Famous Death Row Last Meals
PHOTOS: 7 Foods You'll Be Eating In The Future
Erin Meister trains baristas for North Carolina-based Counter Culture Coffee and sporadically maintains the blog Meet the Press Pot from her home in New York City. This is the second in a series of tips for the caffeine-addicted.
Maybe things got rolling a little fast with my last post about making the perfect cup of French press coffee. So let's back up a sec.
Some readers had pretty visceral reactions to my suggestion that they ditch the ol' whirly grinder in order to make a tastier mug of French press joe, and I understand: Blade grinders are cheap, burr grinders can be expensive! But not all decent burr grinders will chop your wallet as well as they chop your beans, and your cup quality should skyrocket as a result.
Learn why and see a ridiculous video of me after the jump.
Here's why: All coffee-brewing methods (e.g. French press, drip, espresso) basically serve one purpose: adding water to ground coffee. If the grounds are of varying sizes or the wrong size (as in the pic above, of the beans produced by a whirly-blade grinder), your coffee-brewing equipment can't compensate. Just like an oven can't correct batter with too much flour and not enough egg, only the right ingredients can yield something super tasty.
So why a burr grinder? Burr grinders are superior to blade grinders mostly because burrs are incrementally adjustable and can create more consistent grounds in myriad appropriate sizes. The name "burr" actually relates to the type of blades that are in the grinder. A blade grinder has a single strip of sharp metal that spins when activated, just like a food processor, and can't be adjusted. A burr grinder has a pair of interlocking blades with many sharp edges that fit together like the teeth of the gears in a watch. You can move those blades closer together or farther apart to create an exact grind size. With a blade grinder, you're more often left with a kind of mishmash:
While larger particles of coffee are good for brewing methods with a longer "dwell time" (when water and coffee are in contact), as with a French press, and smaller or finer particles are good for methods with a shorter dwell time, as with drip coffee, a blade grinder is more likely to produce the Goldilocks effect above: Some coffee is too coarse, some is too fine, and some is just right. By comparison, look at the grounds produced by the burrs:
However! I'm not here to create an army of people making coffee just like me: I want to hear how you make your whirly-blade grinder work for you. To prove that I'm open to suggestions, I already heeded one helpful blade-grinder tip that actually did seem to make a difference: shakin'! Check out this video to see me in (admittedly ridiculous) action.
Whaddaya think?
PHOTOS: This Is The Best Response To Abercrombie CEO Mike Jeffries We've Seen Yet
Live from Microsoft's New Generation Xbox event!
Who Won 'DWTS'?
Xbox Reveal liveblog on Joystiq
Dozens Killed in Oklahoma Tornado; Death Toll to Rise
PHOTOS: Tornado Aftermath Leaves Trail Of Destruction
Justin Bieber Booed, Gets Standing Ovation at Billboard Music Awards
2013 Billboard Music Awards Best and Worst Dressed
Rescuers Continue Search For Tornado Survivors
Watch: Kansas Meteorologist Seeks Shelter From Tornado
Xbox One architecture panel liveblog!
Wolf Blitzer's Embarrassing Moment With Tornado Survivor
Selena Gomez Leaving Justin Bieber's House: Booty Call Rumors Swirl
Two Pilots Fired After Brazilian Pop Star Takes Captain's Seat Mid-Flight
Grossed Out Student Finds "Worm" In His McMuffin
WATCH: Mom's Emotional Reunion With Son After Tornado
The World's Most Powerful Women
White Father Allegedly Suspected Of Kidnapping Biracial Daughters
15 Incredible Cat Photobombs
CBS Reporter's Grave Allegations
JODI ARIAS WANTS LIFE
Tornadoes Strike Oklahoma
Singer Sues McDonald's, Claims Chicken Sandwich Incident Ruined Her Voice
PHOTOS: Tornado Devastates Moore, Oklahoma
Oklahoma Senators Face Difficult Options On Disaster Relief
WATCH: Tornado Victim Finds Dog During CBS Interview
Mila Kunis And Ashton Kutcher Put Their Romance On Display
Justin Bieber BOOED While Accepting Award
CBS Pulls 'Mike & Molly' Tornado-Set Finale
OUCH: Singer Jumps, Lands On Fan's Neck
PORK BELLY: OJ Can't Get Enough Beans
5-21-2009 @3:23PM skyvue said... Very nicely explained -- and I was stirred by your shakin'!
Reply
5-21-2009 @3:39PM Alex Van Buren said... Erin, you've convinced me: I'm ordering a burr grinder today. --Alex
Reply
5-21-2009 @4:08PM Barry said... I've been using a blade grinder and shaking it while grinding (hmm, that last part seems wrong to post here...) for well over a decade. Works just fine with my French Press every morning.
Reply
5-22-2009 @12:11AM James said... Good article, fun video. Maybe mention that you can still use those slightly too fine coffee grounds in your french press but steep for less time? Just a thought. From the guy who loudly steps on peanuts.
Reply
5-22-2009 @9:12AM Meister said... Hi, James—good question!
It is ideal to use the most consistent grind size in your French press, and that preferred grind size is toward coarse. If you have an inconsistent grind (as can happen with a blade grinder, sadly) with both fine and coarse pieces mixed in, compensating by changing the extraction time might help a little, but it's still kinda problematic: some of those grounds will still overextract, some will underextract and some will extract just right. What you risk ending up with is an uneven cup that doesn't do your great beans justice—especially if the coffee is really nuanced, delicate or dynamic.
However, you are 100% correct: If you have a consistent grind that is a skosh finer than the coarseness recommended for French press, shortening that brew time is the way to go.
Happy pressing!
Meister
Reply
5-22-2009 @9:54AM RobynT said... You said that blade grinders are not adjustable, but mine has settings (fine, medium, coarse). What do you think is happening in there when I change the setting? (Not sure I notice a big difference when using different settings...)
Reply
5-22-2009 @11:21AM Joe said... Thats funny, I use a blade grinder and shake it up a bit when I'm grinding...it works.. you dont have to go crazy, it just basically gets all of the bigger pieces on the top to the bottom, so the blade can grab it
Reply
5-23-2009 @12:03PM Meister said... Hi, RobynT: I've never seen an adjustable blade grinder. Do you have a photo of it, or can you send a link to a similar product? I'm so curious!
Hi, Joe: Maybe your shaking technique is more sophisticated than mine. You can spot me as a new shaker from a mile away.
Happy caffeinating!
Meister
Reply
5-23-2009 @6:03PM Greg Sherwin said... Burr is always better. If you want chaos, may as well smash those puppies in a plastic Zip-loc with a ball-peen hammer if irregularity is a virtue.
But I have to protest: what's with the lame "tips for the caffeine-addicted" title? Someone posting a Slashfood series on inexpensive dinner wines wouldn't call the series "Cheap buzzes for alcoholics" -- why the double-standard with coffee?
If your readers are drinking it for the caffeine addiction alone, then they're coffee users, not coffee enjoyers.
Reply
5-25-2009 @11:28AM Astin said... @RobynT - it adjusts the length of time it grinds. The idea being that if the blade keeps spinning, it'll eventually get everything and pulverize it.
@Meister - most blade grinders today have a coarsness setting. The Hamilton Beach combined "# of cups" with coarseness. It works, to a degree, but still can be inconsistent.
Reply
7-11-2009 @8:06PM Derek Lutz said... I've been using the same blade grinder for years, shaking the beans while grinding and get a fine grind every single day. The picture used for a blade grinder must have come after five seconds of grinding. You need to grind for a good 30 seconds with at least a couple shakes.
That being said, I'd like to get a burr grinder, if for no other reason, than to annoy my wife who calls me a coffee snob despite not being a drinker of the greatest beverage in the world.
Reply