I wish I would have gotten something with more features and a finer grind, but the coffee I make is great so it can't be all that bad, right?
Positive Product Points
I bought the Barista Grinder as my first grinder, and it's been pretty good to me so far. It doesn't take up much room, keeps plenty of beans in it and grinds quick enough. I have to have it on the absolute finest grind setting in order to make espresso, but that seems to do the trick. Made in Switzerland I think?
Negative Product Points
My biggest complaint with it so far is the static cling the grounds have when they come out. Is this common for grinders to produce this effect? Everything works well enough, but when i begin to slide the tray out with the grinds in it, they literally jump out and cling to my hand, the countertop.... everything. It would make no mess at all if not for that problem! Instead... chaos every time. My only other issue with it is that it doesn't grind any finer. Its not very expensive, so I can't complain, but its preventing me from experimenting with finer grinds. As a matter of fact, if I dont use the pressurized portafilter that comes with my Ascaso machine and use a normal one, I have a much harder time producing good espresso and crema with the granularity I can get from the Barista.
Detailed Commentary
It does a good job and I have a hard time justifying replacing it for anything better, but if I did it all over again, I'd probably get something that can produce a finer grind, and also maybe something with a doser. I get great tasting lattes and americanos with it. The problem areas are more about the mess it makes and the flexibility it provides. Its like life! It's not just about the destination, its the journey, and thats where I feel this machine falls a bit short. I'm not looking for it to play a dvd while I grind, but having a coffee grind explosion every time I use it gets old. Keep it next to the sink, and I hope you have an undermount sink.
Buying Experience
Got it at Starbucks. They gave me a free bag of espresso roast beans, a fair price, and I was able to impulse buy it at 11pm at a 24 hour location. I forgot my free bag of beans on the counter and they gave me another one when I came back the next day. Can't get much better than that.
