Starting your day early in the morning may not necessarily match your disposition. So, you rely on that distinctive aroma and robust flavor from a hot cup of coffee to perk you up and fuel your day. However, not just any cup of coffee will do. The aroma and the taste has to be fresh.
An ideal way to make sure your coffee is always fresh is to make it yourself. Coffee grinders allow you to grind your own coffee beans to ensure you have that perfect fresh cup every day.
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Types Of Coffee Bean Grinders
There are three major types of coffee bean grinders, so selecting the one that is right for you should not be too difficult.
Checkout our review of the 6 Best Coffee Grinders to help you decide.
Blade Grinders
Blade coffee grinders are the oldest coffee grinders on the market. Many blade grinders are composed of simple components, such as a cup to hold the coffee beans and multiple push-button settings.
Inside the grinder, there is a motor that is connected to a metal blade. When the appliance is operating, the blade spins and grinds up the coffee beans.
You can control how finely you want your coffee beans ground by allowing it to run longer or shorter.
Pros
Blade grinders have three positive points. They are inexpensive, oftentimes ranging under $20; easy to find in stores, and they are small and portable, which can easily fit into small spaces on counter-tops.
Cons
Unfortunately, blade coffee grinders have quite a few negative points. For example, the grinding process does not completely grind the coffee beans evenly. Typically, you will end up with uneven coffee grounds that will have a low brewing quality. Even if you allow the grinder to run until the beans are finely grounded, the heat buildup from the spinning metal blade will burn the coffee grinds and your cup of coffee will have an awful burnt flavor.
If you like a variety of coffee beverages, such as cappuccino or espresso, a blade grinder is not for you. Blade coffee grinders are not designed to make various coffee beverages, they are best for drip coffee. Additionally, the spinning metal blade can be noisy.
Burr Grinders
Flat burr grinders, or wheel burr grinders, are the latest type of coffee grinders and possibly the best, due to the improved grinding process.
Burr grinders crush the coffee beans between a moving milling wheel at the top and a non-moving surface at the bottom. This ensures the coffee beans are evenly grounded every time, which will give you a great flavor and better brew quality.
With a way to determine how coarse you want your coffee beans, you can make different coffee beverages with varying grind size requirements.
Pros
Some mornings, you may crave an espresso or cappuccino and a burr grinder is a great way to give yourself coffee options. Additionally, burr grinders are easy to clean, offer consistent grinding, quieter than a blade grinder and are built with sturdier materials to last longer. If you consider yourself stylish when it comes to everything, then you will adore the various designs and styles that burr grinders come in.
Cons
As you know, quality costs. A decent burr grinder will cost you over $100. Its stylish designs are known to require a significant amount of space and may get a little messy. Additionally, trying to find a burr grinder to suit your needs may cause some confusion, since there are so many available.
Conical Burr Grinders
The conical burr grinder is considered as the “creme de la creme” of coffee grinders. They are built to last a long time and have adjustable grinding settings, ranging from fine to coarse.
The difference between a conical and a wheel grinder is that is uses a conical shaped mill that spins slowly, and produces and more precise grind.
Pros
A conical burr grinder is quieter compared to all coffee grinders and has different settings for making different coffee beverages.
Additionally, they can be used to make oily and flavored coffees as well.
Cons
Conical burr grinders are expensive, costing over $120. Also, they consume a lot of space because of their size but they are the best option if you want to make a quality coffee at home.
The Coffee Grinder: An Investment For Your Morning Ritual
Coffee lovers will tell you that the best coffee comes from beans grounded immediately before the coffee is brewed. Old Time coffee drinkers know this by heart. That’s why no kitchen is complete without a coffee grinder. Waking up in the morning and grinding up a fresh batch of coffee beans and throwing it into the coffee maker and then anticipating that first sip of fresh hot coffee! Now that is the good life!
What Makes a Great Coffee Grinder?
When it comes to coffee grinders, there are two basic types. One is called burr grinders and the other is called blade grinders. The difference between these two is basically how the beans are processed. Blade coffee grinders use a spinning blade to grind up the coffee beans. Burr grinders use burrs to grind up coffee beans. Burrs resemble plates with gears on them. One of the burrs is stationary, while the other one spins and grinds up the coffee beans.
How Do Coffee Grinders Change The Taste of Your Coffee?
For those who are concerned about the quality of their coffee, one can purchase a low-speed burr grinder. A low speed burr will be more expensive. As well it will take longer to grind the coffee beans. But coffee purists will swear by these coffee grinders as the only way to go for a perfect cup of coffee.
When trying to make a great cup of coffee, one has to keep a couple things in mind. The taste of coffee will be affected by heat and uniformity. What this means is, heat is undesirable in a coffee grinder because it damages the coffee beans.
The process of grinding coffee is relatively violent, because both blade and burr grinders in produce some heat. And of course, the faster the grinding mechanism runs; the more heat is being generated. Even finer grinds generate heat because of the extra time it takes to grind the coffee beans.
Coffee Bean Grind Uniformity
Another very important factor is the uniformity of the grind. With the brewing process, the water spends a certain amount of time passing over the grinds. The uniform grinds are much more efficient at imparting flavour to the water.
At first glance, the average coffee drinker may not be able to distinguish coffee that was ground from a blade grinder vs. a burr grinder. But, to a coffee purist, they will notice the difference.
The blade grinder is not very good at creating a uniform grind. However, with burr grinders, they produce an exceptional uniform grind resulting in a much tastier cup of coffee.
Conclusion
Quite frankly, it’s a no brainer when it comes to selecting a coffee grinder. The burr grinder s really the only way to go.
Some of the higher end models can cost several hundred dollars, thus putting them out of reach for most coffee lovers. However, this doesn’t mean that a small budget will always get a poor coffee grinder. You can pick up a very nice coffee grinder for under hundred dollars, the selection is almost endless.
Most coffee lovers consider a coffee grinder to be an investment and not an expense. After all, who can put the dollar value on a fantastic cup of coffee each and every morning? Yes, it is the good life!