If you’re not on the hunt for a replacement espresso tamper you may just be looking for an upgrade.
If you’re anything like me and appreciate good design and style then something as small as a handcrafted espresso tamper can really change how you feel about making your morning coffee.
My home espresso machine had an upgrade to a quality coffee tamper as soon as it arrived.
I’m Tom and I have been working in the coffee industry for over 10 years, starting my journey as a barista in Australia, working on coffee farms in South America and roasting coffee in The UK.
Today I review and write about speciality coffee. I am the founder of Batch Coffee Subscription Club, which showcases the very best coffee from around the world.
The basket size of portafilters will differ between various coffee machine brands.
They range from 49mm in diameter to 59mm.
You may also be able to slightly alter the basket size of your machine.
We would advise measuring your basket first before purchasing a tamper. Once you have the diameter of your basket you need to look for a tamper that is slightly smaller so it will fit inside.
If your basket measures 54mm then a 53mm tamper should be fine.
Be aware also that some smaller single shot baskets can be tapered which will mean you’ll need an even smaller tamper.
Here are some popular machines with a recommended coffee tamper sizes:
Release the base of the tamper using an Allen key on the side of the top layer.
There are millimetre increments displayed running down the base, you can then adjust to 0.1 of a millimetre by aligning the marker to one of ten marks on the bottom of the tamper.
The push coffee tamper ensures a perfect tamp every time. Once you have pulled a perfect espresso you can rest assured that the tamping variable will not alter with the next shot.
You can personalise your push tamper plus they come in a variety of cool colours.
Push tampers do come in at an extremely high price. One that will be out of the majority of budgets, however, if you are looking for a top of the range espresso tamper this is your guy!
The range of rhino products has been gracing the work-surfaces of coffee bars for a few years now.
As the name suggests their products are tough and hard-wearing, they are made to last and can withstand even the roughest of baristas.
The Rhino coffee tamper has a weighted stainless steel base that screws into an aluminium handle. The no-nonsense design and solid structure results in an espresso presser that you can trust every day.
Ninth Phase, are passionate about coffee and dedicated to providing baristas and home enthusiasts alike with the best possible tools to create a perfect cup of coffee.
Their coffee tampers are designed and manufactured in the UK using only the highest quality materials and precision engineering to deliver a superior experience.
One of the unique features of Ninth Phase coffee tampers is the range of sizes they offer.
They understand that different espresso machines have different portafilter sizes, which is why we offer a wide variety of sizes to accommodate all types of machines from 49MM through to 58.5MM.
Whether you’re using a commercial machine or a home espresso maker, Ninth Phase have a tamper that’s perfect for you.
The Concept Art Technic Dynamometric Tamper has been engineered to give you the flexibility of altering the pressure you exert when tamping.
This guy is a calibrated coffee tamper, which works by adjusting the central screw inside the core of the tamper. When you have decided on how much pressure you would like (the range is from 8kg to 21kg), lock the screw in place and tamp your puck.
When you reach the pressure desired the tamper will automatically trigger a click release to alert you.
The tamper can be purchased just as the handle with various sizes and styles of the base depending on the diameter of your portafilter basket.
Like the look of the Concept Art calibrated espresso tamper?
Grind the coffee into the basket and using your middle finger level out the ground coffee creating a flatbed of untamped coffee.
Pick the tamper up so the handle sits in the middle of your palm and your thumb, index finger and middle finger grip the base of the tamper with equal width apart.
Press the tamper into the flatbed of coffee grounds and use your fingers and thumb to make sure the bed is level.
Apply enough force so the coffee is pressed into shape rather than forced.
The idea is to create an even bed of coffee that water can still pass through.
Once you have applied the pressure twist the tamper around 90 degrees using your fingers and thumb running flush against the rim of the basket.
How Hard Do You Need To Tamper Coffee?
The tamping pressure should be around 25 pounds/12kg of force (this is the standard force but is pretty random as not many people have any perception of quantifying their downward force).
In simple terms it needs to be pressed into shape rather than forced, otherwise, the water will not be able to pass through the coffee.
Why Do You Need To Tamper Coffee?
If you don’t tamp coffee then the grounds will be unevenly spread as well as unevenly and insufficiently packed.
The hot water that passes through the coffee will do so too quickly and you will result in a weak under-extracted coffee.
How Much Pressure Should I Use To Tamp Coffee?
The recommended that you use 25 pounds/12kg of force (this is the standard force but is pretty random as not many people have any perception of quantifying their downward force).
In simple terms it needs to be pressed into shape rather than forced, otherwise the water will not be able to pass through the coffee.
Can You Tamp Coffee Too Hard?
Yes, absolutely.
If you tamp the coffee too hard and apply too much pressure the coffee grinds will be packed too tight and the brew water will not be able to pass through the bed of espresso.
This will either result in a very small amount of espresso dripping through or even no espresso.
What Makes A Good Coffee Tamper?
It really depends on your preference and machine. For me though, you should firstly look at the weight and if the tamper feels robust.
Although you don’t want the tamper to weigh a ton, you still want it to be solid and to bear enough weight onto the coffee grounds so you don’t have to exert yourself too much on each tamp.
You should look for the material to be solid and the fewer breakable, moving parts the better.
What Is A Coffee Puck?
We refer to a coffee puck as the used espresso grounds that are still in the portafilter basket after a shot has been extracted.
Normally the coffee puck is discarded and emptied into the espresso knock box/knock tube and collected with all the other used coffee grounds.
If you brew Aeropress, you will obtain a very similar looking coffee puck after brewing.
Why Is The Coffee Puck Wet?
If the puck appears too wet it means that the brew water has not been able to permeate the coffee grounds in the basket. This could be down to a few reasons. Firstly, the coffee could have been tamped too hard. The coffee in the basket will therefore be too compact and the water will not be able to pass through as freely.
The grind size may also be too fine and therefore too compact again resulting in excess water on top of the coffee puck after the coffee has been extracted.
A few other variables that may affect this is your dose, if there is too much coffee in the basket water may not be able to pass through in time.
Also the water temperature may be the issue, espresso should be brewed at around 93 to 96 degrees.
If you have excess water on top of your coffee puck after making an espresso, try to change one of these variables at a time.
25% OFF YOUR FIRST BOX?
Sign up and we’ll send you a code for 25% off your first box in a coffee subscription.
Manage Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
