Do you have any thoughts yet on a one pull straight shot?
I do, in fact for the first two days that's all I pulled.
As I understand it, the PVL puts out .5oz per lever pull, to get the 1oz you see in the vid you need to pull the lever twice. But prior to any pulls you want to do a preinfusion to soak the coffee load, so you will see me pull the lever down and hold it for a 'passive' preinfusion (as I understand the term) which helps soak the coffee and prepares for the spring pressure load, this preinfusion will swell the coffee load and that's why grind/tamp is important as well as headspace in the basket. The preinfusion can last anywhere from 3 - 15secs depending on several factors. The other method of preinfusion is 'active' (as I understand the term) which involves more liberal use of lever pumping to not only introduce water but also to lightly pressurize it through the puck. Opinions are all over the ice on what works better and why and so on and so forth, which is what makes this so interesting.
But anyway, back to the 1 lever pull straight shot. The beauty of a .5oz shot is you can drink a pile of them. Understandably a one pull straight shot might be better using the single basket at approx 7-8gms per but I was going with the double basket at 12-14gms per and adjusting the grind/dose so that I was getting a decent shot without concerning myself too much about 'not extracting the coffee mass enough'. Overall it was a really fun time and I probably pulled 50 or 60+ shots before I went to the double lever pull (with preinfusion). I learned quite a bit about how to move the parameters around by using the double basket/single pull, one lever pull is doable but I think the PVL, based on it deep basket and narrow diameter, works better with the two lever pull at approx 1oz.
When comparing the same dose (lets use 13gms as an example) and comparing two shots against each other, one being a single lever pull and the other being a double lever pull, the requirement comes down to grind adjustment - a bit tighter for the double pull and a bit coarser for the single pull. Make sense?
The single pull, as you can imagine, is more intense and satisfying like wrapping a heavy robe around yourself, like a ristretto off a vibe pump... but not really, haha. The double pull is 'more open' and still satisfying but showing more breathing space and stage presence. Kind of like comparing a small chamber concert in a non-reflective surface antechamber vs. a larger concert with a three row stage setup in a taller ceiling space with maybe a window or two open to let a cross-breeze through. Not quite that extreme but it serves to illustrate what I've seen so far. Both have their pro's and con's, both have their place in the day or night and will resonate with your mood or need, fortunately the PVL seems to be able to provide which ever one you want. Or at least that's what I've seen so far but it's still early days... and really, what do I know I'm still a lever noob. ;-)
