Hi!
New to the forum, so apologies if this has already been addressed, but I had trouble finding a straight forward answer myself. I currently have a Breville Barista Express and a Baratza Encore at home. I'm looking to upgrade my espresso grinder given that I realistically have only 2-3 available grind settings between the Encore and built in Breville grinder. Anything smaller chokes the machine and anything large doesn't build any pressure.

I've read that upgrading your grinder is the first and most important step to improving your espresso, so I figured that should be my first target now that I have some cash I can spare. I do still use the Encore for pour over and aeropress (very occasionally for french press) so whatever I replace with would ideally be able to do that. I don't mind keeping the Encore and buying an espresso specific grinder either. My price range would be about $600 or less. Ideally in the $300-400 range. Cheaper is better, obviously. I don't mind buying second-hand, and while I'm alright when it comes to tinkering with things I really don't have the time to invest in any major DIY work on my grinder right now. I generally make myself 1-2 cups of coffee today and weight my beans before grinding (i don't need/want a doser of any kind). I'm a first year medical resident, so years down the line when I'm actually earning a physician's salary I'll probably upgrade to a much nicer espresso machine. I'd like whatever grinder I pick up now to be workable with a high end home espresso machine.

From what I've seen the top contenders look like the Mazzer Mini, the pharos hand grinder, and something from the baratza sette 270. The baratza forte actually seems the most ideal since it sounds like it can cover the full spectrum of grinds, but its a touch outside my budget. Any thoughts? Is what I'm looking for unrealistic given my price range? Is it best to go for a hand grinder instead of an electric? I've never used one before. I'd really love just one grinder that'll do it all and be future proofed against espresso machine upgrades.

Look forward to hearing your thoughts!

baratza is a great brand for home use with great support and I recommend them to everyone with a similar budget. if you have light home use I think they are great to consider. If the forte is out of your price range then you can look at the vario which is a bit like the cheaper version of the forte. essentially the same design but with more plastic parts and less digital displays. the vario-w will dose by weight which is a great feature. The settle 270wi (another weight doser) I think is about the same price point as the Vario. It's probably a bit easier to adjust with its rotating dial where the vario/forte have these arms that can be a bit unpleasant to use and if i'm not mistaken I think the micro-adjustments are infinite on the sette so 270 is more like 270 lines. Sette's Wi model is smart and over a few grinds become more accurate with weight, like really accurate (I think the "i" means intelligent) but there are a few models out there, the 30, 270, 270w and 270wi. If the weighing feature is important to you (and it is great) I would try and get the wi model otherwise you can just get the 270. it has very low grind retention as it's just a straight pass-through so you can dose yourself and it's pretty much what you put in is what's coming out. bartaza's support is also excellent and parts for all their units are always available.

a lot of people seem to salivate at the mere mention of the brand mazzer. it's a high quality brand, no doubt about that and will outlast any baratza, but it's known to have a lot of grind retention issues and clumping. the cheaper ones you're going to get are the manual dosers designed to pregrind a load of coffee which a mechanical segmented turning wheel. each segment holds about 7g of coffee (standard single Italian dose) and as you turn the wheel it evens off a segment and dispenses the dose so this mode would be more suited for a busier cafe where they don't need to worry much about the coffee going very stale and since it's preground it doses really quickly. Great for a busy event table where you don't have a lot of room but need to get out coffee quickly. You can use it for on-demand use and leave the doser empty and when you want to grind turn the grinder on and it will start to fill the doser with whatever coffee is in the hopper but by continuously pulling the dosing arm and it will dispense the little bit of coffee it has collected. you just continue to do this until you have the desired amount. It works and the mazzer will last but it has a lot of grind retention and this on-demand method also tends to waste coffee as there's always going to be coffee you don't use in the doser. the electronic doserless models are great but are more in the $1000 range, I would still put them in a cafe or coffee cart rather than a home unless its something you really want.

Bezzera bb005 would do fine
WLL Has a timer version for under $400




Randy

Unfortunately, I don't think that "one grinder that does it all" exists at any price point, so it would be helpful to understand your usage a little more.

What kind of coffee do you like for espresso? Light/medium/dark roast? How often do you make espresso?

...and since I see that you're in Chicago, how soon are you looking to purchase a grinder? I'll try to be unbiased in my advice, but I might have a used grinder (or two) available very soon that you may be interested in.

I'd snag the niche zero that's in the buy/sell forum right now.

I am in no way affiliated, just a happy user of the niche and would recommend it for someone like you trying to upgrade.

A bit over ten years ago, I moved up from a Mazzer Mini to an early Baratza Vario. The difference with "espresso" roasts of the day was immediately evident.

A single word doesn't make a grinder great at its price point, be it "Mazzer", "flat", or "conical"

maxbmello wrote:I'd snag the niche zero that's in the buy/sell forum right now.

I am in no way affiliated, just a happy user of the niche and would recommend it for someone like you trying to upgrade.

+1

Previous owner of some lousy grinders. Then the owner of a Mazzer Mini and a Mazzer Major. First thing I'd say is that if you do go for a Mazzer, don't worry about dealing with the doser: remove the doser.

I just got my Niche this week, and I'll likely be selling a used Mazzer Mini with brand new burrs and a 2L bottle single-dosing mod. Well within your price range.

DamianWarS wrote:baratza is a great brand for home use with great support and I recommend them to everyone with a similar budget. if you have light home use I think they are great to consider. If the forte is out of your price range then you can look at the vario which is a bit like the cheaper version of the forte. essentially the same design but with more plastic parts and less digital displays. the vario-w will dose by weight which is a great feature. The settle 270wi (another weight doser) I think is about the same price point as the Vario. It's probably a bit easier to adjust with its rotating dial where the vario/forte have these arms that can be a bit unpleasant to use and if i'm not mistaken I think the micro-adjustments are infinite on the sette so 270 is more like 270 lines. Sette's Wi model is smart and over a few grinds become more accurate with weight, like really accurate (I think the "i" means intelligent) but there are a few models out there, the 30, 270, 270w and 270wi. If the weighing feature is important to you (and it is great) I would try and get the wi model otherwise you can just get the 270. it has very low grind retention as it's just a straight pass-through so you can dose yourself and it's pretty much what you put in is what's coming out. bartaza's support is also excellent and parts for all their units are always available.

a lot of people seem to salivate at the mere mention of the brand mazzer. it's a high quality brand, no doubt about that and will outlast any baratza, but it's known to have a lot of grind retention issues and clumping. the cheaper ones you're going to get are the manual dosers designed to pregrind a load of coffee which a mechanical segmented turning wheel. each segment holds about 7g of coffee (standard single Italian dose) and as you turn the wheel it evens off a segment and dispenses the dose so this mode would be more suited for a busier cafe where they don't need to worry much about the coffee going very stale and since it's preground it doses really quickly. Great for a busy event table where you don't have a lot of room but need to get out coffee quickly. You can use it for on-demand use and leave the doser empty and when you want to grind turn the grinder on and it will start to fill the doser with whatever coffee is in the hopper but by continuously pulling the dosing arm and it will dispense the little bit of coffee it has collected. you just continue to do this until you have the desired amount. It works and the mazzer will last but it has a lot of grind retention and this on-demand method also tends to waste coffee as there's always going to be coffee you don't use in the doser. the electronic doserless models are great but are more in the $1000 range, I would still put them in a cafe or coffee cart rather than a home unless its something you really want.

Hows the reliability of the sette? I've heard it isn't great? A weighing feature sounds nice, but relatively superfluous.

I've never owned one but people who I know who have one haven't had an issue but I've heard of others having a lot of issues. It would be best to talk to an owner of a sette that has more experience with the issues or even baratza themselves. I find baratza support pretty realistic and they are fine with talking about the limits of some of their machines. A used niche zero if it hits your price point would be certainly a great option as has already been suggested. The one in the buy/sell section sold for $660. They keep coming up so if you wait long enough someone will want to tell theirs

New ones are $656 with December delivery right now. It's a little outside the OP's budget, and I don't personally have any experience with one, but with the positive comments that it gets around here, if that budget could be stretched a little, it does seem like the best bet.