One of the best things you can do for yourself is to experience
the taste of fresh ground coffee. There is nothing like the taste and aroma
found in a hot cup of coffee that was made from freshly ground coffee beans.
The time it takes to grind your own coffee is well worth it, as you simply
can't achieve the same wonderful results if you purchase packaged pre-ground
coffee. Once the coffee bean has been ground it begins to lose its aroma and
subtle flavours thus altering its character. Although subject to debate, the
general "life span" of ground coffee can be as little as few hours to
a few days. Preferably, you should only grind as much coffee as needed for each
pot of coffee or shot of espresso.
The number of coffee roasters and supermarkets who offer whole
bean coffee has swelled in recent years and most offer some very good coffee
blends and regional coffees. To experience the finest of what the coffee bean
has to offer, we strongly suggest you grind your own coffee. There are many
coffee grinders to choose from out there, but the task of finding the best one
may be a little easier after reading this short guide to coffee grinders.
Before we talk about coffee grinders we first want to define the
different coffee "grinds".
Course Grind: As the name implies, the grinds
are fairly large. This grind is suitable for percolators, coffee presses, pour
through makers, and drip coffee makers.
Medium Grind: This grind is known as the general-purpose
grind for all coffee makers. The size of the grounds resembles the consistency
of table salt. However, you would not want to use this grind setting for making
espresso.
Fine Grind: This grind setting would be used for
espresso primarily, but it also works well with drip and pours through coffee
makers. Because the grind is finer, there is more surface area for the water to
come in contact with. This generally offers a richer and stronger flavor.
Turkish Grind: This is the finest of all grinds
and closely resembles a powdered sugar like consistency. This grind is commonly
used with commercial espresso machines and home espresso machines without crema
enhancing devices. This grind will allow water to extract the most flavors out
of the coffee in the shortest time. Most home coffee grinders will be unable to
produce a Turkish grind, as it requires a powerful grinding mechanism. Most
coffee grinders found in bulk coffee sections of supermarkets and coffee stores
are capable of producing a Turkish grind.
Many manufacturers offer fairly decent coffee grinders these
days. Before choosing what coffee grinder to buy, you have to determine what
type of coffee maker you are using. Various coffee makers and espresso machines
require different size coffee grounds from fairly course to very fine. Below we
provide a list of the three most common coffee grinders found on the market and
provide a short description of each.
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