# Bad extracts



## Mark Winter (Jan 2, 2022)

Hi,Im sure this isn't an uncommon problem with the sage express when your a novice wanna be barrister.......Ive just gone through a KG bag of beans trying to dial in a decent expresso for a flat white.

From 18g of beans im getting around 55-60G of extracted expresso (double shot). My times vary between 23 secs - 33 secs(this includes around 8 secs of pre infusion) Im extracting on the machines pre set double shot button. Pressure gauge is normally between 12oclock and the max of the grey gauge area which i was led to believe is good?

Why is my ratio coming out over 1:3? When I do a single shot I'm getting 18g of extracted coffee which is spot on.Ive tried various grinds and the beans I'm using seem to grind better on a fine2 setting,im tamping different pressures and still cant find a low enough extract weight.

I've tried single and dual wall filters and it seems to be a little better on the dual wall.

Beans were bought from Amazon and they are Solimo medium roast. Could it be poor quality beans?

Any help is appreciated cos im about to smash the thing up!


----------



## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

OK, you're getting the ratio that you get because you are not controlling it, you are leaving to the machine & the preset cup buttons. Read the manual and see if it says anything about brewing manually.

That said, 1:3 is a perfectly normal ratio for espresso, it's not a problem if things are tasting good.

Can you try and describe what is actually wrong with the coffee, in terms of strenth & taste?

Tamp the same way every time, you can't really adjust a shot by weird tamping.

I can't comment on the coffee you have.


----------



## Mark Winter (Jan 2, 2022)

Cheers for the reply

I'll try a manual pull and stop it at 36G. My fears are the pull will only be around 15-20 seconds tho

The taste at the moment on auto extract is quite strong and bitter


----------



## -Mac (Aug 22, 2019)

This is the problem with volumetric shots - the amount out depends on a load of variables: the coarse/fine-ness of the grind, tamp pressure and bean freshness. Better to manually control the delivered weight (get some scales) in the cup (e.g. 36g for 1:2 ratio at an 18g dose), taste it, and then adjust the grind as necessary so it tastes good.


----------



## d00m10rd (Nov 27, 2021)

Mark Winter said:


> Cheers for the reply
> 
> I'll try a manual pull and stop it at 36G. My fears are the pull will only be around 15-20 seconds tho
> 
> The taste at the moment on auto extract is quite strong and bitter


 Pull the manual shot to 36g and time how long this takes. You're looking for roughly 30 seconds from when you push the button to start the shot to when you stop the shot. If it comes out too quickly in 15-20 seconds as you suspect, grind finer until the shot takes roughly 30 seconds, then adjust to taste from that point onwards.

Any further questions, just ask.


----------



## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Mark Winter said:


> Cheers for the reply
> 
> I'll try a manual pull and stop it at 36G. My fears are the pull will only be around 15-20 seconds tho
> 
> The taste at the moment on auto extract is quite strong and bitter


 1:2 will always be stronger than 1:3.

Anyhow, pick the weight out that you want, hit it repeatedly and adjust grind to steer that taste.

Good tasting 1:2 shots around 20s are definitely possible, so go by taste & grind, rather than time.


----------

