Koffiepraat.nl forum over koffie, espresso, filterkoffie, horeca en technieken

Spironski schreef: Alleen kost die K10 ding de helft van de Robur!

But the Vario spanked the Mini three times in a row on the Black Cat, and edged it three times in a row on the Bonko. The Vario tasted silky and buttery, while the Mini tasted angular and edgy. On one Bonko shot, we thought the edgy flavor on the Mini was slightly better, but the mouthfeel edge of the Vario was too much. That was on the final shot, and we knew by then which grinder was which.

So we promoted the Vario to the Titan league, and did six shots against the Compak. Here we had two slight slight wins by the Compak, two by the Vario and two ties. We never could tell which grinder was which. On this day, the Vario played in the Titan league and won.

... I had originally planned a Vario vs. Robur E grinder shootout, but it was executed so poorly that the results seemed even more useless than they might otherwise have been. For what it's worth, however, that test resulted in the Vario beating the Robur by a small margin which, given the number of rounds, indicated statistically a tie (a very close win). However, in the test there was evidence of channeling and other problems which seemed to be the result of multiple shot preparers (1 per grinder) and inadequate shot grooming, and inadequately dialing in the grinders; I didn't think through my errors until it was over, and in the end both grinders lost big time--the shots were pretty poor, much poorer than the day-to-day experience with either grinder.

The grinders [ Vario & Super Jolly] were pretty neck and neck through the test. At first the Super Jolly was producing superior clarity and usually improved sweetness, but the 4th and 5th rounds, the Vario turned the tables on the Super Jolly. Paul (and perhaps Jon) guessed that the Vario shot was actually the Super Jolly shot (in keeping with the pattern). In the end it was a dead heat, even on paper.

Bottom Line: Bartaza wanted to put out a grinder that had the form factor and friendly ergonomics of a home grinder, and the quality of a commercial one. I think they have achieved this perfectly.

Grind Quality: My feeling is that the quality is similar to the Trespade conical grinders or the Super Jolly, and slightly better than the Mini or other 50mm to 60mm flat burr grinders. This is surprising, since the Vario burr is in this latter class. Perhaps the ceramic adds some quality. Certainly, the grind adjustment is a lot less finicky and frequent than the Mini, and more comparable to the once a day adjustment I get out of the Trespade grinders or the SJ. The combination of fine and coarse also makes it easier to adjust than the small flats. My feel is that the taste has less of the boom box quality of the Mini, and is clearer and more grown up. But this gets into very subjective territory.

Ergonomics: This is a ground up design doserless grinder, like all the Baratzas, and they have been learning with each new model. There is very little grind retention, and no need to sweep, bore, or burp. The PF rest is effective. The grind is not entirely clump free, but better than most doserless grinders I've tried. WDT is not necessary. Static can be an issue, but it is easily controlled by cleaning the burrs. The grinder is amazingly fast and quiet for a domestic.

Maintainability/Flexibility :The grinder switches between coarse and fine grinding very quickly, and the espresso setting is fairly stable on return (not a sink shot, but not exactly the same). The burrs can be removed and the grinder cleaned in under one minute. There is no more than 2 grams of coffee remnants in the burrs, burr chamber and outlet - an excellent figure that makes this a standout for cupping or single dose espresso use.

How Long will it Last :This is the big question mark. Commercial grinders and some domestic ones like the Rocky or Trespades have threaded rigid burr carriers. Grinders like the Virtuoso and Infinity have three plastic tabs that thread into the plastic case of the grinder. Over time, the grind quality deteriorates as these mounts soften, this is even worse with the old two tab carriers on the Maestro. The Vario has an aluminum carrier that has three metal tabs, and these screw into three plastic tabs that act as threads. The system is as easy to disassemble as the Virtuoso or Infinity, and a lot more rigid. However, whether it will stay completely the same as the metal or bakelite threaded carriers is anyone's guess. In home use, the Capresso Infiniti and Baratza Virtuoso show signs of loosening in about a year to a year and a half. It is obvious from simply looking at this grinder that it will stay tight longer than that. But how much longer is something I can't predict. Any materials engineers care to join the HB test team?