Adjusting the temperature on your Breville Barista Express can be a bit tricky. But sometimes you need to change it to get that perfect shot of espresso that is the right amount of bitter and not sour at all.
In this article, I’ll tell you exactly how to change the temperature and share some more tips about getting your espresso at the right temperature.
How To Change Temperature On The Breville Barista Express?
To change the temperature you first need to turn your Barista express off. Then hold the program button and press the power button once. Now you can change the temperature by pressing the two-cup button to increase it by 4 degrees, or the one-cup button to increase it by 2 degrees. Press the filter size button to decrease the temperature by 2 degrees and press the power button to decrease it by 4 degrees.
If you want to reset the temperature to the default setting, simply press the program button once.
| Action | Result |
| Hold the program button, press the power button once | Program mode |
| Program button | Reset to the default setting |
| Two cup button | + 4 Degrees |
| One cup button | + 2 Degrees |
| Filter size button | – 2 Degrees |
| Power button | – 4 Degrees |
Table of Contents
- How To Change Temperature On The Breville Barista Express?
- The Espresso Is Still Not Hot Enough
- What Is The Best Temperature To Use For An Espresso Shot?
- Conclusion
The Espresso Is Still Not Hot Enough
If you adjusted the temperature on your Breville Barista Express to plus four degrees and your espresso is still not hot enough, there could be a few different reasons for it. The first thing you want to do is:
Make Sure You Don’t Have a Broken Barista Express
The default factory setting temperature is around 195 to 200 degrees. That is the internal temperature of the machine. The coffee should then be around 185 once it’s in your cup.
If you’ve reset the temperature on your Breville Barista Express to the factory setting and the temperature of your coffee is not around 185. Then your Barista Express might be broken.
The best thing to do then is to call the Breville customer service. They might know a fix or they will send you a new machine if you’re still under guarantee.
Pre Heat Your Breville Barista Express
Normally you would turn on your Barista Express and wait a minute before you can brew an espresso. When you do this your espresso should be around 180 degrees in the cup.
I’ve tried waiting 30 minutes before using the machine. Then before brewing an espresso first let some water run through to heat up the portafilter and all the elements in the machine.
After I did that the espresso was around 185 to 190 degrees in the cup. so this method might also work for you, although you need a bit more patience before you can enjoy an espresso.
Pre Heat Your Cup
Another easy hack to get your coffee just a bit warmer is to preheat your cup. This will also keep your coffee warmer when you’re drinking it.
When I first let the water run through the machine to preheat it, I just put my cup already under it to let that water pre-heat the cup. Then you can throw the water in the sink and brew espresso.
What Is The Best Temperature To Use For An Espresso Shot?
A lot comes down to personal preference when deciding what the best temperature is for you.
Although the ratio between the amount of coffee and water used has the most impact on the flavor of espresso. Just like the water pressure in your Barista Express, the temperature in your machine also has some impact on the taste.
A good rule of thumb is, that the higher the temperature of the water the more flavor it will extract from the coffee.
Most people would therefore like an espresso that is a bit hotter, as it will be a bit stronger that way. But it could also be that the espresso will then be a bit too strong and bitter for your liking.
A lot of it also comes down to the kind of coffee bean you use. In general, if you use dark roast coffee beans you want the temperature to be anywhere from 185 to 195 degrees Fahrenheit.
For medium roast coffee beans, I would go somewhere between 190 to 200 degrees. For lighter espresso roasts I would go up to anywhere from 195 to 205 degrees.
Of course, these are all some ballpark numbers. You can only figure this out by trying out some different temperatures on your Breville Barista Express.
Conclusion
Getting the right temperature to your liking can be challenging. As I said, the best way to find the right temperature for you is to try out a few different settings. To recap, here is how you change the temperature on your Breville Barista Express step by step:
- Turn off your espresso machine
- Hold the program button and press the power button once
- Press the two-cup button to increase the temp by 4 degrees
- Press the one-cup button to increase the temperature by 2 degrees
- Press the filter size button to decrease the temperature by 2 degrees
- Press the power button to decrease the temperature by 4 degrees
- Press the program button to reset the temperature to the default setting
I hope this article helped you to get the perfect temperature for brewing a nice espresso!
Thanks for reading!