What to Look for in a Coffee Grinder

Make Home Grinding Easier!

A decent coffee grinder ensures you pick the right fineness or coarseness ground level for your favorite brew. While some world-famous manufacturers provide more comprehensive quality models with a shade of similar features, it isn’t easy to figure out which coffee grinder is right for you.

Before a grinder purchase, it would be wise of you to think out about your preferred coffee brewing method. If you are an espresso aficionado, fix up your budget for a compatible espresso grinder that is efficient to grind coffee beans fine well for an espresso blend. Likewise, French, drip brew, percolator, etc. also requires the diverse size of coffee grounds, and some models have got flexible options to give you a chance to choose between coarseness and fineness level of ground coffee.

Our Favorite Picks

Whereas the question arises why a good coffee grinder is always expensive, the fact is that only a high-quality mill uses the trick of grinding coffee beans into a very uniform size that the less expensive model cannot do well. Overall they are high priced for the quality of parts, quick speed, design as well as long life expectancy.

So whether you are a coffee enthusiast or want to enhance your expertise to unlock the fresh ground flavor, spending a nice chunk of money for a quality coffee grinder makes the most sense. Our recommendation goes for a sturdy burr grinder that will admittedly be worth your investment.

As our suggestion, between a manual grinder and electric grinder, a manual grinder does perform a relatively simple task if you have a small workout and, of course, if you want to give some manual labor. The good thing is that this sort of coffee grinder is the quietest of all, and the cost is less in the aggregate.

Recommended Manual Grinder

JavaPress Manual Coffee Grinder- lightweight, slimmy and durable; easily stored in your backpack. So if you often enjoy exploring new places, it is definitely for you.

Otherwise, having a budget friendly manual coffee grinder for home use like ” Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill – “Skerton” gives you a precise, uniform grind as your desired texture; Great value for money!

However, if you are a genuine coffee enthusiast in need of a caffeine boost every single day, owning a classy electric coffee grinder ought to be your priority. Though it may cost a fortune, you will inevitably get the most out of it. The price of the best quality electric coffee grinder starts at $100. In case you still cannot stand with the budget, we have narrowed down to a few that are under $100 serving as an excellent grinder for long and are reviewed most positively by the sincere customers.

Now let’s check the points a grinder must ensure:

• Consistent Grind: The First thing is the consistency of your ground coffee bean, but all kinds of mills cannot offer this task. Hence, coffee connoisseurs recommend having a quality burr grinder for evenly ground as the blade grinder cannot produce the consistency you need for the best tasting cup. We have explained it below at the end of the article. Check if you are unknown about the fact.
• Versatile settings: A grinder with several grind settings is conducive, so you have the option to grind from coarse to fine whenever you need it. 
• Storage capacity: It depends on how often you grind your coffee beans.Though at home, a small or mid hopper will be excellent.

What is Your Priority?

While above we covered some general factors to consider before buying a grinder, there are more features you may be keen on. Usually, all these simple inquiries may arise in your mind:

1. Grinding for espresso or coffee?
2. Is it grinding for both coffee and spice?
3. Ease of use?
4. Quiet in operation?
5. Auto grind?
6. Doser or doserless or Bin?
7. Step or stepless?
8. Conical burr or flat burr?
9. Stainless steel or ceramic burr?
10. Price? Cheap/moderate/expensive?

We have a good explanation based on these inquiries in our most informative coffee grinder buying guide. Remember to check it below.

 

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How to Choose The Right Grinder?

Coffee Grinders Buying Guide

There are three types of grinders available on the market –blade grinder, burr grinder, and manual grinder. If you are leaning on quality, positively, a burr grinder is the best alternative. Additionally, this kind of mill fits up to all other features that do a great job for a perfect grind.

Then again, you’ll see Blade grinders less expensive than some other grinder on the market. From the price point, it is still accessible to many coffee novices. What the great inconvenience of a blade grinder is it produces inconsistent grind.

Now, come to the manual grinder. The manual grinder likewise has a burr grinding mechanism. The distinction is that when blade and burr grinders are powered by an electric motor, the manual mills, as the name suggests, are run by hand cranking a handle.

Want to know more about these items? Have a glance below to know more features about these gadgets. If not, go direct below “which grinder to Buy”

Blade grinders

Burr Grinders

 

In Depth Burr Analysis

There are some needs to know facts about the burrs to avoid misunderstanding while you are prompting to purchase one. And this in-depth analysis will let you in on the truth on the different burrs in the grinders. The first inquiry comes forward to us: what material the mill is made from- stainless steel burrs or ceramic burrs?

Most noteworthy is that the difference in the burr material may have a considerable effect on grinding coffee beans.

Stainless Steel Burr: A Few Facts

Advantages:

1. Stainless steel burrs are much cheaper. It is inexpensive to manufacture and in case of replacement as well. so the price of this type of burr machines is comparatively low
2. If any case any foreign object makes a crack the burrs, it will not be unusable, so much safer from this point
3. For the high-end commercial coffee shops, the stainless steel burrs are most compatible since they should not worry about shutting down grinding coffee beans for the snappy crack in the burrs. Also the great servings for the home coffee grind, batch and espresso(fewer fines, little different taste)
4. Stainless burrs produce more uniform grinds every time and work excellent with single-origin coffees.
5. When you regularly use non-espresso roasted beans for grinding, the stainless steel burrs can give you satisfaction.

Disadvantage:

1. Stainless steel burrs have less durability though they are worth of replacement.

Ceramic Burr: A few Facts

Advantages

1. Ceramic burr generates less heat during grinding process.
2. Much harder than stainless steel so the lifespan of this burrs are long enough, almost twice than stainless steel.
3. Ceramic burrs are sharper than stainless steel burrs so while cutting in the beans, less heat is originated from these burrs.
4. Ceramic burrs are best when you use it for espresso roast.
5. Most suggest to use it at home for its fragility, it is great for heavy duty commercial use though.
6. A little quieter than stainless steel burrs

Disadvantages

1. Ceramic burrs may chip if any stone or foreign objects dropped into the burrs.
2. Much costly

The shape of the burrs is one of the crucial discussions in the coffee industry. Though conical burrs are preferred for home use by most of the coffee snobs as the cost of this conical shaped burr grinders is within our reach than flat burrs. First of all, the question is, what is the functionality that makes these two shaped burrs different. So, the two essential factors – grind consistency and grind waste, we need to consider while choosing between flat burrs and conical burrs.

Conical Burr:

1. This type of burr grinds coffee beans in large and small particle sizes, even in fine settings. You should not think that a conical burr cannot produce a perfect grind for espresso, the fact that It is essential to make a typical espresso blend.
2. Baristas find conical burrs more forgiving in the dealing of ground coffee mess on the counter. Another, the Cleaning is more comfortable as the grounds go straight down, leaving little coffee in the burrs.

Flat Burr:

1. Flat burrs grind coffee beans in even particle sizes that mean more uniform sizes than conical burrs. You may look at it for the best espresso recipe and need an expert hand to run this type of grinder, though. Your creativity to make the best espresso as a specialist barista will be explored here.
2. Coffee grounds are clutched in the Flat burrs for their flat shape and have an impact on taste profile for the next batch if you do not clean it regularly.

Other Things to Count On

1. Flat burrs run at higher RPM while conical burrs are good at lower RPM, and it does not need such a powerful motor. The less powerful engine produces less noise while coffee beans are ground.
2. Conical burrs can generate less heat for the lower RPM and less friction in comparison to flat burrs that produce high heat.
3. Flat burrs are excellent for espresso variability and creativity
4. Flat burr coffee grinders cost higher than conical burrs. You will find high-quality conical burr grinders within your budget that you will not be able to see for best quality flat burr grinders.
5. Flat burrs grind perfect for high extraction.

 

Manual Grinders

 

Stepped and Stepless Adjustment

Coffee grinders offer different grind adjustment with two styles-simple as well as popular stepped design and more advanced stepless design. You can get various grind sizes by just moving the burrs closer and further away.

Stepped

In stepped adjustment, you are allowed to set the limited number of grind settings. The good thing is that you can quickly turn the grind settings for different brewing styles. And because the number shown on the grinder indicates which brew goes fine with the grind number, anyone can switch it easily for various grind sizes. Though not found in a wide range of grind set up, few brands like Baratza have launched their grinder with micro-steps. So you get two controls on stepless units like large steps and micro-steps. Moreover, with a decent budget, you will find this stepped style coffee grinder at ease.

Besides, a stepped style grinder has two ways of grind adjustment- “self-holding or knob” and “Lever release.”

On self-holding, the grind adjustment is locked by turning the knob, and each turn, you will hear a click sound so that it assures the ground level is set up well for the coffee grind. Capresso, Baratza Encore, Baratza Virtuoso, Bodum Bistro, Cuisinart DBM-8, and CBM-18N are such ones featuring a self-holding style stepped grinder.

Baratza Encore– Self-holding style grinder

And on lever release style stepped grinder like Rancilio Rocky, you just need to push down the lever, and then the hopper will automatically turn to the exact grind level and lock with that setting well.

Stepless

In a stepless grinder, you can grind among the infinite range of settings, and because it has no pre-set spots like stepped adjustment, you may seem to have difficulty managing the exact grind point at the beginning. The best example is Mazzer Mini and Compack grinder, which are used for perfect espresso grind. Besides, you can quickly turn from fine to coarse or coarse to fine though with your expert hand. And at each grind point, you will hear a “click” sound. Commonly stepless coffee grinder is used for the professional need as its various fine settings go well for typical espresso taste.
Mazzer Mini Stepless Espresso Grinder- Available on Amazon

Dosers vs Doserless vs Bin

Espresso coffee grinders got the distinctive feature of two different methods of collecting coffee grounds- doser and doserless method of dispensing ground coffee into a portafilter handle.

Grinder With Doser:

In doser grinders, coffee grounds fall into a small compartment, which is called doser. With a flip of a lever, coffee grounds are dispensed into the portafilter or filter basket as per your needs. So, less mess on the countertop! Also, the excess coffee grounds in the basket can be put back into the doser.

In fine, cleaning the doser after every use needs some effort as ground coffee may stick with the doser. And since it does not grind directly into the portafilter, you may grind overdose coffee into the doser that may get stale.

Doserless Grinder:

The doserless model grinds coffee beans directly into a portafilter or filter basket, no compartment attached with the grinder like doser units. So you can grind directly according to your need without being worried about getting excess grounds. We feature Rancilio Rocky as a great doserless grinder.

In the doserless version, overfill coffee grounds creates a mess on the counter-top and may have an issue with clumping. Moreover, you have to hold the portafilter all the time while grinding beans. Besides, the loss of heat in portafilter as long as it stays off the machine may produce sour espresso. For loads of espresso-making, this doserless version can be time-consuming; instead, it is recommended mostly for home espresso grind.

Electronic Dosing: Grind Accurately

The electronic dosing system allows you to grind just according to your need and most effective for espresso; another brew requires precise grind, though. In an electronic dosing system, you can choose the size of a shot(single or double shot), and the grinder will grind the correct amount of coffee by weight and time. Mainly, Breville BCG800XL Smart Grinder includes Auto Dosing technology.

Grinder with Bin

Some coffee grinder models come with internal bin features, and this version is found on the home grinder that is mostly budget-friendly. Coffee grounds fall into the bin or container and are easily used home grinder for a manual brew, french press, and drip coffee. Most of the home grinder we reviewed here goes with this technology.

Another model comes forward to us that combines doserless and bin. Baratza brand introduces us to this kind of composition. So you can grind directly both into the portafilter and bin for a different brew of your choice. 

      

Baratza Virtuoso with Bin and Doserless Style- Check Price on Amazon

Motor and Gearbox Basics

Motor and gear ratio has a significant effect on grinding coffee beans accurately. High speed, high speed with gear reduction, and low speed direct drive-these three designs we should consider in a coffee grinder.

High Speed

1. Heat up very fast, so you have to press the start and stop button of the grinder frequently that may hurt machine parts.
2. Short lifespan but if you buy it for light use, it may serve you a long time
3. All blade grinders, as well as some lowest end burr grinders, feature this mechanism
4. Low price as used high-speed electric motor

High Speed with Gear Reduction

1. Mills with High-speed motors with DC power makes the burr speed slower increasing torque
2. Comparatively long lifespan
3. Produce less heat, low static buildup, and quieter. Baratza Encore, Baratza Virtuoso models, are equipped with a high-speed motor with gear reduction.

Direct Drive

1. This grinder model is driven by high torque, low speed, heavy-duty motor with a belt or knotted to the burrs right away through the driveline
2. Quietest in operation
3. Least static buildup
4. Produce Meager heat
5. Found in prosumer version and for industrial use. Rancilio Rocky, Baratza Vario, Mazzer run by the direct drive mechanism.

 Now you got all the points to make home grinding easier. So, did it help making up your mind to have a good grinder for you?