Is It Worth Buying a Coffee Grinder?

Coffee grinders are made for those who prefer the aroma and flavor of freshly-grounded beans in the morning to kickstart the day. If you’re looking for one, check out this Krups GVX212 review to learn about the features of a highly-recommended model.

While it’s certain that coffee enthusiasts find immense value in owning a grinder, many individuals could have some reservations about it. Improving the quality of your morning coffee can be enticing, but does it matter?

Let’s find out the importance of having a coffee grinder and other related topics.

The Importance of Grinding Coffee Properly

The manner of how you grind your coffee is the first critical step in shaping how the finished brew will taste. You could have the most high-quality beans, the proper roast, expensive filters, pure water, and a fantastic coffee machine. All of that will get squandered with an inaccurate grind.

Whatever technique you choose to make coffee, the fundamental purpose of grinding coffee is always the same. It’s about breaking down the roasted coffee bean to reveal the inside of the bean. Once the insides are exposed, extraction of oils and flavors is possible.

Ground coffee has a substantially larger surface area than whole bean coffee, allowing more water, the extraction agent, to come into contact with the coffee during the brewing process. More contact translates to better flavor extraction.

When coffee is appropriately ground, the taste of the coffee beans is greatly enhanced. The brewing process extracts soluble elements such as caffeine, sugars, acids, lipids, and other materials. All of these contribute to the flavor and quality of the coffee.

That’s why the objective is to extract the correct number of solubles to make a well-balanced cup. The two critical factors for optimizing extraction are grind setting and brew time.

If over-extracted, the bitter solubles overpower the sweetness, and if it is under-extracted, the sweet-tasting solubles are not exposed, resulting in a sour flavor. As such, to get the most taste out of your favorite beans, it’s critical to ground them properly.

How About Grind Size?

For grind size, two key elements come into play. First, it’s the time in which coffee grounds remain in contact with the water. Second, it’s the rate of the flow of water through the grinds.

Your grind should be finer if the brewing method has a brief contact time, similar to an espresso machine. On the other hand, if the procedure steeps coffee grounds for several minutes in the water, the contact time tends to be longer. A coarser grind is required for such a process.

Why Purchase a Coffee Grinder?

As discussed earlier, grinding process is one of the influential factors in improving the aroma and taste of our coffee. If you want the best possible morning coffee available in your house, there’s little to no argument about getting yourself a coffee grinder.

Coffee beans are high in volatile chemicals. This implies that when these chemicals get exposed to air, they will start to dissipate.

As such, roasted coffee beans are recommended to be consumed within approximately two months. Also, they should be in an airtight container to reduce further exposure to air.

However, grinding the coffee beans dramatically increases its surface level. Once grounded, each coffee bean becomes a pile of coffee bean bits. These tiny bits of coffee beans get completely exposed to air, sunlight, dust, and other elements. 

Besides that, the flavor begins to dissipate shortly after the ground coffee is produced. According to experts, a difference in taste starts in about 15 minutes after the coffee beans are processed, which gives you a short window to make that delicious cup.

Pre-ground coffee might have been lying in warehouses and on grocery shelves for weeks or months. If the coffee beans remain on a shelf for that long, no vacuum packaging technique will keep them from turning stale.

As a result, freshly ground coffee significantly improves the flavor of the coffee you prepare. When combined with fresh beans, the quality of your morning coffee will drastically improve to the point that you won’t settle for anything less.

What Else Can You Grind With Coffee Grinders?

Other than grinding coffee, there are other uses you can take advantage of when you have a grinder at your disposal.

Spices

Like coffee beans, spices are significantly flavorful and aromatic when freshly ground. You may use it to grind cloves, chilly, cardamom pods, nutmeg, peppercorns, and many others.

Bread Crumbs

If you break your bread into tiny pieces, most coffee grinders can easily produce crumbs out of them. While putting bread in your grinder is possible, control the amount you’re putting in to avoid overloading.

Garnishes

You may use the coffee grinder to make garnishes for recipes that need a sprinkle of chocolate, nuts, and other small bits. The results may not be as fine or perfect as you want, but it’s still worth considering, especially if you don’t have a food processor.

A Coffee Grinder Is a Worthy Investment

Savoring the taste and aroma of freshly-brewed coffee is an excellent way to start your day. As such, if you want to enhance your coffee brewing, you should have no doubts about the importance of owning a grinder.