The Breville Smart Grinder Pro provides an economical solution when compared to both higher end espresso grinders and the more basic models.
The Breville Smart Grinder Pro doesn’t appear to be a typical house coffee grinder. In contrast, it appears that prosumer gear has a modern, attractive appearance.
The look, user-friendliness, and consistent particle size the Breville Smart Grinder Pro produces makes it a great appliance, in particular with its capacity to deliver finely ground espresso beans to fit pressurized portafilters. The Smart Grinder Pro has the capability to fine tune coffee grounds for numerous types of brewing, particularly for use in drip and filter coffee.
Complaints have been raised about the Smart Grinder Pro’s lack of durability, which is an unfortunate downside. In particular, in an arena where rivals create enduring items such as those from Eureka and Baratza.
And the price? The Breville Smart Grinder Pro is more expensive than other introductory grinders but is still a financially reasonable choice for a novice espresso setup. Perspective can be confusing, huh?
Who shouldn’t buy the Breville Smart Grinder Pro?
Typically, the Breville Smart Grinder Pro isn’t for:
Premium-oriented home baristas
Upon quick examination, the Breville Smart Grinder Pro has a professional appearance. However, it likely will not make someone satisfied that wanted a high tech grinder.
You may say I am being harsh. This grinder features a monitor, a clock, the ability to set an amount of coffee to grind, and receptacles of varying sizes (50-54 mm and 58 mm) to fit the portafilter. However, it has coarse settings that are not accurate enough for those espresso machines designed for intermediate-level or professional coffee makers.
You might be aware that the prosumer espresso machines are typically equipped with non-pressurized portafilters, which are harder to perfect as compared to pressurized portafilters. In other words, the Smart Grinder Pro is not the ideal choice if you are searching for the highest quality espresso machine.
Pour-over and immersion coffee brewing Passionate aficionados
The Breville Smart Grinder Pro would be a satisfactory choice if you are dedicated to making coffee manually, however it is not the highest quality for the price it comes at.
The Baratza Virtuoso Plus is ideal for making pour-overs, is extremely sturdy, and its cost is comparable.
Who is the Breville Smart Grinder Pro for?
Typically, the Breville Smart Grinder Pro will make you happy if:
You have an entry-level espresso machine
You have a fresh and inexpensive espresso machine on your countertop, and you are beginning to understand that store-bought pre-ground coffee isn’t good enough.
If that is what you have done, the horse-drawn carriage may not have been put together correctly, however, it is not beyond repair. You can still acquire a nice piece of equipment to make your espresso better.
The Breville Smart Grinder Pro could be the ideal remedy for your difficulty. Its gleaming stainless steel exterior gives off an attractive aesthetic, and it is capable of producing consistent, finely-ground coffee.
Ensure that your device has a pressurized portafilter included for optimal results. The majority of espresso machines with a price tag of less than 200 dollars possess this characteristic, but it is a good idea to double-check before making the purchase.
Main Features: Pros and cons
The Breville Smart Grinder Pro would be an ideal grinder for those starting out with espresso machines. Basically, it’s a terrific grinder for those who are looking to improve their coffee experience without spending a lot of money.
Despite its advantages, its low durability and incompatibility with espresso machines that have non-pressurized portafilters are its primary drawbacks.
The key characteristics imply that it should be simple to locate grinders that are more economical and of higher quality for filter and pour-over coffee makers. It could be a suitable choice for those who are drawn to its appearance and the added extras it offers.
Let’s explore further so that you can gain the most benefit from our examination of the Breville Smart Grinder Pro burr-type espresso mill.
Looks
Breville put a great amount of design effort into the Smart Grinder Pro. This machine has a modern and sophisticated appearance, prepared to make espresso grounds. This item has a design that is generally suitable for most countertops; however it is recommended to take measurements of the actual space that you have.
If you can’t get enough of the look of polished stainless steel, the Breville Smart Grinder Pro has exactly what you’re looking for. This option is not low-cost, but it does not feel as if it is made of plastic or cheaply made. This is an outstanding accent for any kitchen or home coffee shop.
Usability
The Breville Smart Grinder Pro stands out from other grinders in the same price range because of its control settings and wide assortment of modifications that can be made. Choices can be a bit alarming for novices, but it is not as difficult as it initially appears.
Put the beans in the grinder, twist the lid on securely, select the appropriate coarseness, then press down on the manual-grind button until you have the desired grind.
Nevertheless, it takes some practice to make use of the functions of the grinder. You can choose from 60 different levels of grinding, and you can set the grinder in 0.2-second steps.
Grinding coffee daily with the Smart Grinder Pro takes a few steps:
- Put coffee beans inside the hopper
- Pick grind setting using the dial
- Set the grind time using the dial below the LCD screen
- Press the start button
Prior to beginning the grinding procedure, it is beneficial to take two precautionary measures. Disconnect the grinder from the electrical power source. Sometimes I forget to position the bin or portafilter underneath the chute before grinding my coffee beans.
The machine has programs for Espresso, Percolator, Filter, and Plunger brewing. You can regulate the amount of coffee grounds used based on the number of cups or shots you want to make. The grinder then works out the time required for the grinding process and adjusts it accordingly.
Putting together this grinder takes just a few moments, making it ideal for all users. You won’t need to dedicate a significant amount of your time to preparing the device, which is generally an issue with other grinders.
Performance
The Breville Smart Grinder Pro shines beyond its looks. This product offers 60 unique grinding options, runs with a robust motor, and is outfitted with top-notch steel conical burrs.
Many reviews and experiments vouch for the consistent grind size distribution of the graduated grind settings. Your coffee will have better flavor because all the coffee grounds will be roughly the same size. In other words, you can achieve optimum flavor in your coffee with this grinder.
I additionally discovered that the Breville Smart Grinder Pro offers even more settings for grind size.
If you desire a courser or finer consistency of coffee grounds, you can take off the top burr and adjust it by hand. So, due to this, the Breville Smart Grinder Pro furnishes 600 possibilities through the utilization of the tuning knob and several adjustment selections.
We Tested Coffee Grinders—Here Are the Best Ones
The Best Coffee Grinder for Serious Coffee Geeks: Baratza Virtuoso+ Coffee Grinder
The Virtuoso+ coffee grinder by Baratza is widely selected by professionals as the most recommended mill for home use, and there is a solid basis behind this choice. The conical burrs constructed in the grinder create a variety of grind sizes that produce reliable outcomes and the product itself is constructed of both metal and plastic for enhanced durability. Additionally, it is complemented by excellent customer assistance. I dislike taking apart and putting back together the burr set for upkeep, since it isn’t very user-friendly, but this is still the best grinder for coffee aficionados who wish to have absolutely precise control over the coarseness of their grind.
This coffee is best suited for individuals who are knowledgeable about concepts such as flow rate, brew time, and extraction level; who use scales to calculate the bean-to-water ratio by weight; who generally prefer light to medium roasts that reveal the more inherent flavors of the bean; and who usually take their coffee without any additives.
Alternate Best Coffee Grinder Pick: Breville Smart Grinder Pro
We found that the Breville Smart Grinder Pro did exceptionally well in our assessments, making it a smart choice since it is cheaper than the Baratza Virtuoso. Its grind trends finer than the Virtuoso. Even when set to its roughest setting, the output was closer to a medium grind than what was produced by other machines. This appliance may not be ideal for making French press or cold brew coffee, but it still performs fine with most forms of brewing. Additionally, it could work as an introductory model for espresso grinding, which is not typical of home coffee grinders.
This product would be best suited for people who are interested in the Virtuoso, but are less likely to make brewed coffee using the press pot method or cold brew, and people who might enjoy the occasional espresso.
The Best Budget Coffee Grinder for Coffee Geeks: Baratza Encore Coffee Grinder
It can be positively noted that Baratza’s lower cost Encore grinder has a lighter-weight design with its entire housing made of plastic. This model features the same engine as the pricier Virtuoso model, but it comes with a less efficient burr set that grinds almost as nicely as the Virtuoso but takes a bit longer. You should be aware that you can exchange the Encore’s burr set with the one made for the Virtuoso if you feel that the Encore is not performing up to your expectations.
This product is ideal for anyone who is looking into the Virtuoso but does not want to pay the high cost.
The Best Coffee Grinder for Most People: OXO Brew Coffee Grinder
The appearance of OXO’s burr grinder is uncomplicated and easy to comprehend. It offers an outstanding grinding capability for the cost. This is an affordable burr grinder, and although it is not the greatest in terms of grind quality, it is a great option for those just beginning to brew their own coffee at home.
Best For: Any coffee drinker who wants more control and a chance to experiment with grind sizes; who wants to begin to explore some of the more detailed coffee-brewing concepts without a huge cost of entry; who likes a good cup but maybe isn’t 100% clear on what terms like TDS (total dissolved solids), acidity, and sweetness mean (at least when discussing a cup of joe).
The Best Super-Budget Burr Grinder: Krups Burr Coffee Grinder
If the cost of our preferred grinders is too expensive, and we’d rather not keep using a blade grinder to chop our coffee beans (since it results in coffee that tastes like other items that have been blended in), this Krups model is unbeatable in regards to its cost. Its performance is not reliable, and the construction is not up to par, but you get what you paid for. Even though with a burr grinder you may not always get a consistent grind, you’ll still have more power over your grind size than with a blade grinder, which is critical for some.
This grinder is ideal for coffee aficionados who prefer strong dark coffees and/or frequently add dairy or sugar to their coffee. This grinder offers an easy way to grind whole beans for optimum flavor and eliminates the need to use a standard spice grinder.
The Criteria: What We Look for in a Great Coffee Grinder
In order to appreciate the value of having a top-quality coffee grinder, it’s essential to grasp the basics of how coffee is brewed. Typically, when making coffee, the aim is to get the appropriate amount of desirable soluble compounds out of the beans while avoiding the undesirable ones.
If we do not draw out the desired amount of flavor from a bean, the brewed coffee will have an “underextracted” taste. It is not necessarily the case that this kind of coffee will be weak in flavor. Rather, it is coffee in which not enough of the favourable molecules have been extracted from the beans and mixed into the liquid. If you use a large amount of coffee beans to brew a cup of coffee but do not extract enough of their flavor, you could produce a beverage that is both potent and lacking flavor, an unusual combination. Coffees that are not fully fermented will have a sour flavor which is not pleasant.
Coffees that have been excessively extracted have drawn out too much of the coffee bean, including disagreeable flavors that are undesired in the beverage. Those coffees often taste harsh and bitter. You can also have a weak, overly brewed cup of coffee if you make a large amount of coffee relative to the water, then let it steep too long.
It goes without saying that you can produce coffee that isn’t extracted enough (weak underextracted coffees) or too much (strong overextracted ones), and any variation in between.
The coffee grinder is essential in the process of coffee brewing because it decides what size the coffee grounds should be. Grind size can affect extraction in two ways. One of the most noticeable differences between finely ground coffee and coarsely ground coffee is the amount of surface area. Finely ground coffee beans have much more surface area, which makes their contents more accessible and speeds up the rate of removal from the hot water.