You just got our new coffee scale with timer for your espresso machine. Solid choice! ☕ No need to convince you why weighing your coffee matters.
In this guide we walk you through how to use the scale, step by step 💪.
What to know before you start ☕
Before we dive in, let us cover the basic recipe and explain what each button does.
Basic espresso recipe
This is the ratio we are working towards. We recommend the following starting point for a double espresso:
-
18 grams of coffee in your portafilter
-
36 grams of espresso in your cup
-
25 to 30 seconds extraction time
Note: Start timing from the moment water hits the coffee puck (as soon as your machine starts), not when the first drops land in the cup.
This is called a 1:2 ratio: for every gram of coffee in your basket, you pull roughly two grams of espresso. We always recommend working with a double espresso. Want to know why? Read more here: filter baskets explained
Buttons
Time to get started! Here is what the four buttons do.
Top left: power on/off
Bottom left (⏱): start, pause and reset the timer
Top right: switch between units (g / ml / oz)
Bottom right: tare (got your cup, portafilter or dosing cup already on the scale? Press this button and the display resets to zero)
Step by step
Here we go. It is a three step process you repeat a few times: make a small adjustment, measure again and taste, until you find the right ratio and flavour.
1. Grind your beans
Step 1: turn on the scale (top left)
Step 2: place the portafilter on the scale and press tare (bottom right) to reset to 0.0 grams
Step 3: grind your coffee into the portafilter basket
Step 4: weigh until you have 18 grams of ground coffee in your portafilter
2. Pull your espresso
Step 1: lock your portafilter into the machine
Step 2: place the scale on the drip tray and set your cup on top
Step 3: press tare (bottom left) so the scale only weighs the espresso, not the cup
Step 4: start the machine and activate the scale timer at the same time (bottom left)
Step 5: let the espresso run until you have 36 grams in your cup, then stop the timer. Note how many seconds your shot took.
3. Dial in your grinder
Extraction under 25 seconds?
Water is moving too fast through the coffee. Grind finer and try again.
Extraction over 30 seconds?
Water is moving too slow. Grind coarser and try again.
Keep repeating
Make one small adjustment at a time, pull a new shot and time it. Repeat until you land somewhere between 25 and 30 seconds.
Hitting 18 grams in and 36 grams out in 25 to 30 seconds? Your grinder is dialled in and your espresso is ready to enjoy!
Got your recipe dialled in but the espresso still tastes too sour or too bitter? Read this next: espresso tastes sour or bitter
Error messages
Seeing something on the display? No worries, it is almost always a quick fix.
EEEE — overloaded
Too much weight on the scale. Remove some weight and make sure you stay within the 3000 gram maximum.
Lo — low battery 🪫
Battery is running low. Charge the scale via the USB-C port before continuing.
unSt — unstable
The scale is not sitting flat. Place it on a stable, level surface and try again.
Specifications
-
Weight range: 0.3 g to 3000 g
-
Accuracy: 0.1 g
-
Auto off: after 3 minutes of inactivity
-
Timer maximum: 10 minutes
-
Usable while charging
-
Battery indicator: 4 bars (full = 4)
-
Charging port: USB-C
Something not working as expected, or still have a question after reading this guide? Drop us a message! You will always get a straight answer from a real person. No chatbots, just help from a fellow home barista 👋.
