Customer Reviews

9-in. Unicorn Magnum Plus Pepper Mill, Black.

5 star:		(101)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The Unicorn Magnum Plus is a fantastic pepper mill! Some key features include:

* Grind Quality
It's very easy to set your grind at the base, and it maintains your preferred grind consistently, use-after-use.

* Huge Output
You get a LOT of pepper per grind!

* Huge Storage Area
This pepper mill has one of the largest storage areas for pepper that I've seen. It takes a very long time to go through this much pepper!

* Easy to Fill
On the off-chance that you might need to refill your pepper grinder one day, it is very simple to do so. No screws or parts to remove... simply twist a covering located near the top of the pepper mill and refill. It may be good to note, however, that as easy as it is to refill, it is just as easy to UNfill... I accidently emptied peppercorns all over my kitchen floor one day when I inadvertently twisted the cover.

* Comfortable to Use
This pepper mill, above all, is comfortable to use. Whether you want a little pepper or a lot, this pepper mill will not cramp your hand or cause you any pain. This is a big plus when you are trying to add a lot of pepper to a steak or a soup.

The only real downside of this pepper mill is its looks. It's large, black, and made of plastic -- not the most attractive item on the kitchen counter. If it were stainless steel, or in some other way had a neat modern look, it would be absolutely perfect.

Although I think it is certainly worth it, the price is a little steep. If you are looking for something a bit cheaper, I read that Cooks Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen also recommends the "Oxo Grind It" and the "Zyliss Large Pepper Mill" as good buys.

Consider the lowly pepper mill, charged with a function so pedestrian one might imagine its design would have been perfected centuries ago. Ask for pepper in a restaurant and most likely a waiter, not your waiter but a special waiter, will arrive with something resembling a baseball bat which he or she waves menacingly over your plate until at last you cry, "Uncle".

Home mills are almost invariably short and bulbous, sporting jaunty S-shaped brass cranks. Routinely made of wood specially designed to attract and retain kitchen grime, they resemble something turned on a lathe by a moderately talented 6th-grader in a remedial shop class. With the capacity of 7.7 peppercorns, inserted with tweezers through an almost inaccessible door, these mills manage to generate a thin film of pepper dust before jamming completely.

The advent of industrial chic ushered in the stainless steel equivalent. More attractive and expensive than their predecessors, they matched them pound for pound where it counts, uselessness. The arrival of the Unicorn Magnum Plus Pepper Mill heralds the end of the quest for pepper mill perfection.

Like a prizefighter surveying his opponent on the canvas, it grinds rock-hard peppercorns into flakes effortlessly, as if to say, "Is that all you've got for me?" Filling is fast, simple, and intuitive while capacity is nothing short of cavernous. Once topped-off you're set for a good long while, perhaps one full political administration, or until the complete collapse of civilization, whichever comes first.

Great grip, easy to use, adjustable grind that delivers consistently. Design criticisms, predicated on materials used rather than its exemplary good looks, are misguided. The days when the word "plastic" was synonymous with "cheap" are long gone. For many design engineers, plastic is the premier material, specified by choice, not as a fallback position. Indeed, this exceptional mill is easy to use, clean, and maintain specifically because the materials used enabled its design. Definitely worth it.

I own God knows how many pepper mills, ranging from one that looks like a wine bottle to a battery-powered electric one. This however is the best I have EVER used... one turn of the screw puts out enough pepper for cooking just about anything. Moreover, the storage container is huge, holding two or three typical pepper jars. Though Amazon doesn't seem to sell it, I'd also recommend the similar Salt mill from the same company.

I bought this pepper mill on Alton Brown's recommendation, and it's fantastic. I can't sing its praises better than the other reviewers have (it has a tremendous capacity and crushes A LOT of pepper with each easy turn), so I'll focus on the two very minor quibbles that I have with the product. First, you fill the pepper through a large hole on the side/top of the mill. A little door slides this hole shut, but it's easy to inadvertently open the hole while grinding the pepper. Like another reviewer, I have had a pepper spill with this model. Additionally, if you look at the picture, what you see is what you get: this pepper mill is a big, shiny, black, plastic cylinder. It does not delight me aesthetically.

I got my new highly rated peppermill and loaded it up, started grinding away on a couple of thick cut pork chops. So far so good. All of a sudden there are peppercorns all over the chops and the cutting board.

OK I admit I am three glasses into a bottle of Voignier, but still I see the flaw. Like all peppermills, you turn the top clockwise to grind pepper. The way you load the peppercorns in to this mill is by pouring them into a large hole right below the grinding wheel at the top. This hole is accessed by turning a ring CLOCKWISE, thereby exposing the large hole in which you pour the peppercorns, which coincidentally is the same large hole through which the peppercorns escaped all over my chops and the surrounding area. So you turn the grinder in the same direction you turn the ring right below which covers the large access hole. WHOOPS.

It seems that if you just made the ring covering the access hole turn COUNTER-CLOCKWISE, you would eliminate the risk of a wine-infused cook spilling peppercorns all over creation. Easy fix. On the other hand I created a new dish- "1000 Peppercorn Encrusted Thick Cut Pork Chops".

I think I will accommodate for this flaw, because this mill is a grinding fool and I like it, but be forewarned.

Length:: 2:03 Mins

Darn fine pepper grinder. It's the only one I'll ever use again.

Numerous authorities on cooking have rated this their favorite pepper mill, and while it may be the best mill out there, it is not flawless. It does, however, hold a huge quantity of pepper and grid it very quickly. Unfortunately, not only is it a bit ugly, but I find that I sometimes accidentally open the fill area while grinding, occasionally resulting in a peppercorn explosion when I invert the mill! Mostly just carelessness on my part, but I do wish it was a little *more* difficult to add more pepper!

Pros:
1) Big
2) Fast
3) Invincible

Cons:
1) Prone to accidental opening
2) Not particularly attractive

This monster pepper mill puts out some monster pepper! We use A LOT of pepper in this house, both in cooking and extra add-ins. I finally got so sick and tired of having to crank on my old 7-1/2-inch Zassenhaus until the end of time to get an adequate amount of pepper, not to mention having to refill it at least once or twice a week, that I did some looking for a larger size, high-output peppermill, found this one highly recommended, and asked for it for Christmas. I have NOT been disappointed. I had to use up every peppercorn I had in the house just to get it 3/4 full, and I have not needed to refill it YET. This baby puts out the pepper. No cranking/twisting until your arms fall off, the seasons change, and MORE gray hair appears.

I agree with what another reviewer said, which is that the ONLY downside to this mill is its lackluster appearance. It would be great if it were more attractive or had a more sophisticated body/covering. However, that said, performance is the key, and this mill delivers. Aesthetics are a distant second for me here, so this is a very small thing to have to live with. Really, for me, the appearance is not even worth mentioning, but if you are someone who has to have a pretty package, this one isn't going to be it. If you are someone who cannot get along without massive quantities of freshly ground pepper and wants a high-performance mill, it most definitely is.

The only problem I have had with it is that I seem to have to crank the grind adjustment down every time or every couple of times I use it to keep it to the finest grind setting. Other than that, this peppermill has been the answer to my prayer. Now that I've started REALLY cranking the knob all the way down, I'm having this problem less and less. I was hesitant to do that in the beginning because I didn't want to overtighten for fear of wearing out or degrading the screw mechanism. I have not had a problem with accidentally turning the fill ring and dumping peppercorns all over the place, and I have not had a problem with arm or hand "peppermill cramp," either.

Ooh, did I mention what a breeze it is to fill? Takes a few seconds to figure it out. I found that a regular silverware spoon size fits very nicely into the large mouth of the fill apparatus where you can just drop them in. Nice and tidy. Of course, it will take you a while if you want to FILL IT ALL THE WAY UP. But you can do it without scattering peppercorns all over the creation. No more playing 1000 scattered peppercorn pickup and no more springs and tops to replace, either. Great investment.

Edit: Eleven months after purchase, this peppermill literally FELL APART, dumping a full mill of peppercorns (over a full cup) into 4 quarts of chili, as I was grinding pepper directly into the pot. Grind consistency and ease of use had noticeably deteriorated about 2 weeks prior to this. Should have seen it coming but did not. Unfortunately, had to pick 10,000 peppercorns out of a huge pot of chili. Hoping the manufacturer will honor the "lifetime warranty."

Followup Edit: Manufacturer replaced broken mill with a new one. Broken one was not repairable. New mill arrived 7 days after old one was shipped back for repair. Excellent product, excellent company.

You would think that after all this time, a pepper mill that actually works would be easy to find. It isn't. I went through many, many mills. None of them had much output. None of them really allowed me to adjust the grind to anything other than subatomic dust size.

And then I found this.

It holds so much pepper you'll need to buy some more. I use mine constantly, but can't remember the last time I filled it. Maybe once a year, maybe less. Good thing, too, because the refill hole seems really big until you try to figure out how to get peppercorns into it. They are large and rough, so funnels get clogged fast. The last time I did it I used a rolled up sheet of paper, and that seemed to work. I still keep my vacuum handy.

The company that makes these is based in Nantucket, but they went all the way to Italy to get the grinding mechanism. It was worth the trip, because they certainly found a good one.

The main problem with the other mills is that the companies that make them spend all their time trying to make the exterior distinctive to differentiate their product from all the other mills out there, and no time on the grinding mechanism inside, which is really the most important part of a mill.

Lots of pepper comes out with a quarter-turn. So much so, that a full turn will literally hide your food behind the pepper. If you like pepper as much as I do, that's a great thing.

I especially like the fact that it will let me adjust the grind to big and course. Great flavor, no dust.

They make this in two sizes.

The Magnum Plus is the size meant for waiters. The company sells a holster for this purpose on their web site. It is very tall, and holds tons of pepper. I keep one next to my stove at all times, and use it for covering steaks, chicken breasts, and other foods with pepper.

The Magnum size is the exact same mill and grinding mechanism, but is much shorter and doesn't hold as much pepper. I use the Magnum size on my kitchen table, as it is a better size for individuals who just want to add some pepper to their food. I have a couple of the matching salt grinders to go with them, and they also work well.

Magnum Peppermill - 6-Inch
Magnum Salt Mill- 6-Inch

It has one real flaw, though. The ring that opens the filling hole turns way, way too easily. When you first get yours, fill it all the way up and get out a black roll of electrical tape. Cut a short piece of it and put it along the bottom of the ring (no need to go all the way around, an inch will do). It hardly shows, and it will save you from the inevitable pepper storm that happens when the ring turns while grinding. I'm still finding the occasional peppercorn in my kitchen left over from that little incident.

Now that you've found the best pepper mill, you'll want to fill it with something good. I recommend black Tellicherry peppercorns, which have a really high piperine (the part that makes it hot) content, and volatile oil (the part that makes it flavorful).

India Tree Tellicherry Pepper, 2.3 lb

Sean P. Logue, 2007

I love this pepper mill. I must admit when I saw my favorite chefs (Alton Brown and the folks at Cooks Illustrated) with one I had to have it. Then I saw the price tag and thought they were all crazy. How could a $45 pepper mill be worth it? After a few months of eyeing it suspicously in the store, I broke down and got one. I have no regrets -- it is worth every penny.

I love its size; you fill it once and you're set for a year. It's easy to adjust the grind. I don't think you can get the finest grind ever out of it, but you'll get close. You get a good deal of output from it, which is probably its best feature. It's also easy to use and clean. Lastly, it just looks cool.

As with all pepper mills -- this one leaks, but not any more or less than others. I store it on an upturned lid from a can of baking powder.