My grinder settings were off for 6 months, a barista caught it in 10 seconds

I dialed in my home espresso setup back in January and never touched the grind size again. Last week I stopped into a local shop in Portland and the barista asked what I was pulling at home. She watched me describe my shots and said, "Your timing is probably way off if you haven't adjusted for humidity." I went home, checked my extraction time, and it was running 38 seconds on a 1:2 ratio. Backed the grind down two notches and now it hits 27 seconds, which fixed the bitter taste I just blamed on the beans. Anyone else forget to adjust their grinder with the seasons, or is it just me?

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the_mila11d ago

I used to think dialing in was a one and done thing, set it and forget it until the beans changed. Then I moved to a place with actual seasons and my shots started running long every few months, but I blamed everything except the grinder. Humidity got me too, plus temperature swings in my kitchen, and it took a buddy who roasts professionally to point out the obvious. Now I check my grind every couple weeks, especially when the weather shifts, and it honestly fixed half my extraction problems.