The method by which coffee is ground and the equipment that is used plays a considerable role in determining the ultimate quality of the final drink. It is a known fact that coffee beans are easily oxidized when exposed to air. When the beans are ground at home, it means there is a least exposure to air which leads to the production of the freshest grounds. However, all who have worked on the processing will agree that grinding is definitely a cumbersome task. The results you will have from the grinding procedure mainly depend on the kind of grinder you pick up. In the following sections, we give brief details of the major types of grinders along with their key differences.



The Categories

There are generally three kinds of grinders, including burr, blade and crusher. To begin with, the burr grinders consist of a pair of motor driven plates that have pyramid-shaped teeth which grind into the beans, turning them into small granules. At times, it also has a facility of adjusting the size of the grain along with the speed of the grinding. The burr grinders further fall into two categories, the conical burr grinder being the more preferred one.

Conical burr grinders which are of a finer quality have the ability to rotate at a slow pace of 500 rpm, while the other burr grinders usually rotate at 10,000 rpm or even higher. While some grinders might have a continuous dial, the others will have a sequence of 40 steps to settle the size of the granule. Meanwhile, the blade grinders mainly perform the function of chopping as the blade slices the beans into smaller portions until the point they resemble a small grain. However, this method leads to the production of excess heat, due to the high speed of the blades.

Lastly, the third kind of grinder is basically a kind of masher which uses an ancient-style mortar and pestle. The beans are crushed, producing granules of an uneven size that are most of the times not preferred. Meanwhile, features like the timer switch and auto-shutoff are useful additions as well as serve as a good criterion for judging the quality of a grinder. However, the best way to decide on a good quality grinder is to conduct a thorough research of the products available in the market. You can even conduct an online research to study the various models and products available and decide in accordance with your individual tastes and preferences.