Rocket Fuel | Coffee SOP

Quick card · read this if you read nothing else

The short version

Flip the power switch up. Wait for the blinking to stop.
Weigh 18 g of beans. Every time.
Check the hopper reads 3.7. Then pour beans in and grind. Never twist the hopper with beans inside.
Level the coffee, tamp straight down.
Flush, lock in, pull to 36 g in the cup.
Clean now. Knock out the puck, wipe the basket, flush the group head 3–5 seconds.
For milk: press the steam button, wait for the blinking to stop again.
Wand into the milk first, then pull the lever. Lever back before you lift it out.
Wrap the wand in a damp towel, wipe it, then flush it again.
Rinse the pitcher. Wipe the counter.

Stop

If anything feels stuck, jammed, or wrong — do not force it. Come find Luke or Roxi, or message @earnedcoffee on Instagram.

Rule 01

Never turn the hopper with beans inside

There is no dial. The hopper itself is the adjustment — you twist it, and the burrs move underneath.

Twisting it with beans inside drags the burrs through whole beans and chips them. Only twist when the hopper is empty, slowly, a little at a time.

Our setting is 3.7. If you move it, put it back to 3.7 before you walk away.

Fig. 1 — The hopper is the adjustment. The only safe moment to twist it is when it is empty.

Also

The hopper holds 30 g. Do not pile it in.
Grinding back to back? Stop at 60 seconds and rest it 90.
Pale, light-roast beans strain the burrs. Feed them slowly.

Photo slot A

The hopper and its number ring From above, sitting on 3.7, so people see where to put it back.

Rule 02

Ready for espresso is not ready for milk

The machine warms up twice. Once for water, once for steam.

Both work the same way: the buttons blink while it heats and stop when it is ready. Do not press anything while they blink.

Part one

Making the espresso

Turn the machine on

Flip the power switch up.
The buttons start blinking. Wait.
Blinking stops — ready to pull a shot.

Not ready for milk yet. That is a separate wait — see Part two.

Photo slot B

The button panel, with the steam button circled Straight-on shot. Circle the steam button, arrow to the power switch.

Weigh the beans

Cup on the scale, press tare.
Add 18 g of whole beans. Not 17, not 20.
Tip them into the grinder.

Weigh every time. Eyeballing it is why the coffee changes from person to person.

Grind

Run it until it sounds empty.
Tap it to shake loose what is stuck.
Tip all of it into the basket.

Level it and tamp

Stir out the clumps so the top looks even.
Tamp straight down. Firm and flat.
Check from the side. One side higher? Dump it, start over.
Wipe the rim.

Water takes the easy route. A sloped bed makes a sour, thin shot.

Fig. 2 — The coffee bed, seen from the side.

Pull the shot

Flush the group head for 2–3 seconds.
Lock the portafilter in. Firm, do not crank it.
Cup on the scale under the spout, press tare.
Press brew. It should flow like warm honey.
Stop at the target below.

Style	Beans in	Espresso out	Time	Tastes like
Short house standard	18 g	36 g	25–30 s	Thicker and sweeter. Best under milk.
Long lungo	18 g	40–45 g	30–35 s	Lighter, closer to a small filter coffee.

Not sure? Use 36 g.

If it came out wrong

What happened	What to change
Ran fast, tastes sour or thin	Grind finer next time
Ran slow, tastes bitter or burnt	Grind coarser next time

Empty the hopper first. Twist a little at a time, then put it back to 3.7.

Clean up right now

Take the portafilter out and knock the puck into the knock box.
Wipe the basket with a clean towel, or rinse it under the tap. No grounds left anywhere.
Flush the group head: press an espresso button and let water run for 3–5 seconds.
Lock the portafilter back in so it stays hot.

Ten seconds now. Five minutes with a scrubber later.

Before you touch the milk

Do step 06 first, every time. Once you start steaming you will forget, and by then the coffee has baked on.

Part two

Steaming the milk

Switch to steam mode

Portafilter clean and back in? Good. If not, go back to step 06.
Press the steam button — fourth from the left.
The buttons blink again. Normal.
When they stop, it can steam.

Get the milk ready

Cold milk from the fridge. Cold buys you time.
Fill to the bottom of the spout. About one third.
Never re-steam milk. Pour leftovers out.

Steam it

Flush the wand first. Point it into the drip tray, pull the lever toward you for a second, push it back. That clears the water sitting inside.
Put the wand in the milk before you pull the lever. Tip just under the surface, off to one side. Never open the steam with the wand in the air.
Now pull the lever toward you.
Stretch, 3–5 seconds. Listen for a soft tearing-paper sound. That is air going in.
Spin, the rest. Push the pitcher up so the tip goes deeper. It goes quiet and the milk turns like a whirlpool.
Stop when the pitcher is too hot to hold. If it burns, you went too far.
Push the lever back before you lift the wand out. Lift it out first and you spray hot milk across the whole counter.

Fig. 3 — Where the wand tip sits, and when.

Clean the wand right now

Take a damp cotton towel and wrap it around the wand. Wipe all the milk off the outside.
Keep the towel around it, point it into the drip tray, and pull the lever again for 2–3 seconds.
Push the lever back. Done.

That is two flushes: one before the milk, one after. The second one is the one people skip, and it is why a wand starts to smell.

Finish the milk

Tap the pitcher to pop big bubbles.
Swirl until it looks like wet paint. It will have settled while you cleaned the wand, so swirl it properly.
Then pour.

Part three

Pouring a heart

Nobody gets this on the first try. Or the tenth. Pour it anyway — a flat white with no picture still tastes fine.

The pour

Swirl the espresso so the top is smooth.
Tilt the cup toward you.
Start high. Hold the spout a hand's width above and pour a thin stream into the middle. From up high the milk goes under the crema, so you still see brown.
Fill about half way like that.
Drop down close. Almost touching. Pour a bit faster in one spot and hold still. A white circle appears and grows on its own.
Level the cup as it fills.
Cut through. Nearly full — lift slightly and pull a thin line straight through the middle of the circle, away from you, then flick up.

Fig. 4 — The same cup, four moments apart.

When it goes wrong

What you got	Why
No white at all	Stayed high too long. Get close sooner.
A blob, not a heart	The cut was too slow or too fat. Quick and thin.
Big ugly bubbles	Too much air in step 08. Less stretch, more spin.
Milk sinks and vanishes	It sat too long before pouring, or it was too thin.

Part four

Last look

If you did steps 06 and 10, the machine is already clean. This is just the counter.

Rinse the milk pitcher.
Wipe the counter and around the grinder.
Empty the drip tray if it is getting full.
Portafilter back in the group head so it stays warm.

Photo slot C

The corner, cleaned up and reset How it should look when you walk away. Beats any list.

Never

Twist the hopper to change grind size while beans are inside.
Grind anything but coffee beans. No sugar, no spices, no ice.
Leave milk in the wand or sitting in the pitcher.
Walk off and leave a used puck in the portafilter.
Start on milk before you have cleaned up the espresso.
Re-steam milk.
Pull the steam lever with the wand out of the milk.
Lift the wand out before you push the lever back.
Bang the portafilter on the sink. Use the knock box.
Use soap inside the basket.
Press buttons while the lights are blinking.

If it feels stuck, jammed, or wrong — stop. Do not force it.

If there are any issues, come find Luke or Roxi

Instagram @earnedcoffee

Last updated Aug 20, 2026

Put together by Earned Coffee