jakeamcdermott Senior Member Joined: 12 Dec 2012 Posts: 2 Location: Colorado Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Wed Dec 12, 2012, 6:05pm Subject: Reccomendations on grinder for La Pavoni europiccola
I'm looking for a little help on identifying a good, *lower*-cost grinder for a La Pavoni Europiccola.
I currently have a Capresso 560 that is light years above the blade grinder I had before - but I'm starting to run into issues with it.
Mostly, I'm finding that it works great for 80% of the coffees out there, but I've run into some problems.
A friend of mine brought some coffee from Ethiopia that I found I could not grind find enough for the La Pavoni Europiccola. And I just recently was gifted a bag from a major retailer that worked great in the industrial machine at the office, but didn't work at all well at home - again, can't get it fine enough. The best luck I've had have been with beans that have a higher oil content in them, it seems. (A local friend of mine who does his own roasting, and a local microroastery come to mind..)
And it's not even close to the powdered sugar style of grind that you need for proper turkish coffee.
Any recommendations on burr grinders that are sub $300 and could grinds from perc to Turkish? My focus is the La Pavoni, so I want to hear what lever enthusiasts here have to say. I know these machines are sensitive bean quality, but I also know something is amiss here.
NobbyR Senior Member Joined: 10 Jul 2011 Posts: 1,612 Location: Germany Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Poccino Opus One, Ariete Grinder: Eureka Mignon Istantaneo,... Vac Pot: N/A Drip: Melitta Linea Unica de Luxe Roaster: N/A
Posted Thu Dec 13, 2012, 1:09am Subject: Re: Reccomendations on grinder for La Pavoni europiccola
A blade grinder is no good, because you need homogenous grounds. The Baratza Preciso is genereálly agreed upon to be the entry level electrical grinder for espresso. Alternatively you could use a hand grinder.
*** "This drink of the Satan is so delicious that it would be a shame to leave it to the infidels." (Pope Clement VIII on coffee)
uyeasound Senior Member Joined: 27 Oct 2011 Posts: 8 Location: Shetland Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Thu Dec 13, 2012, 1:16pm Subject: Re: Reccomendations on grinder for La Pavoni europiccola
The Pharos is POSSIBLY the best espresso grinder out there, and if you consider its price, the argument becomes over-powering. If you don't mind cranking, buy one; my pavoni works amazingly with it: crema body and flavour that nothing else can find, and there's something nice about having a lever with a manual grinder (even if it does look like you made it yourself in the garage).
troposcuba Senior Member Joined: 20 Nov 2012 Posts: 8 Location: Tucson Expertise: I live coffee
Posted Sun Jan 6, 2013, 9:39pm Subject: Re: Reccomendations on grinder for La Pavoni europiccola
My La Pavoni Pro is very sensitive to the proper grind. I have a Lido and a Zassenhaus 169dg (both hand grinders). Either does a good job grinding for the LP. I also have a kitchenaide proline which the wife uses for drip and french press, however I have to admit I have not tried it for espresso. both of the hand grinders have a stepless adjustment which I think is very important for the LP. I often find that a very small adjustment of the grind setting will get the results I am looking for. I don't believe you would be able to achieve these results with a grinder that has a stepped adjustment unless the steps were very fine (as some of the expensive electric grinders have). So the advice for the pharos is on the money if you don't mind spinning a crank. I kind of enjoy grinding by hand as part of the morning coffee ritual.
jakeamcdermott Senior Member Joined: 12 Dec 2012 Posts: 2 Location: Colorado Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Mon Jan 7, 2013, 10:45pm Subject: Re: Reccomendations on grinder for La Pavoni europiccola
Thanks everyone for your thoughts. I do currently use a burr grinder, and am quite aware of the how important a uniform grind is. The issue I have is that if I was presented with a dry bean, I'd never be able to grind it fine enough. No matter how hard I tamp down, it will run fast, and watery. If I take those grinds, and run them through my blade grinder for a moment, then I get the right pull - but I'm also opening myself up to having an uneven grind and, quite frankly, more steps that I'd like to do.
Hand grinders definitely sound like the way to go. I'm also into Turkish coffee, and definitely hear the call for a stepless grinder. I think the Pharos is the way to go in this instance, though it will be an act that will leave me no room to argue that I'm not a total coffee snob. :)
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