How do I keep track of what grind and dose worked for a bag of coffee?
Last updated: 7 September 2026
Write down five numbers every time you brew, and keep them against the bag, not just the date: dose in, grind setting, yield out, brew time, and a taste score. The next bag from the same roaster then starts where the last one finished.
A notebook works. An app only makes the comparison faster.
The method, with or without an app
- Start every new bag from a known recipe. For espresso, 18 g in, 36 g out, 25 to 30 seconds is a common starting point. Write it down before the first brew.
- Log the same five fields every time: dose, grind, yield, time, taste. Put the bag name, roaster and roast date on the first line so the sheet belongs to that coffee.
- Change one thing per brew, usually the grind. If you move grind and dose together you will not know which one fixed it.
- Write the change next to the result, not just the result. "Grind minus 1, shot went from 24 s to 28 s, less sour."
- Mark the best brew. A star, a circle, a rating. When the bag is finished, that line is the recipe for the next bag.
- Keep one sheet per bag, per grinder. A grind number on one grinder means nothing on another.
How Pucksmith does it
Pucksmith is this sheet as an app. Every bag sits on one shelf with roaster, origin, process, roast date and grams left. Every brew logs against that bag with dose, yield, time, grind and taste. Fifteen starting points (espresso, V60, Chemex, AeroPress, moka, cold brew and more) cover step 1, each with a real ratio, dose, time and temperature.
The part a notebook cannot do is step 4. Pucksmith writes the change in the margin of every entry: grind, yield, time. What changed since the last shot is already on the page. Step 5 is done for you too. Pucksmith remembers the highest-rated shot for each bag on the gear that is actually on your bench, and opens the next brew with those numbers.
The free tier is the whole journal: unlimited bags, unlimited history, the margin delta, Quick Brew and all fifteen starting points, search, export, backup and restore, plus three photo or barcode captures. Pucksmith Pro is US$19.99, paid once, and unlocks the dial-in graph (every rating against the grind), unlimited photo and barcode capture, the full tally with cost per cup, and the Dial Sheet PDF. There is no subscription. The free tier is not a trial and does not expire.
Pucksmith runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android and Windows. On Mac and Windows the sheet opens wide, with the shelf, the bag and the margin column side by side, and prints a Dial Sheet PDF. On phones it folds to a one-thumb log. There is no cloud sync. Move the log between devices with the one-file backup.
No account, ever. Pucksmith has no sign-up and no login. Everything you log stays on your device and nothing leaves it unless you export or send it. Export to CSV or JSON is free.
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Related questions
- Which setting should I change first when a shot tastes wrong?
- Grind. Go finer if the shot runs fast and tastes sour, coarser if it runs slow and tastes bitter. Change only that, then log it.
- Do I need an account or internet to log a brew in Pucksmith?
- No. There is no sign-up and no login, and it works offline. The log stays on your device.
- Can I get my brew log out of Pucksmith?
- Yes, free. Export to CSV or JSON at any time, or make a one-file backup and restore it on another device.
Pucksmith is a Trueframe Digital app. Pay once, no account, your data stays on your device. See the Pucksmith page for screenshots, the full feature list and prices.