Customer Reviews

Braun KMM30 Coffee/Espresso Mill, White

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

This is a very nice piece of equipment. I guess how you will react to it depends on your attitude about coffee. If you're a real coffee fan on a budget, you'll love it. If the idea of grinding coffee fresh is new to you and you're not sure it's worth it, you might find this one too much trouble -- start with one of those little chopper mills (the ones with exposed blades like a blender).

My favorite feature is that the grind is *really* adjustable, which wasn't the case with the conventional Krups grinder that served me for many years. My wife likes French press coffee (very coarse) and I like an extra-fine drip. For years, she's been making do with "sorta coarse" and I've been making do with "kinda fine," but now she gets coarse and I get fine (I use the coarsest espresso setting).

As for faults, yes, it's a little messy, although it's not like it spews coffee grounds on your ceiling. I keep mine on a paper plate on the counter, which contains the debris just fine. The noise is considerably less than either conventional grinders or chopper-type mills -- it's loud, but you won't wake everyone in the house unless they're very light sleepers. And of course the setting on the side doesn't = the number of cups -- how big is a coffee cup anyway? Assuming you make coffee in the same pot every day, you'll quickly figure out the right amount of beans and the right twist on the knob.

My last Krups machine lasted 15 years. This one seems well built as well.

The Braun KMMM30 is a very reliable grinder. My Braun coffee grinder after a year of use is still working great and has never jamed on me unlike some others. The grind is consistant. I don't think that there is a better coffee grinder in its price range. The only negative is that if you pull off the side coffee ground holder for cleaning, a very small amount of the grounds spill out onto the counter from the exposed hole where the grounds exit into the hopper on the upper side.

Some coffee snobs say the espresso grind from this Braun is not quit fine enough for their high end $500+ espresso machines such as the non-presurized finicky Rancilio Silvia. However, my Braun produced a nice espresso grade powder for my everyday pressurized espresso machine when I wanted it. This Braun coffee grinder will produce satisfactory results for most of the more predictable and less finicky everyday pressurized espresso machines.

Espresso geeks with high end non-pressurized more finicky home espresso machines such as the high quality Rancilio Silvia or Solis SL70 may want to consider a more elegant and finer coffee grinder such as the Capresso Infinity, Solis Maestro, or Kitchenaid Pro-Line and such. However, I sent back my much touted bean jamming Solis Maestro and am quit happy with this Braun grinder instead. The everyday coffee drinker (or espresso drinker with an everyday pressurized espresso machine) will probably love this reliable yet reasonably priced grinder.

Pros: A very reliable "Can Do" Coffee Grinder, one of the best in its very affordable price range.

Con: A little messy pulling out side feeding ground coffee holder for cleaning (however, the lid on the ground holder can be removed for easy access of the grounds with the included spoon. Yes it is a little noisy but not that bad at all.

Note: Although there is no pulse grinding button, you can simply move the timer slightly and hold it until you have ground what you want then let it go and it will turn off instantly.

Alternate buying suggestions: If you don't mind spending twice as much for a more refined coffee grinder, the Capresso Infinity, Kitchenaid Pro-Line, and Solis Maestro are good machines. The Kitchenaid and Solis however are known to have the beans get caught in the hopper occasionally requiring you to shake the grinder or poke the beans to resume the grinding. Also, both the heavy duy Rancilio espresso machine and the lower priced pressurized but still good Solis SL70 put out great high end espresso and can also be purchased at an even lower price as refurbished-factory returns. Unless you are a coffee geek or just make lattes, etc, lower priced espresso machines will do fine. The Delonghi Bar32 makes a nice espresso machine with a stainless boiler and porta filter (no aluminum). It is one of the few stainess lower priced espresso machines around. The Capresso Espresso pro is a good espresso machine and says all stainless but has an aluminum porta filter although the filter cup is stainless. However, if you are in the Capresso Espresso Pro price range, you may want to look at the Solis SL70 instead.

I'm not a big fan of the grind in the cup models. Too difficult to get a decent espresso grind without getting a purely pulverized bottom layer. I think this model, which I have owned and used for over 5 years now, has passed the test. I have read all of the reviews for this and similar items, and I feel that I have definately got my money's worth out of it and then some.

People have already commented on the shortcomings. The machine grinds on the fine side, which works well with a gold cone, vaccuum seal or french press. I own all 3 types and everyone comments on how good the coffee is. The static can be a bit of a problem, but like one reviewer wrote, let it set for about 1 minute and it will be pretty much gone. A wipe on the counter with a sponge and all the mess made (minimal) will be gone.

I don't clean this unit very often (once every 4-5 months or so) and I haven't noticied any ill affects on the taste of the coffee. That may help reduce the level of static. I do tend toward the dark, oily roasts. One complaint that I really haven't seen anywhere is the penchant for the coffee to build up in the chute when grinding a fair amount. Kind of a pain as you have to turn it off, clean out the chute (easy enough), and grind more. I have found that shaking the unit while grinding helps alleviate this and helps the beans fall into the grinder (they sometimes stick to each other if really oily).

On the positive. This is a sturdy unit. It has lasted 5 years. It does grind from coarse to fine, and does a fair job on the coarse side, a wonderful job on the fine (which on the dial is medium and on). the cleanup is minimal, and the mess when grinding is pretty much non-existent (not until you open the grinder container do you get a little mess).

I would give it a five star rating if they could improve on the chute buildup issue. Maybe make a lever that can be used from the outside to pass any backup. All in all, I am satisfied with this grinder.

It makes a mess when emptying the storage cup, unless the humidity is so high it is unbearable. The plastic that it is made of creates evil static electricity that makes it a pain. It clogs up both in the storage hopper and in the chute that empties into the outside cup. It does do a good job grinding the beans and has an easy adjustment for fineness--coarseness. The hopper is removeable for cleaning, which needs to be done frequently if you grind espresso or other more oily roasts. For the price though, this is a good grinder.

I've had this grinder for about 3 years now, and have generally been pleased with the quality of the coffee. Nevertheless, the design is a lot less than ideal, especially its reliance on a timer and its lack of a readily visible measurement. Accordingly, the only practical way to use it is to determine via trial and error how much grind time equals the amount of coffee you want - and grind only that amount for each use. In my case, 25 seconds is right for my morning mug-and-a-half.

Fly-away coffee grounds are also a bit annoying. That said, grinding only what you need and dumping the whole ground-cofee bin into the coffee filter helps. As for cleaning the machine itself, I find no need to do so other than wiping down the exterior and putting the bin through the dishwasher every few weeks.

...I have been very disappointed.

The reviews which comment on the mess of the machine are right on--the static is a big problem, which I never noted in a mill grinder. The grounds stick all over the grinding reservoir and do amazingly tend to "jump" out when you take the lid off. Maybe this would be less of a problem in more humid weather, or with a different roast, who knows. But it is very messy, and the machine difficult to clean.

However, I'd be willing to live with the mess if the grinder did a good job. It does not. I got a burr grinder to 1) produce an even grind, and 2) eliminate the potential for "burning" that a mill grinder can have.

Regarding #1, this grinder grinds about 90% of the coffee reasonably evenly. However, it does create a fine powder of grinds regardless of the setting for the remaining 10%. That means you can either scrape the powder into your filter basket, or waste 10% of your grind. This is particularly disappointing to me because I like French press and gold-filtered coffee (i.e., no paper filter), and there is simply no way to avoid "muddy" coffee using this grinder without a filter.

Regarding #2, I taste absolutely no difference between this an a good mill grinder, like a Braun KSM2.

Lastly, this thing is SLOOOOOOW. Over a minute to grind enough for a 12-cup pot. Plus, you need to constantly whack the side of the bean cup to coax the last few beans into the grinder.

So, save your money and cupboard space and buy the Braun KSM2...

Instead of measuring out your finished grounds, just figure out how much grinding time you need for a pot. I set my dial for 2/3 of the total time possible and this is enough ground beans for a perfect strong pot of brew.

Then, just pour the coffee directly from the cannister into your coffee filter. Take your spoon and scrape down the part that sticks to the inside if the cannister into your filter as well. This way you only grind enough for a pot each time and have very little mess.

I have had this grinder for 5 years. I do agree the grind settings are a joke, with very little difference between fine and coarse.

However, if you put the part that holds the beans into the dishwasher, it get white spots and etches where all the coffee oils have somehow changed the plastic. Hand wash every now and then to keep it clean and clear.

We've used this grinder for at least five years once or twice a day without any problems. It has served very faithfully, although I have to admit that it has some ergonomic problems and it required some adapting at first.

As mentioned in the other reviews, the grinder can be messy. However, there are a few things one can do to aleviate the spilling of the grounds: If you use a darker roast which tends to be more electrostatically charged, let the ground coffee sit for a couple of minutes after grinding before opening the receptacle. The electrostatic charges usually dissipate quickly which reduces the mess already by 50%. In addition, I always tap the lid of the receptacle with the scoop which causes the grounds that adhere to the lid to fall down into the receptacle. Once the lid is removed, I use the flat end of the scoop handle to briefly "wipe" the area in and around the spout before taking the receptacle completely off in order to pour the coffee into the coffee filter. Whatever coffee grounds end up spilling is easily removed with one swipe of the dish rag. By the way, lightly roasted coffee (as is common in Europe) causes virtually no electrostatic charge built-up in this grinder.

I give it three stars because of the mess, but it appears that all other burr grinders equally fail to impress their owners. Should I find a better burr grinder in the fifty dollar bracket I'll let you know.

I had no problems with coffee fines spilling onto the counter. If others did then they had the lid(s) loose or the catcher was not snugged up against the machine. You should hear a "click" when the catcher snaps into place.
Yes there is static electricity - thats a characteristic of plastic. Just get a small paint brush and brush out the fines. The use of metal or glass for the catcher would cause other, more annoying problems and would also add to the cost.
I had a Krupp before this and the Braun works as well with one minor exception. The Braun throat design for the feed into the grinding mechanism is such that the last few beans fly around and take extra time to be "captured" and ground. The Kraup design was such that the beans slid smoothly down the shoot and the last few did not bounce around to the extent that they do in the Braun. Without that I would have rated it 5 Star.

I've read all the complaints about this grinder and they're unwarranted. I've used the grinder for espresso (for which it's perfect) and drip and I've been happy with the results every single time.

It's true that some of the grinds will collect at the top of the bin, but that's because the grinder blows them out the top. All you need to do is give the bin lid a quick tap with your open hand (just "pop" it) and the grinds fall to the bottom. It's pretty simple.

My only complaint is that I wanted to buy another in black and can't find it anywhere.