Baratza Grinders- 80$

[JPDyson]

Hey Bud,
French presses are good - but knowing you and your lovely wife, i'm going to predict you wouldn't be doing backflips over it. For standard drip coffee, Technivorms are really quite superb. They're not "cheap" per-se, but they'll brew a noticeably better cup of coffee than a Cuisinart, etc.

Drop me a line if/when you get a new machine and i'll roast up some beans for ya

Something I find to be a great middle-ground is a "steep and pourover", where the french-press grounds get a good bath in the press, but eventually poured through a filter in a pour-over device. I find this gives full-flavored extraction without excessive sediment (and vastly superior to just a straight pour-over).

 

[BillEllis]

Hey Bud,
French presses are good - but knowing you and your lovely wife, i'm going to predict you wouldn't be doing backflips over it. For standard drip coffee, Technivorms are really quite superb. They're not "cheap" per-se, but they'll brew a noticeably better cup of coffee than a Cuisinart, etc.

Drop me a line if/when you get a new machine and i'll roast up some beans for ya

Thanks, Joel...

I bought the Moccamaster w/ thermal carafe

 

[Captain Pete]

Given that a $279 Technivorm will outlast five average $50 coffee makers (at least), the price really isn't that steep. And that doesn't even take into account the superb quality of the brew.

 

[SiBurning]

True that. I've spent almost that much on Chemex pots. Just today the leather lace broke, but I just grabbed an old shoe lace.

 

[Phog Allen]

Hey lads. My grinder arrived yesterday afternoon. It feels quite robust and is easy to use. I ground some some Wally World brand 'breakfast blend' beans I grabbed last night. It made a nice pot of coffee and you can tell that fresh grinding is the way to go. It also ground it fine enough to use in the espresso machine but I did not like the flavour. I bit too sour and just a little bitter. There are certainly better beans for espresso than this.

Again, thanks for posting the link Jim. This is a real bargain.

Regards, Todd

 

[Dripp]

Just as a reminder, it would be best to only rotate the bean hopper when the machine is on. My first one died, and after speaking to Joe at Baratza he recommended this to me.

 

[Slartibartfast]

So Turn on machine, rotate to preferred setting, then add bean?

Just as a reminder, it would be best to only rotate the bean hopper when the machine is on. My first one died, and after speaking to Joe at Baratza he recommended this to me.

 

[SiBurning]

With a flat burr, if a bean fragment is still in there and you make it finer, you could break something because you're trying to crush the bean purely by force of the adjusting screw, but if the burrs are moving under normal power, the bean will be crushed normally. Not sure, but with a conical burr, this might happen when making it coarser, so you should only adjust it when it's running. Really, when going coarser, it only needs a quick burst to make sure it's clear. You can add the beans afterwards--if they're adjusted right, it shouldn't hurt the burrs (much? at all?) to run for a short time by themselves. I usually just adjust it with the beans in.

 

[Dripp]

So Turn on machine, rotate to preferred setting, then add bean?

I just turn it on for a couple of seconds to get the hopper set to appropriate setting, let it stop then add beans, grind then let it stop. Take collector out and begin coffee brewing, then turn it back on to remove the hopper to clean the grinder. By then the coffee is about finished...

 

[jrowen]

Thanks for posting this, Jim. I have been following this thread with interest for some time, and am finally considering pulling the trigger. One quick question for those of you that have one, if you would be so kind. Can anyone make comment on the performance of course grind for French press? Is the grind even and free of "dust"? This would be the reason for me to consider this purchase as they are my chief complaints with my current grinder.

- Jason

 

[Dripp]

Thanks for posting this, Jim. I have been following this thread with interest for some time, and am finally considering pulling the trigger. One quick question for those of you that have one, if you would be so kind. Can anyone make comment on the performance of course grind for French press? Is the grind even and free of "dust"? This would be the reason for me to consider this purchase as they are my chief complaints with my current grinder.

- Jason

I haven't ground specifically for French press, but I grind for drip coffee on the 19 setting and don't get any dust. There are plenty of settings remaining to grind more coarsley so I'm sure it would be more than capable. I get a very nice grind with no dust to speak of, so I think this would great for you.

 

[Slartibartfast]

I make 2-3 french press pots of coffee a day usually.

That is one major improvement over my old grinder. The grind is uniform all the way through, no powder. Grinds do not stick to the container either.

Thanks for posting this, Jim. I have been following this thread with interest for some time, and am finally considering pulling the trigger. One quick question for those of you that have one, if you would be so kind. Can anyone make comment on the performance of course grind for French press? Is the grind even and free of "dust"? This would be the reason for me to consider this purchase as they are my chief complaints with my current grinder.

- Jason

 

[joel]

Thanks for posting this, Jim. I have been following this thread with interest for some time, and am finally considering pulling the trigger. One quick question for those of you that have one, if you would be so kind. Can anyone make comment on the performance of course grind for French press? Is the grind even and free of "dust"? This would be the reason for me to consider this purchase as they are my chief complaints with my current grinder.

- Jason

HI Jason,
I'm pretty picky, so I wouldn't say there is NO dust - but I would rank it a solid 8.5 out of 10 - with 10 being a $3K+ grinder and 5 being a $100 Kitchenaid/cuisinart burr grinder. It's definitely not perfect, but it does do a damn fine job, and you'll not find a noticeably superior option without at least stepping up to the Vario - which will run you $450. I've got both the Vario and this sbux refurb and I have the vario set for espresso (even though it can do both) and the sbux dedicated to drip, aeropress and french press - so it's good enough that it isn't worth the 15-20 seconds required to re-adjust the Vario from espresso to FP and back.

 

[jrowen]

I haven't ground specifically for French press, but I grind for drip coffee on the 19 setting and don't get any dust. There are plenty of settings remaining to grind more coarsley so I'm sure it would be more than capable. I get a very nice grind with no dust to speak of, so I think this would great for you.

I make 2-3 french press pots of coffee a day usually.

That is one major improvement over my old grinder. The grind is uniform all the way through, no powder. Grinds do not stick to the container either.

Thank you, both. These are helpful comments.

HI Jason,
I'm pretty picky, so I wouldn't say there is NO dust - but I would rank it a solid 8.5 out of 10 - with 10 being a $3K+ grinder and 5 being a $100 Kitchenaid/cuisinart burr grinder. It's definitely not perfect, but it does do a damn fine job, and you'll not find a noticeably superior option without at least stepping up to the Vario - which will run you $450. I've got both the Vario and this sbux refurb and I have the vario set for espresso (even though it can do both) and the sbux dedicated to drip, aeropress and french press - so it's good enough that it isn't worth the 15-20 seconds required to re-adjust the Vario from espresso to FP and back.

Joel, you said the magic words. This is pretty much what I'm looking to step up from. I understand about not getting zero dust, but your comments definitely help me to understand the levels of performance here, and that's really what I was after anyway. This sounds like a very nice grinder for a great price. Thanks for the input.

Well.... enough sitting on the fence, then. Putting an order in forthwith.

Since this will be a new machine for me, would anyone care to comment what setting(s) they are finding to work well for them with FP?

Thanks again!

-Jason

 

[Jasonian]

Something I find to be a great middle-ground is a "steep and pourover", where the french-press grounds get a good bath in the press, but eventually poured through a filter in a pour-over device. I find this gives full-flavored extraction without excessive sediment (and vastly superior to just a straight pour-over).

It sounds like the Abid Clever Coffee Dripper would be your method of choice.

http://www.sweetmarias.com/clevercoffeedripperpictorial.php

 

[SiBurning]

It sounds like the Abid Clever Coffee Dripper would be your method of choice.

http://www.sweetmarias.com/clevercoffeedripperpictorial.php

I love that thing, but I hate using those filters. Maybe I just need better filters.

 

[JPDyson]

Eh, it's plastic. I don't do plastic, if I can avoid it, near my coffee and tea. I have a faster dripping ceramic one what needs replacing due to a nasty crack, so I'm in the market. Counter Culture brands one with a single hole, or I gather it is from what I've read about other Bonmacs, so I'm considering that, too.

 

[SiBurning]

I'm with you on the plastic, but this is the hard "good" plastic, which I find it has a useful life before it imparts that nasty taste.

Let us know how the ceramic turns out. I have two, one's two fast, the other's too slow. Still looking for my Goldilocks.

 

[Slartibartfast]

This is what I use at work. Works well and easy cleanup.

It sounds like the Abid Clever Coffee Dripper would be your method of choice.

http://www.sweetmarias.com/clevercoffeedripperpictorial.php

 

[jrowen]

I've had mine for about a week now. At first, I thought the grind *looked* similar to what I was getting with my other grinder WRT dust. But the proof is definitely in the cup, and it is noticably cleaner with this grinder. Also, the grind is appreciably more even. I'm very happy with this grinder and a fantastic price. Thanks again, B&B!

-Jason