Sorry - I need a coffee grinder

I used to have the bodum, which was ok, not overly consistent but I was also a bit worse at making coffee then. Since moving to espresso it's been replaced/upgraded in numerous ways but all out of the range you are looking at/need for these brew methods.

Stealth ad- I've got an extra bnib sage I've been meaning to put on eBay for 2 years, so would be willing to part with it for £100 hassle free.

I make my coffee in a Bialetti pot using a packet of  ground coffee. Is there much real world taste difference buying beans and grinding.

I would be dipping my toe in the water not splashing out £100.  One of the £20-£30 ones on Amazon.

Anyone else having problems with the Svart?

I've not had a problem with mine, had it a couple of years, use it several times a day.

Is there much real world taste difference buying beans and grinding

Yes, a bag of pre-ground will go "stale" one you've opened it. Even if you bash through it in a few days, it won't taste as good at the end as it does at the start.

Grinding your beans as you make each brew means you get the freshest flavour each time. Plus I think it encourages trying a wider variety of coffees, there's that much out there, you could probably try a different flavour every week and never get through it all.

Grinding your beans as you make each brew means you get the freshest flavour each time.

Indeed. But perhaps the more relevant question is whether there is much real world difference between grinding beans for your Bialetti or Aeropress in one of the £100+ fancy grinders mentioned here vs something cheaper and more cheerful.   Or is it a case of the emperor’s new speaker cables?

My first one had that issue, then after a while the replacement did too. If you’re handy with a soldering iron you can fix them very cheaply by replacing a capacitor inside.

vs something cheaper and more cheerful.

I get you... I'd say if you drink enough coffee it's worth investing in something a bit better than a blade grinder. I used to use one of those and it soon became a pain in the arse, it's much better being your grind from one push of a button.

Do you go £40 or £80 though... I let James Hoffman talk me into it! ?

I make my coffee in a Bialetti pot using a packet of  ground coffee.

I am the first to admit that there is a lot of snobbery and pretentiousness about coffee when you get into the realms of expensive kit and convoluted prep methods etc. But honestly, the oft repeated advice to buy your coffee fresh and grind it yourself is definitely not snobbery.  It is the single biggest thing you can do to elevate your coffee and radically improve the taste.  It's one of those things that if you never try it, you will never know what you are missing or how good coffee can taste. It's cheap and easy to do too.  It's like the difference between a fortnight old white sliced bread and a loaf from the local bakery still warm from the oven.

Coffee starts to lose its aromatic properties slowly, from the moment it is roasted.  It starts to lose it much more rapidly (literally within minutes) once it has been ground.  It doesn't become unsafe to drink, it just becomes increasingly  muted, and dull to taste as the volatile flavour compounds are lost. If you enjoy your pre-ground coffee, that's obviously fine, but properly fresh coffee can be so, so much nicer.

Coffee beans are at their peak for flavour from about one to two weeks after roasting and ground immediately before brewing.  They will still taste good for a while longer, but not indefinitely. Good quality beans will have a "roasted on" date, commodity beans (most supermarket coffee) will have a "best before date" and has usually been roasted and ground months before you buy it.  If you buy from a local coffee roastery or online, it will probably have been roasted just a few days before you get it and will be night and day better for flavour.  A nicer grinder is a nice thing to use, but you don't need one.  Any grinder is better than pre ground, it smells awesome  while you grind it too which just adds to the experience. You don't have to go down any rabbit holes (unless you want to) or become a full-on coffee bore, but if you appreciate freshness and flavour - buy fresh beans and a grinder, any grinder.

The "don't have to replace both grinder and machine" was the reason I bought my (not £100 admittedly!) Eureka Mignon Zero, as my trusty 5 year old Sage Barista Pro grinder needed servicing/fixing. Best thing I did - echo everything said up there ^^ about how much better coffee tastes freshly ground. I really struggled with my Sage to get a 30second extract (on most beans I tried) whereas now I can pretty much dial that in as the grinder is so much better.

Whether my vacuum sealed bean thing, the WRT tool or the "Gravity" tamper add much is up for more debate! However, I'll never get tired of bellowing out the remains of a grind 🙂

buy your coffee fresh and grind it yourself

Any grinder is better than pre ground, it smells awesome  while you grind it too which just adds to the experience.

Thanks for the pragmatic advice.

My recommendation would be a Kingrinder k6. It's well built and easy to grind with. The burrs are good, reported to be as good as the 1zepresso burrs, but it's slightly cheaper and therefore within your budget. It doesn't have a nice carry case, and the main downside is that it's a bit fiddle to disasemble and clean.

Anyone else having problems with the Svart?

I managed to kill mine by never cleaning it, which was silly of me. Loved it up to that point though.

I just sent you a message about a my used Sage Smart Grinder Pro if you're still interested.

I managed to kill mine by never cleaning it, which was silly of me.

Easily done.  We mostly expect domestic appliances to be maintenance free, but coffee grinders do need some occasional TLC.  Coffee beans are quite oily.  The oils accumulate and can gum stuff up but also, they can go a bit rancid over time. This can obviously affect the taste of your brew.  Static also means fine grinds can migrate to the deepest recesses of the machine where they accumulate and cause issues. I give my "posh" grinder which gets used every day, a really good clean every fortnight or so.

Easily done. We mostly expect domestic appliances to be maintenance free, but coffee grinders do need some occasional TLC.

I actually replaced it with a Fellow Ode which I know I can take apart to clean because I've done so to replace the burrs. It's used at least once most days, so sounds like I need to add 'clean coffee grinder' to my list of weekend jobs.

But perhaps the more relevant question is whether there is much real world difference between grinding beans for your Bialetti or Aeropress in one of the £100+ fancy grinders mentioned here vs something cheaper and more cheerful.

I think this depends on the beans you buy. If you're getting freshly roasted stuff then you can definitely get a noticable improvement with a decent grinder over a cheap one. There's just more different flavours in the bean to extract so getting the process right can make a big difference. If your preference is for supermarket (or similar) beans then the difference is less noticable so probably not worth the extra from that perspective.

The other thing to take into account with a grinder is how often you use it. The more you use it the more the overall design of the grinder makes a difference. The value of having something that's nice to use is a judgement only you can really make.

Thanks for replies.   I shall give a grinder a go.

morning rabbit hole dwellers....... i found myself up thread suggesting a Hario Skerton, and indeed i have been very happy with mine. But EpicJnr is on A level study leave and requiring lattes at all hours, and my arthritic thumbs are complaining.

So for an espresso grind and sensible money what are my options......seems from here there are three options

• Sage something pro grinder (digital or more analogue)
• Baratza something (And sage seem to do bundles w a Baratza grinder)
• Miicoffee D40 or 54 if it does espresso grind 

Am i correct on that or should i look at anything else (don't want to spend more than this side of 200 so although a Niche or Eureka or Fellow would be nice i'm too tight)

Thanks all

First of all, LittleMissMC is also on A level study leave and sorts her own drinks out.

Second, the second hand Sage Smart Grinder Pro upthread has been fantastic. Might have been a "forum mates rates" involved, but if you can find a second hand one at a decent price, I'd strongly recommend one.

@susepic I'm planning a grinder upgrade, so will have a DF54(solo/Turin) from UK sellers, Bella Barista, bought in October last year up for sale shortly. It's been used nearly daily for 1 or 2 coffees since purchase, I have all the packaging and accessories just need to clean it up and box it later if you are interested let me know. 

First of all, LittleMissMC is also on A level study leave and sorts her own drinks out.

Reported to Child Protection. 

@susepic The DF54 is probably the most solid but more expensive, if that's too expensive I'd probably go for the Baratza Encore esp. the Sage just doesn't do espresso grinding well enough and can't single dose if that's something you're interested in 

Posted by: dc1988

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@susepic The DF54 is probably the most solid but more expensive, if that's too expensive I'd probably go for the Baratza Encore esp. the Sage just doesn't do espresso grinding well enough and can't single dose if that's something you're interested in 

I'm pretty sure it will single dose, though as an Aeropress user I tend to just grind a couple of days worth at a time. 

I’ve had a Wilfa Svart for about 5 years and it’s been fine but now seems to be a bit on the blink

"About"?  Wilfa have a 5 year warranty, another reason why they are a great buy.  Check your purchase date, you might be entitled to a repair or replacement.

You can try and single dose the Sage but it retains/exchanges far too much to call it a single dose grinder. Mine is still going strong after quite a few years with my mum but I upgraded to a DF64 and much prefer it

as an Aeropress user I tend to just grind a couple of days worth at a time

At the risk of sounding like a coffee bore (although I think that ship has already sailed), please have a think about not doing that if coffee flavour is important to you.

Whole beans lose their aromatics and develop stale, muted flavours fairly slowly in storage.  Once ground though, that accelerates rapidly and it's honestly noticeable after an hour or so, let alone days. Even in an airtight container.  That's the main benefit of grinding your own coffee, enjoying the beans at their best.  The Aeropress can make incredible tasting coffee, if the beans are fresh, good quality and ground just before use.  Obviously if convenience and a simple caffeine hit are more important than great taste ignore all that. 

I upgraded to a DF64 and much prefer it

I have one too and love it.  Possibly a bit much for the OP to justify for Aeropress use though.  

Up the budget and get a single dose, this is one of the cheaper ones.

https://bellabarista.co.uk/collections/single-dose-grinders/products/the-solo-df54

Posted by: toby1

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if you are interested let me know

Hi @toby1 - have DM'd you i think

"About"?  Wilfa have a 5 year warranty, another reason why they are a great buy.  Check your purchase date, you might be entitled to a repair or replacement.

Thanks for that alert. A search of my mailbox reveals that "about 5" is actually 7 :-(. It's used twice a day every day, so maybe that's not so bad?

But perhaps the more relevant question is whether there is much real world difference between grinding beans for your Bialetti or Aeropress in one of the £100+ fancy grinders mentioned here vs something cheaper and more cheerful.

Yes and no as I think it depends on the coffee you're using. I have a Niche Zero grinder that I use with espresso machines* at home. I also sometimes use it with an aeropress and a moka pot. With speciality beans you can go down a rabbit hole of dialling in the flavour with all of these brewing methods. 

However my default for holidays/travelling is a moka pot or aeropress with pre-ground Lavazza coffee. Unsurprisingly the moka pot works really well with dark roast Italian style coffee. The only real grind issue when I've used whole beans is going too fine and choking/risking overheating of the pot. 

*yes 2! Sage machine and a manual lever Flair.

Posted by: MoreCashThanDash

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LittleMissMC is also on A level study leave and sorts her own drinks ou

You might have a different A-level specimen MCTD 😉 . Coffee brewing for our specimen is an excuse for a check-in/kick up the chuff and some darts and bonding

Useful feedback on the single-dose and residual grounds. I think that's an important consideration, as only grind as needed, and sometimes (when it's not exam time) might go a couple of days without making a coffee.

Cheers all

Posted by: blokeuptheroad

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At the risk of sounding like a coffee bore (although I think that ship has already sailed),

Pfft - you're only an amateur coffee bore - at the cafe stop on todays club ride, one rider checked the time to make sure it was still appropriate to order a cappucino. He is Italian though, so is forgiven.

Noone recommending to freeze most of those beans yet?! 

!

Also.... "Indeed. But perhaps the more relevant question is whether there is much real world difference between grinding beans for your Bialetti or Aeropress in one of the £100+ fancy grinders mentioned here vs something cheaper and more cheerful.   Or is it a case of the emperor’s new speaker cables?"

Actually, a huge difference. High quality steel burrs make a remarkable difference to quality of extraction. You can even smell it. Great coffee is annoyingly expensive (and is going to continue to get more and more expensive)

at the cafe stop on todays club ride, one rider checked the time to make sure it was still appropriate to order a cappucino. He is Italian though, so is forgiven.

I think this is more a reflection of how seriously Italians take food and digestion rather than anything to do with coffee. It would be whether to have milk or not at that time, possibly inducing digestive discomfort later if you do.

See also discarding certain parts of a garlic clove when cooking with it

@susepic Not for the first time, I'll recommend what I've got: a Rok grinder. It's a manual grinder so has (some of) the advantages of weight, size, noise, but a benchtop format with a horizontal axis (kinda like one of those sausage meat grinders) so much easier and quicker than your Hario (which I also have for travel). Practically zero retention. Comes Hoffman-recommended too.

Posted by: chaos

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Did the job absolutely fine for that other than it does generate a lot of static so it helps if you can very slightly dampen the beans with a mist sprayer but that's true of lots of grinders.

So glad that someone else has mentioned this as mine does exactly this!  I find leaving it for around 10 to 15 minutes after it's finished grinding helps to mitigate the static but doesn't get rid of it all.  Will try dampening and see how that goes.

I went old school.

Spong No.2 bolted to the wall.

Fine as you like. Big old cast iron lump.

A bit like Josh, I'm kind of old school and quite happy with my, Made in West Germany, Kym coffee grinder. I enjoy my coffee and guests always complement me on it. I think it cost me all of about £30 out of an antique shop.

As @involver said at the bottom of the previous page there’s a known problem with a capacitor failing on the Wilma Svart. I had it, and it is likely to be what you have experienced @DrJ (and @austen). 

Wilma replaced my Svart under warranty, but didn’t have any Svarts in stock at the time so I paid the difference and got a Uniform, which is a noticeable upgrade…

Anyway, the Svart is pretty easy to repair with a soldering iron and a new capacitor - I’m pretty sure these are what I bought. There are instructions on coffeeforums.co.uk, and also a couple of threads on Reddit…

Have you considered a Rohloff hub?
It makes similar noises but more eloquently and expensively yet remains indestructible. I have often considered dropping a few beans in to see how well it could do. 🙂
(Tongue firmly in cheek)