But they don’t.

Reviewing the Solis Crema Maestro Plus G385 was tough because we knew the reputation going in–a pretty good grinder for a very competitive price, but it doesn’t last forever. So we set out to see how long it would last.

Our panel had mixed results. Some people still have theirs functioning well, and they say it is a great entry-level grinder. But more than half of our team within the six months experienced at least some mechanical issue. Those are not the best odds when you consider you are not saving that much over a better quality grinder.

Clean-up was very easy, and the unit was quick to disassemble, clean, and put back together. Anti-static properties were better than average, and very good for this price range. Ground were great, even, and aromatic. So yes, the coffee was very good.

So here is the bottom line. If you don’t have a penny more to invest in a grinder, you are extremely lucky, or you are buying this for someone that you don’t expect to know more than a year from now, this is probably the grinder for you. But our recommendation would be to save up a little more and get a grinder with a better track record for longevity and quality. (Or, if saving is not your strength, maybe get a manual grinder. The exercise will build character.)

But our reasons are not so petty. Shelly and her West Coast team were tired of trying to get up early for the meetings with Brian and the East Coast team. I mean, let’s face it, nobody else could have lasted this long. 3 hours? That’s crazy, even if we are discussing a product that often entails restlessness and sleepless nights.

So, with a completely amiable separation, we would like to present to the world the new blog, ecoffeeburrgrinder.com, which represents the lesser but still important part of our team that simply lives on the wrong side of the country. They have skill (some) and cultured palates like we do (not really), and they will try to brew up pithy reviews of their favorite burr grinders just like we have been together as a team. But they will be really challenged in doing so without their East coast colleagues.

And so, we wish them luck, we ask you to check out their site, and we promise to post links to their reviews if they actually warrant reading (i.e. don’t expect to see many links). And we might have a slight wager on web traffic that will certainly work in our favor.

Good luck, eCoffeeBurrGrinder! And may the best site win! (We will send you our grounds when we are done with them!)

Turkish coffee requires fine grounds and a nice even grind. But why sit and watch your grinder have all the fun? Roll up your sleeves and enjoy being in complete control of your conical burrs.

OK, maybe we are overstating the workout angle. The Danesco is actually very easy to use and unfortunately we found no increase in heart rate and no one on our test team broke a sweat. But don’t worry–even though this grinder cannot be classified as “aerobic,” you will still enjoy the results.

Two of the big benefits of manual grinders tend to be easier clean-up then their peers and lower cost. When a motor is involved, there is almost always a significant increase in static electricity that makes clean-up a chore. Secondly, no motor means much lower cost, and often parts do not have to be as heavily engineered but can still be high quality. The result is often a grinder with great longevity but still leaves money in your pocket.

Obviously, the true test of any grinder is the flavor of the resulting grinds. Just for fun, we did a blind taste test with the Danesco and one of our favorite automatic grinders. The results surprised us–nearly half of the team correctly picked the Danesco as the manual grinder, the other half mistakenly picked the automatic grinder as the manual one, and approximately 100% of the team wanted a second cup and didn’t care from which grinder.

So the bottom line is–if you are a Turkish coffee enthusiast with a Spartan budget, this might be the best deal out there. And you will also save money because you won’t need to renew that gym membership.

Baratza is a well respected name in higher-end grinders. If you are looking at a Baratza, expect to pay a little more. But you will get a level of quality and consistency that you won’t find in your average $100 grinder. And the proof is in the grind.

The aptly-named Virtuoso is advertised as a special grinder due to its low motor RPM, between 405 and 495. This means you will get all the benefits of a great burr grinder–low heat, which will leave the grind’s flavor intact; low noise and vibration; and less static, making clean up that much easier.

The Virtuoso is high enough quality that we would rate this unit good enough for use in a coffee shop where you will be grinding regularly. As a commercial user, the price will be a big benefit–as a home user, you will enjoy the level of quality built into the grinder.

We found the Virtuoso lives up to the manufacturer’s hype as a great model that is easy to use and easy to clean. The grind, performed by Baratza’s quality ceramic burrs, is astoundingly even and the flavor of the grounds is rich and undisturbed by heat.

The bottom line–if you have a few extra dollars to spend on a top-notch grinder, you will not be disappointed by the Baratza Virtuoso. It has the right mix of features and quality to keep you satisfied for years.

WHAT? A unit from Gaggia that is under $100??? Don’t get excited, like we did. Most of you are probably familiar with the Gaggia name. They are renown makers of high-end coffee makers and grinders. The thought of a sub-C note grinder from Gaggia had us drooling.

But then we tried it. And tried it again. And tried it some more. And much as we wanted to like it–we didn’t.

As you have to expect from a less expensive grinder, the quality has to be compromised, and that means plastic instead of glass, which in turn means static. Clean up was messy, and the hopper honestly just feels cheap. This in and of itself is not the end of the world.

But then comes the grind. And there is where we felt completely let down by our friends at Gaggia. Several of us own more expensive Gaggia grinders, so our expectations were that the grind would be in the same ballpark, which it is not. Grounds were not especially consistent, but worst of all, the fine grinds had marked differences in size. Against our better judgment, we brewed with the grinds to complete the review, and found the flavor lacking. In the Gaggia’s defense, the engine stayed cool, meaning that we were not losing flavor to heat. But, that is all the more reason we would expect more.

Playing devil’s advocate, we had to ask ourselves–do we hate the 7002 because we hate the 7002, or do we hate the 7002 because we expect so much more from Gaggia? Would someone who had never heard of them like this unit more or less than a comparably priced unit from another maker? We think you will like it less. There are several other units on this site around $100–any one of which we actually preferred. We actually believe you may be paying something for Gaggia’s name without getting any of the benefits.

The bottom line–if you really want an entry level priced grinder, this is not the way to go. Go with a different manufacturer, or save up for a next level up Gaggia.

Good espresso machines are out there. Lots of them. But great machines for under $1,000–that is all but unheard of. So when we decided to branch out and take a look at the PL-16 Lusso, it was with some trepidation that the machine might not live up to the La Pavoni name.

As you can imagine, people who review coffee grinders are pretty passionate about coffee; and people who love coffee can’t go long without a fix of espresso. Having to go out for espresso is a pain, but most people refuse to spend the big bucks it takes to get a really great espresso maker.

If this sounds like you, don’t even bother reading the rest of this review–just click the link and grab a PL-16. The design is beautiful, day-to-day maintenance is a snap, the unit is easy to clean, and having a maker like this in your kitchen so you can have national coffeehouse chain quality espresso anytime you want–this is espresso nirvana!

The unit also comes with an attachment allowing you to use coffee pods if you wish. As coffee grinders, this thought seems crazy to us, but the option is there for you. You can also make cappuccino with the frothing adapter, so you have several options from the single purchase. The frothing function worked well enough, but our real love was the espresso.

Bottom line–if you want a great espresso maker with the taste of espresso from a thousand-dollar machine, look no further!

La Pavoni doesn’t waste time with plastic parts, instead building everything from quality metal. Where some hoppers are thin plastic, the Tre Spade’s thick plastic hopper is going to last forever. Surprisingly too, La Pavoni works anti-static miracles with the lowest static of any plastic hoppers we have ever used.

Coffee flavor, as always, is the ultimate test, and the even grounds coming from the nine discreet grind settings made excellent, aromatic coffee with rich flavor. And, as alluded to above, clean-up of the unit was very simple. The included brush was more than sufficient to remove oil and grounds from the conical grinder, with no extra work needed to remove rebellious static-cling grounds.

The only issue our panel had–about half of us felt the unit was noisier than the average grinder. Even so, the overwhelming opinion was that the unit was high quality and that the noise would not prevent our panel from buying it.

Bottom line–generally, if you are willing to spend a little more for a grinder that will last forever, you can’t go wrong with a La Pavoni model. And the Tre Spade is no exception, producing great grounds, with easy day to day maintenance.

La Pavoni has been around a long time, and its grinders are built to last. It is not uncommon for La Pavoni grinders to be running 10 years after their purchase as well as they did when you first got them.

The manufacturer actually touts the PGB’s appearance as “traditional.” We would use the word “dated.” In a world of slick and stylish grinders, this grinder looks like something we might have gotten as a family heirloom. But that is why we hasten to say–don’t let the looks make you ignore this powerhouse grinder. The PGB was actually selected by several on our team as “the” grinder they would choose if they could only choose one.

Daily maintenance wise, this is one the few grinders we used with a plastic hopper that avoided significant static issues with the grounds. Cleanup was easy, and there was no spillage thanks to the large hopper and attachment to the grinder housing.

As always, the real test is in the coffee flavor, and as expected, the La Pavoni does not disappoint. Deep, rich flavor and even grounds were delivered, as expected. The PGB only provides nine grind levels, but these are sufficient for all our requirements.

The bottom line–you may spend a little more for the La Pavoni PGB Coffee Grinder, but this grinder may be the last grinder you ever need to buy. Made by an extremely well-regarded manufacturer that has been doing it right for years, you will not be disappointed.

We had high hopes for the Krups GVX2-12. Krups has pleased us over the years with delivering quality entry-level coffee makers and related products. The price range of just over $50 seemed like a reasonable price for a basic, non-commercial grinder, if done right.

But, the GVX2-12 misses the mark. Issues included beans getting clogged in the grinder, the unit sometimes running without even getting beans into the grinder, the fine grind settings producing very uneven grounds, and units that stopped working. We sometimes come down hard on grinders for simply being hard to clean. This unit doesn’t even meet the threshold of doing the job it’s intended to do.

So, we are not going to comment on the coffee flavor, the grind settings, or the day to day handling of the unit. Don’t even bother with this one. And be glad we went through the experience so you don’t have to.

As you might expect, Cuisinart had to pull out all the stops to get an acceptable grinder for an entry level price. Parts that would normally be metal for longevity or glass for anti-static properties are plastic. The timer for grinding is adjustable in 2-cup increments–lacking some fine control, but this may meet your needs. No special engineering was done to reduce noise, but this is not the loudest grinder out there. And the motor RPM is a little higher than we would like to see, but it does not create an undue amount of heat.

The DBM-8 actually surprised us as a very capable little grinder. Grounds were evenly sized, flavor was very good, and day-to-day cleaning was not terribly burdensome. We did see a greater number of defective grinders than usual, but we ordered through Amazon and got our defective items replaced quickly–so this was not much more than an inconvenience.

The only downside of this grinder we can see is longevity. General reviews have found this grinder does not last as long as its more expensive siblings. Of course, the amount you use it factors greatly into this equation, so this may not be a big issue for you.

The bottom line–if your expectations are in line with what this unit can provide, and you are merely looking to enjoy some great coffee on a budget, this may be the best deal around. Be advised that you may want to spend a few more dollars to get some of the extras available in other grinders. But for an entry level grinder, the DBM-8 is a great deal.