In response to this post . . .

uscfroadie wrote:Care to make an informal review of how the Vario compares to its bigger brother?

Merle, I thought I posted this in a different thread, but now I can't remember where, so I'll make it into its own little thread.

As you can well imagine, the Mahlkönig K30 Vario is my main espresso grinder. The Baratza Vario (aka Malhkönig Vario HOME) is my "secondary" espresso grinder -- for decaf, special lots, SO's, etc. -- as well as being my primary grinder for use with my Chemex and press pot.

To date, nothing I've ever used in the "coffee realm" (as opposed to the "espresso arena") has done as good a job as the Baratza Vario for drip and press. It has been as significant an improvement for these coffees as switching from the Mazzer Mini to the Cimbali Max Hybrid was for my espresso. Never before have I had drip or press coffee at home with such richness, such roundness and such depth of flavor. It's almost like moving from instant to "real" coffee . . .

OK, now -- focusing on espresso and the "two Varios":

So far my complaints are limited to the "silly." That is to say, I have no serious complaints at all:

1) The Barata takes 12.5 seconds to grind a double shot's worth of espresso. This seems ridiculously S-L-O-W compared to the Mahlkönig's 3.2 seconds, but it's only because I'm used to the Mahlkönig and not because the Baratza in and of itself is slow. Do you know what I mean? It's like driving a Ferrari, and then complaining because your Corvette is slow. It's nonsense . . .

2) I live in the North Berkeley Hills, a place where our power goes out often enough due to storms, trees, wind, and the simple fact that it can, that power outages are an expected occurrence throughout the year. So, I have to re-program the timed settings on the Baratza every so often. No big deal.

(EDIT: with the new control board, reprogramming is a thing of the past!)

Moving on to the positives, the clarity and flavors one gets from the Baratza are indeed on par with my (limited) experience with a Super Jolly and almost up there with the Mahlkönig. It is noisier that the Mahlkönig, but significantly quieter than the Cimbali Max Hybrid for example. The grinds are fluffy and relatively clump-free. There is some static, but mostly when emptying the grinds container (for drip/press) as you would expect, and not when using the portafilter holder.

OK, so let me quickly say that I'm not about to ditch the Mahlkönig K30 Vario, and it is superior to the Baratza Vaio. But that said, I have to admit that the thought has crossed my mind that those of us with titan (or titan-esque) commercial grinders at home are crazy: they are big, way too tall (at least as designed) for the average kitchen and, seriously, how many of us truly need a grinder capable of producing between 120-720 doubles per hour? OTOH, the Baratza Vario seems to be a "professional-grade grinder in a conveniently home-sized package." I can seriously see it "killing" the home market for new Mazzer SJ's, for example, as well as Mazzer Mini's, Macap M4's, and so on . . .

Cheers,
Jason

Thank you very much Jason.

This candid and insightful comparison was just what I needed! You addressed the issues that were of concern for me.
I just ordered a Vario (the little one... for now).

zin1953 wrote:I have to admit that the thought has crossed my mind that those of us with titan (or titan-esque) commercial grinders at home are crazy: they are big, way too tall (at least as designed) for the average kitchen and, seriously, how many of us truly need a grinder capable of producing between 120-720 doubles per hour? OTOH, the Baratza Vario seems to be a "professional-grade grinder in a conveniently home-sized package."

Wonderful validation for the Baratza Vario. This is why I'm sticking with the Baratza and resisting the temptation to get a Nino or Robur or K10. I'm going to wait for what I hope will be a new generation of home-friendly prosumer "Mini-Titan" grinders: big conical or flat burrs, minimal retention, doserless, timer, short enough to slip under a cabinet, etc.

zin1953 wrote:I But that said, I have to admit that the thought has crossed my mind that those of us with titan (or titan-esque) commercial grinders at home are crazy: they are big, way too tall (at least as designed) for the average kitchen and, seriously, how many of us truly need a grinder capable of producing between 120-720 doubles per hour? OTOH, the Baratza Vario seems to be a "professional-grade grinder in a conveniently home-sized package."

+1. When I was testing, the thought crossed my mind that if I'd had it a few years ago, no Mini, no Versalab, and no K10. The only reason I kept upgrading was to get good and consistent shots from light roasted, acidic coffees. The little Vario handles these with aplomb.

Jason,

Thanks so much for putting forth the effort to compare the two. I am wanting to get an electronic grinder for my travel espresso kit, currently a Gaggia Factory and Zassenhaus hand mill. I don't mind the hand grinding, but I've been making coffee for numerous folks here, and grinding a ton gets old. I definitely see a Vario in my future for the travel kit and will also be upgrading the home grinder...haven't decided yet on what to get.

Having seen the ad on CG BST forum for a Versalab this week (no plug here, it's not mine) I felt a little stab since I had used a Versalab once and had felt that it was the ultimate design and grind for our own home setup. We have been using a B. Vario since they came out last March and as all of us, we tend toward upgraditis on all levels, but I could not part with the Vario as it would be for us now, a downgrade.
We do look forward to the new control panel coming out soon as we did have a power blip the other night unknown to us and ground a pretty big pile of much anticipated coffee onto the counter before our (my) sleepy brain realized that "the vario has been grinding for a long time..." But this points to the fact that Baratza has been thinking about the issues on the Vario and doing the work to make the upgrades happen on factory spec with good fitting parts and not just turning us loose to mod the machine ourselves, sometimes with less than good aesthetic or performance results. They are coming out with a micro setting device for the Virtuoso as well as the new memory functions on the Vario and we really laud them for staying on top of it and actually hearing the suggestions (and complaints) of their customers. The only problem is that they keep selling out of stock!

zin1953 wrote:To date, nothing I've ever used in the "coffee realm" (as opposed to the "espresso arena") has done as good a job as the Baratza Vario for drip and press. It has been as significant an improvement for these coffees as switching from the Mazzer Mini to the Cimbali Max Hybrid was for my espresso. Never before have I had drip or press coffee at home with such richness, such roundness and such depth of flavor.

What grinder have you previously used for drip or press coffee?

^^ Jason will correct me if im wrong, but I believe he used a Quickmill Doserless, which is now discountinued.


Jason, thanks for the comparison... Im thinking the Vario might have to be purchased... for me, I could really use it. Ive got the BIG Bunn G2, which does a great job. . .but is far from Kitchen Friendly. Since my brewing stuff is in the Kitchen, the Vario would go very good there. Plus, it would allow me a second grinder for espresso use. . . Something Ive been wanting for a while.

Im worried that, because of the Bunn, Ive become spoiled by a flawless grind. . . But, Im not getting rid of the Bunn.. That will stay with me too. But for the kitchen, and a second espresso grinder.. The Vario fits the bill.

Richard wrote:What grinder have you previously used for drip or press coffee?

The short answer is actually that I rarely made coffee that way, prior to my acquisition of the Baratza Vario.

The long answer is, when I actually did make drip or press, I used a Pavoni PA -- but I can honestly count on two hands the number of times when I've made drip or press at home in the past 10+ years. I usually make press pot when traveling, bringing beans and my grinder when I go, and haven't felt the need (or desire) to make coffee any way other than espresso at home.

With the Baratza Vario, I've rediscovered the joys of other forms of coffee preparation. The Baratza Vario produces the best drip and press I've made at home since I got rid of my old 1950s-era Kitchen Aid A9 . . .

Cheers,
Jason

So when is the new vario coming out. Maybe I will hold out for the new version.