With its space-saving advantage, the manual hand-press portable espresso machine has become the top choice for many coffee lovers on the go. Combining a pump lid, a hot water tank, and a portafilter bottom lid, it can hold 18–22g of coffee grounds, take in 120–180ml of 94°C hot water, and use a pressure regulating valve to freely adjust pressure within the 15–20bar range. This article starts with bean recommendations, detailing the flavor profiles of three beans: Front Street Classic Blend, Front Street Commercial Blend, and Front Street Strawberry Candy Espresso, then demonstrates the complete process step by step from loading grounds and pouring water to pressing and extracting, and finally uses 40ml of espresso with 200ml of hot milk to make a latte, testing the smoothness of the crema.

The most prominent advantage of the portable hand-press coffee machine is its compact size, which does not take up much space. Its structure consists of several core parts: a pump lid, a water tank for holding hot water, and a bottom lid that holds the coffee grounds and also serves as the outflow port. The portafilter basket can hold 18 to 22 grams of coffee grounds, while the water tank can be filled with 120 to 180 milliliters of hot water, with the recommended water temperature controlled at 94°C. A pressure regulating valve is installed at the bottom lid, allowing the user to adjust the extraction pressure as needed within the range of 15 to 20bar.

This hand-press coffee machine has a built-in pressure-boosting design, making it most suitable for pairing with medium-dark roasted espresso beans, fully bringing out rich crema and a full-bodied mouthfeel. If you prefer traditional-style Americano or latte, consider Front Street Classic Blend or Front Street Commercial Blend. During extraction, these two beans release aromas of butter, nuts, spices, and dark chocolate. Their wild flavor direction and abundant crema are their most distinctive labels, and the rich, heavy drinking experience is also the most memorable.

In addition, the fruit-forward Front Street Strawberry Candy Espresso is also very suitable for extraction with a portable hand-press coffee machine. Under pressure boosting, the coffee presents rose floral notes, and when made into an Americano or latte, you can also taste layers of grape, dried blueberry, sweet orange, and fruit candy, with a rather unique mouthfeel.

Step one: load 20 grams of ground coffee into the portafilter basket.

Then spread the grounds evenly and tamp them down, then screw the portafilter basket onto the water tank, making sure to tighten it firmly into place.

Then pour in 120 milliliters of 94°C hot water, put on the lid, and all preparation before extraction is complete.

Next comes the formal extraction stage. Press continuously several times at an even rhythm until the target amount of coffee liquid is extracted, then stop.

After pressing continuously for about 20 seconds, the coffee begins to drip out drop by drop, accompanied by a very thick layer of crema.

When the coffee liquid reaches the preset weight, you can stop.

Drunk straight, the performance was unexpectedly good, completely lacking the thinness and weakness I had imagined; instead, it was rich in style, with a quite solid body, and the overall effect was very close to an espresso made by an espresso machine.

Then why not make a milk coffee to test the smoothness of the crema. Use the regular latte ratio, that is, 1:5, with 40 milliliters of espresso paired with 200 milliliters of hot milk.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.