Originally Posted by
Lemond1985
I had to buy some special short cups for mine, I only had one cup short enough to fit under the machine, but it barely fit, and I couldn't see how much espresso was coming out. So I started timing the shots to 10 seconds.
That worked OK. But what I ultimately ended up doing was getting a set of short clear demitasse cups, so I can see how fast the cup is filling up. With my machine, sometimes you get the steam all at once, and sometimes you have to wait a few seconds. Worst thing you can do with your shots is let 'em run too long, they end up tasting watery.
I already had short cups, no problem there. I tried some pre-ground for espresso stuff from my local shop and it yielded very smooth espresso but did run long - 45 sec. or so for a double shot. It looks like it's ground too fine (to me). Tastes great, though.
Anyway, I'm 5 shots (2 doubles and a single) and I've been up less than 2 hours and slightly wired. I may have to grind up some decaf espresso beans.