Great grinder in it's price range for most home espresso enthusiasts.
Positive Product Points
Best non-commercial grinder I have owned. It's very quiet and efficient with no mess. The unit looks good and is easy to use.
Negative Product Points
The finest grind setting, (which they call turkish), is very close to being fine enough for my Sylvia, but with a little extra tamping it is sufficient.
Detailed Commentary
I worked as a coffee barista for about a year in a local espresso bar. Thats when I got seriously hooked on espresso. I was fortunate enough to have a professional grinder/doser in my home for about 6 months after that. After that I was stuck for quite some time having to buy my coffee pre-ground at the store.
I recently purchased a Rancillio Sylvia, (which I love), and started roasting my own coffe at home which I would encourage everyone to do, (it's easy). That also meant I had to start grinding my own again.
My first recent purchase was in an effort to save money so I bought a La Pavoni PA burr grinder. It did not save money. It simply did not grind fine enough, was messy and noisy and clogged often.
The Solis Maestro was my next purchase because of the feedback I had been reading on CoffeeGeek.
In this price range, ($129.00 and they threw in a half pound of green columbian supremo), I could not be more satisfied. I have only had it for about a week and it has performed perfectly. It didn't take long to realize I had to use the finest setting but it's close enough to be more than adequate.
Buying Experience
I needed it right away so I didn't order it online and am surprised how few I could find locally. So the first place that I could find that had it in stock, Village Roaster in Lakewood, CO., got my business.
