Ok, I was skeptical. I've been using a blade grinder for years, and during that time I've scoured the internet for articles relating to blade vs burr grinding, and let me tell you, there are as many different opinions on the subject as their are coffee drinkers : )
Well, after countless hours, days, weeks, and yes, months of reading reviews and articles, I finally decided it was time to try a burr grinder, and the one I decided to try was the Baratza Virtuoso.
What swayed me was to this machine was the Baratza USA website. Of course we all want our grinders to give us a lifetime of no hassle grinding, but with a machine like this, after a while, things are bound to need attention. With many grinders you'd probably have no choice but to toss them out and get a new one, but If you go to the Baratza USA website, to the support section, you'll see they have an entire list of .pdf files and videos detailing every possible in-home adjustment and repair that can be done to this machine.
During the process of showing how to take the machine completely apart and repair everything from a knob coming off to replacing the motor, you begin to gain an appreciation for how thoughtfully this machine was designed.
Are you an espresso person and want a bit more control on the finer grinds? No problem, they show you how to go in and make a simple adjustment that will shift the grind range more toward the fine end.
Are you a French press person and want more control over your coarse grinds? They show you how to adjust it that direction too.
Do you like dark, oily beans....... then you will probably get better performance by slowing the rotation of the center burr a bit (from the factor set 550 rpm, down to 450 rpm), and they show you how to adjust a potentiometer inside the machine to do that.
And, if at some point you experience a problem, they show you how test it to find out what the problems is, then show you the part you need to order, and then show you how to install it yourself, saving you from having to ship your machine back to them.
Plus, all the parts are readily available at reasonable prices.
Of course that's all after the fact, I mean, what you're really interested in is how well it grinds. Well it grinds beautifully, with very even particle distribution, and after testing, I found that I typically only lose about one tenth of a gram during each grinding, not bad.
Plus, it's super easy to clean. Just pop off the bean hopper and the ring burr lifts right out, leaving plenty of room to get a brush down inside the grinding chamber. 5-10 minutes once every month or so and you've got a like-new clean machine.
But let's get serious. Bottom line. Can I taste a difference between this and my blade grinder? Absolutely! For one thing, while I occasionally got a good cup of coffee with my blade grinder, after dialing in this burr grinder to the right setting for my pour over method of brewing, I'm getting a consistently excellent cup of coffee. It's all about getting consistently good, repeatable results, and that what this grinder gives me.
Now, why the Virtuoso over the Encore. I think the Encore would probably suit many people, but the Virtuoso has a better set of burrs, giving a more even grind, especially towards the coarse end. It also has a 1.5 amp 180 watt motor rather than the Encore's 1 amp 120 watt motor. And it has more metal in the chassis than the Encore, giving a more solid feel. Is that enough to justify a $100 difference in price? That's something each person will have to decide. It was enough for me, and I've been more than happy with my choice.
After getting the Baratza, I ended adding a kitchen scale to precisely measure the amount of coffee and water I use, and now I'm finally getting that excellent cup of coffee every single time. Happy brewing!
UPDATE 1-5-15 Ok, I finally found a minor issue that needs addressing. On the bean hopper there is a small 1/2" vertical piece of plastic that is supposed to mark the number of the grind setting (between 1 and 40). The problem is that the piece of plastic is the same color as the rest of bean hopper, so for my aging eyes it's extremely difficult to see the grind setting.
SOLUTION: I remembered I had some leftover white adhesive backed address labels, so I took one and cut a small sliver off the end, and it's width was a PERFECT fit for the length of that little plastic marker piece on the bean hopper. Then I cut a small piece of clear tape and put it over the top to help keep it clean, and BINGO, I can now easily see where my grind setting is set. Yippeee.
The grinder itself continues to be a joy to use.
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Product Description
Elegance and Style
Easy, Intuitive control
Consistent Quality Grind
Small but Mighty Grinder.
Don’t Dump it, Fix it!
Most small, consumer appliances are designed to wear out, or stop being useful in a very short time. These appliances are difficult and expensive to repair, so consumers are trained to dump and replace which has big environmental implications.
In contrast, we’ve purposefully designed Baratza grinders to be maintained like commercial grinders and maximize their value. With regular cleaning, maintenance, repair, and even rebuilds our grinders can give an excellent, accurate grind for many years.
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This Item  Baratza Virtuoso - Conical Burr Coffee Grinder |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | Currently unavailable. | -20% $159.95 List: $199.95 | $79.99 | $69.99 | -13% $399.95 List: $459.00 | $99.95 |
| Delivery | — | Get it as soon as Monday, Jun 10 | Get it as soon as Monday, Jun 10 | Get it as soon as Monday, Jun 10 | Get it as soon as Monday, Jun 10 | Get it as soon as Monday, Jun 10 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Easy to use | ||||||
| Easy to clean | ||||||
| Flavor | ||||||
| Noise level | ||||||
| Durability | ||||||
| Sold By | — | Amazon.com | aoerkang | LoHiDirect | Kitchen Kapers | PremierReward |
| capacity | 0.15 liters | — | 10 ounces | 160 grams | 14 ounces | 0.34 kilograms |
| material | Metal, Plastic | Plastic | Stainless Steel | Plastic | Steel | Stainless Steel |
| wattage | 110 watts | 150 watts | — | — | — | 100 watts |
| style | with Bin | Modern | Morden | Modern | Micro | Burr Coffee Grinder |
| weight | 3.25 kilograms | 5.56 pounds | — | 4.66 pounds | 3.2 kilograms | 6.58 pounds |
Reviews with images
Works as well as the favorable reviews describes, but maybe Baratz may want to review their packaging methods.
I ordered this grinder 5 days ago on Amazon Prime, picking Frustration Free packaging unintentionally because it was the default choice on the product order page. It arrived 2 days later. When I unpacked it, I found out it was not packaged in the same way shown on the Youtube video "Unboxing the Baratza Virtuoso Conical Burr Coffee Grinder" published by "The Coffee Queen" on Oct 7, 2015. In that 4 month old unboxing video, the hopper was fully assembled into the grinder as the reviewer gently slid the plastic wrapped unit out of the retail box. The reviewer had to pull the hopper off the top of the grinder chassis to remove the corrugated packaging protecting the hopper.On the contrary, in the unit I received, the grinder chassis was wrapped separately with a bag of desiccate stuffed into the burr grinder opening, pressed on top of the funnel-shaped rubber gasket with the plastic packaging. When I unwrapped everything, I found the rubber gasket was crimped and not seated over the top burr. I had difficulty fitting the gasket over where it should go and it wouldn't stay on. When I placed the rubber gasket on a flat surface I found that the bottom of the gasket (where it slips over the top burr) would not longer lay flat. Since I had no confidence the rubber gasket once I turn the grinder on, I immediately returned the product to Amazon for a refund.After Amazon acknowledge my return after I had it checked-in at my neighborhood Staples store, I re-order the same grinder (2 days ago); this time taking care to order the standard packaging.My 2nd order for this grinder arrived late in the afternoon today. When I unpacked the grinder, I found that other than the store display box, the inside corrugated box was packaged identically the same way as the Frustration Free package. Would you know it, the rubber gasket on tjhis unit also arrived crimped (see attached photo), although not as badly deformed this time. The rubber gasket stayed on the top burr with some effort fitting it in. I called Help Service at Baratza and the nice lady told me I should be able to use it, but if I needed a new one, they will ship me a new rubber gasket if I send them an email request with my receipt attached. I ordered a new grinder and do not want a crimped gasket that can be knocked off its seat easily if I'm not carefully reassembling the hopper after I cleaned the burr. Anyway, I went ahead and used the grinder; twice today.This grinder work as well as the more positive reviews on Amazon. Coming from a dying Cuisinart Burr Grinder, this one is comfortably quiet. My old Cuisinart grinder it uncomfortably noisy when I'm hearing ear protection I use when I use my circular saw. Without ear protection, the Cuisinart is so loud it hurts. My wife noticed that the bin is anti-static. It's really nice when we're had to suffer brushing 25% of a fine coffee ground over the size of the bin, from both inside and outside of the bin surface into the coffee filter. As noted by many reviewers, the knob for the timer dial appear loose but I can easily fix that with teflon tape.
Top reviews from other countries
Eric Wagner
Awesome quality without flashy extras
Reviewed in Canada on April 20, 2019
Federico
Virtuoso
Reviewed in Spain on April 7, 2019
Federico
Reviewed in Spain on April 7, 2019
Me decidí por él basado en las opiniones de Amazon que no son pocas sobre todo por las extranjeras
aparte de los videos por internet
De momento no tengo nada en contra
La uso para italiana y saca un café rico
En cuanto al servicio de Amazon, como siempre, sobresaliente.
Images in this review
