Whether you like a cup of Espresso or Cold Brew, achieving the perfect brew is the key to enjoying your coffee every morning. Besides buying quality coffee beans, you can further optimize your brewing experience by choosing the right coffee grinder. Right now, we are torn between burr grinders and blade grinders, with most people leaning towards the former.
Burr grinders are known to achieve the perfect consistency and grind size, regardless of the type of coffee you’re preparing. They grind coffee beans with the perfect consistency, uniformity, and quality. Since they are significantly more expensive than blade grinders, most people wonder whether they are worth paying more money.
We will discuss whether a burr grinder makes a difference, or you can also get a blade grinder for your coffee grinding needs.
You can also check out the review of one of the best burr grinders in the market: krups gvx2 burr grinder review.
A Little About Burr Grinders
A burr grinder grinds coffee beans and works with the help of two abrasive components called ‘burrs.’ When the burr rotates, it keeps grinding the coffee beans and pushes the ground through the mesh. Although it grinds fewer beans at a time, it ensures better consistency and uniformity.
Burr grinders also help you choose the grind size for different coffee brews. For instance, if you want to grind beans for Espresso, you will need an extra-fine grind. If you know the particular grind size for the brew you want, a burr grinder will help you achieve it.
One of the best things about burr grinders is that they help you achieve the fine and extra-fine consistency required for Espresso or Aeropress coffee. You can’t get the same consistency and uniformity when you have a blade grinder, so a burr grinder is much more useful and worth the money.
You can get two kinds:
1. Conical grinders
Conical burr grinders have a serrated burr on the outside and a conical center burr. These two burrs work together to grind coffee beans consistently. However, they are known to produce uneven grinds sometimes.
2. Flat grinders
Flat grinders come with two burrs shaped like donuts, placed one within the other, and their serrated edges face each other. This structure ensures that the coffee beans remain squeezed in the middle of the two burrs, thus ensuring that the beans are well-grounded. However, they are louder and produce more heat than conical burr grinders.
Why is a Burr Grinder Better Than a Blade Grinder?
A burr grinder helps you achieve the extra-fine and fine consistency that you need for certain brews of coffee. Let’s look at why a burr grinder might be better for you.
It Helps You Achieve a Consistent Grind
For starters, you can achieve a consistent grind with a burr grinder compared to a blade grinder since it uses two burrs that work together to grind the beans evenly. On the other hand, a blade grinder doesn’t grind the beans evenly, which means that some grinds might be smaller than the others. This also means that some of the beans might be over-extracted, while others might be under-extracted.
It Helps You Control the Grind Size
Another benefit of a burr grinder is that it allows you to control the grind size better than a blade grinder. If you have a blade grinder, you can only run it for a longer time in an attempt to achieve the required consistency. Although this might work for coffee brews that require a coarser consistency, it doesn’t help you achieve a fine or extra-fine consistency. This is why you need a burr grinder.
It Might Be Expensive, But Cost-Effective
As mentioned in the introduction, a burr grinder is considerably more expensive than a blade grinder. Still, it helps you achieve the right consistency and uniformity for all types of coffee brews. Moreover, it prevents you from wasting any coffee beans, and each cup of coffee you prepare will be just the way you want. Therefore, the extra money you pay for the burr grinder will pay you back.
It is Easier to Clean
Even though a blade grinder is much more convenient, you can clean a burr grinder much more easily thanks to its powerful motor and faster-grinding operation. You can easily take it apart and clean and wash it thoroughly. Then, you can dry everything with a microfiber cloth and reassemble the grinder. This also makes it easier for you to clean the burr grinder frequently.
To Conclude
This brings us to the end of our guide on how a burr grinder makes a difference in how you prepare your coffee. In a nutshell, burr grinders help you provide a consistent and even grind, and they also enhance each cup of coffee you prepare.
Photo by Tom Swinnen
