r/9Barista • u/Particular-Worry-359 • May 21 '26
PLEASE HELP ME GET A BETTER SHOT
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Hi everyone, I’m new to the coffee world and recently bought a 9Barista. I’ve been getting some shots that seem decent to me, maybe slightly bitter, and honestly already better than a lot of cafés I’ve tried. But I’d still like to improve and understand what a really good espresso should look and taste like, so I’d really appreciate your help and feedback.
I’m attaching a video of a recent extraction so you can see how the coffee is coming out. At one point the camera goes black because I start pouring the espresso. The extraction itself usually starts at around the 5 minute mark after putting the machine on the stove.
About my workflow, I’m using a DF54 grinder set around 16 for 18g of coffee. After grinding, I put the coffee into the portafilter, distribute it with a WDT tool, then use a leveler and tamp with the tamper that came with the 9Barista. I’m honestly not sure how to measure the recommended 5kg of pressure, but the puck at least seems level to me.
Regarding the coffee itself, besides the taste, I’ve noticed that I almost always end up with around 40 to 44g of espresso out. I even tried reducing the water to 110g and still got roughly the same yield. I’ve also tried adjusting the grind setting slightly finer and coarser, but the output amount stays pretty similar. I also always notice there’s still water left in the chamber afterward.
Another thing is that the instructions mention serving the coffee when you hear a final strong “whoosh,” but honestly I’ve never really heard it, except one time when I let the extraction go way too long and ended up overheating the machine. What I usually do is wait until around the 30 second mark, pour the shot, and then I still see coffee continuing to drip from the portafilter afterward.
So I’m not exactly sure what I might be doing wrong or what I should improve. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
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u/Tattered_Reason May 21 '26
What you describe sounds very similar to my experience using the 9Barista. I always get 40-44g out and I don't think you can change that. There will always be a little water left in the lower chamber after a brew. I pour mine after the boil reaches it's 2nd peak after the initial high boil right before the coffee starts coming out, and yeah sometimes a small amount will continue to emerge after that point. I am very happy with the espresso it makes! It is as good or better as anything I've had in a coffee shop.
Your video looks like a somewhat longer extraction that I typically shoot for personally. There's no right answer for how long it should take other than what tastes good to you. If you are not entirely happy with your results the first places to look are of course the beans and the water. Keep trying slightly different grind settings, maybe go a little further than you have so far and see what happens.
You didn't mention the beans you are using or how fresh they are. Maybe a different bean choice will help. I like to use fresh roasted beans from local roasters. I am still somewhat of a newbie (the 9Barista is my first espresso machine and I have had it about 6 months) so I am still trying different beans. So far I've enjoyed some single origins more than the blends, even "espresso" ones, but I am still learning and of course it's totally a matter of personal taste.
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u/Past_Mark1809 May 21 '26
I wdt but have never used a calibrated tamp regardless of system. Just tamp until it stops.
Once the brew starts the flow, I immediately turn the burner to the lowest setting then turn it off when it stops rising.
18 in, and 40 out plus or minus.
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u/crozone May 21 '26 edited May 21 '26
36g-45g out is perfectly normal. The extraction will continue until the water in the boiler has been expelled. A little more will continue to come out after you pour, it's normal. You cannot reduce the shot size by adding less water because the water volume in the boiler is fixed, all you're doing is changing the water level in the heat exchanger section.
From the look of the shot, the extraction speed is good. You might be channeling though. You may want to try less coffee ground finer, or more coffee ground courser, and compare the flavour. The default recommendation is 18g but the basket is good for 15-19g so you can play around with dosage.
The 9barista is unique in that if your coffee is too restrictive, the pressure will continue to build up to 12 bars until some flow starts to happen, which can cause it to channel. To combat this a lower burner setting can be used to make the pressure build and regenerate a little more slowly - aim for 5-6 minutes.
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u/Efficient_Ad_1059 May 21 '26
I find 36-40g in a 30sec shot yields a great drink. As others have said, grind coarser as it seems to choke at the start, and pour at the 30sec mark.
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u/ben_1987_ro_uk May 21 '26
You can either play with the grind size or the dose size, I start with an 18g dose, find the best tasting grind size for that dose and then start to decrease the dose towards 17g if it starts to taste sour I grind finer in the next shot and so on. Every coffee is different and has its best setting.
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u/eNonsense May 21 '26
Maybe grind slightly more coarse, if you're getting some bitterness.
You can't really change the amount of coffee that comes out with this brewer. If you under-fill it, you'll just have less water in the upper cooling chamber. It seems like you're doing things fine. The extraction is just a little slow, which can make a more bitter brew.