It is time for you to purchase a new grinder, but with all of the options on the market, how do you choose the right one? First off, if you are currently using a blade coffee grinder, it is time to upgrade to a burr grinder.
The Difference Between Blade and Burr Grinders
Choosing between a blade and burr coffee grinder may seem like a minute detail with a significant cost difference.
The truth is that the way you grind your beans will drastically affect how your coffee turns out. A blade grinder uses a small blade that whips around in a similar fashion as an airplane propeller. When you grind coffee in this manner, the beans are flying around. Sometimes they will hit the blade during a revolution, other times they will miss it completely.
This results in an inconsistent grind. The end result is a coffee grind that has both coarse and fine particles. Burr coffee grinders grind the beans thoroughly and will come out with a consistent texture.
What Does it Matter if My Grind is Consistent or Not?
Adjusting the grind of your bean affects the extraction process.
A common analogy is a jar of sand versus a jar of rocks. The sand represents a fine coffee grind, and the stones represent a coarse grind. If you pour water over both, it will take much longer for the water to drain through the sand than the larger rocks.
The same thing happens when you brew your coffee.
A fine grind will result in the coffee being steeped for a more extended amount of time resulting in a stronger cup of coffee. If your grind is inconsistent, it makes it difficult to control this variable. The results will vary. The flavor of your cup of coffee will be different each morning–sometimes to your liking and other times not so much.
Introducing the Krupps GX5000 Coffee Grinder
First created in 1986, the Krups GX5000 is known for being one of the highest quality burr grinders you can purchase at a reasonable cost.
- Amazon has them listed for just a bit more than a blade grinder, an excellent price for an entry level burr grinder.
- There are nine different settings for adjusting the grind. This allows for a wide range of coffee grind sizes. Grind sizes, as I mentioned before, allow for different strengths and flavors of coffee.
- Grinds 2-12 cups of coffee at a time.
- The bean container stores up to 8 ounces of coffee at a time.
- The grinder will not run unless you have the coffee catcher firmly in place.
- The Krupps GX5000 Coffee Grinder is available in black.
Welcome to the Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder
Although more expensive than the Krupps GX5000, the Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder is worth a gander if you are in the market for a new coffee grinder that will perform a bit better and give you more consistent grind particles.
- Online this grinder will run you about twice that of the Krupps but it will probably make better coffee grind. This may seem like an expensive kitchen device, but if you are looking for the full experience right at home, it is worth the cost of a few extra coffees from a cafe you’ve sacrificed in order to buy it.
- There are fourteen different settings on the Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder. This gives you a plethora of choices to choose from and will allow you everything from the cup of strong espresso to that iced coffee you’ve longed for all summer.
- The coffee catcher is made from borosilicate glass. This is unique and important because it cuts back on the static caused by the burrs. With other materials used for the coffee catcher, it is not uncommon for the fresh ground coffee to adhere to the sides of the container. This is problematic because when the container is removed coffee ends up over the countertops as well as stuck to the sides of the coffee catch.
- One thing to keep in mind about the glass coffee catch is the temperature of your environment. If you live in a cold climate, this may not be the best purchase as the glass has been known to break due to the fluctuations of temperatures. One thing to keep in mind though is that Bodum offers replacement burrs and coffee catchers for sale.
- The Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder comes in six different colors: black, white, red, copper, shiny copper, and silver.
These two grinders are quite different, but both of them are of high quality. If you are looking for a more straightforward coffee experience and do not want to spend as much on a coffee grinder, the GX5000 is one of the better options on the market. However, if you are looking to spend a little more and would like complete control of your coffee grind, you may want to consider purchasing the Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder.