I want to buy a coffee grinder, and was thinking about the Breville blade coffee and spice grinder, which is available for about $40. However, I've just read the latest Consumer magazine and they say that if you want a good result you really need a burr grinder, which of course is much more expensive - one point they make is that you can adjust the fineness of the grind. But as I don't have an espresso machine, and only use a plunger, I wonder if I need to go to this extra expense? I have an excellent mortar and pestle for grinding spices, so the Breville dual purpose function isn't a plus for me.

I think for a plunger the $40 Breville would be fine, and a decent step up from pre-ground coffee.

Consumer is correct that for an espresso machine you really do need a proper burr grinder as being able to adjust the grind, and have it consistent, is essential. One may have an $1000 espresso machine, but it will never make beautiful coffee unless the beans are ground right before use and to a fineness that is suited to the individual machine.

One of the advantages of a burr grinder is that it doesn't heat the beans as they are ground. We have a Kitchenaid burr grinder and it is very good, but rather expensive and large compared with a cheap Breville.

I have had a breville coffee/spice grinder for many years and use it all the time for plunger coffee with no problems and the coffee is far superior to pre-ground coffee.

I have bought a Breville coffee/spice grinder and look forward to trying it out! Reading the instruction booklet, they recommend a variable temperature kettle, so the water doesn't reach boiling point- ideally 95 deg, they say. I don't have a variable temperature kettle, and wonder if other people follow this advice, and if so how they manage with an ordinary kettle! (I might experiment with my kitchen thermometer, if I can do this without scalding myself!)

I have an ancient Dutch manual grinder that hangs in the garage I've used for years and another old Italian one we used to keep on the boat. Can change the grind to any size. Do the coffee grinder models chop or actually grind the beans? Chopped beans not supposed to produce as good a brew as ground.

Mortal and pestle grinders remind me of Runescape. They just grind those beans due to really fine powder.

Our Compak grinds. We love our coffee and to complement the Vibiemme espresso machine that family gave T for his 70th it was necessary to invest in a quality grinder. The grind we use for espresso is much too fine for a plunger.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/09/2018 04:36AM by Stephanie39.

after reading this thread I remembered the ancient coffee grinder brought back from a holiday in Austria as a souvenir about 35 years ago. Too folksy looking perhaps. My husband took it apart and cleaned the mechanism. I've forgotten why we stopped using the grinder. We can adjust the grind for use in our Bialetti and plunger. Perfect. Thanks for jolting my memory.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/09/2018 11:17AM by Chris.

Bought Killer Coffee and got a hand grinder for free. I admit I was a little sceptic because of the manual coffee grinder. I decided to give it a try and I was thrilled!

The grinder is great, perfect for travelling or you can use it in the office.

Nice colour, smooth, creamy taste, perfect aroma and strong as hell

For two years now I enjoy making perfect strongest coffee every morning.

Do I need to say that I'm a coffee addict?