A good coffee grinder is an essential part of making a tasty cup. Many people think there is little difference between fresh ground coffee and old grounds out of a can. I've yet to meet anyone that can't be convinced of the benefit of fresh ground coffee after a quick taste test. The change in taste, aroma, and flavor from old ground to fresh ground is simply astounding.
The importance of a good coffee grinder is typically overlooked by most people, and thus their home brewed coffee does not come close to that amazing coffee house flavor they are trying to recreate. Even if you have an amazing high end coffee maker, you will have sub-standard coffee if you skimp on the grinder or forgo fresh ground coffee altogether.
A properly roasted coffee bean is a complex combination of elements. That beautiful coffee aroma comes from the essential oils that are created during the roasting process. Roast too little and the oils are never created. Roast too long and they become burnt. Imagine oil in a frying pan. There is a fine line between the proper oil temperature and blackened burnt oil. It's the same way with coffee.
After 30 minutes most of the volatile oils that give coffee it's wonderful taste are gone, evaporated into thin air. When you brew coffee that was ground before it went into a can, you end up lacking all that fresh coffee taste.
You can try to save ground coffee as best you can, using a freezer or vacuum sealer, but nothing beats that fresh ground taste. No matter the method you use to preserve your coffee, much of the taste is going to be lost once ground.
Which Coffee Grinder Is Best? What Are The Different Types?
Blade Grinders: These are what most people think of as home grinders. They have a blade that spins and chops up the beans. They are by far the most economical choice, typically costing under $20. A blade grinder is a good way to start if you want to try grinding your own coffee at a low cost. Pros: Low Cost, easy to clean, can be used to also chop herbs or nuts if you decide to upgrade. Cons: Loud, hard to achieve consistent results, blade causes friction which can burn some flavor from the coffee.
Burr Grinder - The burr grinder is the next step up in coffee grinding technology. Two grinding wheels essentially squish your coffee beans between them, allowing the bits to fall through when they are small enough. There is much finer control over the size of the coffee grounds when using a burr coffee grinder over a blade. The grinding process also proceeds much more slowly, thus keeping the beans and grounds from heating up and burning the oils during the grinding process. Burr grinders used to be the best price point for the home coffee grinder market, but conical burr grinders have really come down in price in the past few years. A good burr grinder can be bought for around $50.
Conical Burr Grinders: These are similar to regular burr grinders, but instead of two flat surfaces grinding the beans, they use a cone with an inside and outside element to crush the beans. This allows for a finer degree of grinding over a traditional burr grinder and a much slower rotation with little or no heating of the grounds. Pros: Conical burr grinders are quieter and less likely to clog than regular burr grinders. Cons: higher cost, but prices have dropped dramatically in recent years. Today a good conical burr grinder can be had for under $85.
You can use different methods to grind your coffee, including manually crushing it or smashing it between two pans. However, for most home brewers, one of these grinders is the way to go.
Many people do not realize that you can grind your own coffee for use in Keureg type single K-cup coffee makers! While the single cups are fast and convenient, they certainly lose flavor over grinding right before brewing. There are a number of different mesh baskets for single cup brewing that are designed to fit perfectly in the K-cup brewer. It's even possible to buy reusable covers to refill and reuse your spent plastic K-cup for the ultimate in coffee frugality. Keep some pre-filled K-cups for those super rushed days, and grind your own for that s
You might find that you need extra K-cup filters if you don't run your dishwasher every single day.
The importance of a good coffee grinder is typically overlooked by most people, and thus their home brewed coffee does not come close to that amazing coffee house flavor they are trying to recreate. Even if you have an amazing high end coffee maker, you will have sub-standard coffee if you skimp on the grinder or forgo fresh ground coffee altogether.
A properly roasted coffee bean is a complex combination of elements. That beautiful coffee aroma comes from the essential oils that are created during the roasting process. Roast too little and the oils are never created. Roast too long and they become burnt. Imagine oil in a frying pan. There is a fine line between the proper oil temperature and blackened burnt oil. It's the same way with coffee.
After 30 minutes most of the volatile oils that give coffee it's wonderful taste are gone, evaporated into thin air. When you brew coffee that was ground before it went into a can, you end up lacking all that fresh coffee taste.
You can try to save ground coffee as best you can, using a freezer or vacuum sealer, but nothing beats that fresh ground taste. No matter the method you use to preserve your coffee, much of the taste is going to be lost once ground.
Which Coffee Grinder Is Best? What Are The Different Types?
Blade Grinders: These are what most people think of as home grinders. They have a blade that spins and chops up the beans. They are by far the most economical choice, typically costing under $20. A blade grinder is a good way to start if you want to try grinding your own coffee at a low cost. Pros: Low Cost, easy to clean, can be used to also chop herbs or nuts if you decide to upgrade. Cons: Loud, hard to achieve consistent results, blade causes friction which can burn some flavor from the coffee.
Burr Grinder - The burr grinder is the next step up in coffee grinding technology. Two grinding wheels essentially squish your coffee beans between them, allowing the bits to fall through when they are small enough. There is much finer control over the size of the coffee grounds when using a burr coffee grinder over a blade. The grinding process also proceeds much more slowly, thus keeping the beans and grounds from heating up and burning the oils during the grinding process. Burr grinders used to be the best price point for the home coffee grinder market, but conical burr grinders have really come down in price in the past few years. A good burr grinder can be bought for around $50.
Conical Burr Grinders: These are similar to regular burr grinders, but instead of two flat surfaces grinding the beans, they use a cone with an inside and outside element to crush the beans. This allows for a finer degree of grinding over a traditional burr grinder and a much slower rotation with little or no heating of the grounds. Pros: Conical burr grinders are quieter and less likely to clog than regular burr grinders. Cons: higher cost, but prices have dropped dramatically in recent years. Today a good conical burr grinder can be had for under $85.
You can use different methods to grind your coffee, including manually crushing it or smashing it between two pans. However, for most home brewers, one of these grinders is the way to go.
Many people do not realize that you can grind your own coffee for use in Keureg type single K-cup coffee makers! While the single cups are fast and convenient, they certainly lose flavor over grinding right before brewing. There are a number of different mesh baskets for single cup brewing that are designed to fit perfectly in the K-cup brewer. It's even possible to buy reusable covers to refill and reuse your spent plastic K-cup for the ultimate in coffee frugality. Keep some pre-filled K-cups for those super rushed days, and grind your own for that s
You might find that you need extra K-cup filters if you don't run your dishwasher every single day.
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