Breville Barista Touch Espresso machine: Should a novice use the dual-wall or the single-wall filter basket?

Let me get right to the point: I find it counter-intuitive that the dual-wall filter basket is the basket for beginners. I expected to see holes, lots of holes, in the filter basket bottom. It just seemed reasonable.

 

The dual-wall filter basket, the one with only one, small, exit hole in the bottom, looks strange. What advantage could there possibly be? Answer: the one hole raises the extraction pressure. Think of it as placing a thumb over the end of a hose. And why is this good?

 

The high pressure created by forcing the espresso through one, final, small hole smooths over flavour imperfections while producing a thick and stable crema. Critics see this as a cheat: ample crema created without perfect extraction.

 

Puck channelling happens less frequently when the dual-wall filter basket is used. Grind size, dose weight and tamping consistency all have less influence on the resulting brew. On the down side, pucks are often somewhat wet when the dual-wall filter basket is used. Many folk just ignore the wet puck if the espresso is good. 

 

On the other hand, the single-walled filter basket, with rows and rows of small perforations in the stainless steel bottom, depends on proper grind size, dose weight and consistent tamping to control extraction pressure. Controlling the variables calls for more skill on the part of the barista.

 

Dual-walled filter baskets are often called "training wheels" for budding baristas. Despite uneven tamping, incorrect grind size or dose weight errors one still pulls consistently acceptable espresso shots with no fuss, no muss. Note the word acceptable. Sadly, the dual-walled filter baskets also mutes the unique flavour notes found in different coffee beans. But, not to worry, most novice espresso makers do not notice. Acceptable is acceptable.

Breville Barista Touch Espresso machine: Extraction

Portafilter and filter basket

When I made a Flat White for my wife and me, the espresso started flowing in under seven seconds. This meant the extraction was too fast, indicating the grind was too coarse.

To adjust the grinder turn the dial on the side of the machine as indicated. Change the grinding size one unit at a time. Two is the limit.

The goal is to increase resistance, to slow flow of espresso through filter basket, resulting in a drier, more compact puck.

How to Adjust the Grinder for a Slower Flow

1. Adjust Using Side Dial: Turn the grind dial on the side of the machine to set a lower number. This results in a finer grind. Breville does not mention this but most experts agree that the grind size should only be adjusted with the grinder running.

2. Adjust in Increments: Change the grind size by small increments (about 1–2 units at most). 

3. Increase Dose: If the dose is underweight and the razor does not touch the surface of the grounds in the portafilter with filter cup inserted, increase the amount of coffee grounds by increasing the grinding time. Again do this one second at at time.

4.  Adjust Internal Burrs: This is a real last ditch effort. I have never tried this but I did find this recommendation on the Internet in a couple of places. 

   If the side dial is already at its finest setting (1 or 2) and the shot is still too fast, you may need to adjust the inner top burr. Remove the hopper, take out the top burr, and adjust the metal wire handle to a lower number (e.g., from 6 to 4 or 3).

Puck Condition

• Drier Puck: Because a finer grind requires higher pressure to pass through, the machine, the extraction will be more efficient, resulting in a drier, firmer, and more compact puck.

• Faster Flow Equals Damp/Muddy Puck: If the coffee is too coarse (flowing too fast), the puck will often be damp and muddy, as water passes through without being properly trapped.  

The goal is to aim for an extraction that begins in roughly 8–10 seconds and finishes around 25–30 seconds. If all goes as planned, you now have an espresso with nicely balanced flavour.

And, if the puck, while still in the portafilter, looks quite wet with a centre hole running right through the entire puck, you have forgotten the filter basket. Oops! The coffee streams will have started quite early and there will be coffee grounds in your drink. Toss the drink and start over.

Making a Flat White with a Breville Barista Touch

My Flat White has a round glob of thin foam.

I'm not a coffee freak. So, why am I posting instructions for brewing a Flat White using a high-end espresso machine? 

Answer: I bought my wife a Breville Barista Touch espresso machine for Christmas. I can't let a coffee brewing machine of that calibre sit unused.

As a new-to-the-scene novice coffee brewer, I settled on the Flat White as my coffee of choice. The Barista Touch has a number of automatic brew settings. Among them is Flat White, one part espresso and two parts heated and minimally foamed milk.

Before starting

• Fill the water tank almost to the maximum fill line.
• Fill the coffee hopper. Do not overfill. Do not use green beans.
• Gather everything you will need: 

portafilter

double shot, 2-cup filter basket (While learning, I am using the Dual Wall filter basket.)

dosing funnel

Razor levelling tool for ground coffee in portafilter with inserted basket

a 7.5 ounce, insulated coffee cup 

stainless steel milk frothing container

ample cold, whole milk (not a low fat skim milk type)

sugar 

teaspoon 

two small towels or dish clothes–one dry and one damp.

Step 1 – Press the on/off button and select Flat White on the screen

• From the main drinks menu, touch Flat White on the touchscreen.​

• The screen will show three steps: Grind, Brew andMilk. All are preset but feel free to modify.

Step 2 – Grind and dose

• Snap the double shot, 2‑cup, filter basket into the portafilter. If you forget, coffee grounds will fly from the machine. To stop the grinding, push the grind icon on the screen or the machine off and on button.

• With the dosing filter basket locked into the portafilter, attach the dosing funnel and slide all into the grinder cradle. Many novices prefer the dual walled filter basket.

• Touch “Grind” or push in the portafilter to start grinding. For this first Flat White, accept the default settings for all.

• After grinding, remove all from the cradle, use tamping tool to compact ground coffee, remove dosing filter and finish tamping down coffee. Carefully level ground coffee using the Razor tool if necessary. After using the Razor, tap and tamp one last time.

Step 3 – Attach portafilter and extract espresso

• Lock the portafilter, minus the dosing filter, into the group head by rotating the handle to the right until it stops.

• Place an insulated, dual wall, cup under the spouts. I like to preheat my cup.

• On the Flat White screen ensure "Double" is selected and touch “Brew” to start extraction. (In my book, "Double" makes enough espresso for one Flat White for one person.)

• Watch the flow: two thin streams should start at the seven second mark or a second or two later. The brewing will finish at the preset time. (At this point, I like to add the sugar to the hot espresso.)

Step 4 – Heat and froth  milk

• Fill the stainless steel milk jug to just above the fill line on the steam wand. The stainless steel jug has marked minimum and maximum levels but I have a difficult time seeing the marks. Also, I find they are too generous. I prefer using the fill line on the steam wand. This results in enough milk and froth for two flat whites.

• The tip of the steam wand should be sitting in the milk just below the surface. The jug must be sitting on the temperature sensor.​ Do not let the sensor get wet. The sensor must be kept dry.

• On the Flat White screen, check the Milk settings: 

 Temperature: medium to medium‑high (around 150 °F is typical).

 Froth level: low (4). This results in less foam than called for by latte or cappuccino).

• Touch “Milk” to start auto heating and foaming.​

• Make sure the stainless steel jug is sitting on the sensor at all times. This is important.   

Step 5 – Flush and wipe the steam wand when finished

• As soon as the Breville Barista Touch is finished heating and texturing the milk, remove the jug. With the steam wand extended at 45 degrees, wipe the wand and its tip with a damp cloth. Keep the wand extended at the 45 degree position. 

• Place a small, dry towel or small, dry dish cloth over the milk heating/frothing sensor. It must not get wet. At this point, lower the wand to the down position. It will automatically purge into the drip tray with a two short bursts of hot water and a burst of steam. This clears milk from inside the wand.​

Step 6 – Pour milk and add foam

• Begin pouring from a few centimetres above the milk surface so the milk integrates with the espresso and pushes crema to the top.​

• When the cup contains about two ounces espresso and four ounces of milk, bring the jug closer to the surface and pour into the centre to create a white circle of silky, small-bubbled froth.

A Flat White should end up as about a six ounce drink with a strong espresso flavour tamed by the heated milk. The ratio is 1:2, espresso to heated milk. The foam layer is visible but thin.

After enjoying your Flat White

Every time you finish enjoying a milk‑based drink, do these quick tasks to keep the machine performing well.

1. Knock out puck and rinse portafilter

• Remove the portafilter and knock out and discard the used coffee puck.

• Remove the filter basket and rinse both the basket and portafilter under hot water to remove coffee oils and grounds.​ Cleaning with a little soapy water is a good idea but you must rinse well.

• Dry with a dish cloth.

2. Quick group head flush

• With clean portafilter, filter basket clicked into place, install  the portafilter just as you would to brew coffee. Place an empty cup below the group head. Briefly start “Brew” to run hot water through the group head for just a few seconds. This rinses away any residue of coffee grounds and captures the dirty rinse water in the empty cup. You should see coffee grounds in the water. Some users do this step without the portafilter and filter basket in place.I like the attached approach better. I keep a dry cloth over the milk/foam sensor. Remember the warning, "Keep dry".

• Remove portafilter with filter basket inserted, separate, wash and dry. 

3. Drip tray and work area

• Check the drip tray. It will have collected some water. Clean and rinse all the drip tray parts.

Wipe any spilled coffee or milk from the tray and surrounding surfaces. Again, take care not to let the milk temp sensor get wet.

Of course, Breville has posted some instructions. Here is a link to: 


How to make a flat white at home

 

Make your Flat White for Two

I never, absolutely never, make just one Flat White. I always make two. One for me and one for my wife. The damn espresso machine was a Christmas gift from me to her. A gift should not be a lot of work to use. It should be fun and with me doing the brewing and tidying, it is fun -- for her. 

 It is only fair that I jump through the hoops necessary to master brewing our early afternoon drink. They cannot be late afternoon drinks or we would never sleep.

To change the above instructions to make two and not one Flat White, do the following:

• Grind a double dose. Remember to attach the dosing funnel before grinding.
• Attach the portafilter to the group head and brew a double. Set aside the insulated, 7.5 ounce glass cup containing the espresso.
• Knock out the puck, wipe out the filter basket and repeat the grind operation. Again, remember to attach the dosing funnel first.
• Attach the portafilter to the group head and pull a second double into a second glass cup.
• Now, steam and froth the milk as instructed. As I mentioned earlier, I always make enough frothed milk to make two Flat Whites.
• Pour the heated/frothed milk into the insulated, glass cups. Voila! Two Flat Whites. Clean the machine and work area as instructed.

A look at the Breville Barista Touch Espresso machine

Judy said she would like an espresso machine. I thought to myself, I'll get her one for Christmas. But I did not know a thing about espresso machines. I did some research. The Breville Barista Touch Espresso machine seemed to be the one to buy. Not too simple and not too complex. Goldilocks would understand.

Heck, even Wirecutter, the product review section of the New York Times, said this was the one to get for Judy for Christmas. Well, maybe I am overstating this, the NYT didn't go so far as to say this one was perfect for Judy -- but they came awfully close. 

I found one on sale at Canadian Tire. Yes, Canadian Tire. The store famous for oil changes, snow tires and automobile windshield cleaner also sells espresso machines. The nearest store had four. I got up early and got to the store minutes after it opened at 8 a.m. 

At the check-out I told the lady at the counter I felt quite the fool. Who spends this much to brew coffee? I love my wife but I had to wonder if I loved her this much. I was conflicted. I mentioned I was surprised that the store only had four of these left. "You're wrong," the counter lady said. Someone beat you, and counting the one you are now buying, the store only has two left. She said some stores were sold out and she expected her store to sell out soon, maybe in minutes. Amazing! 

Oh well, Judy loves it. It does make awfully good coffee -- although it calls regular coffee an Americano or some such foolishness. But what do I know? Sadly, this morning I found our usual coffee weak, lacking in character. Character? Who talks like that? Damn. I wish I had just bought Judy a box of chocolates. Then, my morning coffee would still taste wonderful.

_____________________________________________________________

Units like the Breville Touch have a learning curve. The automation of the Touch shortens the learning curve but does not eliminate it. Breville understands and has posted videos and short articles addressing the most common problems encountered by newbie owners.

Let me give you some links.

Coffee Demonstration | How to Dial-in the Barista Touch™ espresso machine | Breville USA

4 Types of Coffee: This is a great page from Breville made even better by the links to be found at the very bottom of the page. 

Find more articles and videos with Google. Judy found the online info helpful. 

Why I bought the Breville Baristra Touch Espresso machine.

As I mentioned, Wirecutter in the New York Times, thought very highly of this café-quality espresso machine. Encouraged by the NYT positive review, further search found lots of independent reviews in agreement with Wirecutter. Let's list some of the features.

1. All-in-One, Built-In Grinder

No need for a separate grinder. The Breville Touch has a high-quality integrated conical burr grinder that grinds beans fresh immediately prior to brewing. The ground coffee drops straight into the portafilter. Thanks to a special collar used during grinding, there is no mess, no spilt coffee grounds. Burr grinders produce a consistent, even grind resulting in richer flavour and improved extraction.

2. Intuitive Touchscreen Controls

A full-colour touchscreen guides you through grinding, brewing, and milk foaming. Setting the grind size, degree of milk foaming and final temperature can still be daunting for a novice but, after viewing a couple of videos, the ease of the semi-automated machine soon become clear.

3. Automated But Customizable

I like to call the Barista Touch a semi-automatic machine. It is left to the Barista to fine-tune settings such as the the size and style of basket, the grind amount and size, the degree of tamping and the milk texture. But, get all the variables right and you can save the "recipe". It is possible to save up to eight personalized coffee brewing profiles.

4. Fast Heat-Up Time

The Breville Barista Touch Espresso machine reaches the optimal brewing temperature in about three seconds thanks to the ThermoJet® heating system. In a hurry? No worry.

5. Automatic Milk Frothing

The Auto MilQ hands-free microfoam system steams milk to the texture and temperature you choose for making lattes and cappuccinos. That said, many online self-proclaimed experts prefer to manually foam the milk. Me? What do I know about foaming milk? I use the automatic feature.

6. Precision Brewing

Low Pressure, pre-infusion followed by 9-bar extraction pulls balanced, rich espresso shots. Do it right and be rewarded with good crema, as well.

Like many high-end espresso machines, the Breville Touch has PID temperature control. PID? A Proportional Integral Derivative extraction temperature controller. I cannot say any more. Google it, if you are still curious.

7. Built for Daily Use

Many of the reviews I consulted were impressed with the ease of cleaning and supplied storage for accessories. For instance, when not in use the tamper hangs from a concealed magnet on the front left of the machine. Sadly, the ultimate build quality was questioned by some reviewers but I found a lot of positive comments from satisfied owners. I went with the good opinions expressed by the owners.

8. Café-Quality Drinks at Home

Lastly, the Barista Touch lets you make coffee shop quality coffee drinks at home. This does not sound like a big deal but do the math. You will be amazed. If you drink a lot of cappuccinos from Starbucks, you will pay for espresso machine in less than a year. Make a cappuccino for yourself and your partner each time you  brew a drink, and the espresso machine will be paid for in months.

Warning

I read some online descriptions of overflowing milk during frothing. Now, it has happened to my wife. What a mess! But worse, the heater/frother may be damaged.

 

There is a "Keep Dry" warning above the stainless steel button sensor. Take this warning seriously. I understand this button is the Achilles's heel of this espresso maker. 

Do not drag the stainless steel milk jug over the sensor, simply place the jug on the sensor with care. Do not let water or milk wet the button sensor/switch. If the milk you are frothing threatens to overflow, quickly turn off the machine.

I was lucky. I cleaned the machine. Passed clear water through all the hidden areas that had been flooded with milk. I let it dry for two full days. It still works. What a relief.

2. Another warning: do not change settings by more than two and one is even wiser. I had heard this recommendation on a number of YouTube videos on the Breville Barista Touch. I did not listen. This was a mistake. 

I did not get enough gound coffee in my portafilter after grinding. So, what did I do? I increased the grind time by four seconds. During grinding, the portafilter with an installed basket overflowed. I had coffee grounds all over. I had to use the razor to accurately lower the height of ground coffee.

3. When purging the milk-frothing wand after use and after wiping the froth from the tip of the wand, catch the purged water in an empty cup. The Breville method of shooting the purging water through the hole below can be messy and risks wetting the stainless-steel button switch.

4. This sounds like it should be hard to do -- but it isn't. When first learning the ins and outs of using the Breville Barista Touch, it is all too easy to forget to click the filter basket into the porta filter. Without the basket, coffee grinds flow straight through the porta filter and make one heck of a mess. My wife was showing off her new machine to a neighbourhood friend. Her friend laughed. My wife didn't.

As I learn more, I will add to this post.