Bean-to-Cup Machine Setup & Dial-In Guide

​Bringing a bean-to-cup machine home is a game-changer for convenience, but getting barista-quality flavor requires a little initial setup. Because our coffee is roasted fresh to order, it behaves differently than stale, supermarket beans.

​Follow this straightforward guide to set up your machine, lock in the perfect extraction, and match it with the right tools.

​1. Initial Machine Preparation

​Before you pour in your first bag of fresh beans, complete these foundational steps:

• ​Water Filtration: Always use a water filter. If your machine came with a cartridge for the water tank, install it now. Coffee is 98% water; filtering out chlorine and heavy minerals protects your machine from limescale and makes your coffee taste infinitely cleaner.
• ​Check the Water Hardness: Most machines include a paper test strip. Dip it in your tap water and program the results into your machine’s settings menu. This tells the machine how often it needs to run a descaling cycle.
• ​The First Run: Fill the water tank, turn the machine on, and run 2 or 3 cycles of hot water through the coffee spout and steam wand without any coffee. This primes the internal boiler and flushes out any manufacturing dust.

​2. The Golden Rule for Fresh Beans: The Rest Period

​Stop! Before you dump that freshly roasted bag into the hopper, check the Roast Date on the back.

​When coffee is roasted, carbon dioxide gas gets trapped inside the beans. Supermarket coffee sits on shelves for months, so it has already lost this gas (and most of its flavor). Our beans are fresh. If you put them into a bean machine immediately, the trapped gas will cause the coffee to explode with foam, resulting in a thin, watery, and sour espresso.

​The Resting Window: For bean-to-cup machines, let your whole beans rest in their sealed bag for 7 to 14 days from the roast date before pouring them into the hopper. This allows the beans to degas, ensuring a smooth flow, rich body, and a thick, stable crema.

​3. Dialing In the Grind Size

​Most bean-to-cup machines feature a physical grind adjustment dial inside or right next to the bean hopper. Crucial rule: Only adjust the grind dial while the grinder is actively running. Turning the dial while the burrs are stationary can wedge a bean between them and jam the motor.

​Because fresh beans are dense and full of flavor, you need to find the sweet spot:

• ​Too Coarse: Water rushes through the coffee too fast. The stream looks pale and watery, and the coffee tastes sour, thin, and weak.
  • ​The Fix: Turn the dial down to a smaller number (finer grind).
• ​Too Fine: The machine struggles to push water through. The coffee drips out painfully slow or stops completely. The taste will be intensely bitter, burnt, and dry.
  • ​The Fix: Turn the dial up to a larger number (coarser grind).
• ​Just Right: The coffee flows in a steady, smooth stream that looks like warm, runny honey. It should have a rich, hazelnut-colored crema on top and a balanced, sweet flavor.

​Tip: Change the grind setting by just one notch at a time, then make 2 or 3 coffees to let the machine clear out the old grind size before judging the taste.

​4. Programming the Strength and Volume

​Most modern machines let you adjust the "strength" (which controls how many grams of coffee the machine grinds per cup) and the "volume" (how much water passes through).

• ​Set the Coffee Strength to High: Because bean-to-cup machines grind and tamp automatically, they typically use less coffee per shot than a commercial barista would. To get a rich, full-bodied espresso or americano, set your machine's bean/strength indicator to its maximum or second-highest setting.
• ​Keep Espresso Volumes Short: A standard espresso should be around 35ml to 45ml. If you want a larger drink, do not pass more water through the same coffee grounds (this extracts bitter, woody flavors). Instead, brew a short double espresso and add hot water from a kettle to create an Americano.

​5. Maintenance & Sundries

​Freshly roasted coffee contains beautiful natural oils. Over time, these oils build up inside the grinder and the brewing unit, turning rancid and making your coffee taste bitter.

• ​Daily: Empty the coffee puck drawer and rinse the drip tray.
• ​Weekly: Open the side door of the machine, remove the central "brewing unit" (the plastic mechanism that presses the coffee), and rinse it under warm tap water. Let it air dry completely before popping it back in. Never use soap or dishwashers, as this strips away food-safe mechanical grease.
• ​Essential Sundries: Check out our Sundries section for specialized bean-to-cup cleaning tablets, descaling solutions, and microfibre cloths to keep your setup pristine and your coffee tasting exactly as our roaster intended.