Just got the Oracle and dialing it in. I’d like to see a video like this but set ( in advanced menu) to volume instead of time.. Loving it.. best coffee ever!!!!
I've noticed that depending on the beans being used (regular vs. decaf and one brand vs. another brand) that the coarseness setting needs to change in order to get a perfect shot.
Yes.. this is a real pain everytime you switch beans...Even though I got the right volume on my shot - the 2nd batch of beans was more sour than the first... takes 1/3 of a bag to figure out how to get a good cup of coffee. sigh... perhaps espresso and these machines is not for me!!
Agreed! It is amazing how different the extraction times can be with different beans. I’ve had 10 seconds difference with different beans and all other settings equal
Hi Phil. Thank you for your practical advice. So how you adjust Oracle if you want single shot only for the best results. Although I understand that little tweaks can be very personal depending on preference? Many thanks for you reply. Best regards Joe
I just picked up this machine (Breville - The Oracle BES980XL) today. My last machine was a Jura that broke down about once a year. After a few annual visits to the Jura hospital at $350 a pop, I decided to give this one a try instead. Let's see how it goes.
After day one I am a little surprised to say that I never made it past the espresso stage. Once getting the grind right, the shots are flowing like warm honey. Each shot is a slow steady stream with no breaks between the portafilter and cup. I started out taking small sips of each shot to help gauge the differences in taste after each adjustment. However, as the grind was approaching prefect, I could no longer take just a sip. Needless to say, I was wired all day.
I have this machine, grind changes every time you use the machine, set it to 60ml/sec sec on a grind setting then come back 4hrs later and it's incorrect. Awaiting Breville to call back and give me some tips
My grind number changes constantly. I have the Oracle Touch. If I set it to 18, it will randomly go down to a 17 later at some point, maybe after leaving it on 30 minutes or might happen if I turn it off and back on
Very useful video but it's missing one critical component: The grind quantity in grams! That can make a huge difference! On a Breville machine you want to grind between 8 and 10 grams for a single shot and 16 to 20 grams for a double shot (use a scale.) In this video they used a double shot which explains why it took over 10 seconds for extraction to begin. With a single shot it will be more around 5 seconds. Speaking from experience as a Breville Barista owner.
Hi Phil, what if you have the grind down to 1 the tamp & pressure at max & the coffee is still runny? it happens with some coffee brands that I've bought
TheCrykster yeah that usually means the beans are super stale. Try to find a local roaster, that sells coffee marked with the date they were roasted. You want to start using them 5 days after roasting, and finish them between 10-14 days after roasting.
We are having this trouble too. Definitely not stale beans, we have bought Campos beans and then we tried another well known brand same thing it’s just pouring through and it’s set on number 2 grind.
I have the oracle and I’m grinding on setting 6 which seems too fine. But any higher the shot is either channeling or too course. I’m hearing that usually settings 15-20 are most common. Would you say I’m experiencing channeling or it’s too course?
I have seen other reviews and they have said that the Tamp presure can also be easily changed However it your video you say ONLY the grind can be changed to get the correct shot....Please clarify??????
Hi there. You can change the tamp pressure on the BES980, but the preferred method to get the correct extraction is to change the grind size. The tamp pressure is best left at the factory setting.
Got the machine for a couple months. From my perspective mine doesn't produce enough pressure (I guess). The reason I say that is when I'm using freshly roasted beans (from the local coffee shop), I set the grinder to the most coarse setting (I guess it's 45), I set the tamp pressure to 1 (which is minimum) and I still barely getting 20-30ml (in each measuring cup, so 40-60ml in total) when I do the exact same test as shown on the video. Even with that crazy settings the coffee started to drip around 8-9 seconds. The only way for me to overfill the measuring cups is to have the empty portafiller :) Is there a way to test the pressure? If someone has the same machine - can you test how much water it is using when you used double shot button with an empty portafiller? I would appreciate any comments.
Nobody can get constant extraction on single Espresso. Huge Challenge for Profi Baristas too. Its physically simply not possible. Not bad Coffee necessary, but no way to get constant Results.
Hi Phil, not sure if you watch the comments but I'll ask anyway. I have a new Barista touch and no matter what I try it start pouring in 3 sec!! I even used dual wall filter with fine grind settings.
Definitely need fresh beans from a local brewery. Most supermarkets have stale beans which is ok for regular drip coffee but not expresso shots. I had the same problem probably spent 100 dollars on different coffees until I found a local coffee roaster and problem solved.
My shot starts coming out at 9 seconds but it lasts way past 30 seconds (on the two shot button). On the one shot button, I get very little volume coming out. Not sure what is going on with my Oracle.
Hoping there a few lurkers here. I have had the machine for a bout 6 weeks and the first couple of weeks were excellent. But I strongly suspect my grinder is no longer working correctly. If i grind at 35 versus grind at 10 its still pulling the exact same under extracted shot! Starts pour at 8 and i have to stop the shot at around 23 secs (double shot). I have upped the tamp pressure from the default 5 to 7 and that is now producing a decent shot (but hard to discard the use puck from portafilter). Does anyone have any thoughts on if upping the tamp pressure is an acceptable compensation for the grind?
Hi. I’ve just bought some freshly roasted bean. Now I’ve adjusted the grind tamp settings and pre infusion. It’s just dripping out only getting around 5 ml. Can anyone help please
The beans must be ground and used only after the 5th day past the roast date. Only then should you set the coarseness of the grind, not before. Also, it is best not to use them more than 14 days past the roast date. So you roughly have a window of 10 days to grind and use the beans. Say the roast date is on the 1st of the month, well then they should be ready for grinding on the 5th, 6th or even 7th of the month and then be finished (all ground and expressed bit by bit) within 10 days after the first grind date. It's best to buy small quantities at a time.
I wish I liked this machine better, but I would never buy this unit again. Sent 1st machine back 4 times for service! They finally sent me a new machine, which was also broken (while plugged in and off... would make crazy, loud electrical clicking noises). Sent it back to get 'fixed' and after a few months of use, machine now overheats to the point you can't use it - it won't brew; Breville refuses to help me anymore. I went into 'service' mode - hold down both sing & double shot buttons while turning on the power and found 10 fault codes out of 32 recorded. Can't believe how many people give this machine a good review.
Still, it looks a bit pissy at 30s and 60ml from an 18ml basket is a bit much. I guess it depends on how oily the beans are and how dark they were roasted too.
I have this machine. I always make one double shot for me and one for my wife. Funnily first shot comes out perfect and the second shot with the same grind setting comes out too fast, why is this?
Check the grind of the shots. If the second one looks coarser than the first there is something going on with the grind and tamping so you can look at fixing it at that end. If they look identical in coarseness and density then the pressure of the second shot is somehow punching through the puck easier which could be a few things.
Worst machine ever for the price. Totally messed up within 3-4 years only and now Breville and it’s horrible support wants me to pay 400$ to get it fixed... Should have bought separates rather than a crappy all in one.
Just got the Oracle and dialing it in. I’d like to see a video like this but set ( in advanced menu) to volume instead of time..
Loving it.. best coffee ever!!!!
Great help for my new sage oracle. Thanks & merry Christmas
You CAN change the tamp force and time, including the perfusion timing too, so 2 out of 3 is probably not always correct.
I've noticed that depending on the beans being used (regular vs. decaf and one brand vs. another brand) that the coarseness setting needs to change in order to get a perfect shot.
Yes.. this is a real pain everytime you switch beans...Even though I got the right volume on my shot - the 2nd batch of beans was more sour than the first... takes 1/3 of a bag to figure out how to get a good cup of coffee. sigh... perhaps espresso and these machines is not for me!!
Agreed! It is amazing how different the extraction times can be with different beans. I’ve had 10 seconds difference with different beans and all other settings equal
Hi Phil. Thank you for your practical advice. So how you adjust Oracle if you want single shot only for the best results. Although I understand that little tweaks can be very personal depending on preference? Many thanks for you reply. Best regards Joe
Should the start of the flow change when pre-infusion is on/off?
I just picked up this machine (Breville - The Oracle BES980XL) today. My last machine was a Jura that broke down about once a year. After a few annual visits to the Jura hospital at $350 a pop, I decided to give this one a try instead. Let's see how it goes.
After day one I am a little surprised to say that I never made it past the espresso stage. Once getting the grind right, the shots are flowing like warm honey. Each shot is a slow steady stream with no breaks between the portafilter and cup. I started out taking small sips of each shot to help gauge the differences in taste after each adjustment. However, as the grind was approaching prefect, I could no longer take just a sip. Needless to say, I was wired all day.
David Holt can i ask what grind setting you use? I cant seem to find the perfect setting.
@@DavidHoltUSA what do you think about this machine after 7 years?
Still running the machine Dave?
@@2017-f4r Dave is still wired up making espressos but can't answer :).
Can we weigh the espresso liquid instead? What's the ideal weight in grams for a single basket, double basket or using Breville's naked portafilter?
Cheers, I have a Sage oracle but the settings are the same. 👍
9 and 14 seconds to get the first drop. But that is based on what preinfusion time? I'm assuming longer preinfusion changes those numbers?
What’s more important to get close to the taste profile - volume or weight (2x the grind weight) of the shot?
Weight would be the most accurate
Overextracting with a wet puck using freshly roasted beans. Upper burr is set at 6 and changed it to 5. Should I adjust upper burr to 3 or 4?
I have this machine, grind changes every time you use the machine, set it to 60ml/sec sec on a grind setting then come back 4hrs later and it's incorrect. Awaiting Breville to call back and give me some tips
My grind number changes constantly. I have the Oracle Touch. If I set it to 18, it will randomly go down to a 17 later at some point, maybe after leaving it on 30 minutes or might happen if I turn it off and back on
Very useful video but it's missing one critical component: The grind quantity in grams! That can make a huge difference! On a Breville machine you want to grind between 8 and 10 grams for a single shot and 16 to 20 grams for a double shot (use a scale.) In this video they used a double shot which explains why it took over 10 seconds for extraction to begin. With a single shot it will be more around 5 seconds. Speaking from experience as a Breville Barista owner.
who would ever make a single shot?
Wow very nice video!
Great video fun and informative thank you
Hi Phil,
what if you have the grind down to 1 the tamp & pressure at max & the coffee is still runny?
it happens with some coffee brands that I've bought
That's because the coffee beans that you've bought are stale. Always buy freshly roasted coffee or roast your own.
TheCrykster yeah that usually means the beans are super stale.
Try to find a local roaster, that sells coffee marked with the date they were roasted.
You want to start using them 5 days after roasting, and finish them between 10-14 days after roasting.
We are having this trouble too. Definitely not stale beans, we have bought Campos beans and then we tried another well known brand same thing it’s just pouring through and it’s set on number 2 grind.
Hmmm. Adding the preinfusion time to the 30 second shot duration.
Yes, never seen that!
That's exactly what I was going to say lol. His extraction is actually closer to 18 seconds not 30.... Very weird...
I have the oracle and I’m grinding on setting 6 which seems too fine. But any higher the shot is either channeling or too course. I’m hearing that usually settings 15-20 are most common. Would you say I’m experiencing channeling or it’s too course?
I have seen other reviews and they have said that the Tamp presure can also be easily changed However it your video you say ONLY the grind can be changed to get the correct shot....Please clarify??????
Hi there. You can change the tamp pressure on the BES980, but the preferred method to get the correct extraction is to change the grind size. The tamp pressure is best left at the factory setting.
@@BrevilleAustralia my oracle touch doesn't tamp well, it came out with the fan imprint, the machine is brand new, is this defact?
is the same ideia applys for other types of coffees like pumpking spices holyday spices etc....? @Breville Food Thinkers
thanks
Am I supposed to get 2x25ml (so around 50) when pulling a double espresso? I only get 32ml when pulling a double shot.
You grind setting may be too fine. You should be getting around 2x25 ml for a double shot. But most important thing is always the taste. ☕️
tamp force is changabale? on the menu it has a setting that is changed, whats up?
Got the machine for a couple months. From my perspective mine doesn't produce enough pressure (I guess). The reason I say that is when I'm using freshly roasted beans (from the local coffee shop), I set the grinder to the most coarse setting (I guess it's 45), I set the tamp pressure to 1 (which is minimum) and I still barely getting 20-30ml (in each measuring cup, so 40-60ml in total) when I do the exact same test as shown on the video. Even with that crazy settings the coffee started to drip around 8-9 seconds. The only way for me to overfill the measuring cups is to have the empty portafiller :) Is there a way to test the pressure? If someone has the same machine - can you test how much water it is using when you used double shot button with an empty portafiller? I would appreciate any comments.
What about single shot?
What about it?
Nobody can get constant extraction on single Espresso. Huge Challenge for Profi Baristas too. Its physically simply not possible. Not bad Coffee necessary, but no way to get constant Results.
Hi Phil, not sure if you watch the comments but I'll ask anyway. I have a new Barista touch and no matter what I try it start pouring in 3 sec!! I even used dual wall filter with fine grind settings.
Not enough ground coffee, not enough tamp pressure, old or crappy beans.
Definitely need fresh beans from a local brewery. Most supermarkets have stale beans which is ok for regular drip coffee but not expresso shots. I had the same problem probably spent 100 dollars on different coffees until I found a local coffee roaster and problem solved.
My shot starts coming out at 9 seconds but it lasts way past 30 seconds (on the two shot button). On the one shot button, I get very little volume coming out. Not sure what is going on with my Oracle.
Set the grindness to be coarser
Hoping there a few lurkers here. I have had the machine for a bout 6 weeks and the first couple of weeks were excellent. But I strongly suspect my grinder is no longer working correctly. If i grind at 35 versus grind at 10 its still pulling the exact same under extracted shot! Starts pour at 8 and i have to stop the shot at around 23 secs (double shot). I have upped the tamp pressure from the default 5 to 7 and that is now producing a decent shot (but hard to discard the use puck from portafilter). Does anyone have any thoughts on if upping the tamp pressure is an acceptable compensation for the grind?
Hi with different t coffee beans, may you have to adjust the grinder ?
Yes.
Always - even if same beans but diff roast on dates
whats the average grind most of you are using?
isn't this 60 ml in 30 seconds?
Justin Won change the beans to fresh one you'll have 30 ml
Hi. I’ve just bought some freshly roasted bean. Now I’ve adjusted the grind tamp settings and pre infusion. It’s just dripping out only getting around 5 ml. Can anyone help please
Let the beans 2 3 days and then use them.
The beans must be ground and used only after the 5th day past the roast date. Only then should you set the coarseness of the grind, not before. Also, it is best not to use them more than 14 days past the roast date. So you roughly have a window of 10 days to grind and use the beans. Say the roast date is on the 1st of the month, well then they should be ready for grinding on the 5th, 6th or even 7th of the month and then be finished (all ground and expressed bit by bit) within 10 days after the first grind date. It's best to buy small quantities at a time.
I wish I liked this machine better, but I would never buy this unit again. Sent 1st machine back 4 times for service! They finally sent me a new machine, which was also broken (while plugged in and off... would make crazy, loud electrical clicking noises). Sent it back to get 'fixed' and after a few months of use, machine now overheats to the point you can't use it - it won't brew; Breville refuses to help me anymore. I went into 'service' mode - hold down both sing & double shot buttons while turning on the power and found 10 fault codes out of 32 recorded. Can't believe how many people give this machine a good review.
Does that drop between 9 and 14 seconds include the pre-infusion time?
Yes
Still, it looks a bit pissy at 30s and 60ml from an 18ml basket is a bit much.
I guess it depends on how oily the beans are and how dark they were roasted too.
22 gr basket
I have this machine. I always make one double shot for me and one for my wife. Funnily first shot comes out perfect and the second shot with the same grind setting comes out too fast, why is this?
Check the grind of the shots. If the second one looks coarser than the first there is something going on with the grind and tamping so you can look at fixing it at that end. If they look identical in coarseness and density then the pressure of the second shot is somehow punching through the puck easier which could be a few things.
Sounds like you're not priming the machine before pulling the first shot.
Worst machine ever for the price. Totally messed up within 3-4 years only and now Breville and it’s horrible support wants me to pay 400$ to get it fixed... Should have bought separates rather than a crappy all in one.