Hi everyone. I recently bought a Breville Bambino. It’s my first espresso machine, and I’m quite happy with it. I love the fact that it has a thermoblock which means that I don’t have to wait for the water to turn on before I can enjoy my coffee. I’ve been able to pull some good shots with it, but the exact same technique sometimes gives me inconsistent results. I’m thinking it’s my grinder.
I have a Timemore C3 manual grinder. It’s great for most other brewing methods e.g. aeropress, V60, French press etc. But I don’t think it’s the best for espresso. I borrowed a Baratza Encore from a friend and it gave me more consistent results.
Now, I do like the Encore, and would buy a new one, but I looked at this chart and it looks like it doesn’t go too low in terms of grind size. Do you guys think that it might cause problems when I upgrade my machine in the future?
Also, if you have any other suggestions for grinders, let me know. I’m willing to spend around $200 on it right now. (I guess I can go up to $300 if it’s worth the extra $100.)
Thanks for taking your time to read this. I really appreciate it.
Get the Baratza Encore ESP, or Fellow Opus.
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Thanks for the suggestions. They both look good. But in terms of aesthetics, the Fellow one is 🔥.
Here’s a review from Lance Hedrick where he compares the two: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVbDowbJ9jU
I’ve been using an Orphan Espresso Lido 2 ($195 USD when I bought it….BIFL!!) that I’ve used for years for aeropress lattes that I now use for espresso. With a WDT and a spinning distribution tamper, it’s pretty incredible the results I can get with a stock Rancilio Silvia and a bottomless basket. 20g of espresso is no problem to grind at a time for a triple shot basket.
the encore’s not great for dialing in espresso. with the budget you mentioned, look at espresso-focused manual grinders. the 1zpressos appear to be fairly well-regarded in that arena.
I think the 1ZPresso JX-Pro S is a good option.
Baratza Vario W - daily use for the last 8 years or so and going strong. Zero ground coffee mess, decently accurate and consistent (grinds by weight), looks nice. Mine only needed one burr adjustment in the 5 year mark (it comes with tool and the instructions).
Fellow Opus is your best choice in the under $200 range because hand grinding for espresso is too much work.