As espresso lovers, the chase for better drinks is what helped espresso become its own cultural happening. While the secret to making a good espresso often comes down to practice, having the right equipment can make all the difference. The right machine and the right grinder might be the first tools to come to mind, but there's something to be said for the right accessories. Over the last couple of months, we’ve seen more and more accessories coming through our doors that have really impressed our coffee experts here at the office. With these new accessories, we saw fit to create a new collection to keep everything together for anyone looking to upgrade and improve their espresso even further.
Our new Pro Brewing page is full of tools that we ourselves use both in the studio and in our own kitchen, and we are quite fond of them. Each item is designed to improve your brewing experience by offering more control over the many variables of espresso preparation. With items like Baristapro baskets for bottomless extractions to help with channeling, and the Caffewerks gaskets to keep your coffee from contacting the shower screen, we’ve tried to add products that we really like and approve of as great brewing accessories that make an appreciable difference in the cup. For a look at some of what you'll find in the Pro Brewing collection, keep reading.
Lab-Grade Acaia Scales
The Acaia scales are a great addition for a coffee lover who is looking to get more serious about the specifics of their espresso shots. The Acaia scales are both beautiful and simplistic in design, and are great for weighing out your doses, as well as weighing and timing your shots. The Acaia Pearl S even has a flow rate mode that lets users practice their pour over.
Bottomless Portafilters
Bottomless portafilters are great for watching your espresso extraction allowing you to make sure you're pulling your shot correctly. Since you can see the bottom, you can make sure your puck isn’t channeling and wasting coffee. You can even pull triple shots with these since they can fit the bigger 22 gram baskets.
The portafilter baskets from IMS are efficient because of their double punched holes, which are larger than other baskets to help create a smoother extraction. Their nanoquartz coating helps prevent corrosion to help them last longer and makes them easier to clean with a microfiber cloth.
Asso Coffee Jack Levelers for Tamping
The Asso Coffee Jack Leveler is a coffee distribution tool that comes in a plethora of colors and designs. The Jack is slightly oversized at 58.5 mm for a snug fit, and it works by placing it into your portafilter and turning the handle to move the metal head. The rigid metal head moves your coffee grounds into a firm coffee puck that helps prevent channeling. The Jack can be adjusted to almost 50 different depths, and we personally think it is better than any tamper we’ve used because it makes such an even and firm puck without any extra difficulties. For more about the Jack Levelers, find our detailed opinion on them here, as well as how to use them here.
E61 Compatible Flow Control Devices
The Flow Control Devices for ECM and Profitec are here to help users get control over water flow rate while pulling a shot. The devices can be installed rather easily on any E61 machine from Profitec, ECM, or Expobar, and are really accessible. Simply turning the knob of the device allows you to control the flow rate of water as it moves through your coffee. Slowing down the flow rate can help with long pre-infusions to improve the flavor and body of your coffee and prevent channeling. Or you can choose to start your extraction at a higher flow rate and skip preinfusion for coffees that may not need preinfusion, typically darker roasts.
We'll be adding more and more accessories to the Pro Brewing Collection so definitely keep a lookout for new, fun stuff. We’re feeling pretty good about our new collection, and we hope you’ll find some time to check it out and try some of these upgrades for yourself.
