Dr Karl as pictured in Australia 2014 - the science guy for the people
Dr. Karl (Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki), whom I've been a huge fan of for about 20 years, does a Triple J hour long Scince segment broadcast nationally in Australia and available to the world any time of the day or night through his Podcast, Dr Karl had a listener question about how its best to store coffee beans and then went on the say that he personally has "a coffee grinder that has a spinning blade to smash the beans apart" and is looking at a conical bur grinder to replace it.
Being a fan of science and Dr Karl, I'm going to answer this in a scientific way.
Being a fan of science and Dr Karl, I'm going to answer this in a scientific way.
Spice grinder
A blade grinder is also known as a spice grinder and can be had for about $20 almost anywhere in Australia. These grinders are pretty much okay for drip coffee, or peculated coffee, but not so much for Espresso coffee, and any kind of precision coffee process like cold press or pour-over for the same reasons. A spice grinder will smash the beans creating irregular particles, but an added enemy to your coffee is the heat generated that will destroy the coffee flavours before its had a chance to be extracted in the coffee extraction process.
The conical grinder and flat bur grinders are a significant upgrade on a flat blade grinder . The former brings two metal plates together that will grind the coffee slowly and in a precise way so that all the resultant coffee grounds are of uniform size - this is especially important when making espresso with an espresso machine as any irregularity in the coffee grinds will allow for hot water, under pressure, to channel through the grinds and there will be a whole bunch of coffee that has not been affected by water and your coffee will be weaker and have less volume and crema by comparison.
A conical burr grinder has blades that are gentler on coffee beans resulting in a more uniform grind
The problem with a conical burr, or flat bur grinder is they cost anywhere from $300 upto $1500, with the average being about $600 - that's a lot of cash compared to a $20 grinder. Keep in mind that the $20 grinder is absolutely not doing the same job though.
A very good alternative to an electric conical burr grinder or flat bur grinder is a quality hand grinder from a company like Hario Japan - actually, is some regards it can be an even better choice if your making coffee for one regularly. You will become closer to your coffee making process and there is almost no heat generated, it is completely portable and the almost silent operation is something to be experienced. A quality hand grinder can be purchased for around $70.
A very good alternative to an electric conical burr grinder or flat bur grinder is a quality hand grinder from a company like Hario Japan - actually, is some regards it can be an even better choice if your making coffee for one regularly. You will become closer to your coffee making process and there is almost no heat generated, it is completely portable and the almost silent operation is something to be experienced. A quality hand grinder can be purchased for around $70.
The Hario hand grinder can be had for only $70 delivered in Australia.
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