Espresso is one of the most popular go-to choice for a lot of coffee drinkers. It's flavour-focused and strong; all the tasting notes are jam-packed into a small cup. For the coffee drinkers at home who want the perfect espresso shot on a rainy day, what do they do? Here we have broken down the 5 simple steps to creating the perfect espresso in the comfort of your own home, especially on a day with bad weather and travelling to your local favourite coffee shop is not an option.

Step 1 - Consistent ratio and weighing 

Use a ratio of 1:2 dry dose vs. wet dose (i.e 18 grams in should give you 36 grams in liquid output). Make sure you always weigh your shots to ensure consistent quality.

Step 2 - Use a distributor

A distributor will help even out your porta filter surface to prevent channeling which results in a bitter aftertaste.

Step 3 - Tamp evenly with a 20-30 lbs of pressure

Tamping brings the coffee grounds together to ensure even extraction.

Step 4 - Purge your grouphead before pulling your shot

Water residing in the grouphead is often higher in temperature and may cause your espresso beans to burn so purging the grouphead right before you lock in the shot is a good habit to get into.

Step 5 - Time your extraction

For an 18-36 gram shot, you should aim for an extraction time of 25-30 seconds. If longer than 30 seconds, it means your grind size is probably too fine and you should therefore make your grind size coarser and vice versa.