Capresso Infinity Conical Burr Grinder

This is a great grinder This grinder is great! It's funny how surprised we all get when a product does what it's supposed to do, but the Capresso really does grind coffee beans and does it well. It obviously gives you the control to grind the coffee to different fineness levels, which is kind of great. I'm able to make all different types of coffee with this grinder, from: turkish to drip. It's been fun figuring out how fine to go to get the best taste with different types of coffee. Making a good shot of espresso's probably the most tempermental as far as the grind goes. It's been fun buying different beans and testing out all the different grind possibilities/brewing methods and finding the best brew method for each bean. Yum...

Really no complaints except that I broke the plastic cover piece the first day, but I really just don't care. The thing works great.

Finding a product that meets my specifications . . . Let me start off by saying you are better off grinding your coffee beans at the local supermarket and storing them in a zip lock bag then purchasing many of the coffee grinders on the market today. After all, air is the biggest enemy of ground coffee.

I don't consider myself a coffee expert, but some things are elementary to a good cup of coffee. A uniform grind of coffee is second in importance only to good coffee beans. I will not dwell on the importance of fresh cold water and a clean coffee machine. I will share what I have learned over the past 17 years.

In general coffee grinders come in 3 designs: chopping blade, flat burr, and conical burr. The chopping blade type is useful for grinding spices. The flat burr while far superior to the chopping blade is very old technology that produces inconsistent results. The conical burr produces the most uniform and best results. Also, the slower the grinding process the better the coffee will taste. I have had multiple versions of all three designs of coffee grinders. What you are looking for is a machine with conical burrs that grinds slowly.

The blade type coffee mills can be had for Twenty dollars, but don't waste your time unless you are into grinding your own spices.

The best example of the old flat burr design is the Kitchen-Aid Pro, which sells between $150-$200 dollars depending on which version you get. Built like a tank, but trust me both versions have several major engineering flaws. There is nothing K.A. can do to re-engineer the machine. The functional design is bad from top to bottom. The burrs are on a vertical plane and the beans drop between them, giving an uneven grind. If that wasn't bad enough the coffee gets suck in the drop tube. Don't get me wrong - I love Kitchen Aid mixers. The company has excellent customer service, but can't seem to produce a decent coffee grinder. I tried four of the Kitchen Aid Pros before giving up.

Finally, there are many conical burr machines on the market. It is good to find one that is not too noisy. Unfortunately, most of these grinders are made of plastic and make a lot of noise. The only way to get around it is by adding weight. So, look for a heavier conical burr grinder.

The gold standard in my house is a manual grinder with conical burrs. Over the years, it consistently produces the best cup of coffee in the house. Why, you ask? It produces a uniform grind, at a very slow speed. But we rarely have the patience to grind our coffee beans by hand. It is a very slow process.

Bottom-line, you don't have to spend an arm-and-a-leg for a decent coffee grinder. Many folks are happy with a $50 coffee mill. Unfortunately, I could not find one in that price range that satisfied my needs.

That is how I selected the Capresso 560.01 Infinity Burr Grinder. It grinds the beans to my satisfaction. The machine is not noisy. It is easy to clean. All removable parts can be replaced. After several weeks, I am still content.

Update October 2009:
After nearly three years the grinder still works like new. I am very satisfied with the purchase.

The perfect cup I have finally found a burr grinder I actually love. This thing is amazing. The grind is perfectly even EVERY TIME, and the grind is consistent throughout. Some have said they thought this grinder was loud, but it isn't at all to me. I also really like the size and shape -- it looks great next to my Cuisinart brewer.

A couple of words about using it, though:

1. As previously mentioned, sometimes one bean will pop up into the top of the upper burr grinder, so you have to remove it to grind it. No big deal to me.

2. I wasn't too thrilled with how much grind was being left behind, but all I have to do to get 99% of it is tilt the grinder forward and give the back a couple of taps.

Those two issues are the only ones I have, and they pale when compared to how great the end result is.

Get this grinder and never look back!