It’s All in the Grind

An often misunderstood step of the coffee brewing process, the grind is something to take very seriously when crafting a perfect cup or pot of coffee.  As you dig deeper into your new found love for freshly roasted, complex, and delicious coffee you find that your old “whirley bird” (see below) coffee grinder might just be what is holding you back from achieving coffee nirvana.  Why is this? What makes those tall, sleek grinders found in coffee shops so much better than your “Magic Bullet” or spice grinder?

Blade grinder – with grinds that are inconsistent below

To understand the concept of the coffee grind and why it is crucial in the whole brewing process, let’s first touch on how the coffee we have in our cup gets to be that silky smooth, aromatic and balanced drink that we look forward to every day.

When very hot water meets coffee grounds, the extraction of flavor begins. If you have a very uniformed grind the extraction is predictable, smooth, and even.  If the grinds are all different shapes and sizes the final result will lack consistency and produce an under-extracted, watery cup or an over-extracted, bitter cup. The grind size and consistency directly correlate to the flavor and goodness in your coffee. Check this link out for a coffee grinding guide.

So there you have it, the more consistent the grind the better the coffee. Easy enough.  As we dig deeper, we can start to see why the blade grinder isn’t going to cut it.  It does not offer consistency. You press the button and the blades start spinning recklessly. A chaotic mosh pit of coffee grinds gets tossed around and comes out looking like the mulch you laid in your front yard last week.  There is no method to the madness in the blade grinder.  The hot water hits surface areas of all shapes and sizes and extraction of what we are longing for is lacking to say the least.

Burr grinder – with a more uniform and consistent grind below

Now on to the burr grinder (pictured above).  These tall, handsome looking machines offer much more to the avid coffee drinker than what meets the eye.  Whole bean coffee is placed in the cone at the top of the machine and gravity delivers them to a burr, similar to way corn and wheat are ground at a mill. It is a simple system based off of friction.  The coffee can only pass through the tough,steel, disk-like burrs in the space that is between them. This makes for a very consistent grind size.  Most modern burr grinders have settings to adjust the space in between the steel burrs. So if you want french press coffee you increase the gap for a more coarse grind and for a shot of espresso you do the opposite, you decrease the gap between the burrs, for a very fine grind.

We could spend all day writing about grinders: why espresso grinders cost more money, motor speed, conical vs. flat burrs, dosing mechanisms, etc. But, that is all for a later date.

The grinder is truly the missing link in a great cup of coffee for many people.  If you are going to skimp on your brewing gear, the grinder is not the place to do it.  I can speak for a few grinders (commercial and home) and will say that for an entry level grinder the Virtuoso line from Baratza fits the bill nicely. It is sturdy, consistent, easy to clean, and offers a wide range of grind types.  Do some research and save up some money for the missing piece to your coffee gear collection.