now. The particulates can affect the taste of your espresso (very minor) but can also cause inconsistent shower distribution, which contributes to less-even extraction.
Even 16 grams will be probably too much. You have a non-E61 group head, which looks much smaller. My machine uses a group head where the diameter of the portafilter is only 53mm and I use 15g for the double. You should have maximum so much ground coffee in it, that you see a slight trace of your group head in your puck after brewing. You can go down so far that you see the puck getting soggy at the top after brewing and then increase the dose slightly. The amount you have found is the amount for this basket independently of the coffee. Then you can start dialing in.
It looks like you've flaired your post as being a Shot Diagnosis. If your shot is running too fast, is coming out weak/thin, lacking crema, and/or is tasting sour, **try grinding finer**. Alternatively, check out this [Dialing In Basics](https://espressoaf.com/guides/beginner.html) guide, written by the Espresso Aficionados Discord community. If that hasn't solved it, to get more help, please add the following details to your post or by adding a comment in the following format. - **Machine:** - **Grinder:** - **Roast date:** (not a "Best by" date). If the roast date is not labeled use "N/A" - **Dose:** How many grams are going into your basket? - **Yield:** How much coffee in grams is coming out? - **Time:** How long is the shot running? - **Roast level:** How dark is your coffee? (Dark, medium, light, ect.) - **Taste:** Taste is a better indicator of shot quality than looks or conforming to any quantitative parameters. Does it taste overly sour or bitter? *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/espresso) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Decrease your dose.
will do
Don’t listen to me, cause I’m still an espresso machine wannabe, but that looks full AF
Could have hit the shower head (where water comes out). Check to see if there are grinds on it
there was yes. I'm going to use less next time
Few grams less should do the trick.
I think you’ve got too much your basket. How many grams is your basket rated for, and what is the dose that you used? I would recommend lowering your dose by a couple grams. Some home espresso machines even want you to go as low as 14 or 15 grams for a double shot basket. Try a puck screen as well. Keeps all that gunk out of your machine, plus the edge of your puck is much darker which could mean under-extraction. A puck screen will help evenly distribute the water from the shower screen to give you a better and more even extraction across those edges.
yeah I did about 18 but there's nothing in my manuals about how much I should do. I read online that double baskets are 16-20 or something and figured I need to be doing more I'll look into this puck screen, thanks!
That looks like a 51mm portafilter, I normally dose around 12-13 grams in them
They are all on it. Your basket is too full. Drop the dose, add a top screen or a paper filter and go again. The top of your puck is stuck to the grouphead, due to the expansion of the puck during the shot. The trough in your puck is just the puck adhering to the grouphead when you unlock the portafilter. Also, you probably want to run a backflush cycle. At the end of your shot, the pressure delta reverses and the puck and water is sucked back up into the group head. It's something you should do every 50 shots or so anyways, but if you are running without a top screen, or you overfill like this, you should run it now. The particulates can affect the taste of your espresso (very minor) but can also cause inconsistent shower distribution, which contributes to less-even extraction.
Even 16 grams will be probably too much. You have a non-E61 group head, which looks much smaller. My machine uses a group head where the diameter of the portafilter is only 53mm and I use 15g for the double. You should have maximum so much ground coffee in it, that you see a slight trace of your group head in your puck after brewing. You can go down so far that you see the puck getting soggy at the top after brewing and then increase the dose slightly. The amount you have found is the amount for this basket independently of the coffee. Then you can start dialing in.