Spouted Vs Bottomless Portafilter: Which Is Best For Espresso Beginners?

You've decided to upgrade your mornings by drinking espresso like a pro and making espresso shots at home. You've read about the different tampers, have carefully selected a package of espresso from the store, and have even begun fantasizing about the taste of packing your portafilter with sugar. But wait — do you have the right kind of equipment for such an endeavor? We spoke to Jee Choe, coffee and tea sommelier at Oh, How Civilized, an online resource on all things tea, coffee, and snacks, for tips on how to up the chances you'll be out the door with a smile on your face. 

According to Choe, portafilters are not one-size-fits-all when it comes to baristas looking to pour perfect shots of espresso. You will find sprouted and bottomless portafilters for purchase. "Spouted portafilters are mess-free since the espresso is directed to the cups, creating less clean up," Choe explains. For baristas starting out, these spouted pieces of equipment can be easier to handle. "Spouted portafilters are easier for beginners to use since there will be less of a mess if the grind size is off or if the tamp isn't even," she says. Yet spouted portafilters also come with some disadvantages to consider. 

While spouted portafilters may be easier less messy and a little easier to use, there Choe explains that there are some drawbacks. "A negative is that it's harder to see any extraction mistakes since not everything can be seen with the spouts in the way," she says. This leads to one of the benefits of passing over spouted portafilters for bottomless portafilters, instead.

"Bottomless portafilters show immediately if there are any extraction issues since you can get a direct view," Choe explains. "The drawback is that it can get messy since there aren't spouts to direct the flow of espresso into a cup." This means that in your blurry-eyed glaze and the pressure of a morning weekday rush, you may end up with coffee splashing onto the countertop of your kitchen. At the end of the day, choosing coffee equipment and coffee is one of preference, but if you're looking for mess-free options to help you pour espresso quickly and make your favorite coffee recipes with minimal clean-up, spouted portafilters may be your best bet.