Ristretto on it way to me

Victor_M

Lads,
My Ristretto order shipped yesterday so I'm expecting it today or tomorrow, has anyone who has ordered this in the past got a Gaggia grinder? If so what grind setting do you use, I don't want to waste half of the bag dialling in the correct settings if avoidable.

After adjusting the OPV settings is it normal to have to adjust the grinder settings?
For example my Illy settings were 5 on the MDF, but I've had a few espressos at this stage and the crema seems a bit thin, I now know that the freshness has a lot to do with it but would you expect to have to recalibrate the grinder settings after the OPV mod?

Mr Magnolia

I seem to be repeating myself but 50/60ml in 25/30 seconds. If it's too quick grind finer, if it clogs then open the grind up a little.

If you're close enough now then it shouldn't take too much adjustment for the new bean.

What time/volume are you getting with your current bean?

Dero

I have a Gaggia MDF grinder, and I have ground beans from Ristretto on it before, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what setting it was at. That's probably a good thing though, because my grinder will be different than yours. Mine is currently set at 3, and with a fairly light tamp, I get ~60mls in 25-30s reasonably consistently. This is with home-roasted beans from Hasbean.

There is no other way than trial and error I'm afraid. Start at whatever setting you use for your current beans, it will at least get you in the ball park. If you've been using older beans, then I'd say you might need to go one step coarser for fresh beans. Ymmv, and good luck.

Victor_M

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

I seem to be repeating myself but 50/60ml in 25/30 seconds. If it's too quick grind finer, if it clogs then open the grind up a little.

If you're close enough now then it shouldn't take too much adjustment for the new bean.

What time/volume are you getting with your current bean?

Hi Mr Magnolia, sorry if I've been asking the same questions in a different thread, I am getting 50/60 ml in 25/30 secs but as I said the crema is a little watery for my liking, now this could be as a result of freshness, but I may turn the grinder down a notch and tamper a bit lighter to get the flow rate/consistency balance just right.

I'm just trying to avoid having to waste the first half of the bag messing with the settings.
I'll let you know how I get on with the Ristretto when it arrives.Thanks

Mr Magnolia

Victor_M wrote: »

Hi Mr Magnolia, sorry if I've been asking the same questions in a different thread, I am getting 50/60 ml in 25/30 secs but as I said the crema is a little watery for my liking, now this could be as a result of freshness, but I may turn the grinder down a notch and tamper a bit lighter to get the flow rate/consistency balance just right.

No problem on repeating the question If you're flow is correct, which it now seems to be then don't adjust anymore. The poor crema is most likely down to stale beans and you won't be able to correct it. Just hang tough for the Ristretto beans and you should see a vast improvement.

The pressure of the Tamp is less likely to affect the pour than people think. Just tamp plumb, firmly and consistently and that aspect will look after itself. Make sure the grinds are evenly distributed in the basket too.

I'm just trying to avoid having to waste the first half of the bag messing with the settings.
I'll let you know how I get on with the Ristretto when it arrives.Thanks

Nothing worse than wastage. Hope you enjoy the coffee & I look forward to the report. If you've anymore questions then just ask away.

stimpson

I've read that the tamp should be about 30 lbs of pressure, which I've judged with my bathroom scales as a guide - just to get to know what 30lbs feels like. I do try and keep my tamp consistent, so that I'm only changing one variable - the grind. I always use fresh beans and had a problem with my crema.

Having said that, I've still gone through about half a kilo of beans with my new grinder trying to dial it in. Out of frustration with this, I did the OPV mod at the weekend (still waiting on my gauge so I did it blind - 3/4 turn anti clockwise). It make's the tamp more forgiving - it's far harder to stall the machine with a fine grind. Also has made a noticeable difference to the consistency of the shot. More importantly though - it has made for a tastier shot - far less sour and a little more creamy. Can't wait to get the gauge so I can set it exactly.

Victor_M

So my Ristretto and Tamper arrived yesterday afternoon.

I have to say I'm very happy with the coffee, my first shot was a little on the thin side, I adjusted the grinder to setting 4 and it poured perfectly, the flavours and the Crema are as good as anything I've had commercially, and probably better than anything I've ever had at home, including I hate to say it my favourite Palombini (by a tiny margin) I had a nice double shot Americano this morning over breakfast and the better half had a double milk free Americano, the aroma from the Ristretto is to die for too, the kitchen was filled with it, we both agreed that it was a very nice way to start the day.

Tamper build quality is impressive, good weight, nice rosewood handle, and it looks great.

I cleaned out the Classic with the Puly de scaler before hand and some amount of crap ended up being flushed out of the system, I also cleaned the inside of the grouphead back to new (not sure on others thoughts on this, does the build up of oils enhance things or make for an acidic bitter taste over time?)

All in all my first impressions with Ristretto.com and their coffee has been very good and I'll be ordering form them again.

Thanks for the recommendation lads.

RE*AC*TOR

Victor_M wrote: »

I also cleaned the inside of the grouphead back to new (not sure on others thoughts on this, does the build up of oils enhance things or make for an acidic bitter taste over time?)

Coffee oils will go rancid over time. This is most certainly NOT a good thing. Keep that as clean as possible at all times.

Mr Magnolia

Great to hear you're enjoying good fresh coffee.