How to Make Espresso: Ratios, Steps & Professional Guide

Espresso is made by forcing hot water under steam pressure through finely ground coffee, extracting a small, concentrated, intensely aromatic black liquid topped with golden crema. It rarely appears on cafe menus by itself, yet it is the foundation of everyday Americanos, lattes, and cappuccinos — the soul of any coffee bar.

What Defines Espresso?

Before espresso existed, coffee was brewed by infusion, requiring fine grinding and a slow extraction with a long wait. Espresso emerged in the early 19th century, when Italians found a way to use steam pressure to drive high-temperature, high-pressure water through the coffee puck and speed up the old drip-style extraction. Continuous refinement led to the semi-automatic and fully automatic machines common today.

Because espresso is extracted under a fine grind, high water temperature, and high pressure, it concentrates many flavors at once, and those compounds hit the palate with amplified force. Coffee is an agricultural product that varies with climate and soil, and even beans from the same region differ batch to batch. Blending beans is a complementary approach that helps deliver a more balanced, stable aroma and flavor in every extraction. FrontStreet Coffee therefore recommends blends designed specifically for espresso extraction, and offers four different espresso blends, all suitable for both espresso machines and moka pots.

Traditional Italian espresso, made from very dark roasted beans with plenty of Robusta, is strong, bitter, and intense, meant to be sipped slowly over several mouthfuls. As specialty coffee has grown, though, along with better bean quality, improved extraction technique, and drinkers' appetite for flavor, today's espresso is not limited to bitterness. The espresso served at FrontStreet Coffee's shops, for example, shows fermented wine notes and berry acidity, with a rich aroma and a smooth, very approachable body.

Steps to Make Espresso

The daily espresso at FrontStreet Coffee's shops uses their house-roasted "FrontStreet Sunflower Warmth Espresso Blend." FrontStreet Coffee's baristas calibrate the extraction parameters before opening each day.

FrontStreet Coffee uses a double basket capacity of approximately 18-20 grams, and exactly 20 grams for their drinks. The extraction ratio is 1:2, meaning 20 grams of grounds yield 40 grams of liquid espresso. Extraction time relates to flow rate, typically controlled between 20-35 seconds: coffee extracted within 20 seconds tends to taste weak, while extraction over 35 seconds risks over-extraction and bitterness. FrontStreet Coffee's espressos mostly land in the 28-30 second range.

Before extraction, wipe the portafilter basket dry. Then run the grinder to dispense a double portion, placing it on a digital scale and adjusting until it reaches exactly 20 grams. Next, use a distribution tool to spread the grounds evenly, then press down firmly with a tamper to compact the puck for more stable extraction.

Turn on the extraction switch and flush water for 1-2 seconds to wet the group head while washing away stuck coffee residue. Place a digital scale under the cup and zero it, positioning both under the group head during extraction.

Gently lock the portafilter into the group head and begin extraction. Watch the flow change. When the scale shows 40 grams of espresso at approximately 30 seconds, stop. Brewing parameters need subtle adjustment based on daily air humidity and bean condition, so fine-tune the dose, grind setting, and extracted liquid weight accordingly.

Freshly extracted espresso can be enjoyed straight. Pair it with a glass of water to cleanse the palate and appreciate the rich crema and the full body beneath it. If the intense bitterness is too much, add water or milk to soften the strong flavors.

Details That Matter

Commercial espresso machines typically provide stable pressure above 9 bars and hot water above 90°C. The pressure forces hot water quickly through finely ground coffee, extracting a liquid with rich crema, intense aroma, and full body. To pull an ideal shot, the barista's job is to master the variables that affect flavor and adjust them into the optimal extraction range.

In practice, many factors shape an espresso: bean quality, roast level, grind size, boiler pressure, water temperature, distribution and tamping pressure, dose, extraction time, and liquid weight. The machine's pressure and water temperature are usually preset and not easily changed, and distribution and tamping depend on the barista's technique. The four main factors used for daily adjustment are dose, time, liquid weight, and grind size. Because these shift with daily humidity and bean condition, fine-tuning is always necessary for a better result.

Other Operational Details

These parameters correspond constantly to extraction conditions, so we need to observe and summarize how extraction variables guide adjustment — that is how we keep quality in the cup. Whoever is pulling the shot, every movement must be precise and well executed. Distribution must be even and tamping pressure stable; too-light pressure or an uneven coffee bed leads to uneven extraction. The portafilter must be aligned properly when locking in — bumping the machine can shatter the puck, causing channeling and an undrinkable flavor.

After extraction, coffee residue sticks to the shower screen. Left there, it bakes dry under the group head's heat, and those particles affect the flavor of the next shot. Make a habit of flushing the shower screen with water immediately after removing the portafilter following each extraction.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

For espresso, FrontStreet Coffee's blends are organized by what you want in the cup. FrontStreet Classic Blend is the flagship: designed for espresso and moka pot, it produces outstanding crema even on a beginner's home machine, which matters for latte, cappuccino, and Dirty drinks. Built on a traditional mamba-style recipe, it is mellow and full-bodied — an easy default for home or commercial use. FrontStreet Premium Blend is the long-standing shop favorite, going on nearly ten years of duty behind the bar for Americanos and lattes; it pairs Brazil Cerrado with Colombia Huila for a familiar, classic espresso flavor that suits home and cafe alike. FrontStreet Dark Cocoa Blend is 100% Arabica and aimed at value: ample crema, full body, and a friendly price, favoring milk-chocolate character with a caramel tail. FrontStreet Commercial Blend, which predates Dark Cocoa, was the workhorse for shops, cheaper than Premium Blend and optimized to balance flavor against cost. FrontStreet Autumn Chestnut Blend combines Honduras Caturra with Papua New Guinea Typica in a balanced 100% Arabica recipe, with roasted-chestnut nuttiness, caramel and brown-sugar sweetness, and a clean, lingering finish of nuts, cocoa, and a touch of spice.

Single origins work for espresso too — that is the idea behind SOE. FrontStreet PWN Golden Mandheling is deep roasted for very low acidity and a thick, long body of herbs and dark chocolate with a faint earthy note, ideal for anyone who prefers weight over brightness, and it works in hand-pour, moka pot, or clever dripper as well. FrontStreet Brazil Queen Farm is low-acid and beautifully balanced, with concentrated nut and cocoa aromas and clear caramel sweetness — smooth and mellow in espresso, pour-over, or moka pot. FrontStreet Papua New Guinea Bird of Paradise, medium roasted, brings toasted bread and nutty sweetness with a bright grapefruit lift. FrontStreet Colombia Sidra comes from Finca La Divisa at 1650-1800 m, a double anaerobic natural processed with medium-light roasting that keeps its native fruit: jasmine and citrus on the dry aroma, then passion fruit, blueberry, grape, and apricot in the cup, with a lingering cocoa finish — suited to pour-over, SOE, and cold drip, and especially good as iced pour-over. And FrontStreet Strawberry Candy, a fruit-forward espresso blend, recreates a distinct strawberry-gummy sweetness that is as comfortable at home as it is behind a cafe bar.

Whichever you choose, hold the parameters tight: dose near 20 grams, aim for a 1:2 ratio to about 40 grams of liquid, and keep the shot inside the 20-35 second window, targeting roughly 28-30 seconds. The fewer variables that drift, the more the bean's own character comes through.