Understanding Bars of PressureĮspresso is a brew method that uses pressure to force water through a coffee puck.
I’ll also explain how differences in pressure affect the final flavor of your shot. I’ll explore why 9 bar is the industry standard pressure rating. But do you always need 9 bars? What about 15-bar machines? This, in turn, leads to even extraction of the rich flavors locked in the espresso grounds.
Under the right circumstances (9 bar of pressure), pressure creates an ideal water flow rate through an espresso puck. Why is pressure so fundamental to brewing espresso, and what are the ideal bars of pressure for espresso brewing? Without pressure forcing water through the grounds, it might as well be a really small pour-over. Pressure is what makes espresso what it is.
