21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well-built, does the job, perfect for French presss, March 4, 2008
This review is from: Saeco GT-1 Titan Conical Burr Grinder (Kitchen)
I bought this grinder for my wife this last Christmas. It's been two months now, and we are very happy with it. In this price range, I found 3 choices - Saeco Titan,
Capresso 560 Infinity Burr Grinder, Black, and
Breville BCG450XL Ikon Conical Burr Grinder. Burr grinders in the ~$50 range seemed unattractive (=not worth the money) from the reviews here. Both Capresso and Breville had consistently good reviews, Saeco Titan appeared to be a new model and did not have any. I decided to go find them all in a store and compare - well, easier said than done... In a major urban area, the only place where I found any of these grinders was a bigger Bed Bath and Beyond store (you'll see what I mean if you go to their website and look for a location near you; don't go to a regular BBBY). There was this model there, along with Capresso 564 - a more expensive, chrome, version of the $90 Capresso 560. I looked at both closely, and it didn't take long to choose the Saeco. Even though the Capresso felt heavier, more "solid" (at $139!), I liked less the design of the burr assembly and collar. Saeco also seemed easier to open, and the dial's position on the side more convenient. And yes, it is indeed made in Switzerland. The price was $130, but I had BBBY's 20% off coupon...
One thing I should stress, while we have used the Titan for 2 months, we have no experience using the Capresso model. It is of course entirely possible that, while having failed to impress me at the store, Capresso might actually grind better, who knows?.. I can speak for the Titan, though. For us the Titan does the job well enough. Easy to use, consistent operation, not too loud, and of course, a huge improvement over our previous $30 grinder. Will it grind fine enough for you? Well, it definitely does not grind fine enough for a proper Turkish coffee, but then none of these machines will. You'd have to pay more - many times the $130. You'll be better off buying Turkish-ground coffee from a good supplier or, if you must have it absolutely fresh, get one of those old-fashioned hand-driven coffee mills. I saw quite a few here on Amazon. Expect to pay ~$150 and need a set of strong hands, but those *will* give you the finest grinds.
We use our Titan at the coarsest setting and brew in French press, it seems perfect for that. Clean, consistent grind, no dust, and excellent brew, great taste.
One last thing I thought could be helpful if you don't get to see these grinders in a store - they all are smaller than they appear in pictures and take little space.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not bad, but a messy problem with static electricity, February 23, 2008
This review is from: Saeco GT-1 Titan Conical Burr Grinder (Kitchen)
Saeco GT-1 Titan Conical Burr Grinder is advertised as having an anti-static device, but the engineers have clearly failed in this regard. Grinding coffee results in static electricity sending ground coffee everywhere. I've had other burr grinders that have had static in very dry periods during the dead of winter. This Saeco, however, suffers from static regardless of the weather. It leaves coffee grounds all over the place once you're done grinding.
Also, the hopper for the grounds is not big enough if you're grinding for a 12 cup coffee maker.
Other than the above, the grinder seems fairly well made, is not unduly noisy, and grinds coffee quickly and uniformly. I wouldn't buy it again, however.
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16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good For SOME Machines, February 1, 2008
This review is from: Saeco GT-1 Titan Conical Burr Grinder (Kitchen)
The Saeco grinder makes a consistent grind for most coffees. However, if you want this for espresso, you may want to skip this one depending on what type of espresso machine you have.
If you have a machine with a pressurized portafilter, you may be fine.
If you have a non-pressurized portafilter (portafilter w/o that plasic piece in it), you want to skip this for it wont grind the beans fine enough. When I say fine enough, this means pulling a 25-30 shot of espresso. You'll get a 20 second shot (or less) after tamping w/ a lot of force.
As for static, it seems to change depending on what type of beans I was using.
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