Reddit mentions: The best burr coffee grinders

Well this is gonna get kinda long and will only scratch the surface but I'll break down the pros and cons of some of the most popular entry-level gear in as un-confusing of a way as I can. First up, let's look at grinders.

First off, you want a burr grinder, particularly a conical burr grinder because those blender-y blade grinders they sell at wal-mart for $5 don't get any kind of a consistent grind. Varying sizes in a grind means varying levels of extraction in the cup and that means off flavors. Because burr grinders are more expensive, hand crank conical burr grinders are commonly recommended to beginners because of their lower price point compared to similar quality electrics. They're cheap and work well but do have some drawbacks beyond the extra effort involved in grinding. First, most of them don't have actual grind settings and you adjust the grind size by twisting a wheel until it looks as fine/coarse as you want it to. If you use different brew methods and switch grind size a lot, this can be a bit of a pain. Second, most hand grinders aren't ideal for french press because of the way the burrs are stabilized; they'll give fantastic fine/medium grinds but the coarse grind is a tad inconsistent. That said, I use a hand grinder for french press all the time and am relatively happy with the results. A few common ones are:

The Hario Skerton. I personally have one and love it. As I said, not perfect for french press but it's a durable daily driver that never lets me down and can do an espresso grind damn near as well as a $300 baratza

The hario mini is essentially the same grinder in a different, smaller package. Perfect for travel

The porlex JP-30 is a tad more expensive but has grind settings that, while unmarked, do "click" into place making adjusting grind coarseness a bit easier


If you wanted to go the electric route, I've seen refurbished Baratza encore grinders for around $100. This will give you a mediocre espresso grind but a perfect and much easier drip and french press grind


Next up: preparation methods

French presses use a metal mesh filter, which gives you all of the oils in the cup and lets a tiny bit of really fine coffee solids through, which gives the cup a rich, full-bodied, velvety character They're also very easy to use as there's pretty much one accepted way to brew in them. And here's Philly's own Todd Carmichael demonstrating it. As far as which one to buy, they're all pretty much the same: a glass tube with a stick in it and some mesh on the end of the stick. I like my sterlingpro a lot but the bodum chambord is hugely popular and looks just as nice. Even a cheapo will do the job just as well, though, even if it doesn't look as nice.

pourovers do essentially the same thing as a drip coffee machine just with a lot more input from you, which is good because all but the most ludicrously expensive drip machines are very inconsistent and don't work as well as just doing it your own damn self. With a pourover, you're going to use a kettle or measuring cup with a spout to pour the water over the grounds in a set amount of time (3-4 minutes depending on the grind size) and usually in a very specific manner. Because these use a paper filter, there are no oils or insoluble solids in the cup so the coffee is clearer, tastes cleaner and usually a bit brighter than french press coffee. Popular models include the Hario v60 which is one of the more finicky models. If you decide on one of these, be sure to use a gooseneck kettle like Mr. Carmichael was using in the french press video above. Slightly more forgiving are the kalita wave and the melitta both of which would work fine with a normal kettle so long as it has some type of pour spout. If you want something with very thick filters, so as to produce a very clear cup, and also looks very nice, the chemex is a beautiful thing that produces great coffee, has a built-in carafe, and can make more than one cup at a time. Really more of a replacement for a large-volume drip machine than most pourovers.

The Aeropress is an absurdly popular, extremely versatile, and very well priced coffee brewer which is essentially a huge syringe with a paper filter instead of a needle. There's a thousand recipes online with different ways to use it, all of which produce a different cup.



Also worth noting is that you may want a kettle with temperature control, coffee should be brewed at 195-205F, so knowing what temp your water is helps reduce a lot of the headaches of cooling off boiled water for a vague amount of time. This bonavita is a little on the pricey side but has temp control and a gooseneck, which is always useful

There are some very affordable burr grinders out there, and it's worth the investment. You'll use it pretty much everyday. Hand grinders can be very cheap, and work great. Hario Skerton is a popular choice (I've seen it around for cheaper, but this is at least what's on amazon). Plenty of options, all varying in price. There's a pretty decent burr grinder from Kona I've used before, which I got for like $20.

But manual grinding can take some time. And if you're like me, and you want some quick coffee in the morning, then it's worth investing in an electric. There are some pretty decent electric burr grinders out there. You really don't have to pay a fortune. Here are a few cheap options:

Capresso Infinity

Bodum Bistro

Baratza Encore

But you can get far snobbier than just grind...

What kind of water are you using? Hopefully filtered, not tap. And definitely not distilled, since you want some of those minerals for flavor. Now, if you want to get even fancier, try using these mineral packets. I think each packet mixes in with 1 gallon of distilled water. I haven't tried it myself (I just use a brita) but I've heard good things. The quality of water makes a huge difference. This was the first "eureka" moment for me, when I moved from tap to filtered.

Next, how are you making your coffee? There are some great, cheap equipment out there. In this sub, here are some pretty cheap and popular choices:

Aeropress

Chemex

Pour-over

French press

We're getting pretty deep in the rabbit hole, right? Not yet! How about measuring the weight of the coffee? Consistency is important. You need the same, proper coffee-to-water ratio for the best cup. You can find people debating over the best scales, some costing hundreds. I'd just get a cheap one if I were you. You can find some decent cheap ones from like $10 to $30. If you want the best bang for your buck, look into American Weigh Scales.

I guess I can mention temperature of water as well. You can get thermometers or even electric kettles with built-in thermometers (like this). I think temperature matters so much more for tea than coffee, but it's something you need to keep in mind for coffee as well.

Here's probably the most important thing, in my opinion: where are you getting your coffee? What is the roast date? Unless you're buying your coffee directly from the roaster, you're probably not buying freshly roasted beans. It makes a world of difference. Try finding a local roaster and getting your beans from them, freshly roasted.

I'm sure there's plenty of other ways you can splurge money on coffee, but I'll let you figure it out!

(edited to fix the links)

> I really want to learn to make good coffee at home so that my wife is happy to wake up in the morning. Plus, I'd like to save some money instead of going to Starbucks every morning. I don't personally like coffee (I wish I did. Closest I came to enjoying coffee was drinking a caramel brulée latte from Starbucks last Christmas) but I find the craft of it absolutely fascinating. And I'm really interested in learning to get my wife's perfect cup of coffee down to a science. (And if I learn to enjoy coffee, all the better)

So I started down this exact path about 8 or 9 years ago for my gal as well. I also had no interest in coffee but enjoyed the convergence of art & science.

Anyway the following is what I ended up with [and what I paid].

• [$100 refurbished from the Baratza Store] Baratza Encore - Most people argue this is the best grinder for the money when the budget is tight
  
• [$30] Aeropress - This is a great way to make a single cup of coffee
  
• [$40 on sale] Bonavita BV382510V 1.7L Digital Variable Temperature Gooseneck Kettle - Awesome way to manage the temperature of the water for brewing
  
• [$40 on sale] Hario V60 Drip Coffee Scale and Timer - very important to measure the weight of Water and Coffee PLUS extraction time
  
  
  You can be patient like I did and buy over time to get things on sale but after owning each item for multiple years now I can wholeheartedly recommend each component.
  
  All in a buddy was using a Keurig for the past few years and when it broke he reached out to me for the same thing. He bought everything but the scale (it was almost $70 when he was buying) and his wife is in LOVE with the setup. The neat thing is once you get the grinder and scale your options to multiple brewing methods opens up. Then with the water kettle you can then use it all for the Aeroporess, Kalita Wave, Chemex, V60, Clever Dripper (ETC) brewing methods.
  
  Anyway once you have good enough gear you can then start trying finding local roasters and different beans. We have tried a few local joints and just recently found a few beans roasted fresh that are substantially better than anything we were purchasing in grocery stores. Alternatively there are SO many online stores to try (and a biweekly friday thread on r/coffee for what beans people are currently trying).
  
  Compared to the $5+ a drink at starbucks we make great coffee at home for typically less than $1 a cup and it takes less than 5 minutes all in, including cleanup.

Hey man, let me hit you with my personal coffee journey. It worked super well for me, and it starts pretty entry-level. I highly recommend.

So, first and foremost, you need to start with pourover. Here's a pretty cheap starter set. Then you'll also need a kitchen scale, here's one of the smallest, most accurate ones I've found.

I'd also recommend getting an automatic burr grinder, which isn't exactly entry level, so it could be a secondary purchase if you find that you really want to get ball-deep into coffee. I started off with the Infinity Grinder, which worked well for me until I got an espresso machine (more on that later). But for pourover and most other methods (aeropress, coffee maker, even shit like siphon coffee, it's perfectly fine). Having an electric grinder is just going to make your life easier overall. But if you don't want to jump right into that, you could use the grinder included in the set I listed (I've never used it - it's probably not great, but I'm sure it'll work).

And that's all you need to make one god damn good cup of coffee. I've spent thousands of dollars on coffee equipment over the years, but for me, the best way to brew a simple cup of coffee is using a pourover method. And it's incredibly fun!

Now, once you've got a few months of pourover under your belt, it may be time to move onto other methods of brewing. Grab yourself an Aeropress. Aeropress effectively is the midpoint between normal coffee and espresso. It absolutely does not make real espresso, regardless of what anyone tells you, but that doesn't mean what it makes isn't super delicious. Plus it lets you start experimenting with the closest thing you'll be able to get to cappuccinos, and other fun things like flavored lattes when you have company over and want to impress them with some tasty java.

The Aeropress is fantastic, and it's ridiculously easy to clean. It's a nice way to be able to travel with a decent coffee maker, too.

Then, once you've got a couple years of delicious coffee down, it's time to get into the big leagues. Espresso.

Holy fuck dude. Espresso is complicated, and you really have to throw away everything you thought you knew about coffee. I know how pretentious that sounds, but it's super true. What I went with was a Crossland CC1, which was mainly because I got it for cheap on Craigslist for $400. But, warning, the Infinity Grinder will not grind accurate enough for espresso. For that you'll need something like a Baratza Hario or Sette 270 (I went with the Sette 270).

Anyway, that's waaaaaaaaay in your future. I'd highly recommend just starting off with pourover and some great beans (check locally, or order from Intelligentsia).

Enjoy your journey, bro. It's a great world out there.

This won't be 100% relevant but I already have it typed so I'mma just copy paste it here and make some notes at the end:

>Well here's the thing about coffee, it's finicky stuff. Much moreso than most Americans would give it credit for. Automatic machines like you have can deliver quality coffee, but unless the one you have cost $200 or more, it won't really be up to the task of making cafe quality coffee. If you want coffee of the same quality (or even better) you'd find at a cafe, you're going to have to know a couple things. Don't worry, I'll tl;dr this with a few specifics at the end, but right now I'm going to go over the things that affect how coffee tastes:

>Bean quality: probably the most esoteric and taste-dependent part of coffee, it's not much worth getting into grading, processing, etc, just suffice it to say that folger's is definitely not using top-rate beans and they're mixing robusta (high caffeine, very bitter) in with arabica (moderate caffeine, much better flavor), whereas a decent coffee shop is using 100% arabica

>Freshness: Coffee goes stale quick and the flavors dull within about three weeks, a month tops after roasting. Those mass market beans are months old by the time you get them off the shelf. The good news is that there's almost definitely a roaster near you who sells decent beans that are nice and fresh roasted. The bad news is that the cheapest decent coffee you'll find is ~$10/lb most places.

>Grind: piggybacking on my last point, coffee, even when sealed in those cans, goes stale VERY fast after being ground (like, within an hour), so buy whole bean and grind it yourself right before brewing

>Grind consistency: if the grind isn't uniform, the coffee won't extract evenly and will taste off. The normal blade grinders you think of when you think "coffee grinder" won't work, you'll need a burr grinder, whether hand crank or electric. Doesn't have to be fancy but it does have to be a burr grinder

>Brew ratio: coffee will optimally be brewed (for most methods) with 16 or 17g of water (a fat tablespoon) for each gram of coffee. You can guestimate it but digital kitchen scales that read in grams can be had for dirt cheap on amazon. IME people who don't know about brewing coffee tend to use way too little coffee for the amount they brew. This extracts too much from the grounds and makes it watery and bitter

>Brew time: each method has its own ideal brew time but for most, like pourover or french press, ~4 minutes is optimal

>Water temperature: Coffee should ideally be brewed between 195-205Fthis is where the vast majority of home drip machines fail, the reason that /r/coffee approved drip machines start off at like $200 is that they have big, heavy copper heaters that can reach ideal brew temp, most drip machines have crummy weak heating coils that end up brewing at lower temperatures and making the coffee taste flat and sour.

>#TL;DR
I know this seems overwhelming, so I'll give you a nice, easy starter kit and instructions how to use it to get you started. And I know you said your bank account was getting crushed, so I'll make this nice and wallet-friendly

>For a grinder, go with either this manual one which has the advantage of being really cheap and producing decent grinds, but will take some effort to grind your coffee (2-3 minutes) and setting the grind size can be a pain, or if you want to spend a little bit more and get an electric, go for this one, it's not the greatest in the world but for a starting point it works ok and it's darn cheap.

>You can either keep brewing with your auto drip or, if you're still not satisfied, get a french press. They're crazy easy to use (weigh coffee, put in press. Place press on scale and tare. Pour in water. wait four minutes. drink), and they can be had for damn cheap

>Then find someone who roasts coffee near you, get some beans, and enjoy!

>Anyway sorry to bombard you with the wall of text but coffee's a complicated thing and we're hobbyists (and snobs) around here. Hope that helps! Feel free to ask more questions

>EDIT: forgot to add in Todd Carmichael's awesome instruction video for the french press.


If you're brewing for one, though, I'd look at the Aeropress, the learning curve is a bit steeper than FP but it makes wicked good coffee, is extremely versatile, and (my favorite part) cleanup is super quick and easy. And if you're willing to shell out a little more for a grinder take a peek at the Baratza encore.

EDIT: link to the aeropress and just one of many, many recipes for it. I actually used that recipe just last night and it came out fantastic. Might make myself one right now, actually...

My favorite thing about coffee as a "hobby" is that, like some have said, it's a hobby that isn't just a waste of money. Fresh beans are a huge 1st step, they really just have tons of flavors that change almost as you work through the bag, and sometimes I feel like the first sip of a french press is different than the middle, etc. For me the different methods I use just work better for different beans, I'm still figuring that out myself. I prefer to french press african beans, pour over on more typically "harsh" beans, and I'm still dialing in aeropress, but I feel like it takes a lot out of the coffee so it seems to work best if I'm like "hmm I'm not sure I like this bean", aeropress... oh nevermind it's great.

You could buy:

Good grinder ~$140

Scale $15

Kettle $25

And three interesting and different types of brewers:

Aeropress ~$30

V60 ~$20

French Press ~$20

That's all the gear for now, you're SET until you become a crazy coffee nut, but for me 90% of the coffee I make is in one of those 3 methods. I have a moka pot, and they're cool too. But that's $250 for gear, and you could probably save a bit with different grinder options but plan to drop the biggest amount of that.

Add in $20 for some high quality beans (S&W is great and their reddit discount is on this page somewhere) and you're around $270 to be brewing great coffee a few different ways. Now you have 4+ different coffees, 3 ways to make it, and the equipment to make sure you're doing it "right".

Okay that's a lot and I hate this "if you buy a cup of coffee a day" crap, but let's just say you drink work swill most of the time, but get a cup of coffee out 3x a week. At $3/cup maybe you tip a quarter each time, you pay off this stuff in 6 months and these things pretty much last forever.

The point is, yes, some of the costs of entry (specifically the grinder) can be a little daunting, and sometimes we get carried away, but overall, the cost of making great coffee at home is significantly less than going out. You're actually getting BETTER coffee too, trying different ways to make it, and enjoying yourself. Wow, okay rambling there. Good luck!

I'm in a similar situation as you, and I've recently gotten my coffee tools up to a level that I'm happy to stick with for a while. Last week I bought a cheap CuisinArt burr grinder on sale for $50. This grinder is a huge step up from my blade grinder. It obviously isn't as consistent as a $200+ grinder, but it does exactly what I need it to do.

Last week ago I also ordered one of these as a cheap substitute for fancier pouring kettles. It just came in a few days ago and it works great. It's a lot smaller than it looks in the pictures (check the dimensions on the website), but it's perfect for brewing a single cup like I typically do.

We have one of those pour-overs at work and it works pretty well, but honestly I don't use it enough to have a good opinion on it. It's definitely better designed than a Melitta though (I like the wide whole at the bottom, compared to Melitta's dripper). I personally use a Chemex, which isn't too cheap, but I've fallen in love with the coffee it produces. (On a side note, the Chemex filters are what do the trick, and I've even heard about people using the filters with the harios. I'd look into it if it sounds like something you might be interested in.)

Also, I think the major thing that will make you better coffee with a simple setup like this is to find good beans. I found a local roaster that makes some beans I've quickly fallen in love with. (And I must be doing something right because I think I make better coffee than what I can order there.)

Broke college student here, I'm also a barista that's use to having amazing, freshly roasted coffee. So far, no one has lied. AMAZING espresso IS expensive. But can you make a latte as well as your local cafe? With a little practice, time and money, yes.

My current home setup consists of a Delonghi EC155, this is a true espresso machine, it's not steam powered and with a little modification and practice makes good espresso. Modification wise the only thing I'd recommend is depressurizing the portafilter basket, which is easy. If you ever want a better machine but don't want to spend the money you can modify it even more. They're vary popular machines and can be modified to pull amazing shots. They go anywhere from 70-130, however, occasionally things get repacked or the packaging gets damaged in the warehouse. They'll offer them at a hefty discount, I just got mine "reboxed" from amazon for 47 dollars, wait a few days and one will come up. If you use your student email you can get Amazon Prime for free, take advantage of that.

http://www.amazon.com/DeLonghi-EC155-Espresso-Cappuccino-Maker/dp/B000F49XXG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396498476&sr=8-1&keywords=delonghi+ec155

I also got this tamper, works well, it's a little light for my tastes but for home use it's fine. The EC155 has a 52mm basket, if having a 50mm tamper bothers you then pay the extra few bucks for a 52mm tamper. Personally doesn't bother me, and it was only 7 bucks.

http://www.amazon.com/Espresso-Tamper-Sizes-Alloy-Coffee/dp/B0001XRNEM/ref=pd_bxgy_k_text_z

Here's a milk frothing cup, you'll need it to properly froth milk. You can poorly froth milk in a microwave but why do that when you can spend an extra 8 dollars and do it properly? I personally got mine for a dollar from a thrift store.

http://www.amazon.com/Update-International-EP-12-Stainless-Frothing/dp/B000MR6I9I/ref=pd_bxgy_hg_text_y

I got one of these grinders years ago for around 20 dollars. I've seen them used, repackaged, and refurbished for about that much. Wait around and a deal will come up. You can also get a Hario Mini and a number of other hand grinders. But this one does just fine. Now out of the box it won't grind fine enough for espresso, however, with about 20 minutes worth of work you can shim it and it'll grind perfectly for espresso. It's not hard and anyone can do it with a screw driver and some tin foil.

http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-DBM-8-Supreme-Grind-Automatic/dp/B00018RRRK/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1396498766&sr=1-1&keywords=cuisinart+grinder

At this point if you're willing to wait for a deal on the EC155 you've only spent 107 dollars. Even less if you're willing to wait on a deal for the burr grinder as well. If you want AMAZING coffee you can spend another 27 dollars and get an Aeropress, or wait for a deal and get it for 20 dollars. It will make a coffee concentrate which will taste "okay" for a latte.

At this point, I cannot recommend going to your local coffee houses and asking if you can buy green beans. They typically sell green coffee for 5-8 dollars a pound. You can roast your own coffee with a skillet and a whisk, or a popcorn popper, there are hundreds of ways to do it cheaply and it easy. You'll save money and you'll be drinking tastier coffee.

Don't let these people get you down, good espresso doesn't have to be expensive. Feel free to message me if you have any questions!

I think to best answer this request, we'll need a bit more info. Are you ok with a manual grinder, or do you prefer an electric grinder? Do you want a drip brewer or a pour over set up? Are you looking to get into espresso? And, what is your actual budget in your local currency?

And now for a guess at what might work for you...

A [Melitta Plastic Pour Over Dripper](https://www.amazon.com/Melitta-Ready-Single-Coffee-Brewer/dp/B0014CVEH6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527536804&sr=8-1&keywords=mellita) $5 to $6 (a lot of grocery stores carry these in stock)

A box of #2 Cone filters at your local grocery store $2

If you want an automatic drip brewer, and you are making smaller amounts for just you, the [Bonavita 5 cup](https://www.amazon.com/Bonavita-BV1500TS-Carafe-Coffee-Stainless/dp/B00SK5IXPQ/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1527537674&sr=8-4&keywords=bonavita+brewer) is wroth a look. it runs about $66. I have the 8 cup for the wife and I and we love it.

Filters can be purchased, again, at your local grocery store for about $2.

[Brewista SmartPour Kettle w. Thermometer](https://www.amazon.com/Brewista-Variable-Temperature-Kettle-BKV12S02NA/dp/B01CFBBUVY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527537033&sr=8-1&keywords=brewista%2Bsmart%2Bpour&th=1) $40. There are cheaper ones, but I personally have this one and have loved it.

[Scale](https://www.amazon.com/Jennings-CJ-4000-Compact-Digital-Adapter/dp/B004C3CAB8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527537139&sr=8-1&keywords=Jennings+CJ4000) This is a must. $30

[Bratza Encore](https://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Encore-Conical-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B007F183LK/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1527537371&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=baratza+encore&psc=1&smid=A302OQK4GZWXCC) Grinder is the default recommendation around here, and for good reason. It's high quality, and easily serviceable. New they run $139, but you can save $40 and pick up a [refurb](https://www.baratza.com/product/encore-refurb/) (still with the 1 year warrantee) for $99 direct from Baratza.

If you want a cheaper option, and don't mind a manual hand grinder, there are a few options, but the [Hario Skerton Pro](https://www.amazon.com/Hario-Skerton-Ceramic-Grinder-MMCS-2B/dp/B01MXJI90S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527537536&sr=8-1&keywords=hario+skerton+pro) is about the lowest cost / still decent quality grinders, grinder that most would recommend. It runs about $60, and personally, I'd spend the extra $30 on an Encore refurb.

Happy Mug Beans are a pretty great option. I really enjoy the Big Foot Espresso blend (despite it's name) as a pour over, and even like it in my drip brewer. The Inspirational Artist Blend is a great option too. But really just try them out and see what you like. Their bags (for 1lbs of whole beans) run $11 - $13

Hope that helps.

Hey there. I'll give you a little summary of what I think most people on here will tell you in response to your questions.

Books: Blue Bottle ,Coffee Comprehensive and Uncommon Grounds are all good books to cover most of coffee and its processes.

This Capresso Infinity is considered a pretty decent burr grinder for the price. It will not do espresso but will be good enough for most other coffee brewing methods.

Getting a set up that is acceptable for "real" espresso is kind of expensive. A Gaggia classic is considered the bare minimum espresso machine for a "real" espresso. A Baratza Virtuoso is considered bare minimum for a decent espresso grinder. Now, you can (and many people do) find these items used, which obviously reduces the cost greatly. But depending on your area, finding these items up on craigslist or similar sites can be pretty rare.

I'm not from Rhode Island, but googling local roasters will provide some results. As for online ordering, tonx, blue bottle and stumptown are favorites around here for their price and quality. Beans are broken down on what region they came from, how they were processed and how dark they are roasted. Each region has different flavor profiles in their beans. African beans are known for being more fruity than other beans, for example. A little warning, most people on this subreddit believe Starbuck's espresso roast coffee to be too dark. However, many of Starbuck's light/Medium roast coffees have been reviewed as pretty decent. Most websites that sell the beans will list a flavor profile of the beans. The basic saying on this subreddit is that if you have crappy beans, no matter what, your coffee will be crappy. If you are going to overspend anywhere in the process, overspend on quality beans.

The espresso machines that you will be using at starbucks are machines that will basically produce espresso at the push of a button. They will grind, tamp and extract the espresso without any input from you. You should just know right off the bat that there is a whole other world to espresso making that is the exact opposite, with people grinding the beans to the right size, tamping by hand, and extracting shots with a lever that controls pressure. Neither way is right or wrong, you should just know that there are many different types of espresso machines and baristas.

I'll share a little bit of advise, take from it what you will. I was an ambitious college student coffee drinker just like you. I asked for a Breville espresso machine as my first real coffee making device (even before a grinder, how silly of me). I just wanted an espresso machine because that was all I was getting from these coffee shops. Since then I've gotten a nice grinder, a melitta pour over, french press, gooseneck kettle, aeropress, V60, moka pot, and chemex. I'm ashamed to admit that I haven't turned on my espresso machine in over a year. There is so much more to coffee than espresso. There are so many methods to brew coffee that are cheaper, more complex and more interesting. If I had a chance to do it all over again, I'd buy the burr grinder I linked, and an Aeropress or any french press (Starbucks sells some pretty nice ones. You could get one with an employee discount) and just learn to love coffee on its own, without frothed milk and flavorings.

There is a ton of info on this subreddit if you stick around for awhile. Questions like yours are posted all the time and answered by very knowledgable people. Your enthusiasm for coffee is extremely exciting to see. Please don't let any of my advise subtract from your enthusiasm. Everyone takes a different path while exploring coffee. That's part of the excitement. You will learn a lot at Starbucks and you will learn a lot if you stay here. Enjoy your stay.

To answer your question, the strength of your coffee is mostly influenced by how much coffee you're using versus how much water. For a strong cup with your Keurig, go with the setting with the smallest amount of water. The Keurig is by no means the "best" method to make coffee, but it will make coffee. If you decide to get a manual brewer (French press, Aeropress, Kalita Wave, etc.) the brew time has some leeway, but I'd recommend just using more coffee than trying to push the recommended brew time too far. Coffee can/should be strong without being bitter, and keeping the water and coffee together too long will create bitterness.


What follows is everything you need to know about making great coffee. Warning, this may be overwhelming:

1. Freshly ground coffee is going to taste better. Consider coffee like bread. A loaf left on the counter will get stale faster if you slice it up. Freshly roasted is better, but it might be more expensive/harder for you to find and you might not want to dive that deep yet.
   
2. Conical burr grinders are better than blade grinders. The problem is that a decent automatic burr grinder is going to be ~$100 and that's a steep price for someone just getting into coffee. Many people will recommend the mini mill, Skerton, or something along those lines that is hand-crank. (Good non-name brand options: 1 and 2) Those are your best bet. Although I wouldn't necessarily recommend it, you can get an automatic blade grinder if you might have an issue with manual grinding/don't want to drop a lot of money. I will mention that darker roasts are easier to grind manually so there's less worry for your wrist. The problem with blade grinders is you get a bunch of differently sized bits, which makes it more difficult to get consistency and figure out a grind size/brew time you like.
   
3. Each method of brewing calls for a differently sized grind. This is pretty important. If it's too small, you'll get a bitter cup. If it's too big, you'll get a sour cup. The same goes for brew time. Too long will make a bitter cup, and too short will make a sour cup. However, there's some leeway on both of these to your taste.
   
4. There are a bunch of ways to make coffee that change how it tastes. Methods that involve filtering through paper make a cleaner cup, but you lose most of the oils in the coffee. Metal filters leave in these oils, but can also leave a lot of sediment/mud in the bottom of your cup. You might drink this if you drink that last sip, and it isn't really nice.
   
5. Weighing your coffee is much more accurate if you want to make a consistent cup. A tablespoon of a darker roast might be 5 grams while a tablespoon of a lighter roast might be 7 grams.
   
6. You'll need something to boil water in. If you have a kettle, great. If you don't, you can use a pan or you can buy a kettle. It doesn't need to be a fancy/expensive gooseneck-style one (1 and 2), but you might want one of those if you get into pourover methods.
   
   I would recommend a French press (1 2 3 4) or Aeropress for someone just getting into coffee. They're much more forgiving than pour-over methods, meaning you're less likely to make a bitter cup. They each have their own drawbacks, too. An Aeropress is easier to clean up, but can only make one cup at a time. A French press takes more time to clean, but can make about 3 cups at a time. (By cups I mean a standard 12-ounce mug.) Definitely get a grinder, too (see above). A scale (1 and 2) is optional but recommended. For beans, seek out a local roaster/coffee shop, but there are tons of online options available, too.
   
   Welcome to the wonderful (and sometimes crazy) world of coffee!

The Wave is good. Other easy methods for beginners would be the Aeropress or the French Press.

More importantly I would find a local roaster from which to get fresh beans. Quality beans will be a huge difference in flavor for you regardless of brewing method (though drip maker is still not recommended over other methods mentioned). I know you said you are frugal, as am I, but I found myself drinking LESS coffee when I was spending more on quality not because it was more expensive but because the flavor was so much more intense and fulfilling. I savored it more and instead of drinking 1200mL of store bought drip I was enjoying 700mL of Chemex (similar pour over method) tremendously more.

If you are anything like me you will take your time to build your equipment and slowly buy more. I enjoyed doing it this way because I could move as my tastes evolved. As you mentioned, investing in a good burr grinder should probably be the most important thing. I think my Baratza Encore is worth its weight in gold. After that I slowly added more brewing methods and this Hario scale. The weighing of your water and coffee is so much simpler when it comes to make a consistently great cup of coffee.

I know this is a long reply and a list of stuff but it is three years worth of accumulation, mostly thanks to Amazon gift cards at Christmas time! Most importantly, just enjoy yourself and your coffee! If you like a method others don't or don't like weighing things then don't. Your taste is yours, enjoy it.

I got the Breville Infuser and Smart Grinder Pro from Amazon a couple of weeks ago. I love them. By no means am I an expert, but I enjoy the shots I pull just as much as from coffee shops using La Marzoccos. Yes the beans, barista, and placebo all play into that, but it still pulls a great shot and is pretty affordable. You could even go cheaper and get the Duo Temp Pro which could functionally be the same as the Infuser and is $100 cheaper so you could spend it on cups, knockbox, distributor but the infuser would still put you under budget. I went with the infuser because you can adjust the temperature and you can pull manually or preset volume, which allows you to eliminate that variable for a consistent shot and you can see how your tamp/grind are as the program pulls 60mL (2oz) no matter what and so you can gauge what you need to do to dial that volume in for the proper extraction time. Downside is that if you want a naked portafilter then you gotta DIY or buy one from Aus for like $150, but I don’t think it’s a huge deal and if you do then maybe that’s where your extra budget could go. The pressure gauge is also nice although it won’t really tell you what you don’t already know from extraction time.

I can’t say this is the best machine for the price (although Seattle Coffee Gear did so take that as you will) but I can highly recommend it. I would get it over the Barista Express as the extra $50 for a dedicated grinder is totally worth it as it is more versatile and I’ve heard it’s a better grinder than the built in one. I also recommend it over the Gaggia. Although it does not have the modabilitiy of the Classic, it has most of the features that people mod the Gaggia for already, plus it uses a traditional steam arm instead of a panarello like the Gaggia, and has stainless steel lined thermocoil instead of aluminum thermoblock.

Overall would definitely recommend going separate grinder and machine no matter what.

I started getting into coffee nearly a year and a half ago, and here is what I did to start:

I bought

• A Hario V60 02 Pour-Over Dripper ~$20, with filters, ~$30
  
  
• A Hario Buono Gooseneck Kettle ~$50
  
  
• A Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder ~$150
  
  
• A scale ~$25
  
  
• Freshly, locally roasted whole beans ~$10/lb. Dark roasts tend to be less acidic, sweeter, and have less caffeine (when brewed correctly); light roasts are the opposite: acidic, fruity, and more caffeine.
  
  Now, bear in mind that I knew that I loved coffee before I invested all this money into it; you should obviously really consider your situation and really get into "good" coffee before splurging on all of this equipment. I now have a French press, a moka pot, and am going to invest in an Aeropress soon, but I still prefer the pour-over method to any other coffee that I've had, thus why I recommend you go that route. It can take some definite getting used to and has a bit of a learning curve, but it is easily worth the effort (tutorial videos will help immensely.
  
  Keep in mind, you needn't buy exactly what I did. Shop around, see what you like and what is in your price range. I will say this, however: if you do go the pour-over method, go for the V60 or the Chemex, they are both easily the best on the market, and the same goes for the Buono kettle, though if necessary you can purchase a different kettle, just so long as it is a gooseneck (which is required to finely control the flow of water).
  
  Many other people will tell you to go with a French press. This is good advice as it has a very slight learning curve in comparison to pretty much every other method (besides maybe the Aeropress, depending on who you talk to): it is literally grinding the coffee coarsely and letting it sit in water for X-amount of time. It also does not take filters, is easy to clean, and is a relatively cheap initial investment (~$20). I like the Brazil model that Bodum makes.
  
  No matter which method you choose to brew with, there are three things that you should not underestimate the importance of (and thus should not skimp on):
  
  
• Freshly ground and roasted beans are a must. The fresher, the better.
  
• A blade grinder will always do a worse job of grinding than a burr grinder. It is worth it to spend the extra cash for a burr grinder right off the bat, as, if you get at all serious about coffee, you will eventually purchase one anyway, rendering your blade grinder useless and a waste of money in hindsight. Blade grinders make it nigh impossible to control how fine or coarse the grind is, which is one of the biggest variables in coffee brewing. There are absolutely cheaper models out there than the one that I linked to, especially if you get a manual one rather than the electric one that I own.
  
  
• A scale is essential. Coffee brewing is very much an exact science. Making sure the ratio of water to coffee is exact and being able to fine tune down to the gram/milliliter can create some of the biggest deviances between batches next to grind size. This cannot be overstated.
  
  Best of luck. There's a lot of good knowledge on this sub, on this sub's How to Coffee: A Primer, and on the Internet in general. Check it all out, pick your path, and enjoy the ride!

Honestly, the easiest way to start is probably an Aeropress and a decent kettle. Get a gooseneck early, then you won't have to buy a second kettle later if you decide to start playing with pour-overs. If you want to make boiling water a little more passive, get an electric one. I have this one and it works like a charm.

Another cheap starter option for brewing is the V60 and its various clones. The original is plastic, but this one is ceramic and only $20. It takes some practice to get pour-overs just right, but it's worth it. And for $20, it's not a bad way to give it a shot or just to have in your collection.

Grinders are a whole discussion. I have a Baratza Encore that I really like. It's easy to maintain and Baratza's support was pretty good to me when I needed them. If you want to go a little cheaper, you might consider a Skerton or Mini Mill.

For beans, have fun. There are a ton of places to get decent beans, and part of the fun is finding new places. There are a number of redditors that roast and will probably sell beans to you if you like. (Including me!) I would suggest some, but I actually skipped this part and went straight to roasting.

EDIT: Oh, and good luck. You're opening a door to a rabbit hole, now.

I make large batches of cold brew once a month (almost 5 gallons) to fit into my kegerator and the process is really simple. For what it's worth, my coffee breaks down to about $1 a day for a large Nitro Cold Brew coffee on tap (which sells around me for nearly $4-5 a cup) and I get a lot more coffee, plus very high quality. You could get this price even lower without the kegerator because I included the price for nitro and I also use relatively expensive beans.

Here are the basic tools I would recommend:

​

• brewing bucket or jar
  
• coffee grinder
  
• something to filter the coffee
  
• beans of choice (use whatever you like)
  
  ​
  
  Depending on how much coffee you're looking to make, you can use a different sized vessel. For example, I use a 5 gallon bucket for my keg, whereas if you don't need that much cold brew at once, you can use something like a large mason jar or a smaller sized bucket (say 1 or 2 gallon bucket). I'll definitely recommend you get a bucket with a spout. This makes it very easy to dispense your cold brew.
  
  ​
  
  As for a coffee grinder, buy what you can afford, there are plenty of options on the market. Obviously you're going to have a better grind if you invest a little more but if you can't, at the end of the day, it's not really going to break you. If you're doing large batches, I'd recommend buying an electric grinder. I use a Bodum Bistro Grinder which is less than $90 and works great. You could use a handheld grinder if you wanted to save more money, obviously it's just more work.
  
  ​
  
  To filter the coffee, I use a fine mesh food grade bag (they sell these for things like almond milk) and sit that on top of a mesh strainer that sits on top of my bucket. You don't need the mesh strainer part, it just makes it easier for us since we have more coffee. You might want to strain your cold brew before you pour it but to be honest, I don't always and I don't have much problem. You can always double bag your beans to remove some of this too. Most of it settles on the bottom of the bucket underneath the spout anyway, so you just throw away that part.
  
  ​
  
  Get whatever beans you like. I buy mine in bulk from a local coffee shop. I'd suggest doing a coarse grind and using a 2:1 water to coffee ratio until you figure out your particular preference. That would be to drink it straight out of the gallon. If you want to do more of a coffee concentrate, use more coffee and less water and then add water/milk/cream or whatever when you're preparing your cup.
  
  ​
  
  I hope that helps. Enjoy!

I would advice against buying that electric grinder. It won't be very good and pretty hard to make consistent tasting coffee with.

This one uses blades. Blades to grind coffee is like using a rock to cut vegetables. Yes it gets "the job done" but with a lot of compromise.

Blade grinders (as opposed to burr grinders) are unable to grind coffee in consistent size particles. Meaning hot water won't extract your coffee evenly. Which makes a huge difference.

Cheapest "good" hand grinder is the Hario Skerton or Hario Mini Mill. A step up from that is the Porlex Mini which offers a bit better grind quality, alluminium instead of plastic, and fits inside the aeropress.

If you want to go electric the cheapest good option is this Bodum grinder but at that point you might as well go with the Baratza Encore which is a great iconic grinder that is a great grinder for everything up to espresso.

Manual grinding isn't too bad. If you enjoy "the ritual". Grinding for the Aeropress takes about 1 minute. The thing is, if you want to start brewing more, for say French Press or V60, you really want to invest in an electric grinder. Because grinding for 4 cups of coffee by hand suuuucks! Also, early in the morning, you really appreciate an electric grinder.

Ideal is to have both. But I know that's kinda crazy. Electric at home, manual for at work/while travelling.

Hey there! I am also from Ohio! I'll give you two answers.

Cheapest possible way to get into it is a whirly blade grinder and a french press. No filters needed, just fresh ground coffee made rather quickly and easily. This was my first ever coffee set up, and really got me into drinking better coffee. If you tell me what city in Ohio you are closest to I will give you a recommendation on a local roaster to get beans from. Buying locally from a reputable roaster will be the best option for quality beans for a good price.

​

The other answer, is to buy nice or buy twice. After using the above set up for a few months I was hooked and decided to upgrade everything. So I will send you some options for the cheapest way to make specialty level coffee. For this I would look at a nicer grinder and a pour over. While hand grinders are great, almost everyone upgrades to an electric one. The linked options there are my favorite for the money. The electric model from baratza can be found refurbished on their website from time to time for addtional savings.

The next thing you'll need is a pour over and a kettle to pour with. I recommend a Chemexhere as they are good for serving one to three cups comfortably. I recommended a glass handle chemex because they are beautiful, but wood necked models are a little cheaper. I would get the white square filters with it as they impart less papery flavor. As for a kettle you have a ton of options. I am going to link a budget electric kettle as I find the stovetop models to be more of a hassle.

​

As for healthy sweeteners, brewing it well I hope you won't need them as much, which would be the healthiest. But whole milk and stevia in the raw are your best healthy fixins.

​

Hope this is helpful! Happy brewing and welcome to the fam!

<--- Barista here! I second the Moka suggestion. Unless you have thousands to shell out on a shop quality espresso machine, this is the next best thing. A good grinder is key, and burr grinders are best. This is mine. Also, steaming wands on cheaper machines never work very well and are horrible to clean. All you really need to get that nice foam easily is one of these nifty milk frothers.




Most retail coffee "machines" aren't built to last and make mediocre drinks. Low-tech almost always produces a superior tasting beverage. I have a Chemex(for normal coffee), a french press(for stronger coffee), a Toddy(for iced coffee) and a Moka(for espresso).


Also, if you can, seek out a roaster that is local to your mother. They will direct you to their best beans for espresso, and it will most likely be very fresh. All the roasters I have worked with are always happy to help customers troubleshoot and tweak to their tastes as well. It's a really worthwhile relationship for a coffee enthusiast.


So, Moka, burr grinder, frother wand, a pound of beans, and you're set. She'll love it. If you have some extra cash, and she likes normal coffee, throw in that Chemex. 10 times better than an auto-drip, and uses less beans as well. :)

When buying new gear like this, I often find it worthwhile to buy the good stuff from the beginning. It'll cost more upfront, but in the long run you save money by not sinking it into gear that you're just going to upgrade away from. I know you're looking for a starter kit, so I'll outline some entry level stuff and then some recommended upgrades.

For a burr grinder, a decent entry level manual grinder is the Hario Skerton. One complaint with this is inconsistent coarse grind size, which is what you'll be using with a French Press. Orphan Espresso makes an upgrade kit that fixes this problem, but personally I feel that if you're going to spend $40 on the Skerton and $15 on the upgrade kit, you should just spend a few more bucks and get something like the Capresso Infinity. This grinder is going to be way more convenient, versatile, and consistent than the hand grinder. For one last option, there's the Baratza Encore. This is probably the best grinder you'd want for French Press, because anything better / more expensive would just be overkill as they're primarily aimed at espresso.

The Press itself isn't too important. Bodum is usually the recommended brand.

You'll also need a way to heat water. You could go with a stovetop kettle, but I think electric kettles are more convenient, and are roughly the same price anyway. You can get a pretty standard one for less than $25. But getting a gooseneck kettle is going to help control your pour better and ensure the coffee grounds are completely saturated. If you don't want to worry about getting the perfect temperature for brewing, a variable temperature kettle will take care of it for you.

Other than that, you might want a kitchen scale to get the right coffee-to-water ratio, and a thermometer to check your water temperature.

It sounds like you're busy, but willing to spend a little bit of time and money to feed your new addiction. This is a good place to start!

To consistently brew good strong coffee, follow these steps:

1. Buy fresh coffee. Good roasters will put the roast date on the bag. Look for bags roasted within 1-2 weeks.
   
2. If possible, purchase an electric burr grinder like the Baratza Encore or Bodum Bistro because fresh ground coffee is always going to taste better. If not, just ask the coffee shop to grind it for you.
   
3. Buy a coffee maker certified by the SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America) like the Bonavita or Wilfa. These machines make sure you'll get a consistent brew.
   
4. To make strong coffee, simply use more coffee per pot. The SCAA Golden Ratio is 55g of coffee (just over 3.5 tablespoons) for every liter of water. I would start with this ratio and adjust to your liking.
   
5. That's it! Enjoy

Cool, so now we have a better idea what we're working with. I can run through some options/limitations and you can take it from there.

• An espresso machine with a built-in grinder (superauto) is going to be way over your budget, so you can scratch that off the list.
  
  
• I don't know of a drip coffee machine with a built in grinder that will actually do a good job brewing.
  
  
• There is no machine that can make even halfway decent espresso and drip. You're going to have to choose here. She can dilute an espresso with hot water to make an Americano, which she can then treat like regular coffee but won't be exactly the same (though probably won't be vastly different once she adds her creamer and sugar).
  
  
• Making an espresso with a machine like the Mr. Coffee you mentioned or one of the De'Longhis is going to be a bit of a faff. She'll have to grind, dose, tamp, brew, and clean. With a bit of practice she'll get this down, but it'll be hard not to get some coffee grind spillage no matter how quick/good she gets at doing it. If she's going to want a latte, the Mr. Coffee will froth the milk for you (but I don't know how well), but if it's a machine with the wand, she'll have to steam her own milk which is another skill to learn (and involves another layer of process/cleanup). Again, this should become second nature fairly quickly, but you'd know better if she'll go through the effort until it gets to that point.
  
  
• My advice, if you don't think she'll go through the hassle of making the espresso/latte, would be to go with this machine which is SCAA certified (long story short: coffee-snob approved) and this or this grinder. I linked BB&B because the Americans on here frequently talk about being able to get coupons fairly easily that knock the price down to $80. So either way you'll get her a very respectable coffee-brewing setup for right around your target budget. Get her some good beans and she'll be leaving home to go back to her dorm and make coffee.
  
  
• If you are going to go the espresso route, I'd definitely go for the Capresso over the Bodum grinder.
  
  Based on the way you've described her tastes, I think she'd probably do ok with 15-bar pump espresso maker, but avoid 'steam' espresso makers at all costs. In the first instance you're making something that doesn't have all the glory of a truly great espresso, in the second case you're making something that shouldn't really be called espresso at all.
  
  Anyway, I hope this is somewhat helpful.

Gooseneck kettle is a must for pour overs if that's what you see in your future! I have the Bonavita 1L electric kettle. Looking back, I would have invested in the more expensive version that lets you vary temperature, but I've had great results with mine regardless.

I started out with a v60, then a Chemex, then the Aeropress. Of the 3, I use the Chemex the most often; it gives the best quality brew with the highest quantity (37g @ ~600mL of water). It took me quite a while master the pour, but it was definitely worth it!

Hope this helps and good luck on your coffee journey!

EDIT: For grinders, I have the Hario skerton. It takes a while to grind the beans, but was marvelous for my budget at the time. Once I have the money though, I'm going for the Baratza Encore. It's cheaper than the Virtuoso, but an old roommate had the Encore and I LOVED having all my beans ground in such a short amount of time.

Just some food for thought!

The answer to your question is really dependent on budget. A quick perusal through the sub will show you that the Aeropress is a popular option because it is one of the least expensive ways to get a solid cup of coffee.

If you have some cash to part with, it might be worth looking at setting yourself up with a pourover setup - I'd probably suggest the v60. You would need the v60, the hario buono, and you'd probably want a scale to weigh coffee (there are a LOT of options, many cheaper than what I've linked). You would also need to get a reasonably good grinder - check out the sidebar for a list of grinders. Yes, it's a lot of capital to get started, but the coffee is fantastic and the equipment is very durable. This equipment, properly cared for, could potentially outlast you in many cases.

There's also the standard drip coffee maker, but from my experience if you go that route you ought to just invest in the cheapest one. The quality coffee from most drip machines is pretty similar. A better question is what grinder to get - that will improve your brew quality across all methods. Again, sidebar has great advice, but a really popular grinder here is the[ Baratza Encore] (http://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Encore-Conical-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B00LW8122Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1459250167&sr=8-1&keywords=baratza+encore+coffee+grinder) which you can sometimes find on their refurb page for discounted prices.

No matter what you choose - good luck and happy caffienation

1. You should get a gooseneck kettle. I prefer them to not have hotplate attached (just use stovetop) and to have a built-in thermometer so you can be versatile with what you use it for. Small spouts are much better than larger spouts to control flow, however this may be hard to find when looking. Unfortunately, the one I bought is no longer up for sale on amazon, however this one is very similar: https://www.amazon.com/Coffee-Kettle-Outstanding-Thermometer-40floz/dp/B07GPWZFRW/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1550204612&sr=8-5&keywords=pour+over+kettle+gooseneck
   
2. Just a regular food scale should do. This one works and is popular in the coffee community. It's also super cheap. Only problem is that it is battery run and turns off without activity for a minute or so. I use it daily. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01IP8KRXS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   
3. This is by-far the hardest part. You must get a burr grinder. It's the only way to maintain consistent grinds. You can buy a cheap one for around 30-40$ that do pretty well for a pour over grind but not well for really anything else. The upper end of the cheaper burr grinders would be the baratza encore (https://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Encore-Conical-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B007F183LK/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1550204913&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=baratza+encore+grinder&psc=1), but i probably wouldn't drop the money unless you've got an experienced taste. Honestly, i've made better pour overs with a low budget burr than with a mahlkonig ek43.
   
   I do have another recommendation. IMO, pour overs are the absolute best way to brew coffee, as they extract flavor the best. For this reason, you want to optimize your setup for better results. You're already doing this by buying a scale, good kettle, and grinder for home. What I would also do is buy a paper filter based system. They are often cheaper or the same price than what you're considering buying. I use this V60 at home (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002BA2I7A/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and it produces amazing results. Additionally, filters are cheap and probably impact the environment equally to stainless steel filters (due to dumping grounds and excess water use), even though this is usually a big appeal for the permanent filters. Paper is significantly better for taste than the steel filters IMO.
   
   Buying good beans is also very important. I hate to use price as a reference point, but most high quality specialty beans are going to be around 15-20 for 8 to 12 oz bags. Stick with single origin light roasts. Look locally or online and build a sense for the flavor based on region and processing.
   
   ​
   
   Feel free to ask any questions!

what are you going to be making primarily? I personally have a Bodum Bistro and love it. It's not the highest rated grinder and I may get better results from a better grinder but honestly I've been using it for years and it's never let me down for drip coffee. For a french press it's not terrible but I do find a bit of silt in the bottom of the cup but if that doesn't bother you then you'll do just fine with a Bistro. However, I will say for sure that it is NOT good for espresso. I bought a Lido E for my espresso and it's the best purchase I've made for my coffee collection. The difference is astounding. I'd definitely recommend a dedicated grinder for espresso.

I will also add that I enjoy the process of hand grinding for my espresso because I don't drink it that often and the process isn't that bad. However I drink drop coffee every day (and I might make the occasional cup for my wife) so if I had to hand grind for drip coffee every single time I would probably get really tired of it really fast. So keep that in mind. If you drink a lot of coffee then you're going to be grinding that all by hand.

What is your budget?

The aergrind is possibly the best valued grinder, but it is a manual grinder. This guy can grind espresso quality and will greatly improve your mokapot and aeropress. Their Feld2 is also great but less portable. These expensive manual grinders are much easier to grind than the cheaper ones, you dont need nearly as much force. They grind as good as electrics 4x the cost.

If thats out of your budget you could go for this porlex or mini mill but these produce far less consistent grinds, harder to turn, and cant grind as fine.

If you want electric, the baratza encore is a popular recommendation. This is good enough for everything thats not espresso. This is very easily repairable, so it can last longer than other options.

But honestly the price difference to the bodum bistro isn't worth it. Id go for this if you wanted a cheap electric. Also wont grind espresso, but good enough for just about everything else.

Hope that answers your questions!

Mmk.

Let's ignore the espresso machine route, and go for something that will give you strong coffee. Either a moka pot, or maybe an aeropress. (I personally recommend the aeropress.)

As for the milk, the cheaper route would be to heat it up (microwave?) and then use a milk frother to blend air into it. You'll get these big bubbles as opposed to microfoam like you'd get at an actual coffee shop. OR. You can go for a stovetop steam wand like this. You'll need to invest some time/money into this to learn how to make microfoam, but the results will be worth it. I'm actually about to embark on this step :/ (Note, you don't HAVE to foam/froth your milk. It just makes it a little tastier.)

NOW. Back onto the coffee. So we have your "machine/maker" figured out. Let's talk about the ACTUAL coffee. Depending on what you've picked from above, you're in $30-$100+ deep. If you have a local roaster, that's great! Buy beans freshly roasted from them. Learn from them. Ask them to make recommendations. If not, there are a few online sources good for buying roasted coffee. Remember, buy what you can use in about 1-2 weeks. Longer than that and you'll have stale coffee.

If you can, you should buy whole coffee beans, and grind them yourself. The cheaper method is to buy a hand grinder. The Hario Skeleton/Skerton is always highly recommended. A few drawbacks to this, but you'll learn about them on your coffee journey. (Don't want to bombard you with too much information for now.) The Hario Mini Mill is also a great option, especially for travelling, but grinds less.

As for electric grinders, the Baratza Maestro is a good entry level burr grinder, but at a pretty steep price :/ Note: always buy a burr grinder, and note a blade grinder. Bear in mind that using the hand grinders is actually quite a lot of work, especially if you're not a morning type of person. The entire Baratza line of grinders are all highly recommended, but as always, the better the grinder, the higher the cost.

You need to know that your coffee is about to get a lot tastier. Also siltier. The silt puts some people off, but I love it--just decant carefully. Also, after the four minutes of steeping, press the plunger and get the coffee off of the grind immediately. Transfer it into a thermos or your cup, don't let it keep sitting there on the beans in the press.

But I will say: DO NOT get a french press without also investing in a decent burr grinder and buying fresh, quality beans from a good roaster (or learn to roast at home). I would recommend this one as a quality grinder at a good price. Set your grind to course, and don't grind until your water is near boiling. Your grinder is your most important piece of equipment for world-class coffee brewing; it is not the piece you want to skimp on.

I have had some truly transcendent cups of coffee...and blown the minds of friends who had never had french press before. Happy mornings!

I love my Bodum Brazil press.

Not only that but, despite this incredibly long and detailed explanation, making your coffee better is really easy. Any one of these changes will make an improvement. Do all of them and you might never bother going out for coffee again.

1. Use whole bean coffee and grind it yourself. A good grinder doesn't have to be expensive.
   
2. Get a good drip maker. Cheap ones don't always hit the right temperature. I've had this one for years, and it gives me a great pot of coffee even from grocery store beans.
   
3. Make sure you're using the correct amount of coffee. A coffee scoop is 2 tablespoons. Use one scoop per cup. If you like your coffee bold (like I do), use one slightly rounded scoop per cup, and if you're making more than 6 cups, toss in one more.
   
4. If your tap water tastes funky, so will the coffee you make with it. Run it through a brita filter or something first.
   
5. This sounds snobby but bear with me - buy your coffee from a local roaster. It's really not much more expensive. Dunkin Donuts wants $9/lb, my local roaster has some varieties for $10-11/lb. It will be fresher and taste better.
   
   For 1 and 2, I'll admit that buying $110 in equipment just for your coffee is a lot, but both the drip maker and the grinder will last you for years and years and will give you better coffee the whole time. If it saves you from buying just one cup of coffee per week, it pays itself off in a year.
   
   The others cost very little, and will make an improvement immediately.

Before I start, I should warn you that discovering good coffee can be expensive. It's also a bit time consuming. If you're in it for convenience, stick with the beans you're drinking now.

Freshness of coffee is highly dependent on two things: the time since roasting and the time since grinding. The best thing you can do is find a good local coffee roaster and get whole beans from them. Then get a good burr grinder (I love my Capresso Infinity Grinder) and grind it yourself immediately before brewing. Getting the coffee locally is good because you'll get to know the roaster and they'll almost always print the roasting date on the bag. Grinding it yourself ensures that the flavor stays locked in the beans until you're ready to drink your cup.

If you don't have any local coffee roasters, you can try your luck with some decent coffee from Amazon. Cafe Altura Sumatran is pretty good, although they don't put the roasting date on their bags, so you'll have no idea how fresh it is. Some of the best coffee I've ever ordered online was from The Birds and The Beans.

If you're just starting out, then I recommend getting a french press or an aeropress. You can even use them to make pseudo-lattes. (Obviously, to make a real latte, you'd need an espresso machine. But those get really expensive, really fast for anything decent.)

Hope that helps. :)

Yea I didn't really know anything about it until I got it home and researched it. The people that owned it before were grinding flavored beans (i.e. coated in syrup) so it was kinda gross, but cleaned up easily. This is the grinder. I guess it's up to $100 bucks haha. STEAL!

Popcorn popper roasting is pretty easy. You have to do fairly small batches (about 1/3 cup per ~5 minutes), but it's not a big deal. It's kind of relaxing and I enjoy the experience. This is the one I have. I found it on sale for around $14. Totally worth it. The only details I had to get down were blocking the exit chute with a piece of foil and cutting some vent holes in the side. You have to do it outside since the chaff goes EVERYWHERE, and it's hot here, so the machine kept overheating and shutting off. Other than that, you just put the beans in, plug it in, stir them around a little (I just use a long stick I found outside..still going strong) until they get light enough to auto-stir, then listen for the crack and watch the color.

It's immensely satisfying roasting your own coffee, and places like Sweet Marias are very knowledgeable and have great selection. I usually order their sampler packs of 3-4 pounds. I save one cups worth of roasted beans from each sample then when I'm done with all of them I do a taste test. With an AeroPress it's super easy to brew multiple cups of coffee at once.

What kind of grinder do you have? A good grinder goes a long ways. I would recommend at least a Baratza Encore it’s like between 100-200 bucks totally worth the money. But I will probably upgrade to a virtuoso + in time. If you want something more low budget to dip your toes in I recommend a Hario MiniMill.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B007F183LK/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523307658&sr=8-1-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=baratza+encore+grinder&psc=1&smid=A302OQK4GZWXCC


https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01GPMH590/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523307695&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=hario+mini+mill+plus&dpPl=1&dpID=31BVJId0wqL&ref=plSrch

Then as others mentioned combined with a scale is where I would start. My girlfriend got me one from Walmart, most recipes are measured in grams; so you want something that can do that.

If you begin to treat it like a science expirement as I do I recommend a V60 or a chemex. The chemex was much easier to use IMO. It’s not as versatile as the aero but you once you get dialed in it makes a nice cup. But I also recommend a goose neck kettle.


Also if you’re interested you can try and find different aero recipes here to refine what you like the best.

http://www.worldaeropresschampionship.com/recipes/#/lukas-zahradnik/

As far as beans go, I’m a recent convert to HappyMug.com. But Counter Culture and S & W roasters are on the to try list also. The importance is freshness. If you go the way of a local roaster I would ask about when they were roasted if the bags aren’t dated. I was bamboozled into buying a little less than fresher beans than I get from happy mug recently.

I’m still fairly new I creeped for a long time took the plunge in November. I’ll never go back, hopefully you too join the cult.

GL HF mate. Let us know how you’re journey goes.

The general opinion over on the Gaggia users' group is that it's not worth half what you'll pay for it. I've never used the MDF, but I believe the people there who have... if anything, the tendency of people on that group is to praise Gaggia equipment, not dump on it.

>it's the only viable grinder in it's price range

What are you defining as "its price range?" IIRC, it's generally around $250-$300. Other options that I think are likely to do a better job:

• Cunill Tranquilo (Google cache link because their site is flaky at the moment. Call them on the phone for the current price.) - This gets a lot of love on the Gaggia group and on CG's reviews page. I think the current price is $250-$275.
  
  
• Virtuoso Preciso - $275-$300 - Early reviews are extremely positive for this one.
  
  
• OE Pharos - $245 - Lots of people with a ton to say about this one. Most of it positive.
  
  I also hear the Breville Smart can do espresso if you get some shims for it from Breville. The SCG people seemed to like it anyway. I've never used any of these, but if I had to spend <$300 and had to have new equipment, I would go for any of them before I'd buy an MDF.
  
  When I wanted an espresso grinder to go with my Gaggia, I hit eBay for pulls from coffee shops. I found a Fama MPN for around $200 and new burrs from a repair shop for around $50. It was unsightly but very effective.

Not a coffee maker, of which there are any number of great options, but the thing that's probably more important, a good grinder.

You need a burr grinder for the best coffee. For better coffee, this is the best single upgrade you can make, drip, press or moka pot.

My preferred grinder is the [Baratza Virtuoso] (http://www.amazon.com/kitchen-dining/dp/B000EG70IK). I've had one for years and it's a great performer for drip or press coffee. For a lot less, you can now get the [Encore] (http://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Encore-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B007F183LK/ref=pd_sbs_k_2). I've never used one - they weren't around when I got mine - but they get good reviews too.

Btw, both Grace in the Kitchen in Kanata and Paradis on Bank sell them in town

Wow! With a $500 budget you can actually do so much, and to be honest I don't think that kind of investment is really necessary, especially since overlooking your choices, you seem to be spending way too much for things you can get for a lower price. My setup is only ~$100, and I can get a great brew (though I use a hand grinder). I use a Kalita Wave 155 (this is the smallest size, but feel free to opt for the 185 size if you brew 2+ cups in one sitting). $22.50. The filters are quite pricey at $10.95, but worth it in the long run (for a one cup drinker a-day like me, it will last 3 months+ per pack). A French press from Bodum will only set you back $27 - double walled doesn't really do much because I find temperature loss isn't really a problem. The size I recommend for this one is only suited again for a 1-cup drinker, because my personal experience is using a 1L size for a single or even 2 cup drinker in one sitting will result in extremely sludgey cups. As others have suggested, if looking for a nice electric grinder, spring for the Encore. A good scale is this one for $39. I don't even use a true dedicated gooseneck kettle for this setup, just an adequate tea kettle but I do advocate the variable temp Bonavita you're thinking of. So this all amounts to $313.20. Happy drinking.

Totally! I love talking about gear.

Grinders:

• Bodum Bistro (on the way out, needs new Burrs, but I really like it for course french press brews)
  
• Mazzer Mini (probably the only coffee thing I have bought new...a splurge but my espresso has benefited immensely)
  
• Baratza Virtuoso - Probably the best all around grinder. Can do course and fine grinds, has a timer, no-static grounds catcher. I like it a lot.
  
• Porlex JP-30 Stainless Steel Coffee Grinder - My hand grinder, it's ceramic and does a consistently good pour-over grind..the only issue is it gets very hot when grinding and when grinding you want the beans to suffer no heat at all. It could be because I have to hold it with my hand when grinding and I'm transferring heat + the friction of the burrs? I really don't know how to improve it but I've started using this only on trips when I have to have a grinder and can't tote around my Baratza.
  
  Scale - Hario Drip Scale w/ Timer - It's black, measures to the tenth of a gram, the first one I bought is slow and it struggles to keep up with measuring my water grams...then I bought another a year later and it's much faster so I'd say if you get one that seems sluggish / slow, return it it's like they added a new CPU or something later in the life of the machine.
  
  Aeropress sometimes....it's the fastest way to make coffee with really easy clean-up. For the event I'm just gonna brew 2 batches on everything except espresso (since I don't want to tote that thing in the office). I hope it turns people on to better coffee.

I have a Bodum Bistro burr grinder and really think it does a great job for $70. There is another Bodum grinder here that people dislike, but in general this one gets favorable reviews most everwhere I've looked.

If you want to make a single, easy cup of coffee at home you may look into getting an Aeropress. It is fairly easy to make a good cup of coffee for most anyone using one of these things.

I have no experience with the Ninja coffee bar (but I love my Ninja blender). I would recommend looking for a local coffee shop that maybe roasts their own coffee. It isn't guaranteed to be good coffee, but it will be a good place to start because they will likely have many different choices and you'll be supporting a local roaster. They will probably offer to grind it for you and ask what type of method you are using (pour over, drip, french press, etc) until you get a grinder.

The cheapest reasonable set up for roommates who all drink lots of coffee would be something like this:

​

• An SCAA-certified machine (which mostly just means it gets the water hot enough), like this Bonavita 8-Cup machine ($100). That's about as cheap as you'll get for a larger SCAA-certified machine.
  
• A burr grinder. If you want good coffee, you have to grind your beans fresh; there's no way around that. The most popular recommendation, with good reason, is the Baratza Encore, but this OXO grinder ($80) should be fine for your needs and is about $50 less.
  
  ​
  
  That puts you at 180 for your grinder and machine, which isn't bad.
  
  ​
  
  For beans, Happy Mug is as cheap as you'll get for super freshly-roasted. Based on what you're saying you'd probably be just fine with a blend. Order two or three different ones and figure out what you like! $9 per 12 oz bag. The beans are nearly always roasted the same day they ship.
  
  ​
  
  It sounds like you aren't interested in taking on coffee as a "hobby" and instead just are looking for a better cup. Something like I recommended would be the cheapest and least "enthusiast" route to drinking much, MUCH better coffee than you are now.

I have a Hario Mini Mill which I like and it gets the job done, but I'm really looking for something electric. If you're doing french press, it doesnt take much time to grind beans but if you're doing anything finer than that it probably takes me 5 minutes to grind 45-50g of beans which just isn't what I wanna do right after I wake up. I've heard good things about the Hario Skerton as well.

For electric grinders, I've heard that the Baratza Encore is the best bang for your buck. Also, I would get an adjustable temperature kettle (people perfer goosenecks but I just have a regular one) and a kitchen scale! The scale is super useful for cooking in general and I think they're good to have, especially for coffee.

Also, I have a Chemex and love it. I don't think I could live without it.

There's a few grinders I've found after searching but there's a big difference in price.

These 3 are the ones that are reasonably priced I could find.

Melitta Molino

Baratza Encore

Delonghi KG 520M

Porlex Hand Grinder

Personally the Melitta Molino or Porlex Hand Grinder looks the most attractive due the price and size. But the more important question is does it grind fine enough quality coffee suitable for espresso or is the espresso going to be as bad as a blade grinder that I currently have? Do the other 2 grind fine enough to produce good enough Espresso.

All of these grinders don't have an amazing rating on Amazon. I know this might seem a lil bit low to more enthusiasts espresso drinkers but my machine is pretty much an entree level espresso machine and I'm also a student looking to to slowly get better coffee gear. Right now I am looking to spend around 150 euro but preferably less. What are my best options?

> I mean, I bought the good grounds and everything.

OK, this is a big warning flag. Are you saying you bought pre-ground coffee? If so, that is your first problem. Never use pre-ground coffee. Once the bean is ground, it is quickly losing flavor and getting bitter, the chemical process of degradation is in motion, so you want to minimize the time between grinding and brewing. I use this grinder. So get yourself some whole beans and a grinder. The reason I use that grinder is because it is a burr grinder which gives a more consistent grind than the blade style grinders, but those are fine too.

Also, find a local roaster in your area. You want as fresh of a roast as possible. Some coffee shops roast their own beans, so try those first. If you can't find that check your local grocery store for a local roaster who has their beans carried on the shelves.

Now, if you want stronger coffee the key is to make sure that you use more coffee and brew it the proper amount of time. The problem is there is no perfect answer to how long or what ratio of coffee to water. You start with a four minute brew, then if you want a stronger taste you can try adding a minute or two to your brewing time, or adjusting the amount of coffee. It is a process to find the right ratios, but usually once you figure it out for your particular brew, then you can make good coffee consistently. I have a rotation of about five coffee bean blends that I like to use, and each one has a different ideal time/amount brewing process. My favorite is a good bean from Yemen, but in recent years I have found it hard to find beans from Yemen in the US.

Source: I have had coffee in 26 countries around the world including the Middle East and East Africa where coffee originated. (The Ethiopians claim they were the first to have coffee, but I have met people from Yemen who swear up and down it was in Yemen first.)

Good Eats Episode about Coffee: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=K6XA7lh7P_Y

Congratulations on becoming a free thinker and embracing everything that life has to offer! Never stop questioning everything! It's all about the beans, it's basically impossible to make good coffee without using freshly ground and good quality beans that have been recently roasted (i.e. not sat on a shelf for months).

You will need 3 things to start making good coffee.

1. A decent grinder, nothing fancy needed if you're just going to use a french press, but try and avoid ones that use blades, and go for a nice burr grinder, like this one.
   
2. a French press
   
3. Some nice beans, have a look online for a local roaster in your area and give them your support/love/money!.
   
   That's pretty much it, just coarsely grind the coffee, put it in the press with water just slightly off the boil, wait a few mins depending on how strong you like it, press down and serve delicious coffee!

JrDot13 is right. Once coffee is ground up, it starts to lose its freshness right away. Starting with whole bean and grinding it is the way to go. I too, started with a small and cheap Mr. Coffee blade grinder. It simply does not grind consistent enough and there really isn't a way to control it at all. I know lots of people are recommending the Capresso Infinity Grinder as an entry level grinder that gets the job done pretty well. I was on the fence about either the Capresso or a refurbished Baratza Virtuoso. Keep an eye out on Baratza's website on Thursdays (I think. Someone correct me if I'm wrong). On Thursdays Baratza updates their refurbished page. I ended up with the Baratza and I absolutely love it. I've had it for a year now and it's great. Personally I've never used the grinder in the stores so I can't say I know how good they are. But if you find a solid local roaster they'll grind coffee for you when you purchase a bag of beans.

Another option that you might want to consider is buying a vacuum sealed container and having the store/local coffee shop grind the beans for you and then just keep it in that container. I understand that money might be tight and getting the most out of your coffee can cost a bit more than someone might have. Something like this container has some pretty good reviews on amazon. The only downside to that is you're only going to be able to keep it at one grind versus having the flexibility to grind it as you please for whichever method you're using. But it sounds like your family is going to stick to using the Kuerig so one grind size won't be too bad.

I agree with getting a good drip to keep it convenient and to also step up the coffee game a little. Adding timed outlets is a great idea too!

Some bonavitas have a holder for the drip cup, and others the drip cup sits right on the pot, so they seem less convenient. If I were to choose between the two, I would choose a technivorm. The folks at Seattle Coffee review and test a lot of drip machines, and they even did a blind test between the technivorm moccamaster and bonavita, and it seems they mostly agree the techivorm tastes nicer. A grinder would help too, my dad likes to keep things easy, but he LOVES his grinder. He's had 30 years or more.

Grinders: The concensus is get a baratza encore. I don't have one, but they are just loved everywhere. I just recently returned a 200$ breville grinder and bought a 43$ cuisinart grinder and have been extremely pleased with it. I know everyone says to put your money in a good grinder, but I am quite content with the cuisinart for now! https://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-DBM-8-Supreme-Grind-Automatic/dp/B00018RRRK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1541103820&sr=8-2&keywords=Cuisinart+DBM-8


​

I picked up the Capresso Infinity Conical Burr Grinder from Amazon for less than $100, and I'm pleased with it. I'm sure someone in here will school me and tell me why it's not acceptable for grinding both espresso and french press coffee, but I do it and I like it. It has a nice consistant grind that goes from very coarse to very fine, and it suits my needs. I'd say it's a nice introductory electric burr grinder for someone interested in making good coffee. Once this one bites the dust, I'm sure I'll upgrade to something fancier, but for now it works great for me.

You say "coffee" and not espresso, so luckily that means you can spend more money on the grinder! Bang-for-your-coffee-loving-buck, the Virtuoso is one that's often recommended. It's good enough to make espresso grinds with, if you ever decide to do that. On the less pricy side, the Encore gets a lot of recommendations. Lower end electric, but still perfectly functional for coffee, are the bodum bistro and the capresso infinity. Check Craig's List for used of any of these.

For manual grinders, the Lido 3 is the higher end, then the Porlex and Hario Skerton are common.

Non-electric devices to check out are french press, aeropress, chemex and other pour overs (v60, kalita, melitta), and moka pots. Also wondering if you're interested in "cold brew" coffee.

Devices for automatic drip are varied. The devices on this page are certified to get the water hot enough for proper extraction, but may be overkill for some folks.

To me, the most important parts for coffee are fresh beans, reliable grinder, good tasting hot water, CLEAN coffee making devices, digital scale, and taking notes. The particular method I'm using isn't as important in the long term. If you pay attention to the above, a $2 melitta dripper and the melitta filters you can buy in nearly any grocery store will give you tasty results once you get the grind size and water temps down. Just look at pictures and videos of people demonstrating devices on a site like Stumptown, maybe, or youtube, and ask yourself what coffee-making process looks like something you'd want to do every morning and how much coffee you need to make at once. If you're just making one cup of coffee for yourself, you might buy something different than if you need to make 10 cups at once.

For full disclosure, my current most frequent coffee-making methods for myself are pour over and my Moccamaster.

I appreciate the straightforward answers! Nothing wrong with that, especially since it's constructive.

I should have clarified, the price I paid was a steal. This is the Bodum Bistro grinder I have and while I haven't had a chance to try out many other grinders, it far beats the price I paid for it. My coworker actually has the Baratza Virtuoso ($~200) and has told me the macro options on it are pretty nifty. I'm going to guess they come in a lot more useful for brews with finer grinds like espresso or Turkish brews.

I really hope I can develop enough of a plate to be able to tell apart a good shot vs a bad shot. With my current setup, I'm sure its mediocre by home expert standards but I'm happy with splurging more on the machine as I feel the Bistro grinder can suffice for now.

And wow, home roasting. Props to you, really! I've thought about it but it's a far off dream for me right now. I'd like to perfect my brews before I can even think about that.

Yes. Most people in this sub will tell you to get a burr grinder.

If you're on a budget they'll tell you to get a hand grinder (that uses ceramic burrs) and such.

It depends on how much time you'll have and how much you're going to enjoy the process and how deep you wanna get into coffee. My advice is find the best burr grinder for however much you're willing to pay. (they go as cheap as $30 all the way up to $200-300+, then they go way way higher if they are supposed to be able to grind for espresso). Keep it simple for now. get whatever makes sense for you but most would steer you away from blade grinders, they just do a poor job and the grind is an important part of the process.

For automatic grinders that aren't too crazy expensive, many prefer this one.

Once you get the grinder, you gotta find some good coffee to go with it. Try not to cheap out and buy the stuff at the super market unless it has a "roasted on" date that is fairly recent. Look for craft coffee in your area or some online roasters that will ship coffee to you. coffee subscriptions can be nice but maybe just start slow and look around for a 3rd wave coffee joint that can sell you their recently roasted stuff.

It'll be much better than anything you can get in the store and it will probably even be cheaper than they sell it in the store. There's always places like Blue Bottle, Stumptown, Intelligentsia, etc. that will sell their coffee to you online but you'll get it a bit cheaper if you can go to a local cafe to buy their stuff.

Have fun and don't be afraid to ask more questions in /r/Coffee everyone here is really nice... usually.

My apartment kitchen has the three prongs. I'll check tonight if it works with two prongs + adapter.

It depends on when you plan on buying that espresso machine and how often you plan on using it. Back in the US, I had an aeropress, a moka pot, a chemex, and an espresso machine. I would say that about 90% of the time, I used an aeropress.

My recommendation would be to buy this grinder: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000AR7SY/ref=pe_2313390_216827310_em_ti

That works perfectly fine for everything except espresso. For an espresso machine, you will need to be spend the money and buy the Virtuoso. The Capresso just doesn't have the ability to grind the beans finely enough for espresso applications.

At the end of the day, it's all up to you, but I think that it would be better to start small and expand the coffee setup later. Plus, when you are ready for an espresso machine, you will love having two separate grinders. Otherwise you would be spending a good amount of beans (expensive) and a bunch of time fine tuning the grinder for the perfect espresso shots every time you swap between different modes of coffee.

Completely off topic, but I just noticed your username. Do you work in the medical field? I'm a lab tech working nights in a smaller hospital.


The budget is going to get gnarly, especially if you buy things new.

I can tell you that setup I see recommended most often are the Baratza Vario (not W), the Crossland CC1, and a good scale, which is also probably one of the cheapest ways to do it. My wife and I also pretty much only use the same bean over and over again, so tuning it in between batches is pretty simple.

The scale in the grinder is a nifty feature, but it ends up giving your dose +/- .2 grams, whereas if you if you tune it in with a scale and the built in timer, you can get it down to smaller than +/- .1 gram. It may not seem like a big deal either way, but I use the same bean with the same dose over and over and over... So I feel like the added feature kind of goes to waste.

You can try different grinders like the Baratza Sette, which uses conical burrs vs the flat burrs of the Vario, but is new and unproven. There is also the Baratza Forte which is the older brother to the Vario and is supposed to resolve some of the flaws with the Vario. Your other grinder options are stepless (preferably doserless) grinders like the Fiorenzato, [Mazzer Mini]http://www.mazzer.com/en/grinder-dosers/mini/) (La Marzocco sells Mazzers, so there is that) and others that I can't remember at this point.

At the top of the home espresso machine market price wise is La Marzocco. Honestly, I think the only reason to get one of these would be to piss people off. Breville Dual Boiler(BES920XL), Rocket anything I guess, Rancilio Silvia + a PID kit, and others. I think a PID is a must have feature for any espresso machine.

I am by no means an expert in this topic, I'm just in the middle of researching an upgrade. I'm currently considering the Fiorenzato (because the name sounds cool. No really, I don't have a good reason for this. My Vario is more than sufficient, it just annoys me from time to time) and the Breville Dual Boiler (it's chock full of features and it has a bigger portafilter).

His french press, grinder, and kettle are certainly sufficient for what he's doing. There are certainly upgrades for the grinder (such as this) and the kettle (such as this), but for what he's doing, it's not likely to make much difference.

Others have suggested different brewing methods, which would be nice, but this depends on preference, of course. The Aeropress is probably the best option for someone looking to expand their horizons from the french press.

Given his equipment, the biggest difference is going to come from the beans. I personally have not tried coffee subscription services (such as Tonx), but it sounds like a really neat idea and I've heard generally positive things. Periodically, you get shipments of different kinds of coffee, so you can try new beans.

The general consensus here seems to be to aim for a Gaggia machine as the absolute minimum. Preferably a Gaggia Classic (~$388).

I've heard people recommend the lower priced Gaggia New Baby (~$300) to try out espresso and to help decide whether "to get a real espresso machine".

A step up from that, the recommendation seems to be the Crossland CC1, but that's in the $600+ range.

To save some money, you might do better finding a used machine or see if they're on sale at different sites.

If you want to go cheaper than that, people have recommended the MyPressi ($170), but I have not seen that in stock anywhere recently. There's some buzz regarding the MiniPresso (Preorder at $39), but that won't be out until 2015. So there won't be any reviews regarding it for a while.

As for grinder, if you're looking for cheap, you might have to make do with a hand grinder, either Hario Skerton (~$35) or Mini (~$26) or Porlex (~$43). The cheapest acceptable electric grinder seems to be the Baratza Preciso at $300.

This is the information I've gathered anyway. I don't have any personal experience with an espresso machine, but I hope this helps. If you decide to go with something, post your experience and help some people out.

Personally, I'm thinking of saving up for the CC1 and Vario (~$1000) combo...

I've had an Encore for 2 years now and I love it.

There is a pretty good Bodum grinder that i've heard some great things about.

We stock Hario v60 grinders at work to sell retail, so i back those pretty hard as well!


Just take good care of your grinder, clean it regularly and it should last for years!

To me, the easiest thing is pour over and the most important thing is consistent particle size. The more you spend on a grinder, the better it's going to be, and so this is where you want to spend the money. I'm going to give you a suggestion and it is super simple.

Get a Melitta pour over cone with filters - this should run you about $5. If you want to up that to about $11, you can get one with a glass carafe too. You can just search "Melitta" on amazon to see all the results. I know my local specialty food markets all stock just the filter cone for about $2, which is even cheaper than amazon (I think the cost to stock and ship a $2 plastic cone makes the price go up).

Then, a grinder; get a Baratza Encore and some good, whole-bean, freshly roasted coffee. Grind right before brewing, dump an appropriate amount of grounds into a filter in the cone, and use a kettle to pour water over it until your cup is full. Here's a promo video I found showing how ridiculously easy it is.

Now, if you ever want to get into it, you can easily upgrade with more money / time but you'll already be mostly there by having a great grinder. You can do stuff like:

• Get a scale to measure the exact amount of coffee and water you're using - this helps ensure consistency and allows you to change variables, such as grind size, and keep everything else the same to dial in your brew
  
• Get a more technical pour over cone, to play with extraction and getting more out of the coffee
  
• Get a kettle with a swan neck, to make an extremely precise pour possible
  
• Get a thermometer, to measure your water temperature
  
  Additionally, if you decide you want to do another, more fussy brew method, you could always pick up a french press, aeropress, etc. You'll already have a great grinder so you can just jump into anything.

If you need to use your own coffee, first you need to have a premium burr grinder, so that you will have the ability to produce nice creamy shots. To refill your Nespresso capsules, the grind size of the coffee is a super important factor to produce satisfactory results. The biggest change for third party refillable capsules is to maintain the pressure during the brewing. I will recommend you looking into those two products. Both of them will produce an exceptionally good shot if you control the coffee weight and the coffee grind size. Also, i provide you with a link for a good entry level grinder and capsule filling station. Hope that helps.

My-Cap oPack - 4 Capsules and 200 Non-Adhesive Foils for Nespresso OriginalLine Brewers (NOT for VertuoLine Brewers), Reusable, Refillable https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B8M941Y/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Wmn4Cb48E6BAF

Capsul'in MYCNCCB100 100 Piece Fillable Espresso Tea and Coffee Compatible Pod, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D36PQ9I/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Hon4Cb0MC0Y29

My-Cap Capsule Filler for Nespresso® OriginalLine Capsules (NOT for VertuoLine Capsules) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074JJF313/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_rpn4CbFDCR492

Breville BCG820BSSXL The Smart Grinder Pro Coffee Bean Grinder, Brushed Stainless Steel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OXGXW8O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_4pn4Cb1Z0PZ8T

It depends a lot on your grounds, some would say even more than your method of extraction. Your French press technique is solid though. You're being very smart by getting coarsely-ground instead of normal drip grind, but the individual flavour notes of coffee beans deteriorate massively within a very short time of being ground. They won't be completely eliminated, but you'll get more of a "generic good coffee" flavour than anything specific like "orange zest, red cherry and cranberry".

However, you can't just use a blade grinder and expect a good cup. I found that out very quickly after getting a grinder with a variable grind. What I have is pretty close to bottom of the pack as coffee gear goes but this big guy is what a lot of people on here started with and it's serving me very well. Whatever you get, though, it's mandatory that it has as consistent of a grind as you can afford. If you don't want to shell out for a decent grinder then keep buying good-quality coarsely ground beans like you already have because I can guarantee that slightly stale beans are much better than beans that are inconsistently ground.

The reason consistency is needed when you're freshly grinding beans at home is mainly for, again, flavour. As I understand it if one ground is bigger than another ground, then the two individual grounds will extract at different rates. This leads to the bigger pieces being underextracted (underextracted coffee is often acidic and unpleasant) and the smaller ones being overextracted (adding bitterness, generally). Not only does this make the end brew very inconsistent the finer bits of grounds (particulates) will clog up the filter in your press or pourover cup.

Since I too recently came to be a fervent fan of the Aeropress I knew I needed to get a burr grinder. Now, I'm sure $100-$200 is going to get you something pretty nice, but if you're looking to keep your budget in check I actually went with the KRUPS GX5000 for only $30. I'm new to grinding my own beans but this one does a fine job, for me at least.

Congratulations on finding it in yourself to make a sound financial change - I, as many others here apparently, wish you well and hope your Aeropress helps you on that journey!

since its alot of grind/day ill suggest u stick with automatic burr grinders..

yes Baratza Encore $129 would be Good option as it does great job for non espresso grinding and its easy to switch

second option which i would PREFER for you is Breville SmartPro Grinder $176 RIGHTNOW since its in your range, grinders better coffee than Encore, Way easier to change grind size (i think of of the easiest machine to chg grind size), also it makes good grind for entry level espresso machine with pressurized portafilter so it will cover even that area even thou you dont need,,, and most importantly will all that you get a Timed grinding and really Beautiful looking appliance on your counter top.. and i think getting all that more for additional $47 aint a Bad deal..

i wont recommend bistro as it aint good grinder for frenchpress..

I almost missed it! I've got a few upgrade from my last post! Here is my gear.

From left to right:

• Bodum Bistro - Got this guy at the famous JCP Bodum Sale. For the price, I've been very happy. I'd like to upgrade but can't justify the purchase at the moment.
  
• Hario Skerton
  
• Aeropress
  
• Bialetti Moka Pot - 3 cup
  
• Melitta pour over
  
• Grosche York 350 ml french press
  
• 2 Oxo pop airtight containers - I love these and recommend them highly
  
  What's next you ask? Well with my neck paycheck, I'm buying the following:
  
  
• Bonavita Variable Temp Gooseneck
  
• Chemex
  
• This Digital Scale
  
• Clever Dripper (maybe)
  
  Any recommendations for other gear? Specifically, scale recs?
  
  Edit: Added Amazon links for anyone interested.

We registered at Amazon for the selection and convenience. We could find just about anything on amazon, and could add anything else through the universal registry feature. Guests shipped most gifts to our home, which was great since we live across the country from where we were married. I'd heard the return policy was rough, but luckily we didn't have any duplicate purchases. Amazon's registry was perfect for our needs.

Some of the most-used items we received:

• VonShef mixing bowls.
  
  
• Narrow measuring spoons. These fit inside containers and are so much less messy.
  
  
• Glass tupperware set.
  
  
• Adjustable temperature water kettle. Our household is really into coffee and tea, and this has made all the difference.
  
  
• Coffee grinder. Our total splurge of a grinder that was generously gifted by another coffee nerd.
  
  
• Griddle pan. Perfect for grilled cheese, pancakes, etc.
  
  
• The Harry Potter box set. We put this on there to break up the typical household list and were so excited for a nice hardcover set!
  
  
• Cast iron dutch oven/skillet combo.

Sure

Rocky - poor adjustability, expensive at $355

Lelit P53 - stepless adjustability, great grind quality - super affordable at $229

Iberital Challenge - stepless high quality grind - $320 on that link, but can be found for less if you look around

Baratza Preciso - about 6-7x the number of steps of the Rocky, can be bought as refurb direct from Baratza for $239

Baratza Vario available as a refurb direct from Baratza for $360 ($5 more than the Rocky, but its a staggeringly better grinder).

I could go on. Add to that the ready availability of good quality used Mazzers for much the same price as the new Rocky and it is frankly staggering that anyone would choose to buy the Rocky these days. It only survives off the back of uninformed users and people reading decade old reviews on sites like coffeegeek.

As a general purpose grinder, it is expensive for what it is, but can certainly do a job. For espresso there are much better options for your money.

After a year of Starbucks on my walk to work (and adding it up and shaking my head), I reached out to a high school friend and mega coffee nerd, and ultimately went with his recommendation for "best entry level" brew at home set up. It's been great. A little spendy to get into it, but it paid for itself quickly, and I've loved experimenting with different roasts of whole beans and doing the grinding myself.

​

Grinding:

Baratza Encore Conical Burr Coffee Grinder

​

Brewing:

Breville BDC450BSS Precision Brewer Thermal Coffee Maker

​

Storing Beans:

Airscape Coffee Canister

​

Good luck, and happy brewing!

​

Edit: Formatting

You'll definitely want to upgrade to a quality burr grinder. I've never made espresso with a blade grinder but I imagine it would be pretty difficult. To use a non-pressurized portafilter you'll really need a decent grinder like one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Preciso-Coffee-Grinder-685/dp/B003JFCRN6

Grind is one of the most important things for espresso. Good grinders range from $100 all the way up to $2k and more. A Baratza Encore is about $120 and a great starter grinder and would work great with a pressurized portafilter. That is actually what I use at home.

Tough to make a recommendation without knowing your budget, and what you currently own, use, and like or dislike.

I have over a dozen coffee making devices, multiple pour overs, Aeropress, Chemex, Siphon, and a few electric machines. They all have their own plusses and minuses, and I use them all (today was a generic ceramic cone with a Melita 4 filter), but the 2 things that get used every time I make coffee are a grinder and scale.

Upgrading to a good burr grinder is almost universally acknowledged to be amongst the most useful things you can do to improve your coffee, and actually weighing your beans and water are probably a close second. My Baratza Encore does a great job, and I'm also very happy with my American Weigh Scales LB-3000.

I will completely agree with the above statements. I have used a Krups express maker which is really cheap and went through a phase where I would make expresso and steam milk. I'll be honest I really enjoyed the results. It wasn't high quality but you get can more extreme acidic notes when using a normal roast of coffee in the espresso machine and that I enjoyed. Not to mention a decent latte.

With that said the clean up sucked for the espresso and it took a while to make which are both big draw backs! The hand grinder as always nice and a good no electric option! I used a Burr electric grinder with 18 setting which is more the enough for the average coffee drinker who wants control over grind settings.

https://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-DBM-8-Supreme-Grind-Automatic/dp/B00018RRRK

I had one before this and an unroasted green been we had from a sample feel in and got ground and broke it. The Cuisinart seems to be a slightly higher quality then the one before which was a Mr.Coffee. Hope this helps.

Overall the above 👆🏽 post is spot on. If you want to get into espresso I say go for it and expierement and have fun!

Well, it's definitely over $50 now, but I bought the Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder a couple months ago when it was $69 with free shipping. It is a pretty new model, and I assume the price has gone up because they realized it's as good or better than other sub $100 models. It has a better build quality than other comparable models, and is not as messy as many, the container is made of an anti-static glass. The only notable quirk is that it has a variable timer that only goes to 20 seconds, then you are supposed to wait 5 minutes bfore using again, presumably to keep the motor from overheating. I just give it an extra few seconds if I need to grind more than 28 grams.

EDIT: The red one is $10 less.

I've had this Oxo burr grinder for a few months, and I like it. It's about $100, but I think that it has a consistent grind and doesn't take up too much counter space. Cold brew is my favorite way to enjoy coffee, so I've been experimenting making my own for a little over a year now. I find that the 13 setting is great for cold brew. I occasionally will make a pour over if I want hot coffee, and have found the 5.5ish setting to work best for my v60.

Grinder

>Capresso Infinity - $89
>
>or
>
>Hario Mini Mill Slim - $30 - If you don't mind hand-grinding your beans


Coffee Maker

>Aeropress - $23 - Balanced flavour, easy cleanup
>
>or
>
>Hario v60 - $19 - If you enjoy the process of preparing your coffee, and enjoy a brighter (more acidity) cup of coffee.
>
>or
>
>A french press - $20 and up - If you want to make more coffee at a time than the Aeropress, don't mind a "thicker" (more coffee particulate and oils in the cup) coffee, and are not opposed to having a little bit more clean-up.

You'll need a kettle for any of these brew methods; a programmable/temperature controlled kettle like this one ($95) is ideal for manual brew methods, but any kettle (and a thermometer if you'd like to get fussy) will do just fine.

Personally I would get the Capresso and the Aeropress if I were you. It's a very balanced and forgiving brew method that can make coffee a few different ways (eg. paper filter for a "brighter" cup, metal for a thicker one). Set aside the rest of your budget and find a good coffee roaster near you!

I know this is the bottom of the barrel when it comes to burr grinders, but honestly, I’ve had the Cuisinart DBM-8 Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill for a few years now. The consistency of the grind leaves a lot to be desired, but for French press, which is also my method, this makes less of a difference and I can honestly say the results are pretty good.

In any case, you won’t find a burr grinder for this price anywhere else. However, I’m also waiting wistfully for the day it stops working so I can upgrade to one of the ones mentioned on this thread that cost 10 times as much, so there’s that.

I'm going to assume you typo'd or autocorrected pretty hard and are using an auto-drip machine. If you're not using one of the SCAA certified machines, it's probably pretty poor in terms of reaching adequate temperature and evenly dispersing water.

While it is possible to find decent coffee at co-ops, the only tried-and-true way of ensuring fresh coffee is buying directly from the roaster. Almost all roasters sell online and ship either the day of or the day after roasting. But supporting local business is good, so look for roasteries. What city are you in? I, or someone else here, could probably make some suggestions for a good roaster near you.

"Cheap" depends on your budget. The bottom end for good electric grinders is about $80. But it is possible to get a coupon for Bed, Bath & Beyond and using it on one there to get it cheaper. If you don't mind a little work out with your morning coffee, a good entry-level hand grinder will run you ~$30.

The most important things are to get a pump-driven (rather than a steam-driven) machine and get a burr grinder. Steam-driven machines will never get to the right temperature or pressure, and it's impossible to get a small enough, consistent enough grind for espresso with a blade grinder. There are tons of affordable options within those parameters, though.

This is not a popular opinion here, but the DeLonghi EC155 is actually a decent starter machine. I got one just to make sure I'd use a home espresso machine enough to justify a better one, and with a little practice to get the right grind and tamp and a couple minor hacks (running a blank shot through first to get the machine up to the right temperature, and removing the fake-crema-making disc from the portafilter) it turns out perfectly acceptable espresso shots. Especially if you're going to turn them into lattes or mochas. That plus a Capresso Infinity burr grinder and a cheap metal tamper (50mm, as the EC155's portafilter is smaller than the standard 58mm tampers) will run you ~$200 on Amazon and you will be happy with the results.

I just got a french press as a gift. I decided I want to give grinding my own beans a try. When we moved into my house the old owners left behind [this cheap blade grinder] (https://www.amazon.com/Mr-Coffee-Electric-Settings-IDS77/dp/B000BRLXUI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1498241629&sr=8-2&keywords=mr.+coffee+grinder). I used it this morning and was not impressed. I'm not looking to spend a lot on a burr grinder.

My question is: For someone who is only going to be doing a coarse grind for a french press will this Mr. Coffee Burr Grinder be good enough? I know a lot of the aficionados will shoot it down (I've done enough googling and reddit searching to know that). However, I'm just a guy with a french press that wants a nice cup of coffee. A lot of the reviews I read focus on its struggles with a fine grind, but I don't need that right now. I just want something that will grind better than a blade and will help make a good cup of coffee (better than pre-ground in a drip for example). I know there are cheap mechanical options, but my problem with those is most only seem to hold one or two cups at a time. I'd rather be able to grind the full 4 cups my press can make at once.

EDIT: Or if someone has tips on to make better use of the blade grinder until I can save up for one of the ~$100 grinders people recommend.

Step 1 - Go to Amazon. Acquire the following:

If you have a gas stove: http://www.amazon.com/Northwest-Glass-SY-5-22-Ounce-Stovetop/dp/B002CVTKVK/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1314164733&sr=1-1

Otherwise: http://www.amazon.com/Northwest-Glass-TCA-5D-20-Ounce-Coffee/dp/B002CVTKTW/ref=pd_sim_k_17

Burr Grinder: http://www.amazon.com/Capresso-560-01-Infinity-Grinder-Black/dp/B0000AR7SY/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1314164311&sr=8-6

Step 2 - Go to Whole Foods. Go to their coffee section. Look for a medium roast, with single-origin beans (beans from a single plantation). Avoid blends. South-American single-origin medium roast is probably best. Pick a roast date that is yesterday or the day before.

If you don't have a way to filter water at home, find a way. It also helps to have a way to heat water.


Step 3 - Go home. It is probably best to do this now.

Clean your coffee siphon gently but thoroughly. You don't have to clean the cloth filter.

Place the beans in the grinder. Turn the grinder setting to fine, but not extra fine. Enough so that once ground you will get about 2 Tbsp. per 6 oz of coffee. YMMV.

Assemble the coffee siphon - place the cloth filter on the metal disc and secure with knots. Insert the filter assembly into the top chamber. Do not put the two chambers together yet.

If your filtered water isn't already really hot, make it really hot. Bring it to a boil, take it off the heat, and let it sit for 10-15 seconds. Or, just use an electric kettle.

Pour the water into the bottom pot. Insert the assembled top chamber into the pot and secure the seal. Place the pot on stove or burner as appropriate. Apply medium heat.

As the water percolates up the siphon, grind your coffee beans.

Once the water starts bubbling in the top chamber, toss in your grind.

At this point - your nose will tell you best when the coffee is done. It is usually about 1:20 to 1:40 minutes. You want the winey, grassy smell to disappear, and the grinds in the top chamber to look deep brown. However, if you smell even the slightest hint of burnt coffee, or if the grinds start to appear purple - you have failed. Hang your head in shame and try another time.

Remove the heat source (turn off stove/burner).

Let the coffee completely siphon into the pot. You will get some turbulence. Let it settle.

Delicately remove the top chamber.

Pour. Sip, slowly.


Step 4 - Thank me.

If you'd rather have more automated things but still good quality, you could get:

Baratza Virtuoso ($259)

Bonavita 1900ts ($135)

And then you'd have ~$100 to spend on beans, filters, descaling powder (future maintenance), etc.

Some roasters:

• Novel (Dallas, free shipping)
  
  
• Cat & Cloud (Santa Cruz)
  
  
• Heart (Portland, OR)
  
  
• Coava (Portland, OR)
  
  
• Counter Culture (Durham, NC)
  
  And plenty more. There are even some roasters here on /r/coffee that you'll see promote their products in the weekly threads.
  
  As /u/ttls- said, espresso is a different beast. You could almost get started, but might want to double up on that budget if you don't want to buy used and have to hand grind.

I'd recommend adding a decent burr grinder to your collection and you'll have everything required for first-rate coffee at home. It's not intuitively obvious, but the grinder might be the single most influential bit of coffee gear you buy. You'll never get a solid, consistent brew if your grinder cannot produce a consistent grind.

I've purchased 2 of these Capresso burr grinders to give to family and they work great, super easy to use (helpful for my mother-in-law), and are generally quiet, reliable, and consistent.

Wait...what is your budget? Are you willing to spend £150?? If so, we could probably put together a great beginners setup for your boyfriend.
I'm thinking:
Aeropress
And Baratza Encore but that's a little over 150. Instead of an Aeropress, a Clever would work, too, but you would also need #4 filters.

Actually, if you want to give him a lot of options for 150, you can get him the Aeropress (23), Clever (18), #4 filters (4), Hario Hand Burr Grinder (22), and a Mocha Pot (23) for a grand total of ~90 quid. I'd also add a .1 gram digital scale for 15 extra. So 105 for quite a good introductory setup for coffee (and I'm assuming you have a kettle for boiling water).

Everyone is telling you to get a pour over but this french press method is as good as just about any pour over I've had. Takes awhile so maybe not the best method if you're pressed for time but I've been doing it for 3-4 months now pretty much daily.

I agree that you should get a burr grinder though. Baratza Encore is what most recommend but I have the Capresso Infinity and have had zero issues with it. I bought an open box one off Amazon for $60 and at the price I'd say it's the best bang for your buck. There's a silver refurbished one on Amazon for $60 right now.

A solution for your non-connoisseur lifestyle is the Zojirushi brewer and a Cuisinart Burr Grinder. Both are relatively inexpensive, last a long time, and will out-perform any other product in their respective price ranges. The Zojirushi actually brews at 198 (I have one) and the grinder is a burr grinder, it produces equally sized grounds. This setup is "good enough" for just about anyone. The only thing you will need is a source for fresh, properly roasted, beans. If you can get your hands on it, my favorite of the single origins is Ethiopian Yergacheffe- it is a fantastic coffee! If you can't find fresh coffee in your area, check online, most roasters will ship their beans. Good luck!

So, after a lot of research, I finally picked up a Gaggia Classic from my local shop to get started with home espresso. I'm using good, recently roasted, freshly-ground beans when brewing and believe I'm operating the machine well (filtered water, enough warm up time, etc).

However, it seems every shot I brew comes out not... disgusting, but just very under-powered (missing that boldness you'd expect in any good shot). Also, it is consistently only taking about 7-10 seconds to fill up two side-by-side 1oz shot glasses when it appears it should take closer to 20-30 seconds.

I've been using a Bodum Bistro electric burr grinder, which has served me well making Chemex cups for a while now. It seems to produce fairly consistently sized grinds at the finest setting, and seems to be fine enough for espresso as well. Am I correct in thinking that the grinder (despite my actual knowledge of why this is the case) just won't cut it for espresso? Are there any variables I could tinker with to make decent espresso with this same grinder, or should I just bite the bullet and go for an upgrade?

FWIW, it seems that most other people doing home espresso have much nicer grinders than me, so maybe it's just the answer that I don't want to hear ;)

Maybe this is too labor intense, but for insanely good espresso and americano, get an Aeropress and a Burr Grinder like this electric one or this hand one

The aeropress prevents over-pressing of the beans, which prevents the coffee from getting acidic, as I understand it. The aeropress requires a bit more work to use, but it's really easy to clean (you just pop the used grounds into the trash and then rinse off the end of the areopress). The burr grinder grinds the beans much better than your average slicing grinder can.

Ok, so if you want a consistent grind that you can dial in accurately, you're going to want a burr grinder. Really any should be sufficient for a moka pot, because the only problems might be on the extremes of the grind size. Stay away from those whirly-blade spice grinder type of grinders.

For your low-price options, you're going to be looking more at hand grinders. They're perfectly fine (and some think they actually give a more consistent grind than the electric counterparts), they just take a little more work. A good one at a low price point would be the Hario Skerton mill ($31.58).

If you have a bit more to throw around, you might want to try an electric grinder. Some of the better ones in the middle price point are the Bodum Bistro ($140, though you can sometimes find them on a good sale). Or, you could go with the Baratza Encore ($130).

If you're looking for something more than that, I'm probably not the one to ask. But, if you're just doing moka pot coffee, those should do just fine.

Others are more than welcome to weigh in here, though!

I ceramic hand grinder works well. This seems like a popular one. I have this one and it works pretty well. If you drink coffee pretty regularly, then you should probably go with an electric one. This Baratza is considered really good for the price.

What a steal! I got mine for $250 and considered it a good deal.

1. Nice start with the descaling.
   
   
2. Now I'm going to tell you to spend money. I just outfitted a Silvia myself so everything linked should be available and compatible.
   
   

• You need a good grinder. I bought the Breville smart grinder pro because I couldn't afford anything nicer. It works well, but there is a large gap between grind settings (~6-7ml difference when brewing for 30s) and the grinds do come out a little clumped.
  
  
• Clean your machine. I bought a blind basked and Cafiza cleaning tablets which work well.
  
  
• a bottomless protafilter has helped me get my technique down.
  
  
• Get good fresh coffee to practice. You can't dial in with an old bag of supermarket coffee. Go to a coffee shop you like and get a shot and buy some beans. Then go home and dial in until your shot tastes like the one at the shop.
  
  
• Steaming milk with Mrs. Silvia takes some practice. Buy and extra gallon and practice. You will get the hang of it after a few tries.
  
  

3. what /u/tricross mentioned
   
   links to the things mentioned
   
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002G40VNO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NAAJRH1/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06ZZ24BH2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OXGXW8O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MY2EB10/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

For me, fine grind and good beans made all the difference. As for espresso machine, I have been using older version of this machine for years. As for the grinder, I had to hack this Mr Coffee burr grinder to make it finer (a hack similar to this). If you don't want to mess with the machine, better to get a good grinder. As for the beans, I have tried a lot of things form Starbucks brand to 100% Kona coffee beans. So far, the best tasting ones were freshly roasted beans from a local coffee company (roasted 1-2 weeks before I purchase). If you have good fresh beans, finely ground, then I wouldn't worry about getting an expensive machine too much because they won't magically enhance the taste.

Thanks a bunch for your response. Here's where I'm at:

I would only be making coffee for my wife and I- say 2 or 3 drinks in the morning, and used sparingly in the evening/night. What attracts me to the Gaggia is the speed at which heating/steaming is available as compared with the Silia.

As for a grinder, I've got the Baratza Encore. I know it's not a very expensive grinder, but it's got phenomenal reviews, and is said to be suprisingly good by Seattle coffee gear. Specifically with the Silvia (there's a video on youtube showing some grinds with a silvia)

Seeing as how I don't have an espresso maker to test the fine grinds, I have to take other's experience with its ability to grind that fine. However, I saw this on Wholelattelove. I really don't have a need for two grinders unless the first is incapable of espresso. From what I understand, it's perfectly capable though.

What do you think?

You need to have room in your budget for a grinder. That being said, that would put the Astra out of your preferred budget. But it does seem like an excellent machine for the price point (no experience here).

If you're wanting to do primarily milk drinks, and concerned about ease, the Brevillle Double Boiler is <$1,000 now. But that leaves no room for a decent grinder - the Breville Smart Grinder Pro is about all that would fit into your budget. A nice upgrade on grinder to a Baratza Sette 270 will set you back another $200.

If you need to save money, consider the Breville Infuser rather than the DB.

Lots of folk will encourage you to look at more commercial duty machines that have simpler maintenance, and in the long run they're correct. But if you only have what you have, that's a pretty good bang for your buck. The machine will probably not be as long-lasting as one of the E61 HX machines, but there's not many out there in your budget. There are a few, like the Lelit Mara but that one doesn't have a very long history like some of the more commonly-recommended machines (that are also more pricey).

This is the grinder I was using. A lot of left over ground coffee on the walls and top piece as well. I would rinse it after every use because I thought leaving it on there might be bad for future cups. Not exactly sure what you mean by chafing, sorry.

I haven't actually checked how most coffee machines do it but I am assuming some kind of dripping system? When you mention clever or bonavita are you taking in consideration coffee machines or only manual methods? Just to be clear, you are saying that there are no extra performance/health benefits from doing it manually compared to letting a machine using Kcups do it for you?

Thank you very much for the reply and help, I really appreciate it!

Thanks for the advice! I noticed those hand-operated grinders, are they consistent, and can you control how fine the grind is? I know Hario is a good brand, but I was looking at something like this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004T6EJS0/ref=s9_simh_gw_p79_d0_i3?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1574GEEZ1DWV7PH860SD&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1688200382&pf_rd_i=507846

Do you think this would be any good?

And yes, maybe I'll take some of it to the coffee shop to have them grind it.

As for coffee:water ratio, I'm still trying it out. There's a shop I went to that I liked a lot, and their ratio was 380/25. Not having a scale though, I'm just going with trial and error. The scoop I have is approx. 7g each scoop, so I'm just doing 3 of those, grinding it, and brewing it in a standard mug, which I fill to almost the top.

The more I'm looking into it though, the more I'm thinking it's gotta be the grind.

I highly recommend the Hario Drip Scale. It's made for coffee, super easy to use, accurate, dependable, and good aesthetic design. Been using it for 2 years.

Edit: And while we're on the subject, you don't only want to measure your coffee beans. You want to measure your water temperature and get a consistent grind as well. This Bonavita electric kettle has always been good to me, as well as the Baratza Burr Grinder.

This is just my humble opinion especially based on your criteria...

This automatic drip coffee maker was the Consumer Reports Best Buy last year for under $40 (might can find it cheaper now) & it is a best seller on Amazon. The reason I like it is that it has the ability to reach 195° to 205° F for five or six minutes, the industry standard for optimal brewing.

http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Coffee-BVMC-SJX33GT-Programmable-Coffeemaker/dp/B0047Y0UQO

Considering bang for buck, ease of use & amount of coffee produced, I'd probably go with Wired Magazine's 7 out of 10 recommendation.

http://www.amazon.com/Capresso-560-01-Infinity-Grinder-Black/dp/B0000AR7SY

I have been using the same one for about a year. I clean the machine with a brush after every grind, and run grindz through the machine every now and then. I've replaced the outer burr twice.

Pros: grind consistency is fine, IMO. I think the machine is starting to work much harder for finer grinds, but since I mainly do Chemex cups, I don't have a problem with it. The price was affordable at the time, and it is easy to clean (brush it, pat it a bit, and done).

Cons: My biggest issue is how it maps to the Encore and others. Most coffee blogs provide the grind setting for the Encore as "the standard" which is frustrating when I try to match the cups the writers produce. I also don't enjoy the static cling of the hopper.

Overall, if you want a cheaper grinder (it is $100 right now on Amazon), I can easily recommend it. If you want to take the next step, perhaps the Encore or Lido are better but can't comment to them at this point in time. I don't think hand grinding would be a chore I'd like to do every morning, though.

We've been using our Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder almost daily since fall of 2011 ... and it still runs like new. We got it on sale for $100, but it was well worth the price, IMO. You can find some more reviews here.

The only complaint I have is that when grinding real oily beans, you'll need to give it a good cleaning about 1/week. The oil from the beans seems to "stick" to the plastic parts below the burr. It takes less than 5 minutes to clean though, and is easy to clean with a toothpick, soft bristle tooth brush, and can of compressed air.

Pair a Breville Infuser with a Breville Smart Grinder Pro. I've been using the Infuser for 3+ years myself and it's satisfied my needs entirely (for making both espresso and milk-based beverages). While I have no experience with the Smart Grinder Pro, I've heard good things about it, and its at a solid price point.

If you're looking at a Baratza grinder I'd recommend at minimum a Preciso because the burr set is far superior to that of the Encore (more consistent grinding), and its micro-adjustment ring allows for fine-tuning of the grind for better espresso. That being said, the Preciso is being replaced by the new Sette models in late summer, so you might be able to find a discounted Preciso soon-ish.

For sure. I use this krupps grinder. It's the #1 seller on amazon, works like a boss. It can grind 2-3tbsp at a time. I think they sell it at stores like wal-mart, target, and dept stores.

I also had the bodum (bought it at whole foods for about $20) and it was great.

If you get a vitamix, I would recommend a refurbished model. I've bought 3 (2 for me and 1 for a friend) and they're all perfect, and like 5-6 years old. You can find discounts all the time, too, just search around for a code. Like this one. And FWIW, I bought mine for like $290 with some kind of code, and sold my previous model for like $250 on craigslist, so they hold their value really well. Basically upgraded from the old to the new model for $40!

Vitamix is definitely worth it. I waited a while to buy one because they were so expensive, but it's one of the few necessities in my kitchen now.

Check the smart grinder pro. Breville doesn't get a lot of love on this sub, primarily due to reliability concerns. I can't speak to that specifically, I've only had mine for 6 months. But it's one of the few grinders (so I've read) that works reasonably well across a wide range of grind sizes.

It's definitely more consistent at the finer settings, but I use mine for espresso, v60, and auto drip. I used to use it for FP, but I don't use my FP much anymore. Since I got my feld2 I mostly use it for espresso and large autodrip quantities.

A lot of people will suggest a separate grinder for coffee vs espresso to keep each dialed in without going back and forth. I haven't found that to be necessary with this grinder, it's stepped so you can return to each setting. For espresso, the step size is adequate, but certainly could benefit from a finer resolution. One tip if you go down this route is you set the upper bur to 10 (default is 6). This will give you more range on the coarse end and still allow espresso grinds.

Here is a thread a posted a while back that shows some grind comparisons between SGP and feld2.

Overall I'm happy with the SGP as my first real grinder. If and when it fails (or i succumb to upgradeitis), I may look at baratza (vario) or others.

Well worst case, find a good roaster or coffee shop and buy beans from them. They will usually have an awesome grinder and will be willing to grind it for you if you buy from them.

You could get an electric grinder like the Capresso Infinity: http://www.amazon.com/Capresso-560-01-Infinity-Grinder-Black/dp/B0000AR7SY it won't add that much time. Just a couple minutes and it will drastically improve your brew.

French press is pretty easy, you do not have to be as precise (use measuring spoons instead of scale etc) as this guy if you want easier but this is my favorite video guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDasYv-IsiE

If you can spend the money I would try and find a better brewer at least. You can find cheaper options than the technivorm if you search on here.

I'd recommend buying a clever dripper ($22):

https://www.amazon.com/Clever-Coffee-Dripper-Large-Ounces/dp/B00EOM5RN0

An Encore grinder ($130):

https://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Encore-Conical-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B00LW8122Y/ref=sr_1_1?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1466017902&sr=8-1&keywords=encore+grinder

And a hot water urn ($114):

https://www.amazon.com/Zojirushi-CD-WBC40-TS-4-Liter-Boiler-Warmer/dp/B00M0GOI78/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1466017943&sr=8-5&keywords=hot+water+dispenser

Total: $266. You can grind a day's worth in the morning. Any time you want, put a filter in the Clever, pour the always-hot water over from the urn, stir, wait 3-4 minutes, set on your cup, it drains, enjoy. It brews a world class cup at a time, the urn keeps you from having to heat water each time, and great coffee really doesn't get easier!

A espresso machine is only 1/4 the way to making good espresso.
As others have said, cleaning is essential since you received the machine used. Descaling and clearing the build up of coffee residue will be a great start.
The other 3 things you need for good espresso is:

1. A grinder with a metal burr, this is very impotent, it is only burr grinders that can grind to espresso. Avoid cheap plastic burr grinders (Mr. Coffee). I would suggest this Ive used this grinder for 2 years now, for espresso and pour overs, not to mention this is one of the cheapest grinders on the market that will grind to espresso.
   
   
2. You are going to need a decent tamper. These are easy to come by and everyone has their own tamper preference. This tamper will fit most Gaggia machines, most have a 58mm basket, and would suggest it as a starter tamper.
   
   
3. You need good coffee beans. Don't buy the Illy Ground Espresso tin or any other preground espresso. Also avoid Starbucks, DD, or any other major coffee chain. Find a local coffee shop that roasts in house and buy bags from them. Small local roasters always have the best quality beans.
   

Since everyone else has covered the basics and the detailed know how, I will suggest this.

Don't be discouraged if you try something you do not like.

Whole bean and anything not in a can is going to be far superior.

If you want to get serious, get yourself a decent grinder. I have This.

As for a coffee maker use This.

It is simply the best. I have a coffee pot for when I have company, but the Aeropress makes the best cup of coffee I have ever tasted! It is just like a french press and is simply exceptional.

If you visit a coffee shop and they do not roast their own coffee or bring in fresh roasted coffee from somewhere local, leave.

I had one of those! My cat kept breaking it though, and after several times replacing the upper glass piece, I finally got rid of it. I did, however, pick up this thing a couple of weeks ago. One thing that I've noticed with the siphon brewer is that you can vary your extraction a bit by playing around with the grind size and the steep time. I usually do a smaller grind (bigger than espresso, 5 clicks on my Virtuoso as opposed to 0 clicks for espresso), and steep for 60 seconds.

As for your grinder question, I had a couple of inexpensive burr grinders that did an ok job. This seems to be the one that people like on here, but I have never owned one. I have hand grinded coffee a few times, and it takes several minutes to grind enough for a couple cups. I have owned this, which wasn't great, but worked well for medium sized grinds. I also had one of these, which performed about the same as the black and decker, ok for medium sized grinds. If you aren't going to be doing espresso, then a cheap-o burr grinder will probably get you by, since you aren't going to care about getting a really fine grind, but will be concerned with having a nice even medium sized grind. But, that's just my two cents.

The Baratza Virtuoso: costs too much, but I'm really happy with it. The price kept me away for a year after I'd decided to replace our Kitchenaid Proline, and even now when I looked it up to remember the price, I had to shake my head, but it has really improved the quality and consistency of our coffee. Is it worth $200+? I think so. Is it $100 better than an Encore? Probably not, but I don't know.

I'm a coffee newbie, so take my recommendation with a grain of salt, but I recently picked up a bodum bistro grinder for 70 bucks. I love it. I use it with my Chemex everyday and think it's worth every penny.

If you can afford it, I'd recommend picking one up. It's a really good price, too. I've never ground up the beans with a coarser setting, though.

1. I feel like you're just grasping at straws with this one
   
   
2. Coffee makers aren't heavy let alone a "single shot" coffee maker
   
   
3. -
   
   
4. He might be over glorifying the fact that he asked friends to help him? It's not uncommon. He's an engineer i'm sure he can get a lot of free help / cheap help / for beer help if he needs it
   
   
5. It brews an entire jug of coffee! not a single shot like this product and looking at the dimensions it isn't much smaller!
   
   6 / 7) I really don't see how this would be impossible. There is plenty of space in this device based on proportions in the videos and dimensions shown. It's just a tiny bit smaller than the one you presented but delivers a single cup not an entire pot.
   
   this Tiny thing can grind enough coffee for an 8 cup french press.
   
   
6. As he said in his video... the plastic parts are 3D printed in his basement. But even then I wouldn't say the design really changes at all throughout either video or the kickstarter campaign

It could be that the shop uses grinds different than your espresso machine. This is why grinders need to be dialed in. Each machine is different, each portafilter is different etc... That grinder is doing you no favors. I had it for months and I tried everything just to make good pour over coffee. Grinds were from turkish to french press on a medium fine setting. I grabbed an encore and now I am more than happy. There are usually old espresso grinders on craigslist for cheap as well. I think the start of your problem is with the coffee grind.

Sometimes you can find these cheap as well

https://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Bistro-Electric-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B0043095WW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1468956679&sr=8-1&keywords=bodum+grinder

I just tried it at a friends house this past weekend and it delivered pretty well for a budget grinder.

Maybe something thats well tried and tested, the Baratza Virtuoso? or if you wanted more budget the Baratza Encore, the virtuoso grind is capable of pulling all the great taste from espresso, the encore is capable of making a pretty damn good espresso but not as much as the virtuoso. tbh youd have to be quite the connoisseur to notice any difference.

edit: I do not work for Baratza, I have not used them but anyone I ask has recommended both of these. Web forums and opinion polls will tell you the same! Baratza are damn good at making grinders!

I've had pretty good luck with this grinder. I realize it's a disk grinder... and I DID get it for $5 at a flea market... but all in all, it performs pretty well, and even at regular price it's not a huge investment.

Cuisinart DBM-8 Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00018RRRK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_0FX2BbQS5TVEB

ooh, here's a rabbit hole we can go down

i've had one of these for several years now, which is considered the go-to entry-level burr grinder by the coffeegeek.com crows - you'd think, "how much diff could it possibly make?" but it totally does

i used to sip on coffee machine coffee all day - but now i only use either a £3 hario pourover cone, 32g of coffee into a big insulated mug and i'm set for the day on one fantastic cup - or 32g into the aeropress, pressed into lightly foamed microwaved milk, and there's my perfect flat white - once you have the knack, it really doesn't take that long, and both are far better than anything at all but the coffeegeekiest shop

I started with this entry level conical burr grinder and it's still working 3 months of daily grind later https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0001I9R8C/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

As for brewing, the aeropress makes good coffee for cheap but only 6-8oz cups at a time.

French press is the best brew I've had outside of an extravagant espresso machine.

Edit: ive heard of "cuppings" where a coffee house will brew the same coffee in a variety of grind sizes and methods to help you compare. I haven't found one yet. Perhaps more useful would be a coffee flight where you get eapresso-sized shots of many types of beans, not sure if those exist but they would likely break the bank. If you have a grocer with fill-your-own-bags then you could get a bunch of bean samples that way

The Baratza Encore is one of the most recommended grinders over at r/coffee. $140 for a very reliable grinder with great customer service. If that's still expensive, then a hand grinder, like the Hario Skerton, is a great alternative at $40.

Okay, so, quick and cheap. Done deal.

So, out of all the brew methods that are cheap and easy, well, the French press. I'm gonna assume you want dirt cheap and brand new.

1. The French press
   
   Option 1: $8.99
   
   French Press Coffee & Tea Maker with Heat Proof and Stainless Steel Filter, 11 Oz / 350ml https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JK15COE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_q7AXzb7AY716Z
   
   Option 2: $13.99
   
   Golden French Press (34 oz, 4 mugs) French Coffee Press With Double Filter And Stainless Steal https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KN1VUZE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_V9AXzbJQVB16J
   
   Now, you need a grinder, one that will give you the coarse grind you need for the French press.
   
   
2. Grinder
   
   Option 1: $13.30
   
   KRUPS F203 Electric Spice and Coffee Grinder with Stainless Steel Blades, 3-Ounce, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004SPEU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_4-AXzb9S5J6SB
   
   It looks like the cheapest grinder I have ever seen, but, you wanted cheap, so, there you go. Few seconds pressed down and you'll get your coarse grind. That's the flaw as well, you can't set or dial in your grind, simply, grind a little bit more to get it finer.
   
   Option 2: $19.99
   
   Mr. Coffee 12 Cup Electric Coffee Grinder with Multi Settings, IDS77 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000BRLXUI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_JbBXzb5P629BK
   
   Still cheap, but, you can adjust the grind size.
   
   Total cost: $22.30- $33.99, excluding shipping.
   
   Also, they have other sellers who sell it cheaper, or, used, but, that's up to you if you want to take the risk.
   
   I don't vouch for these grinders in any way, however, I feel once you go down this journey of brewing for yourself, you will become hooked as we all have. Have fun, explore, try different coffees. I know there's a journey for you in coffee. Welcome to the club. :)

Thanks! It's all lower-mid tier stuff but the best bang for the buck imo.

Espresso machine

Grinder (not the best, be warned)

French press

It may be below your budget, but I've been very happy with a Rancilio Rocky for espresso. I love that it can grind a single dose at a time, because I make 2-4 shots total on a typical day.

https://www.amazon.com/Rancilio-HSD-ROC-SD-Espresso-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B00H1OUW24

It's weighty and won't move around, and the grind settings are adequate.

The best cup of coffee I ever had was on a Saturday afternoon using beans that had been roasted on that Friday. I bought a bag, ground some myself and did a simple pour over.

To my taste, freshness is the most significant factor in making a good cup of coffee. I think using freshly roasted and ground beans in a Keurig or standard drip machine will still taste better than using old, pre-ground beans in a french press or pour over.

The first two things I would do are find a good local roaster and buy a grinder. This is the grinder I use though I bought it on sale and you'll get mixed reviews. Don't worry about all of the brewing options and accessories just yet.

You could probably get both if you get the BV1900TS . I just ordered that and the Baratza Encore for about $300 total, shipped!

After extensive research and posting, it came down to the Behmor Brazen Plus or the BV. The BV, seems to have a slight edge. Its probably the best home auto-drip coffee maker out there, right now, and its on the cheaper side of the SCA Certified Home Brewers

Take a look at this review listed under the Brazen, but its a comparison of both


On a side-note, this is probably the best review of anything I have ever seen, hands-down, ever. Also, if you live up in the moutains where boiling water is an issue, the Brazen is probably better.

My Moka Master is the only thing I can recommend because it's all I've used, when brewing pot coffee, for the past 6 years. For $300, the machine is a tank and hasn't had a hiccup once, also allows you to control the speed of the drip. At the time of purchase it was the only machine I could find that heated water to proper brewing temperature.

Moccamaster KBT 10-Cup Coffee Brewer with Thermal Carafe, Polished Silver https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002S4DI2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_zATpzb00GT80E

If you want the best bang for your buck I wouldn't drop more than 20-30. Go with a simple V60 pour over, French press, or stovetop espresso maker. They're all cheap and and give you a good cup of coffee consistently, given you brew each method properly

Method of brew is important and all, but grinder and uniform grounds is as crucial, if not more so, and this is where I would put my money. Burr grinders are known to be the best. I use a capresso $100 burr grinder and has been a powerhouse these past few years (I'll link it below). I recommend paying the premium as well, they offer a $45 burr grinder, however, you get what you pay for. The motor is much weaker and much less consistent grinds.
Also know what ground size is necessary for each method. Coarse for French press, fine for espresso etc.

Capresso 560.01 Infinity Burr Grinder, Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000AR7SY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ZITpzbHK420TD

Hmu if you got questions, I'm always down to talk coffee.

All around great advice dr, thank you!

I prefer a slightly stronger cup and do about 3.5 tbs for a 16oz cup.

To catch the temp of the water just let it go into a hot boil then take it off for about 30sec. By the time you've started pouring and extracting it will come down and moderate to the 195-200 range.

And here is an pretty good electric burr grinder.

My burr grinder cost me a lot more than the french press.
One nice thing about Denver and coffee. Water boils at a lower temperature. Just a few degrees above the maximum range for good coffee. So it's easy. Bring it to a boil, wait a moment for it to stop, and you're ready to pour. Those top few degrees drop really quickly. Especially if you have some good distance between the kettle and the carafe, which also helps mix it well. I grind my beans fresh every morning. The grinder is dialed in for size so I just smack a button.
I get my beans fresh from the roaster every two weeks. Coffee at the grocery store can already be a week or two old. It's just a failure of the freshness front. If my coffee doesn't give me good bloom, I just toss the rest of the beans. I think fresh beans trump any method of making coffee. I'd get a decent burr grinder before any fancy coffee maker.
I also drink it black.

Yeah, so I'm gathering. Qua "noob," I frankly think I'm going to skip the hand grinder and deal with the minor, hopefully lesser mess of a new electric burr grinder. This one looks pretty good. Any other thoughts on a not-crazy-expensive electric burr grinder? Thanks!

Duuude. Do it. For $120 you get perfectly ground coffee (of easily adjustable coarseness) in about 20 seconds. Such a game changer.

I've heard good things about this Caspresso and Bodum as well if you want to save a few bucks.

http://www.amazon.com/Capresso-560-01-Infinity-Grinder-Black/dp/B0000AR7SY

This was great for me before I upgraded. Used it for 4 years for machine drip and pour overs. Sold it 2 years ago to a friend who still uses it. Great grinder as long as you keep it clean.

Noise depends on your family. I would also check the side bar for other recommendations.

What equipment do you currently have and how much are you willing to spend?

I decent entry level setup for pour overs would be:

• Fresh beans (local or online)
  
• V60 Starter Kit
  
• Baratza Encore Grinder
  
• Bonavita Variable Temperature Kettle
  
  This is in the order I'd suggest purchasing them as well. You'll get the best initial quality increase from fresh beans, the grinder will ensure you're getting well ground (i.e. more consistent sized granules) coffee, and the kettle is more of a nice-to-have but it's a great piece of kit.

Baratza pretty much has the middle of the household grinder market locked up. If all you're grinding for is drip, a Baratza Maestro will set you up nicely. I have a Virtuoso and use a Maestro (the old Solis one before Baratza bought it) fairly regularly at a friend's parent's cabin. The Maestro runs faster due to a lack of a reduction gearing, but runs very quietly, even in comparison to my Virtuoso. It lacks fineness and adjustability for espresso use, but for drip or press it'll work just great.

Aeropresses are really the way to go: small, easy to clean up, and makes a really-good espresso-approximation (think you need to reach like 3 atm of pressure for a real espresso).

I also got a stainless steel filter to use instead of the paper-jobbies that come with it. You never have to worry about running out of filters: http://www.amazon.com/Able-Brewing-DISK-AeroPress-Espresso/dp/B00E58P7ME/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1397759932&sr=8-2&keywords=aeropress+filter+stainless+steel

Also if don't have a burr grinder yet then get one. This one is a good bargain and capable of grinding fine enough for esspresso: http://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Encore-Conical-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B007F183LK/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1397759998&sr=8-8&keywords=burr+grinder

I bought this grinder almost 4 years ago and have been using it at least once daily, and its held up great. Made a huge difference in coffee quality. That grinder plus an Aeropress ($25) has been my set up for 4 years, and has never failed me.

Obviously, I could go for more complicated with the hobby, but my setup is cheap, fast and really easy to get amazing coffee everyday.

If you are looking for an automatic coffee maker this one seems to get recommended often. I have never used one myself though.

https://www.amazon.com/Bonavita-BV1500TS-Carafe-Coffee-Stainless/dp/B00SK5IXPQ/ref=sr_1_6?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1517883812&sr=1-6&keywords=bonavita+coffee+maker

For a grinder this one is recommended often as a basic electric model. If you want to save some money and don't mind a little effort than a hand grinder like the Hario might be a good option.

https://www.amazon.com/Baratza-Encore-Conical-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B007F183LK/ref=sr_1_4?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1517884047&sr=1-4&keywords=baratza+encore+grinder

https://www.amazon.com/Hario-Skerton-Ceramic-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B01LXZACFB/ref=sr_1_3?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1517884146&sr=1-3&keywords=hario+skerton+pro

I'd look into the Baratza Encore. You can frequently find refurbed ones for ~$100, but still worth it IMO new. As for a kettle, I've been using an electric Bonavita for about 3 years now -- can't recommend it enough. You can find stovetop goosnecks for about half the price on Amazon. Also if your friend doesn't have one already, I'd also suggest getting a scale. I've been using this HuiSmart one which is super convenient since it has the built-in timer and measures to .1g.

All this would run you just under $200. Of the suggestions, I think I would prioritize more of your budget to the grinder then kettle then scale.

I also use a ec155 for my intermittent espresso habit. I replaced the pressurized basket as well. I find that I get good results using the grinder linked below when coupled with good freshly roasted coffee. You may want to look for good used grinders on ebay, the one I use has gone up in price since I bought it. I'm also not convinced that the bodum gives a fine enough grind for really good espresso.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0043095WW

I think the two most important questions are: what are some coffees that you've had and like? What sort of work are you willing to put into it?

My personal recommendation would be to get a Baratza Encore grinder, a digital scale, a gooseneck kettle of some sort, a Chemex, and a French Press. All that should easily fit within your budget. And of all the accessories I have, on 90% of the days I don't use anything other than those. Well, and some coffee beans.

But that will take some work -- measuring, grinding, pouring, waiting, more pouring. It will make much better coffee than any automated machine, but maybe you don't care that much and it sounds like too much work. In that case, the Technivorm Moccamaster and Bonvavita 1900 TS are good options for automatic drip machines.

EDTIT: Sorry, I missed "automatic" in the text. I still don't think that will give you the best coffee, but if you're set on it, ignore everything I said except the Technivorm and Bonavita.

Hey, thanks for the recommendation - I do ship worldwide, though the US postal service just doubled their base rates for international so shipping is gonna run $13.50ish on top of the bearing...

From what I've heard, the mini mill is better than the Skerton out of the box.

Now, if you CAN spring for electric, I'd recommend the Bodum Bistro as a solid, cheap entry-level burr grinder. Don't pay the current Amazon price for it though, they're often available for as low as $75 and the price fluctuates very often. I have one that I keep at my mom's house for when I'm back at home and it does a great job for pourover.

Ok. Any time you think coffee tastes like dirt it means that you are drinking shitty coffee. Don't feel bad. Almost everyone does it. You're going to learn to stop.

This is how you drink black coffee.

---

First: prices. Done right, coffee costs $10-15/bag and you can easily get 18-25 cups out of that bag. If you are spending less than that then you are ruining yourself. Homemade coffee is cheap, far cheaper than otherwise.

Go buy a french press and a grinder. Real buffs will tell you that you need a burr grinder. They're right, but one of those whirlyblade ones will do for now. The press will last forever.

Go find the most hip coffee house in the area and ask them where they got their beans. If you live on the US east coast, there's good chance it's Counter Culture. This is good. If it's a local roast, this might be better. In either case, ask for the roasting date. Don't buy a bag that's more than 10 days past roast and spend at least $10 on whatever you do buy. If they don't know when it was roasted with certainty, assume it was more than a year ago. This is incredibly important and the primary reason why most coffee sucks.

Don't buy anything espresso. Or "french". Or "dark". These are for later, being both sweet and acidic. You want a light roast, maybe Colombian, maybe Ethiopian.

Go home and put a kettle on until the water boils. Do not use the boiling water! Add some extra water to dilute the boiling stuff by about 1 to 5. The goal is to get your water at 190 degrees, but don't sweat it. If it's appreciably cooler than boiling you'll be safe.

Put about 2 tablespoons of coffee beans into your grinder and tap the grind button 4-8 times. The goal is to smash the beans into grains like rough sand, not like powder. Error on the side of too big.

Now open up that french press. Put the grinds in first then add a mug's worth of water. Mix! If you don't, you'll get super weak disgusting stuff. Leave the plunger up for about 3 minutes then slowly plunge it down. Pour it into your mug slowly and watch the graininess. When you can see grains in the flow of coffee, stop pouring.

Now go and get yourself a cup of the coldest ice water you can make. Drink a sip of water and then a sip of coffee without a dollop of cream or a touch of sugar.

---

This is how you drink black coffee.

Terrible coffee! We do get infinity amounts of it though, which is nice. I actually calculated that based on my current daily consumption of sewer coffee I've effectively increased my salary by ~5,200 USD.

It's funny you bring this up actually, I'm also browsing /r/coffee right now looking for people's thoughts on this.

Not NSA but your statements of my career grandeur are appreciated.

So what has been new/good/interesting in your life since we last spoke, friend?

It's not a top notch grinder, but I like my cuisinart burr grinder. Series it's purpose and I'm pretty happy with the consistency. Cheap-ish @ about 50USD.

I disagree with the other poster. I'd suggest getting a good enough grinder and blow as much on the espresso machine as possible. Every extra dollar you can drop on the espresso machine will pay off (at least in tiers). I'd suggest holding on for another $100 in the budget so you can drop $450 on the espresso machine and drop the other $50 on a cheap burr grinder that you can upgrade later on in your adventures.

For super-cheap but well worth the money, I'd actually suggest the Mr. Coffee automatic burr grinder. I produces a surprisingly consistent grind for a meager $40.

For an intermediate option, the Capresso 560.01 Infinity conical burr grinder at a fair $80 is your best bet. It will produce a greatly consistent grind without overly heating the beans and last a long time.

"After water boils, leave alone to cool for indeterminate amount of time, based on patience (no more than 3 minutes)."

I believe target brewing temperature is ~195-200 F (depending on the roast). Boiling temperature is 212 F, so allowing the water to cool for 3 minutes is going to result is a temperature much less than ideal. From a boil, I usually let the water cool 30 seconds then pour over grounds in my French Press. I would recommend a burr grinder as well :)

Here is the grinder I use and don't have any gripes whatsoever with it: http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Coffee-BVMC-BMH23-Automatic-Grinder/dp/B004T6EJS0

edit: clarification

My first setup was with a French Press and that exact grinder. It was cool at first but the novelty of grinding beans by hand gets old when you just want to make a coffee. I ended up getting the Baratza Encore and it was well worth it.

Here's my set up minus the Chemex in case you decide to jump down the rabbit hole of coffee...

• French Press
  
• Electric Kettle
  
• Scale
  
• Grinder
  
  I've also noticed that Amazon.ca, they sometimes try to screw us Canadians on pricing, so check out www.eightouncecoffee.ca as well.
  
  
  

Most popular grinder you'll see around here is the Baratza Encore, but it's $40 over your budget. If you're not in a rush, Baratza occasionally sells refurb units for $100.

If you need something now, the Bodum Bistro is worth looking at. I literally just replaced mine, after about 5 years of use. It's ok given the price, but I wish I just bought an Encore to start.

There's some other options at or under $100, like the Capresso Infinity, but I don't see it mentioned as much.

I know a lot of people on here will not recommend such a cheap unit such as this, but I just got it last week as my first machine and have been absolutely pleased with its performance (especially at $89.99 but it looks like price went up)

De'Longhi EC155

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000F49XXG/ref=pe_175190_21431760_M2T1_SC_dp_1

I have it paired with this Bodum grinder which I got on close out for $70

http://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Bistro-Electric-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B0043095WW/ref=sr_1_2?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1341855290&sr=1-2&keywords=coffee+grinder+bodum

Eventually I will upgrade but for the meantime this $160 combo is perfect for me to start

Given the attitude I've gotten from the baristas at Transcend [the one on 109th near UofA] I try to avoid the place if I can, plus they've only got the Hario Mini. One of the guys at my regular place [Elm Cafe] said they could get a Porlex along with the next shipment from 49th Parallel, but now that FED321CBA has alerted me to the deal on a Bodum Bistro on Amazon for $90 and free shipping that's got me interested. The grinder that I have to give back is an Antigua, so a next-gen model would be good.

If he's patient and really passionate about his coffee I recommend a vacuum brewer also known as a siphon pot. A safer option would be a nice burr grinder since using preground coffee is akin to buying peeled garlic.

For actual coffees I would echo the Intelligentsia recommendation and add PTs, Terroir - close to you, or Stumptown. I would exercise caution on buying really nice beans, though, since light roasted high acid/fruit African coffees are a far cry from the charred milky beverages most people are used to.

If you're willing to sit at the top end of your budget, you might just fall in love with this Bodum piece.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Bistro-Electric-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B0043095WW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422731209&sr=8-1&keywords=bodum+burr+grinder&pebp=1422731211511&peasin=B0043095WW

 

This is the best grinder I've ever used at home, and using the machine itself is simple. You can easily adjust the fineness of your grind (it adjusts the grind size for our French press and Moka pot beautifully) and serving amount so you aren't over-extracting or wasting your beans.

Currently looking at this one It's slightly out of my price range, however from the reviews I've read it would be very much worth to have. How's the cleaning between grinds if I want to try a different bean for example? And would the weighing be the beans you put in or the grind that comes out?

The compass is fantastic! Will definitely be using that to find the sweet spot. How would you increase/decrease the brew time in, say, my drip coffee maker?

Baratza encore gets recommended a lot. Its $130 though

Bodum bistro is comparable, though the customer service is not as good I hear. I wouldn't know, I've never had to call. Its around $85

I have the bodum bistro. Its terrific. It doesn't do espresso well, but t will do great for pour over, aeropress, drip, cold brew, and French press. If you don't do espresso its the one I would recommend

https://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Bistro-Electric-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B0043095WW. Bodum bistro is 89.84 on amazon currently

1. Burr mill coffee grinder
   
   
2. Blade grinders don't grind the beans consistently. The grinder that you use has a huge effect on the taste of the coffee. I want to make the best cup of coffee with the most consistent grind. I've been told that they are necessary if I'm going to be making Aeropress or Chemex.
   
   
3. Saving Private Ryan was a pretty good movie.

You want a burr grinder. The one I linked is pretty good and under $50.

Do not get a blade grinder, please for the love of coffee.

Since you dropped quit a bit on a nice espresso machine the same kind of needs to hold true for the grinder. GRIND IS SUPER IMPORTANT. So a $100 grinder is out of the question in my opinion. I would try and budget another 100 or so dollars towards a grinder. Maybe a used or refurbished Rancilio

Are you looking to make one cup at a time like you're used to? Or are you more likely to make a pot of coffee? I broke up with my Keurig recently and ended up with different solutions for single vs multiple cups.

We were gifted a Cuisinart burr grinder (https://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-DBM-8-Supreme-Grind-Automatic/dp/B00018RRRK/), and I really like it. I have no idea if it's better or worse than other grinders, because I've never used any other. I remember my parents had a blade grinder and they always liked it, but they never had anything else either. /shrug

For single cup coffee, I have a paperless stainless steel pour over (https://www.amazon.com/Cafellissimo-Paperless-Coffee-Stainless-Reusable/dp/B01DSDWTYA/) and I like it. It's kinda messy, but I think all paperless systems are. We have a french press (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N1UWJAW/) and I'm honestly not a huge fan, but my husband really likes it. I find that the coffee made with that is much more acidic than when I make it with the pour over, so I'm sure it's something to do with technique.

As for basic advice - you do not have to buy it all at once! It's okay to ask your local roaster to grind beans for you if you're going to use them really soon.

Can i be a hater for a second. You're better off asking for an independent grinder like this baratza and this drip machine if you're set on a top quality drip

the SCAA has a list of approved drip machines theyre going to be the best of the best for what you need. The biggest issues with most drip machines is evenness of the brew and temperature variability. Unfortunately im not aware of any good all in one solutions but i can whole hardheartedly recommend the baratza and the brewer can be open season

I love the Virtuso -- it is a bit pricy but extremely precise and well built. My home grinder, which has been used near daily for 5+ years is still operating perfectly
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Baratza-Virtuoso-Coffee-Grinder-watts/dp/B006MLQHRG

What are good baselines for this stuff and what kind of adjustments are within the realm of reason.

For example:

I have one of those Cuisinart Electric Kettles. I can do water temps of boiling, 200 F, 190 F and a few lower ones. I'm using 190 F as my baseline but I can really only adjust a little in each direction.

I have a burr grinder (Cuisinart DBM-8 Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill ) which seems like a decent entry level grinder but produces a LOT of grounds, even on its smallest setting. I don't feel like I can easily adjust the amount of coffee I'm using and I really don't feel like I can adjust the grind very much either without getting well into the drip coffee size.

That kind of leaves time and agitation, though I guess I can play with the amount of water. I have no earthly idea what good baselines are for that.

For the French Press, just don't be cheap. You want something made of borosilicate glass and easy to clean. Bodum is probably the most common, and is perfectly fine.

As for grinders... that gets deep really quickly—just look at the wiki and sidebar links. If you want to make great coffee of any kind, you'll want the nicest grinder you can afford.

If you just need something adequate for press, drip, and pourover coffees, you could do worse than the Capresso Infinity. Whatever you do, make sure it's a quality burr grinder, and not one of those with the whirling blade. Those blade ones are horrid.

great. in terms of a burr grinder, since i want a fine grind, would something like this improve over the blade grinder i use? Cuisinart DBM-8 Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00018RRRK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_CWhwCb8S23YY0

Honestly, I don't see myself ever spending $100 on a grinder, even if I have money to blow, because I'm just not that much of an enthusiast (clearly). I had a cup of black, aeropress brewed coffee yesterday at my friend's house that was ground in this, and it was delicious in my opinion, so I guess my taste just isn't that refined. So really I've already decided on getting something cheap, even if it's crappy and won't last forever, I'm just looking for some tips on whats the best cheapo unit I can get. Like I've seen Hario thrown around a lot on this sub, so I'm wondering if that's the way to go or if there is a decent electric one for cheap.

Yea, I'd be weary of beans in Amazon's warehouse too, although knowing Amazon I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't drop shipped from Intelli or wherever.

That said blow it all on equipment. A scale is a great option, a grinder is too. I like the Capresso Infinity because it comes with a postcard to order replacement parts for it, like new plastic bits or new burrs. Nice cups / mugs aren't a bad idea either.

I usually am brewing Kicking Horse 454 Horsepower mixed with some heavy whipping cream (shoutout /r/keto) and a drip of Irish Cream flavoring., but currently trying some Kona coffee given to me by a friend. (it's smooth!)

Grinder:

Cuisinart DBM-8 - ok-good burr grinder, variable grind size, even grind results, kind of loud though.


Machine:

Hamilton Beach 49981 - great drip brew for single cup (or thermos, in my case).

Misc:

Bean storage

Thermos

What's your price range? When you say "brew decent coffee at school" I'm imagining you brewing regular drip coffee and not espresso. I'm also imagining that you're either going to be in a dorm room or you work in some department at school which means that an expensive one is not an option (what with theft and abuse etc.).

That being said, a burr grinder in that price range will work no better than a decent whirly blade. Trust me, I've tried a few of the low cost ones and they either break after 30 days (black and decker) or are difficult to clean which results in the coffee being irregularly ground anyway.

For work, I went to Target (a big box store) and bought one of these. It's cheap enough and does the job well. It has to be the most well intentioned whirly blade out there -- it times the grinding so the base won't heat up to evaporate the coffee oils and the hopper pops off so you don't have to make a mess pouring the coffee into the filter basket.

It also has these little scraper thingies that you move back and forth that will scrape the bottom of the hopper bowl so you won't have coffee stink finger from running your finger over the bottom to get the stuck on bits (it's also more hygienic that way).

If you have your heart stuck on a really good burr grinder (and it just has to be a burr grinder) less than $300 USD then go on ebay and buy a used Zassenhaus hand cranked grinder. That will work far better than any electric burr grinder under the $200 mark.

If you can spend a little more, try to get a burr grinder, it will make a huge difference, I got my first on used for $50, but I've seen them as low as $30. For the price I'd say either this or this these will be good enough unless you want to try espresso.

You can also get goodish beans at a grocery store. I recomend Peet's. Or you can order very good beans online from companies like stumptown, verve, or counterculture coffee.

Your next upgrade should probably be an aeropress, but if you've been on /r/coffee for more than 5 minutes you know that.

Second the coffee grinder. We use this "burr" grinder from amazon

French press is good coffee, but for everyday use we're still using a cheap 5 cup automatic coffee machine we got for like $15 from Wal mart.


You'll find you can enjoy
A: making the coffee -- so you'll get into all the different ways to brew and grind coffee and have fun with that
B: adding to the coffee -- so you enjoy adding chocolate or spices or rum or making your own flavors up
C: not making coffee at all and you stop by Mcdonalds to grab a $1 caffine fix


or any combination.

Muahaha!


I promise you that you're coffee will be noticeably better when ground fresh.

​

Don't worry too much about the cost. Something like this works just fine:

​

https://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-DBM-8-Supreme-Grind-Automatic/dp/B00018RRRK/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=coffee+grinder&qid=1563823830&s=gateway&sr=8-8

> Don't shop on price alone. There are some bad $80 - $100 grinders out there

Of course! We know that we should use review sites before purchasing our coffee gear :)
coffeegeek.com, consumersearch.com, amazon, home-barista. Post if you have any other favorite review sites.

So regarding the price of grinders, when I was researching mine I found a number of VERY affordable ones like, Mr. Coffee Automatic Burr Mill, for about $40. This is roughly half the price of Capresso Infinity Conical Burr Grinder at $85.

WHY are these models half as much? A number of reviews mentioned the plastic burrs which give lower quality grinds (less consistent sized grounds) then the more expensive models. Some other downsides were: plastic wears out faster and that these cheaper models have a shorter lifespan or at least seem to break way sooner than they should. Obviously with any manufactured product, YMMV.

My point in recommending a price range for a grinder was that if the price is too good to be true, it probably is!

Hi and welcome. We call this your first step into the rabbit hole. Like Alice, if you decide to go in this is just going to get deeper and deeper.

The two grinders you've linked are both electric and neither are particularly good. Assuming that you want to go with an electric grinder (and I would if you're drinking 5 cups a day) then then Baratza is the least you want to buy. The difference between this and the ones you have mentioned are the burrs - the cutting edges - that are in the machine.

Next, you say you start with a latte. Latte is espresso and steamed/textured milk. You are not going to get espresso anywhere close to your budget but you can get a good moka pot and then a milk frother will get you that drink.

For your coffee through the day then a french press will be fine - they're very simple just relying on a metal mesh screen to keep the used grinds out of the end drink or, if you are just making coffee for yourself one at a time then consider the aeropress.

Automatic machines are more complicated. You have to read very carefully as most on the market do not heat the water properly (they start dripping cold water into the coffee bed and, when they finish, they are putting boiling water and steam into it). Also, most will drip water through the middle of the coffee grounds which means that you get bitter tastes from the coffee that gets most of the water while the rest "under extracts" giving tastes of grass and moss. Unless you are willing to go to something like the Wilfa I would stay with manual coffee makers for now.

Bienvenue a r/coffee et bonne chance.

Recommend this durable, affordable grinder

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00018RRRK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_yVp0AbTN8ZFPZ

A relatively coarse grind on this machine is super consistent. Once grind is consistent ratio and water temp become only (and easier) variables to control.

A lot of people here are recommending other brewing machines and I have to agree with French Press (for simplicity and consistency) and Chemex for "best nerd cup of joe"