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Coffee drinkers over the many years have learned that raw coffee beans must be ground to release the full flavor of the bean. The degree a bean must be ground is dependent on what strength it is too brewed and in what it is going to be brewed. Coffee that is over ground will have impaired flavor and coffee that is not ground fine enough will not mix properly with the water.
The advantage of grinding your own beans on an as need basis should be obvious. In order to enjoy the full flavor of a unique coffee been. Coffee that is ground then stored loses some of its wonderful odor and taste. The best tasting and smelling coffee is a brew made from freshly ground beans.
There are many different kinds of grinders. There are basically four types of coffee grinders. Coffee grinders for personal use are usually portable. Generally, the heaver grinders are better as they have larger motors that can grind coffee at a slow rate. They have the power to get the job of grinding the bean done, eliminating the need to heat the coffee beans. Most personal use grinders make enough for five to ten servings of coffee which is enough for most household
Espresso grinders are a good for folks who want a grinder for their office to serve clients or for folks who entertain a great deal. These grinders weigh on average about ten pounds and produce stronger specialty grinds. These grinders produce more ground finished product and are best used with a larger coffee brewing machine or express machine. Most will produce a very strong brew.
If you are running a really big event and want to serve freshly ground coffee to a large number of people you may want to consider renting a commercial coffee grinder. These grinders make several pounds of grind without the risk of overheating the grinder. Most commercial grinder s has very large motors and hoppers, but still run on standard power. Commercial grinders have a dozer and usually are fully automatic taking the worry out of keeping up with demand for freshly ground beans at a large social event.
Most serious coffee drinkers can tell the difference between different brewing methods and beans. Certain types of beans need to be ground finer than other types of beans. Automatic coffee grinders will ideally offer you the ability to adjust the grind to create your needed type of coffee ground. . Conical burrs are able to provide the best kind of grind for Turkish or strong expresso. It makes a fine grind; without making unwanted coffee dust that causes some grinds to brew especially bitter.
A conical burr grinder has a moving grinding wheel that pushes the bean against a hard surface creating a very consistent grind. There are also wheel burr grinders that also can make a great fine grind, but they are nosier and messier than the conical burr grinder. Plan to spend upwards of $75 dollars for a really good conical burr grinder. Given how much we spend of beans and brewing machines it is reasonable to invest a little more in a quality grinder as well.
Antique coffee grinders are collectable, but can also be actually used to grind coffee. You can control the grind to some extent and of course brewing it the old fashioned by in a siphon coffee maker is the best way to use beans from an antique coffee grinder. The most common old fashioned grinder is the box coffee grinder that you crank. The box on the bottom can store up to usually a pound of beans. Then there are upright coffee grinders that use iron grinding wheels. Expect to get the metallic taste in your grind and avoid using antique upright grinders where the iron is chipping off. Ground iron does nothing to enhance the taste of any bean.
Real antique upright grinders are many times made of porcelain and will enhance any décor. Reproduction upright grinders will enhance your décor and may be more practical for daily use than a real antique upright grinder.
http://www.atitlan.net/articles/coffee/understanding-the-types-of-coffee-grinders.htm
http://www.coffeepros.net/coffeegrinders.html
http://www.oldcoffeegrinders.com/
http://www.oldcoffeegrinders.com/upright-coffee-grinders-or-mills.htm
