What Does a "Shot" Mean in Espresso Coffee?

What is a "Shot" in Coffee?

Regular café patrons might occasionally hear unconventional orders like "Boss, I'll have a shot" or "Add a shot." This naturally sparks curiosity—what exactly is this "shot"? Since it's not on the menu, could it be some new specialty beverage like a Flat White or Dirty?

What Exactly is a "Shot"?

The term "shot" isn't exclusive to coffee shops—it's also a common term in bars! Typically, in bars, a shot refers to a small glass of spirits.

This drinking terminology became popular in the mid-20th century. When you order a shot, the bartender presents a one-ounce glass (shot glass) filled with spirits, which the customer drinks quickly before leaving. The purpose is to enjoy the stimulating effects of alcohol more quickly and affordably.

As an aside: A shot glass in bars refers to a one-ounce capacity glass, but British and American ounce measurements differ slightly. For example, one British ounce equals 28.41ml, while one American ounce equals 29.57ml. Since the international system uses milliliters for capacity, 30ml is used to represent one ounce. Therefore, one ounce equals approximately 30ml.

In coffee, a shot actually refers to espresso—one shot equals one serving of espresso! This makes sense, as espresso also has "effects" similar to spirits. Coincidentally, Italian espresso was originally positioned as a quick, affordable way to consume caffeine—a perfect parallel.

So we can understand that the term "shot" serves not just as a noun but also as a liquid measurement unit. However, it's important to know that in coffee, a shot isn't just about capacity and terminology.

How Much Espresso is in One Shot?

For a long time in the past, a coffee shot also referred to the standard extraction formula of the time, such as extracting 30ml of espresso from 7g of coffee grounds. Besides "one shot," there's another term—"Double shot," meaning double espresso. If a customer orders a Double shot, the shop would switch the portafilter, replacing the single portafilter with a double one, then extract 60ml of espresso using 14g of coffee grounds.

FrontStreet Coffee mentioned in a previous article that modern coffee shops普遍 use double portafilters as their standard for espresso extraction, with almost no shops using single portafilters anymore. Additionally, the coffee-to-liquid ratio has significantly decreased—for example, where 14g once extracted 60ml of espresso, now 19-20g of coffee grounds is commonly used to extract about 40ml of espresso (related to pressure).

This creates a somewhat awkward situation: If we use the portafilter as the unit for counting shots, then the portafilter currently used for service is a double, producing what would be considered a Double shot. If a customer orders a single shot, under reasonable extraction conditions, it would be approximately 20ml, making an already small amount of espresso seem pitifully small!

And if we measure by liquid volume—30ml for a single shot, 60ml for a double shot—then for customers who order a single shot, the shop would need to discard part of the espresso before serving it. For customers who order a Double shot, the shop would need to extract espresso twice and then remove most of it before serving. Either way, it's incredibly troublesome.

So, everyone began to reach a consensus! No longer applying past measurement methods to current extraction practices. When a customer orders a shot, they're directly served a complete espresso extracted with a double portafilter. If they order a Double shot, two separate espressos are extracted and given to the customer.

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