Blade vs. Burr Grinder

Grind size is one of the most important factors in brewing a great cup of coffee. If you are an avid coffee drinker, you may be thinking about investing in a grinder. There are 2 main types of grinders on the market today sold for use at home, the blade grinder, and the burr grinder.

The blade grinder has 2 blades that spin to grind the coffee. The problem with this grind is that the pieces tend to not be uniform, resulting in some large and some very fine pieces which result in a bitter cup of coffee.

The burr grinder has 2 sets of burrs, as well as the ability to adjust the spacing between them. This changes the grind size for you ranging from fine to coarse depending on your brew method. You may have to play around with sizing at first because not all burr grinders are the same. For instance, a 20 on one burr grinder may be finer on a different burr grinder.

The burr grinder we have for our home use is the baratza virtuoso burr grinder, around $250. This may seem like a lot to just grind some coffee which you can order already ground from the roaster, but once the beans are ground, they begin the process of going stale. So, it is best to have freshly ground coffee right before you drink it.