Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

10 (More) Minutes With Helena Oliviero

Today we continue our conversation with Helena Oliviero about her coffee career and life on a Colombian finca. BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of Helena Oliviero Barista Magazine: Let’s talk about living on a Colombian coffee farm, Finca Palma Roja. How do you spend your days? What’s usually happening on a busy coffee […]


4 Cool Cafés to Try Out in Bologna

Bologna, the Italian city home to the world’s oldest university, is traditionally famous for its food and drink—and it has some stellar specialty cafés. BY TANYA NANETTI SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Annie Spratt via Unsplash Bologna is home to the oldest university in the world and is the unofficial “capital“ of the porticos […]


Toronto’s Pilot Coffee Roasters Acquiring Bridgehead Coffee for $3.6 Million

Toronto, Ontario-based specialty coffee roaster and retailer Pilot Coffee Roasters is acquiring Ottawa-based Bridgehead Coffee in a deal worth approximately US$3.6 million.  Bridgehead, which has 21 coffee shop locations throughout…


3 Elements Coffee: Supporting Veterans, One Cup at a Time  

The Australian roasting company helps to create opportunities for veteran communities.  BY VASILEIA FANARIOTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of 3 Elements Coffee  Brisbane, Australia-based 3 Elements Coffee, founded by Navy veteran Terry McNally in 2016, has a mission to support the transition of ex-military personnel into the commercial workspace. To help achieve their goal and raise […]

Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

Test Drive: The Linea Micra Espresso Machine from La Marzocco

Ready to find out how La Marzocco’s Linea Micra measures up? Read on for our full Test Drive review!  BY VASILEIA FANARIOTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of Vasileia Fanarioti  The Linea Micra espresso machine by La Marzocco is the newest addition to their impressive line of home espresso machines. I was lucky to get my […]


Know Your Sweeteners: Honey: Part One

Not all sweeteners are made equal! In this series, we’ll take a closer look at different types of sweeteners and syrups—starting with honey. BY EMILY JOY MENESESBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Featured photo by Arwin Neil Baichoo via Unsplash Though you can’t go wrong with simple syrup or the tried-and-true vanilla, there are many options when it […]


3 Noteworthy Cafés in the Borough of Brooklyn, N.Y.

We explore three standout Brooklyn cafés: drip, BKG, and Coffee Project New York. BY EMILY MENESES BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Cover photo by Nelson Ndongala via Unsplash Whether you’re a New York local or planning your next NYC trip, you won’t want to miss out on Brooklyn’s vibrant (and constantly evolving) coffee scene. Today, we’re exploring […]


The Slingshot Chalice Puts a New Spin on Espresso Dosing

Hong Kong and Australia-based coffee equipment maker Slingshot Technology recently launched the Chalice Distributor Cup, a multipurpose espresso preparation tool for baristas. Displayed in its…

Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

An Unfiltered History of Vietnamese Coffee

We explore the history of coffee in Vietnam and how the industry’s perception of Vietnamese coffee is evolving.  BY EMILY MENESES BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Featured photo by frank mckenna via Unsplash What do you think of when you hear the term “Vietnamese coffee”? For Kim Dam, founder of Portland Cà Phê, it extends far beyond […]


New AFCA Director Gilbert Gatali on the 20th African Fine Coffees Conference

As the African Fine Coffees Association (AFCA) prepares for the 20th iteration of its flagship event, the African Fine Coffees Conference and Exhibition, the group is operating under new executive…


María Andrée Is Honing Olfactory Skills in Antigua 

A sensorial class in Guatemala at Artista de Café teaches how to use your nose for the ultimate coffee experience. BY JORDAN BUCHANANBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Photos courtesy of Arista de Café Walking into a specialty café in Guatemala, your nostrils are infused with aromas from the best coffees in the country. Your nose recollects the […]


The Slingshot Chalice Puts a New Spin on Espresso Dosing

Hong Kong and Australia-based coffee equipment maker Slingshot Technology recently launched the Chalice Distributor Cup, a multipurpose espresso preparation tool for baristas. Displayed in its…

Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

minimum dose size?

Jan 31, 2024 |

I use the Hario switch to brew my coffee and am trying to reduce my caffeine consumption. Hence I would like to brew smaller cups of coffee. I am currently using 10g of coffee with 160g of water. (1:16 Ratio) I am wondering if there is a minimum amount of coffee...

Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

If you take the title at face value, my job is done. If you need to be convinced, here goes…

With the winter holidays coming up and my Baratza Encore deciding to have electrical issues, I needed a coffee grinder for the few pounds of beans in my kitchen cabinet. Amazon wouldn't get a new Encore to me in time so I went to my local Williams Sonoma and bought a Cuisinart automatic burr grinder. A burr grinder's a burr grinder, I thought, and since it was almost half the price of an Encore I went for it and hoped for the best.

Right out of the box there were issues. Cheap construction, tiny and absurdly inconsistent ceramic burrs, and an automatic "number of cups" dispensing method instead of a toggle or hold switch. "No biggie" I thought, figuring that the flat burrs might perform OK and that I could just slam it to the highest cup setting to make sure all the beans were ground.

On to the brew test. I loaded in 18g of coffee with the grinder set to just under "Medium" which was the recommended setting for auto-drip and usually a good starting point for Aeropress, plugged it in, moved the super cheap feeling slider to 10 cups, and pressed start.

When I tell you that the grinder sounded like a jet turbine winding up on a runway, I am not exaggerating. The only thing keeping it from hitting approximately 500,000rpm was the presence of coffee beans in the hopper, and once there were only a few left, it kept going faster and faster and faster to the point where the last remaining beans didn't have a chance to get in between the burrs without being flung back out into the hopper.

The end result was a ridiculously inconsistent grind and lots of static cling, despite adding water to the beans as recommended by our lord and saviour Hoffman. It did not make a good cup of coffee. I might have been able to get a better result with a blade grinder.

Maybe I'm just spoiled because I got to use the Encore for the past year and a half, but this was a truly abysmal experience. The Baratza was loud but it had torque, a reasonable speed, almost perfect consistency, and a no-frills easy to use interface. Everything about it instilled confidence in a good end result being in my coffee cup, something which Cuisinart is incapable of creating. I intend to return this unit after Thanksgiving and buy another Encore or Virtuoso

Now I know, and I hope my experience can help you know, that some things aren't worth spending less on. If you don't want to shell out for a good conical or flat burr grinder, get a hand grinder. It'll be more work but you'll get a much better cup of coffee than a cheap electric burr grinder can produce.

​

Tldr; if you're looking at electric burr grinders and can't afford a good one, consider a hand grinder or buying preground coffee from a coffee shop because both of those will give you a much better result than a sub $100 electric grinder.

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Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

Perfect Little Beans

Chinmey Hill Coffee uses specialty-grade beans with zero primary defects (such as black beans or sour beans) and less than five secondary defects (such as broken beans). This is important because primary defects will greatly affect the taste of the coffee. Having zero defects allows the coffee to be the most optimal flavor.

Window for Optimal Flavor

Chimney Hill Coffee ships our coffee the same day it was roasted, so you will receive it before it enters the window of optimal flavor.  This means you’ll never miss the opportunity to enjoy the coffee’s peak flavor.

Coffee Ratings

Coffee undergoes many scoring processes by professionals who achieved their Q Grader certification. Coffee is first graded when it’s green. If there are defects the coffee is determined to be “not-specialty grade”. For those coffees that pass green grading, they are sample roasted and cupped. (Cupping is the official term for critically tasting and scoring coffees. The official cupping form is standard worldwide, and where the 100-point scoring system comes from.) A coffee’s dry fragrance, wet aroma, flavor, aftertaste, body, acidity, balance, and overall impression are taken into consideration while uniformity issues and defects, will lower the overall score.

Specialty Coffee

Specialty coffee, coined by Erna Knutsen in 1974, refers to a coffee that receives a quality grading score of 80 percent or higher. While “premium” or “gourmet” seem like they’re synonymous with “specialty,” they simply are marketing terms with no defined standards. Specialty coffees are grown in specific and ideal micro-climates, and have distinctive and unique flavor profiles, with little to no defects.

Third-Wave Coffee

We’re currently in the third wave of coffee. The first wave of American coffee put pre-ground, vacuum-sealed cans in kitchens across America. The second wave started with the late ‘60s introduction of Peet’s coffee (by Alfred Peet) through the proliferation of Starbucks. The third wave of coffee focuses on origin transparency, nuanced flavors, and artisan roasting. The term “third wave” is synonymous with specialty coffee.

Please Do Not Cheap Out On Your Electric Grinder

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