Posted Tue Oct 25, 2011, 1:41pm Subject: Baratza Vario vs Preciso-- personal issues
I've reposted this from the Coffee/Machines forum, but I'm not getting any response there. If the moderators want to remove this post, I'll understand. I also renamed the topic to reduce confustion with the other B-vs-V thread. A potentially tl;dr-worthy post follows.
I've had a Virtuoso for about 5 1/2 years now. I put a lot of coffee through it. Had to replace a circuit board when the fuse broke last year, Baratza was great about walking me through it.
I purchased a Vario back in February or so. It seemed to provide a very inconsistent grind, a lot of chunks and lots of fines, not what I was expecting. I worked with Kyle from Baratza, it appeared that a nit on the internal collar misaligned the burrs enough to cause problems. Kyle sent a replacement. There are fewer fines now, but still a brew in a drip filter leaves a layering of varying sizes, different from what I got from the Virtuoso. But I am also aware that Mark Prince noted the Vario does produce a dustier grind, especially at non-espresso settings.
Well the Virtuoso died this week, I managed to strip the motor (either the gears or drive rotor slips). I don't remember tasting any rock though :-). It started making an odd noise like it was misaligned, then when I was cleaning it the burr stopped moving while the motor was running. I threw it out, it's time to switch.
I hadn't used the Vario much since I got it. The funny range of grind sizes in my drip filter and my ignorance about whether it's a real problem or just normal operation for the Vario has made me hard to commit to it. But with the dead Virtuoso, I have to decide whether I want to keep the Vario. I'm still trying to adjust to using the settings-- I vary from moka pot to drip to AeroPress to French press depending on mood and time, but I don't do true espresso. I have to find the best grind settings all over again, so it's hard to tell by taste whether I'm grinding wrong of there's a real problem.
All that is to say, perhaps I will sell the Vario and get a Preciso instead. The Preciso will give me a grind closer to what I am used to with the Virtuoso, and some lucky person will get a cheaper Vario. Does anyone know a way to determine whether the Vario is grinding properly? It would be odd for me to get two bad grinders in a row from Baratza, but I have no way to know. If I do have a good grinder, then I can sell it and get something that works for me better.
germantownrob Senior Member Joined: 2 Dec 2007 Posts: 2,018 Location: Philadelphia Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Duetto 3, A Dead Oscar Grinder: Vario-W, Preciso w/Esatto,... Drip: Brazen Roaster: Diedrich IR-1, HT B
Posted Wed Oct 26, 2011, 4:38pm Subject: Re: Baratza Vario vs Preciso-- personal issues
I thought I would be replacing my Virtuoso when I got the Vario but I quickly pulled the Virtuoso back out for many of the reasons you describe. The Vario is a dedicated espresso grinder and I am very pleased with its performance for that. My wife is getting the Preciso and Esatto for me as a birthday present and while it will do mostly moka, aeropress, drip, and French it will also serve as a second espresso grinder at various times. At first I was wondering why you wouldn't just get another Virtuoso since you won't be doing espresso, then I had a coffee and realized the Preciso is a definite upgrade to the Virtuoso, the very reason I want it.
In the mean time try using just the macro settings on the Vario or if more range is needed use the micro in top, middle, and bottom so settings are easy to remember from various brew styles. Some blue painters tape with marks works for me to get back to a specific setting.
Posted Thu Oct 27, 2011, 10:56am Subject: Re: Baratza Vario vs Preciso-- personal issues
I also like the feature of better burrs on the Preciso. Mark also remarked that the Preciso has much less dust and I think this is the main reason for my astringent brews. With the Virtuoso, I also had difficulty making a vac pot brew without stalling, and dust would be a cause for those problems as well (although I never pursued getting a better result beyond four or five pots). I also like that I could probably get a much better turkish grind out of the Preciso, as I am exploring that method of brewing occasionally.
I have been adjusting the settings on the Vario, trying to get a good moka pot. I'm about 3 macro clicks from the bottom (maybe 4?) and it's still off. The pot doesn't clog though, so it's not too fine. I don't like that there are larger "flakes" in the grind, that's the part I don't know if it's a problem. I didn't have this problem with the Virtuoso-- that's why I stuck with it.
I have decided to jump on the Preciso, but I will have some time to fool with the Vario before it arrives. Thanks for your commentary and input, I was wondering if I had dropped a topic that no one would touch.
Posted Fri Oct 28, 2011, 9:24am Subject: Re: Baratza Vario vs Preciso-- personal issues
Yes, I calibrated it using the supplied tool and the instructions in the manual. I've also removed the top burr and made sure the mating surfaces were clean to prevent misalignment.
Calibration won't change the amount of fines the Vario produces at the coarser settings but it brings up another point, if calibrated for espresso the Vario will not do a normal coarse grind for FP and vice versa. The Preciso will give adjustment from Turkish to FP with no calibration and plenty of fine tuning control. I look forward to comparing the Vario and the Preciso, flat vs conical, for espresso.
Pairing the Preciso with the Esatto has my wife even excited, she loves the idea of being able to keep the hopper full and just putting in a weight for what ever size of drip she wants to make.
Posted Sat Oct 29, 2011, 4:29pm Subject: Re: Baratza Vario vs Preciso-- personal issues
Well, I've purchased the Preciso already. The Vario will be ready to re-sell soon.
germantownrob Said:
Calibration won't change the amount of fines the Vario produces at the coarser settings but it brings up another point, if calibrated for espresso the Vario will not do a normal coarse grind for FP and vice versa.
It's calibrated for espresso (per the manual). But it should still do a good drip or moka pot grind, and for those I don't enjoy the resulting cup. I'm expecting the Preciso to be more like the Virtuoso, as that produced a grind that I liked. The fancier stuff (timer, push buttons) I don't really need.
Posted Tue Nov 1, 2011, 10:54am Subject: Re: Baratza Vario vs Preciso-- personal issues
germantownrob Said:
Calibration won't change the amount of fines the Vario produces at the coarser settings but it brings up another point, if calibrated for espresso the Vario will not do a normal coarse grind for FP and vice versa.
calblacksmith Moderator Joined: 25 Nov 2007 Posts: 5,683 Location: Riverside, Ca, U.S.A. Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: ECM Veneziano A1 Grinder: Many different commercial Vac Pot: 40s era Silex Drip: Milita, Bunn&Curtis... Roaster: Cast iron pan, gas burner
Posted Tue Nov 1, 2011, 11:02am Subject: Re: Baratza Vario vs Preciso-- personal issues
Interesting comments.
I guess I will stay with multiple grinders. Some for espresso, some for other brew methods. I know not everyone has the room or the $ to have multiple commercial grinders. I need new burrs for the MDX but even with only half sharp burrs, it does a good job. The MCD 65 is a very good multi purpose grinder but it is a bit hard to dial in for espresso, though it is stepless, the adjustment range from coarse to turkish is only about 300 deg rotation of one knob.
So, in the large view of things, have most of the issues with the Vario been worked out? I thought it had a pretty good track record here!
In real life, my name is Wayne P.
Feed the newbs, starve the trolls and above all enjoy what you drink!
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