Douglas Adams wrote:I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.

I apologize for the delay to anyone that's been on the edge of their seat waiting for this ( right). If you've been following the reviews of the Baratza Vario, then you've no doubt seen the First Look that I gave about 6 weeks ago. PT's Coffee has graciously sponsored our informal review of this grinder by providing a pre-production unit for review, plenty of their amazing coffee, including their signature espresso blends, as well as a few bags of their Special Prep Sidamo, which has proved one of the more exceptional coffees that I've had the pleasure of drinking. I'd like to thank PT's for donating their coffee and helping me out with any questions I've had.

Unfortunately, my pre-production unit had some problems with grind quality that I think may have been the result of some misalignment of the burrs. Of course, you can read about all that in the previous thread. You'll find that I got in touch with Kyle Anderson, the man behind the Baratza Vario, and he and Mark Prince tried to troubleshoot the grinder, unfortunately to no avail. However, Kyle offered to send Dan and I review units directly, and so the grinders Dan and I later received were sent straight from Baratza.

About a week and a half ago, Dan received his Vario, and soon took it up to Counter Culture Coffee, only to see it easily bested by CCC's Robur, producing very unimpressive shots. Dan continued to work with the grinder, and later reported much improved shots over its initial showing at CCC. He took it back the next Friday, and they pitted it against the infamous Mazzer Mini. The result: A dead heat.

Now that I've had my final unit for a few days and Dan has his for over a week and a half, we thought we'd start a clean slate for the grinder with a new thread, aptly titled the "Second Look." So, without further ado, here are my findings so far, presented with photos to help out on some of the questions that have been posed by owners that may have had some confusion about some of the subtler parts of the grinder.

To start off, a number of people were confused about the grinder interlock mechanism. Here's a short set on that:


Back side: mate the long, narrow rib of the hopper to the slot in the rear of the grinder throat.


Front side: mate the shorter, thick rib on the opposite side of the hopper to the slot in the front side of the grinder throat. Push the hopper down into the throat, and rotate clockwise.


Closeup of the goal: Make the long, skinny rib push this button.

Note that if the grinder won't turn on, you can remove the hopper, start the grinder in manual mode (it will count up on the digital display), and press this button. If the grinder still doesn't turn on, you've got a problem.

Note: I ran about a pound of old beans through the grinder to season it. I did this by grinding in ~30 second bouts with about a minute rest in between. The grinder got pretty darn hot. At the end, it wouldn't turn on when I tried to run the supplied Urnex Grindz through it. It wouldn't turn back on for several minutes. However, after it cooled down, it ran as normal, and the burrs sounded the same as before (started to change sounds at the same settings, etc.).

While I was seasoning the grinder, I got plenty of grind samples to look through. This grinder doesn't have the same "sawtooth," monster-particle issue as the pre-preproduction unit. That's a good sign! I also got to look at what the static is like.


After banging the thing against the trash bin to get all the grinds out, this is what I am left with.


Which reminds me--Baratza has certainly advertised their Mahlkönig burrset on the grinder. This sticker made me think of the Intel Inside stickers that are plastered on so many computers the world over.

Now, before I touch on grinding for espresso, here's some more photos of the Vario, of various aspects of the final version that I didn't touch on in my previous coverage.


The Portaholder, at its highest setting. It doesn't really hold my portafilter up, and seems like it was designed more for a La Marzocco portafilter as its smallest portafilter.


The naked portafilter in the portaholder. I had to bend the portaholder's fork up slightly (quite easy to do) to get it to hold the thing even close to level.

For the rounded bowl of the Elektra A3 portafilter, the fork is more cumbersome than helpful. It doesn't really hold the portafilter at the right angle or place, and it encumbers movement during dosing. The housing is nice; it's easy to remove, and it does a decent job at catching stray grinds. I took the fork off of mine, and I like it better that way.


Cord management: nifty, works well, and it's one of the very handy features of the grinder that I really like.


Random closeup of the exit chute for the grinder. Not much to see, other than that it's quite small. I can fit a pinky up there and wriggle it around to purge the grinds that get trapped. Smaller hands may fare better. It feels like there's a flap up there of some kind, which may explain the reduction in clumps.


The grinds chamber, redux. No real difference, other than this is a totally clean grinder.


The grinds chamber, redux, part II: upper burr.


Assembled: the last thing that beans destined for the Vario ever see.

You can see how much metal there is in the grinds path (for the benefit of anyone who's interested in the Vario as a grinder that eliminates metal from touching the coffee).

Here's what things look like in the testing lab (A.K.A. my dining room), just before I make a huge mess of the place:



I've wanted to get a good impression of the grinder over the weekend, but I have been thwarted by coffee that I am unfamiliar with, and good coffee that is getting somewhat past its prime. My Bella Vita is pulling fairly close on the Robur and the Vario, but it's not very nice on either of them due to its age. I've refused point blank to put any of my Los Luchadores in the Vario. I only have 12 oz. of the stuff, and it's giving me enough trouble as it is. The whole weekend it was grass, grass, and lemongrass. Finally this morning I got ginger in the shot, and maybe a hint of butterscotch in the macchiato, using the Robur. Anyway, enough of that tangent...

All that to say, I don't know much about this grinder's cup quality yet. The results in the cup so far are reasonably encouraging, as are Dan's reports. Confirming that, the pucks look better than last time:


The big flakes are gone; it looks like a normal puck.

On the other hand, my grinder can just barely pull a ristretto with the beans I am using and a normal dose, and certainly can't choke the machine without some serious updosing. I got all kinds of messy gushers dialing it down. I've ended up all the way fine on the right (macro), and about 2-3 notches from the very finest the grinder goes on the left (micro). I believe that this may indicate that my grinder isn't quite calibrated optimally, which is an issue some others have complained of (e.g., James Hoffman noted that his Vario couldn't grind coarse enough for French Press). If it becomes an issue, I'll have to contact Kyle and see about adjusting the calibration.

Finally, here are a few more random observations I've come to thus far:

• As I alluded to, it seems like the Vario is quite capable of producing a balanced cup. On too-old Bella Vita, I am getting better-tasting (though worse-looking) pours than I was with the same coffee before. This seems like a good sign--with some fresher coffee, I expect the pours will improve.
• It looks like its apparently clump-free grind is slightly deceptive; I think it will still be a WDT candidate. it certainly seems to be rather sensitive to how you dose, and it's very possible that I just need to work with it more and find a good method that yields channel-free pours without getting out my yogurt cup and dissecting needle.
• Whatever they did to solve static isn't working for me right now. I still get pretty significant messes on the counter; grounding the hook and fork doesn't seem to have helped for me. Holding the portafilter very low (without the fork) below the chute, which helped me before, seems to help for this unit as well. Static seems to be a very touchy problem for grinders, and I suspect your issues with it will vary sharply with your climate and coffee choice. Your mileage will certainly vary on this one.

I think that's it for me, for now. As Hal mentioned in the first look, it's too early to draw sweeping conclusions about this grinder, particularly about the parts that are most important--how good is it for espresso, and how good is it for cupping/press pot/etc.? If you're looking for the answers to those questions, there's no getting around that you're going to have to sit tight while the reviewers and early adopters get more experience.

humm... A second "inconclusive" look. A politically correct way of saying that the grinder doesn't cut it

tribe3 wrote:humm... A second "inconclusive" look. A politically correct way of saying that the grinder doesn't cut it

Not really. If you peruse the other threads in the Bench forum, you'll find that we don't rush to conclusions. This vs. That shootouts are fun and make for good reading, but I have more confidence in evaluation results spread out over 2-3 months.

The big flakes are apparent on grinds from my unit.

Picture about 2/3 way down http://theotherblackstuff.ie/?p=383

Hi guys,

I was just about to mention David's flake problem which means that Nicholas's one wasn't just a one time thing. I'm not sure why that happens, but I would bet my money on the way the burrs are held which seems to be inefficient. Maybe tougher/harder beans move the burrs further away and this lets out some of the coarser stuff into the basket?

Overheating after 30s of grinding? Seriously? even with a minute of pause in-between? and I heard somewhere this is suppose to be a light-duty commercial grinder. Light-duty as in 'don't use more often than once per hour'?:)

Regards,
dsc.

I've been using the Vario since I received it (last Friday?). Being relatively new to the concept of quality grinds (was using a Krups not realizing it was not an espresso grinder), it took me quite a while to get the grind setting right. My technique for tamping was miserable until I read the WDT article. While I don't use that technique, I am paying attention to the distribution and that has helped tremendously. Once I figured that out, I was finally able to settle on the correct grind (as far as my limited experience can tell). One morning before work, I ground my first shot and ran it through and it was finished in less than 15 seconds. I was baffled. Then I looked at the setting on the Vario and both levers were on the coarse settings. I accused my kids of playing with the levers. They laughed at me thinking I had gone of the deep end. Well, the next day, I was grinding and the levers started moving down all by themselves! Has anyone else experienced this? I know others have commented on the lack of tactile locking of the levers into each setting. I was grinding Ethiopian that I roasted in a Whirly Pop. It was a very light roast and grassy (yuck). But thats another story. The reason I mention this is I think the beans are harder than correctly roasted beans and this is causing the levers to move down as the beans push on the burrs. Grinding these beans results in a very loud, clunky noise while store bought beans are quieter and smoother sounding. Does this sound reasonable?

Hi Wendell,

it might be a faulty model, or the thing I was talking/worried about earlier (ie. the way the burr changes position). We still don't know how the whole slider/lever mechanism works, so it's hard to tell what's going on, but your problems and the fact that some models produce coarse grinds when grinding on a fine setting might be an indication that the grinder can't handle bigger/harder beans.

Nicholas/Dan: have you tried grinding some elephant beans with the Vario? Nicholas if you have any of the Los Luchadores you can try. I think peaberries are also a bit tougher than normal beans.

Regards,
dsc.

I cupped Los Luchadores at a little south of French press. I didn't have any trouble grinding with it. Several of the blends I have run through the grinder have also contained peaberries, and I haven't noticed any trouble with them. I would guess that it's a problem with something not being tensioned right on Wendell's grinder.

shadowfax wrote:All that to say, I don't know much about this grinder's cup quality yet.

Then shouldn't this review have waited until you do? Baratza has a lot riding on this product, and many prospective buyers will Google their way to your Second Look.

Instead of a lot of random, largely negative, observations about secondary features, didn't the manufacturers ultimately deserve that it be tested in the cup with fresh coffee you feel competent with?

Marshall, I apologize for the confusion; I meant to say 'I don't know much more about this grinder's cup quality than previously reported.' Rest assured that we'll cover the grinder's taste profile, but as Dan has mentioned already, it takes time and effort. Expect this to be developed over the next couple of months.

Marshall wrote:Then shouldn't this review have waited until you do? Baratza has a lot riding on this product, and many prospective buyers will Google their way to your Second Look.

Instead of a lot of random, largely negative, observations about secondary features, didn't the manufacturers ultimately deserve that it be tested in the cup with fresh coffee you feel competent with?

Marshall, these bench threads are usually preliminary to a review. Their whole point is that the reviewers post their unvarnished and immediate reactions. If a product is good, but has human factor, quality control, or learning curve issues; this will be immediately, albeit unfairly apparent in these bench threads. If there were a review, it would be based on more mature consideration and be more balanced. In this case, the process will end with the bench thread. So it will work out like the Titan Grinder review: a whole raft load of information, some bad, some good, much of it premature, with a consensus about the grinders emerging only late in the day.

If you think this is unfair or uninformative, you should wait for Nicholas and Dan to post their final impressions. However, a manufacturer of consumer products might be better advised to be very attentive to the early posts of a bench thread, and not pay too much attention to the final conclusions, since it's usually the first impression that makes or breaks a product.

The last three days I've been focusing on French press prepared with the Vario. I follow Sweet Maria's Recommended French Press Brewing Method, which calls for shorter steeping time and finer grind, though I prefer a slightly longer steep time (*) than Tom advocates. My test coffee is the delightfully sweet and juicy Klatch Ethiopian Wondo Bonko.

It took several presses to get the grind right, finally arriving at midway between the "Filter" and "Press" setting on the macro adjustment (I left the micro adjustment in the middle). One area that the Vario really excels is clean delivery: According to a 0.1 gram accuracy scale, everything that went in came out. I've read a number of reports of static problems in the pre-production models, but it was neat and clean for me IF the grounds catcher was snapped in place. That is, don't make the mistake of setting the grind setting for French press and then running some test coffee through without the grounds catcher in place; otherwise you'll discover, as I did, that your countertops are covered in coffee grounds extending for one foot to the left and right of the Vario.

I have a Le'Lit PL53 at work that I would like to compare with the Vario for French press. In terms of ergonomics, the Vario is much more civilized than the PL53 on several fronts: quieter, faster, less grounds retention (zero), less mess. The Vario is also more attractive. On the other hand, the PL53 has a stainless steel wraparound shell and simple on/off switch that appears more sturdy than the Vario's mix of steel, plastic, and electronics. I admit that mine is treated roughly at work as I shuffle the PL53 back and forth between my cubicle storage closet and the breakroom. The Vario's plastic adjustment levers feel delicate in comparison and I would not subject this grinder to such daily jostling for fear of breaking it.

(*) Specific French press brew parameters: water 30 seconds off the boil, 15 grams of coffee for 8 ounces, 3.5 minutes steep time, swirl at 1 minute mark.

Sorry Roeland, I don't know the mean time between failures (MTBF definition) of the Vario's electronic components. My point was that a simple on/off switch is as reliable as it gets.

Cliff asked in another thread:

cai42 wrote:Mazzer= 2 controls. On-off switch and one adjustable metal ring. New kid on the block= 7 assorted buttons and levers. Why is more better?

Since it's relevant to this review, I've copied my response into this thread for easy reference:

HB wrote:More is sometimes better, sometimes it's just different.

In terms of market segmentation, the new kid on the block was clearly designed with home enthusiasts in mind. Mazzer designed the Mini as a cafe secondary grinder; years later, home enthusiasts discovered it worked better than the typical consumer grinder. It would be interesting to see what Mazzer would create today if they started with a blank sheet of paper and home enthusiasts in mind. I bet their grinder would have the Baratza Vario's form factor, less buttons, and more metal. And probably 2x the price.

And...

HB wrote:In my opinion, the Mazzer adjustment collar is a simple, bullet-proof design, but isn't the pinnacle of adjustment mechanisms in terms of finesse. Worm drives like the one on the Cimbali Junior or Macap M4 are easier to adjust with a twist of the wrist versus the Mazzer's two-handed grip-and-turn, but worm drives are impractical for multiple coffee preparations like espress/presspot. The Vario's micro/macro adjustment mechanism deftly threads the needle between long and short range adjustment. It's too early in my experience with the Vario to comment on how well it works, but I think the idea is very smart.

We'll cover the Vario's adjustment mechanism in due course. In the meantime, see K.I.S.S when it comes to grinders for comments/opinions of other forum members.

Edited for clarity:

I received my Vario ten days ago. I tried it a couple of days later and found that it was grinding way too fine for espresso. I decided not to form any opinions at the time as I was in the middle of a move, was using Chicago water vs. Seattle water, could not find my Super Jolly to compare it to, etc. Yesterday I unpacked the Super Jolly and this morning I made a double using grinds from the Super Jolly as a baseline. On the Super Jolly I left the grind setting to my default, and had a nice double in 27 seconds with 14 grams.

I then tried the Vario on the 1st notch down on the right (macro) side, and middle notch on the left (micro) side. 14 grams of coffee filled my basket 1/2 way with large clumps of very fine grinds. I adjusted to the filter setting on the macro side and the grinds were probably OK, but I did not continue as I would prefer to have obvious issues corrected before trying workarounds and forming taste opinions based on less than optimal conditions. I will call the support desk and see if they have an idea. Perhaps something slipped during shipping.

Edit: Here is the fix, a simple adjustment of the grinder burr zero point: Recalibrating the Baratza Vario [photos]

Take Care,
Dan

Dan, do I understand correctly that your issue is clumping? I've used 5 or 6 different coffees in the Varios that I've used by now. They both clumped on some, hardly at all on others. Currently I am using Ritual's Vitamin D Seasonal Espresso, and I am using the WDT after dosing. In my experience thus far, again, the grinder does clump, but at least the clumps are, as you say, very fine, owing to its tiny exit chute from the grinding chamber. If clumping is what you're worried about, I don't think you have a problem.

However, if you call them, it will be interesting to read what they say.

Sorry, I did not word that well. It is not clumping that is causing me to worry, I can break up the clumps, it is having to set the macro adjustment to filter in order to get espresso grinds that is bugging me. With the macro lever one notch coarser than the top setting (with the micro setting in the middle) I get clumps which are so fine that my machine delivers no espresso after 30 seconds and I cut it off.

If I grind on Filter settings it looks OK, and in fact the first time I tried it a few days ago I did make a shot with coffee ground at the filter setting and it was OK, but I would rather not spend time dialing it in on a filter setting and then swapping it out for one which works properly. My guess is that somewhere inside the beast there is a set of pulleys and my belt is out of whack. Hopefully they will tell me to pop it open and have a look but I suspect they will just ship me a new one.

Sounds like it might be adjusted correctly to me. I do mine on the filter setting for espresso. I posted earlier on how to check the grinds calibration. This grinder is very capable of doing turkish grind.

With both levers all the way down empty out the coffee, move the right lever all the way to the top, turn it on, move the left lever gradually upwards. You should hear some loading at the mid point and more loading at the top but it shouldn't halt. There is an adjustment screw near the exit chute for the burrs which Baratza support can guide you through doing. Or they can send you a new grinder. The belt doesn't slip as it is toothed.