How to Make an Espresso at Home: A Step-by-Step Guide
There's nothing quite like pulling a perfect shot of espresso — that rich, concentrated pour with a golden crema on top. The good news? You don't need a café to do it. With the right beans, grind, and technique, you can brew café-quality espresso at home. Here's how.
What You'll Need
- An espresso machine (or stovetop moka pot)
- Freshly roasted espresso-grind coffee
- A tamper
- Filtered water
- A kitchen scale (optional but recommended)
Step 1: Start with the Right Coffee
Espresso starts with the bean. You want a coffee that's roasted specifically for espresso — darker, with lower acidity and a bold, full-bodied flavour that cuts through milk beautifully. Our Jaques 1Kg Espresso Roast – Espresso Grind is ground to the perfect consistency for home espresso machines, so there's no guesswork involved.
Step 2: Dose Correctly
For a standard double shot (the café default), you want around 18–20g of ground coffee in your portafilter basket. Use a scale if you have one — consistency is the key to repeatable results.
Step 3: Tamp Evenly
Place your portafilter on a flat surface and press the tamper down firmly and evenly with about 8kg of pressure. An uneven tamp causes water to channel through the coffee unevenly, resulting in a weak or bitter shot. Aim for a level, polished puck.
Step 4: Preheat Everything
Run a blank shot (water only) through your machine before brewing. This heats the group head and portafilter, which makes a significant difference to extraction temperature and flavour consistency.
Step 5: Pull Your Shot
Lock the portafilter in and start your extraction. A well-pulled double shot should take 25–30 seconds and yield around 40–50ml of espresso. If it runs too fast (under 20 seconds), your grind is too coarse. Too slow (over 35 seconds)? Your grind is too fine.
Step 6: Assess and Adjust
Taste your shot. Good espresso should be:
- Sweet with a hint of chocolate or caramel
- Bold but not harsh or overly bitter
- Balanced — neither sour (under-extracted) nor astringent (over-extracted)
Adjust your grind size, dose, or extraction time until you hit that sweet spot.
No Espresso Machine? Try a Moka Pot
A stovetop moka pot is an affordable way to brew strong, espresso-style coffee at home. Fill the bottom chamber with hot water to just below the valve, add coffee to the filter basket (don't tamp), screw it together, and heat on medium-low. It won't produce true espresso pressure, but it makes a rich, concentrated brew that's excellent on its own or with milk.
Shop Our Espresso Range
Ready to start? Our Australian-grown espresso coffee is roasted in Mareeba, Far North Queensland — one of the country's premier coffee regions. Try the Jaques 1Kg Espresso Roast – Espresso Grind for machines, or the Whole Beans if you prefer to grind fresh.
Grown in Australia. Roasted with care. Brewed at home.
