As someone who worked in the coffee industry for over a decade, I’m often asked how people can improve the coffee they make at home. I always answer the same way: Grind whole-bean coffee right before brewing.
A quality coffee grinder is the most important investment you can make when building out your home coffee setup. It will let you grind beans to a consistent coarseness and make repeatedly great joe. As far as what grinder to get, the best of the best is the Baratza Virtuoso+. Serious Eats has recommended this model for about six years, and I myself have used the Virtuoso+ almost daily for three years. Here’s why.
Why It’s Great
The primary objective of any coffee grinder is to grind beans to a uniform coarseness. If the grinds have some larger bits mixed with fine, powder-like pieces, this will result in uneven extraction and unbalanced and bitter flavors. A uniform grind ensures that every coffee particle brews in the same amount of time.
When I first used the Virtuoso+, I tested the grind size with a Kruve sifter to evaluate its uniformity. I was testing it against six other grinders at the time, and the Virtuoso+ delivered the best results. Years later, the grinder’s conical, stainless steel burrs are still sharp and yield consistent ground beans daily.
It’s Easy to Use and Clean
Using the Virtuoso+ really couldn’t be any simpler. Once the coffee beans are in the hopper, press a button and the grinder will run for a set amount of time—or, once running, you can press it again to stop it. (The power button doubles as a dial for tweaking the time.) To adjust the grind size, all you have to do is rotate the bean hopper to one of the 40 indexed settings. Everything is intuitive. The catch bin is also made of anti-static plastic, reducing the amount of grounds spewed onto the countertop.
Now, onto the second point: cleanup. Grinders require regular cleaning. Oils and fine particulates from grinding coffee can build up inside the grinder and turn rancid over time. Thankfully, the Virtuoso+’s hopper easily detaches, revealing the stainless steel burrs beneath it. The top level of burrs can be easily removed for cleaning. That gives you access to the bottom set of conical burrs, which you can quickly wipe down with a dry cloth or brush.
Build Quality and Repairs
With the Baratza Virtuoso+, you’re not only getting a high-performance machine but one that’s also built to last. Everything—including the plastic hopper, stainless steel burrs, and heavy base—is sturdy and fits together well.
It’s important to note that stainless steel burrs, like knives, will become more dull with use. Baratza’s grinders are built to be repairable and the company even sells replacement parts if you’d like to fix one yourself. My grinder is still performing well, but if anything were to go wrong, Baratza offers a repair service, too.
As someone who takes their morning coffee seriously, I really can’t recommend investing in a Baratza Virtuoso+ enough. It’s the perfect blend of high-performance precision and built-to-last sturdiness.
FAQs
Can the Baratza Virtuoso grind espresso?
At its finest settings, the Baratza Virtuoso+ can get close to the proper grind consistency for espresso, but for anyone serious about espresso, you’ll want to invest in a separate espresso grinder. Brewing espresso requires an extremely fine particle size and the ability to perfectly dial in each parameter to tweak variables like flow rate. A general-use coffee grinder like the Baratza Virtuoso+ is designed to grind more coarsely and doesn’t allow the user to zero in on the perfect, extra-fine grind for your portafilter and espresso machine.
How do you clean the Baratza Virtuoso?
To clean the Baratza Virtuoso, first twist the hopper and lift it to remove it from the grinder. Beneath the hopper, the burrs can be easily removed for cleaning. To clean the burrs, wipe them down with a dry cloth or cleaning brush. To remove any built-up chaff or ground coffee from the grinder, you can also use a can of compressed air.
Why We’re the Experts
- Dylan Ettinger is a Serious Eats contributor who specializes in coffee, spirits, cocktails, and barware. With over a decade of experience in the specialty coffee industry, he has spent the last four years testing and reviewing coffee grinders, espresso machines, pour-over cones, and other home coffee appliances for a variety of publications.
- Dylan has tested the Baratza Virtuoso+ next to other coffee grinders and has used the grinder daily for over three years.
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