# Hasbean - Costa Rica - Finca de Licho - Yellow Honey - Vila Sarchi



## unoll (Jan 22, 2014)

Nice coffee when brewed but...........

Currently struggling a little with this coffee. Last espresso shot was 20g to 45g (2.25 ratio) in 35 secs at 96°C in a VST 20g basket on the brewtus and super jolly combo, using charcoal filtered tap water (Plymouth water being pretty soft). I just can't seem to shake off the sourness. beans were roasted on 23rd by the way.

I've had some really tasty results with the aeropress doing 15g coffee to 200g water for 1 minute 30 secs off boil) and i'm really liking the coffee this way, but espresso just isn't doing it for me yet.

Should I just try grinding a bit finer and extracting to the same ratio which will equal a longer extraction time or should i try a different tack? My mrs tasted one of the 20g-20g shots in 35 sec shots i was going to bin and even then she didnt think there was much bitterness so im struggling to figure out what i can do.

anyone out there have any advice for parameters I should give a crack?

cheers


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

You're getting sourness and bitterness? Screams uneven extraction to me


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

1. turn the temp down to 92-93c. Higher temp will accentuate acidity believe it or not.

2. ignore time, keep going finer until you hit sweetness

3. Try volvic or waitrose water.


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## unoll (Jan 22, 2014)

Cheers Gary. No bitterness really, I guess my wording could have been misinterpreted.

Please can you give me the run down on how reduced temp reduces sourness. I was of the impression that increased temp = increased extraction = less sourness. I'm a bit confused now.

I'll give the waters a try, cheers.


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

unoll said:


> Cheers Gary. No bitterness really, I guess my wording could have been misinterpreted.
> 
> Please can you give me the run down on how reduced temp reduces sourness. I was of the impression that increased temp = increased extraction = less sourness. I'm a bit confused now.
> 
> I'll give the waters a try, cheers.


Its anecdotal but acidity IMO gets amplified with hotter brewing, especially with less than ideal water.

Try running 40+ second shots and report back.


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## CamV6 (Feb 7, 2012)

Perhaps also under extracting. Try same parameters but finer grind aiming for 35g out


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## unoll (Jan 22, 2014)

garydyke1 said:


> Its anecdotal but acidity IMO gets amplified with hotter brewing, especially with less than ideal water.
> 
> Try running 40+ second shots and report back.


Cheers Gary, what's your hypothesis on the link between heat and perceived sourness?


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

unoll said:


> Cheers Gary, what's your hypothesis on the link between heat and perceived sourness?


IMO ''Acidity'' isn't the same thing as ''sourness''.

Acidity is a desirable trait in coffee but it should be balanced with sweetness.

Sourness is a defect in brewing, be it from using a poor solvent , or channelling / uneven / under extraction.

Organic materials tend to increase in solubility with temperature, but not all at the same rate, at a higher temp perhaps more acid-focused activity occurs. you can get a good extraction at 90 celcius and a good extraction at 96 celcius - both will taste different .


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## unoll (Jan 22, 2014)

Finally nailed it. 20g in VST basket, 45g out, 40-45 secs total time, 96°C on the PID (havent been able to SCACE calibrate but homemade device gives me a reasonable level of confidence on this) filtered tap water. Tasting once the espresso cools down gives me:

- crazy sweetness levels

- pleasant acidity

- lingering smooth finish (mrs left brushing her teeth for a while because she was enjoying aftertaste)

further experiments to do:

- reduce temp down to 92°C at same grind and repeat

- switch over to bottled water

Thanks for the advice guys, it just turned out that I'm able to push this coffee way harder than what I'm used to. I'm still not hitting the point of bitterness so I guess I'll keep pushing until i do.


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## unoll (Jan 22, 2014)

Quick update on my experimentation with these beans. Yesterday I did 20g into 45g at 90°C in 1 minute and it's still tasting good. I can't pretend I know why but it seems like these beans can be pushed pretty hard without tasting terrible.


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