There’s a lot of notions going around about coffee grinders – but one of the most controversial is whether or not expensive coffee grinders are worth it.
Now, coffee grinders range a lot in price. You can get a manual grinder for as little as $20. an automatic one can go for $100 or less, on the cheap side.
By Marcelo.
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So what is an expensive coffee grinder?
Well, most of the mid-range, “semi-professional”, type of grinders all sit between $200 and $399.
Then, in my mind, an expensive grinder is anything above $400, and up to $1200, which is usually the cut-off where we start seeing actual professional grinders.
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Are expensive grinders worth it?
It’s not an easy question to answer, so I’ll put it in two separate categories: why I think they are worth it, and why I think they aren’t.
Why they are worth it
It’s always baffled me how nobody talks about quality when talking about grinders. I’m talking about the quality of the burrs themselves.
“Metal” is actually a very vague term, as there can be so many different types of metal.
Ceramic burrs are also sometimes advertised as good quality, but they also suffer from wear and tear.
Cheaper grinders will usually mean cheaper materials.
Burrs wear down!
In the worst of cases, just a few months of use will wear down the burrs’ dents, never again producing consistent, even grind. This is catastrophic for a coffee lover.
But most of us don’t notice, really, and usually blame the coffee, or the water, or whatever else. The grinder? Rarely. But it happens, I guarantee you.
An expensive grinder will use the best type of metal that endures years and years of heavy use without wearing down.
This is the type of grinder that will work perfectly for decades.
In this case I think expensive coffee grinders are one of the best investments you can make – particularly if you drink a lot of coffee at home.
Why they aren’t worth it
Settings are a big selling point. This coffee grinder has 200 settings! Well, that’s about 170 settings more than it should have.
When it comes down to it, home brewing methods can’t benefit all that much from that ridiculous amount of settings.
It sounds great, doesn’t it? 200 settings. It must make a difference! Right? Well… not so much.
These infinitesimal differences really only matter when it comes to espresso, and professional espresso machines in particular.
Professional espresso machines are all about small changes in pressure levels and water temperature, which paired with small changes in grind size do make a difference. But a regular espresso machine just doesn’t benefit from it.
So I strongly believe that if you don’t have a very good espresso machine at home (or are going to use the coffee grinder for a coffee shop), it’s just overkill. You’ll be much better off with a much cheaper coffee grinder.
So there you have it! Why and why not to get an expensive coffee grinder.
Photo by Cristian Rojas
