January 2, 2025·3 min read

Project Showcase: Dialed In – My Journey to Better Coffee

showcaseapp-developmentespresso

As both a specialty coffee enthusiast and a software developer, it was only a matter of time before I combined these two passions. Today, I'd like to introduce you to my latest project: Dialed In.

What is Dialed In?

Dialed In is a native coffee companion app for iOS and Android, designed for specialty coffee lovers who want to capture roast details, track their brews, and explore how grind size behaves over time.

The goal isn't just to catalog beans, but to make that "sweet spot" repeatable — or as we say in the coffee world, to get your espresso "dialed in".

Key Features

The core experience centers on the Bean Vault, where you can browse and filter beans by roast level (Light / Medium / Dark), origin, roast date, and process tags.

But Dialed In goes deeper than simple notes:

  • Smart Insights — Inspect individual beans to see roast metadata, resting days, and aggregate shot statistics.
  • Enhanced Shot Analytics — A Bento-grid layout to visualize brew ratios and a visual taste profile plotter (Sour/Bitter vs. Strong/Weak).
  • Detailed Extraction Metrics — Beyond standard dose and yield, track advanced parameters like pressure, temperature, pre-infusion time, and RPM.
  • Gear Tracking — Configure your setup to link every shot to the specific grinder and machine used.

Visualization & Sharing

We eat (and drink) with our eyes first. That's why I included a Visual Shot Sharing feature. It generates sticker-style images of your shot stats (Grind, Time, Ratio, Taste) that are perfect for sharing on Instagram Stories.

Under the Hood

Dialed In is built natively for each platform — Swift with SwiftData on iOS, Kotlin with Jetpack Compose on Android. This means each version feels truly at home on its platform.

  • iOS: Swift, SwiftData, iCloud CloudKit for optional cross-device sync.
  • Android: Kotlin, Jetpack Compose, DataStore — 100% offline, zero network calls.

What's Next?

I'm still working on it, but it's already fun to use. I have some exciting features planned for the future:

  • Smart Scale Integration — Bluetooth support for scales (like Acaia or Felicita) to enable real-time flow profiling.
  • Cloud Sync & Backup — To securely back up roast history across devices.
  • Water Profiles — Tracking detailed water recipes (GH/KH mineral composition) to isolate every variable.

I'm looking forward to continuing development and making my morning routine even more precise!

L
Luca Gerlich
Building Dialed In — a coffee companion app for precision brewing.