Worth upgrading from Baratza Vario for milk-based drinks

Recommendations for buyers and upgraders from the site's members.
spearfish25
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#1: Post by spearfish25 »

I've recently upgraded to a Profitec Pro 700 and I've been using a B. Vario grinder for years now. But with the new machine, continued upgrade-itis has me grinder shopping as well. I've been basking in the grinder forum knowledge and opinions for a few weeks now. Clearly many people feel the grinder quality is very important in espresso flavor. However as my wife and I are primarily latte drinkers, I question how big an impact upgrading from a B Vario to say a K30 would impact our drinks. No question I can taste flavor differences from poorly pulled shots, old coffee, etc even in a latte. And there are days where we hit the proverbial home run (usually with new beans) and get a latte where we look at each other and say 'holy $hit that's good'.

So if we can discern these types of flavor subtleties, we will have a similar appreciation with a higher tier grinder?
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spiffdude
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#2: Post by spiffdude »

In our household we drink almost exclusively low volume cappuccinos (5 to 5.5 oz total volume). I can tell when one of my shots is sub par and i tasted a big difference when i sold my mazzer mini to get a K10.

Sure some of the subtleties are diluted in the milk, but they are still there and if you are used to drinking milk based drink, you will still pick up on them.

Anyway, you got a killer machine, why not get the killer grinder to go with it ;-)
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brianl
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#3: Post by brianl »

Yes, but consider.

I, and many on this forum, started as latte drinkers. Then as we went up the grinder/quality path, we started to use less and less milk and now i'm all straight shots, ha.

Even if you don't, I can definitely tell when a shot is subpar in milk drinks i get these days. Although now it seems like shops use the milk drinks to disguise bad shots because i rarely get good milk drinks these days.

spearfish25 (original poster)
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#4: Post by spearfish25 (original poster) »

Perfect answers to support my new grinder fever! My cabinets are a big setback unfortunately. I think I can mod the hopper on a K30 or Ceado E37S to fit under them. However, there is no way I'll ever make a big conic work.
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weebit_nutty
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#5: Post by weebit_nutty »

spiffdude wrote:Sure some of the subtleties are diluted in the milk, but they are still there and if you are used to drinking milk based drink, you will still pick up on them.
Some of the subtleties? :lol: I'd say milk essentially mask most of subtleties in a shot that make their beans unique. What I ultimately taste are the strongest notes-- the roasty or earthy notes, the caramels, chocolates mostly. Which is fine by me, I love them because they go very well in milk. Most other notes don't translate well in milk, IMO. Oh and don't get me wrong, there certainly are subtleties that do show up in milk but not for everyone. The milky taste is overwhelmingly dominant that even if I were to notice these subtleties, I could not possibly appreciate them. It's like a meal that is way too spicy (although this example is undesirable). I'm sure you can taste the food if you tried, but will be mostly experiencing the spicy burn.

I empathize with your point on having a grinder that matches the level of your machine. It's common practice here. The reasons for it, though are often not so common. Everyone has an excuse to upgrade.
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spiffdude
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#6: Post by spiffdude »

I think a low volume milk drink will still allow you to pick up on other things such as acidity, blueberry, orange peel, raspberry, etc. I regularly go to Pikolo here in Montreal and the cappuccino tastes of flowers and red fruit. They pull mostly Phil and Sebastian (as i do) but they can extract more from it that i can somehow...

My palate may not be sufficiently developed compared to some other members on here so, as we say: you mileage may vary!
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spiffdude
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#7: Post by spiffdude »

spearfish25 wrote:Perfect answers to support my new grinder fever! My cabinets are a big setback unfortunately. I think I can mod the hopper on a K30 or Ceado E37S to fit under them. However, there is no way I'll ever make a big conic work.
I used to have a nice loft with lofts of counters and no cabinets. Now i've got a regular kitchen with low cabinets: single dose, drop the hopper altogether and you are in business sir! :wink:

If you came to this forum in hopes of members talking you out of a big conical or big flat, your have made a huge mistake.
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spearfish25 (original poster)
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#8: Post by spearfish25 (original poster) replying to spiffdude »

LOL. Talk me INTO it! My wife has already told me she doesn't want to hear another word about grinders. The last conversation ended with the upset "Ah, just do whatever you want."

Do the big flats and conicals have safety switches on the hoppers that have to be depressed to allow the grinder to run? My B Vario has it and it's frustrating. I posted this in a separate thread but your 'drop the hopper' comment has prompted me to post it here too.
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DanoM
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#9: Post by DanoM »

spearfish25 wrote:LOL. Talk me INTO it! My wife has already told me she doesn't want to hear another word about grinders. The last conversation ended with the upset "Ah, just do whatever you want."
When we got a Bezzera Strega my wife said, "Remember, that is the last espresso purchase!"

Then about 1 month later I found an ad for a couple of Compak K10's on craigslist... She's very glad I upgraded from the Baratza Vario to the K10 in the end, but rolled her eyes at the initial proposal. Although she's a latte drinker she tastes every shot with a spoon before I milk it, and she's learned alot about espresso flavors, is able to find most of those flavors in her latte even. Lately she has been pouring less milk for her latte so she gets more flavor and has gone to the extreme of skipping sugar - that's a big step for her.
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spearfish25 (original poster)
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#10: Post by spearfish25 (original poster) »

^Awesome! My wife just discovered she prefers ristrettos in her lattes. I consider that a major step. Now to get her interested in new coffee gear...
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