Since the very beginning, Baratza offered quality grinders to satisfy the tough demands of coffee lovers.
It wasn’t long before the company became widely known and acknowledged for its innovation, consistency, and quality.
If you wanted a good cup of coffee time after time after time, you turned your attention to Baratza coffee grinders.
The new kid on their block in 2012 was the Baratza Encore Conical Burr Coffee Grinder. There is a lot to be said about this guy, and it’s all good. It is practical, efficient and not too ugly.
Experts have crowned this article as the grinder-of-choice for those who’d like to brew their own home-made top-quality coffee.
By investing in this machine, you can rest assure regarding the consistency and versatility of mill you’re going to get. There are no gambles here; this is a top-notch grinder, a state-of-the-art item built with parts which Baratza users know and trust by now.
Using this machine isn’t just about a great coffee. It is also about the actual experience of making it. You are going to enjoy the process itself.
Some of you might find your friends, partners or siblings who don’t even drink coffee volunteer to make one for you. This is when you know, this grinder has got it all.
Baratza Encore Coffee Grinder Review
Baratza Encore Grinder is one of the best conical burr coffee grinder available in the market. So in this Baratza Encore review, let’s take a look at how this product stands up.
Main Features of Baratza Encore Conical Burr Coffee Grinder
This grinder’s key features show the thought and engineering behind the process of its creation. They are directly related to enhancing the peak of the grinding experience – the cup of coffee itself. Whether it is this cup or the next, it has all been thought of.
1. Grind Adjustment
The grinding range of this apparatus is simply astounding. It offers generous 40 grinding settings.
With such a vast choice, you just know that one of them bound to hit your sweet spot.
It is a true celebration for the picky connoisseurs who know exactly how they like their beans to be ground. It is an explorers’ adventure into the world of milling for those who aren’t experts yet but admire the idea.
The grind size varies from as small as 250 microns to as large as 1200 microns. Anything ranged from French press to espresso is makeable, and the sky seems to be the limit. Whichever takes your fancy, make it in a matter of seconds.
To ensure that the grinding range is being kept, the machine can be calibrated by the user; this is a new feature, and the idea of it is ingenious.
No more bad coffee for you after purchasing this pulverizing machine. By making this investment and it is quite the investment compare to certain other grinders, you give yourself a promise that, as long as it is up to you and from now on, your coffee drinking experience at home will be only the best.
No compromises, no rolling of the eyes, simply choose your favorite grind, get to it and enjoy.
2. Motor
The motor of a machine is its heart. It is the part that drives the entire thing and the most important feature. This part makes all the difference.
If the motor isn’t strong enough to sustain all the other features, then any intention for quality will fail.
If the motor overheats, it might damage the entire grinder, resulting in a complete waste of money.
With that being mentioned, this isn’t the case here. The burrs on this machine are driven effectively and effortlessly by a high-torque, powerful DC motor. The slow turning results in a silent and cool operation, permitting quiet and long grinding cycles.
There is more to it. The circuit comes with an automatically-resettable switch. This switch is responsible for power cutoff in a case of overheating.
So, even if there is such an issue, precautions are in place to prevent it from damaging the grinder.
3. Gearbox
It is not without reason that Baratza is said to be carrying the torch of innovation.
In 2012 it introduced to the world the GB 2.0 – 2nd generation gearbox.
This detail has allowed for significant noise reduction as well as brought a meaningful increase in durability and strength of the drive transmission.
The new drive gear is made of thermoplastic filled with 15% glass. This makes it much quieter than its metal predecessor.
It is also more shock resistant and wears off less. There are a few more new things in this model: the motor mounting plate as well as bushings, and the drive shaft.
This grinder had been vigorously tested during the production process. Stainless steel screws were used to check a reaction. Once they were put into the burrs, the motor gear stopped, triggering the automatically-resettable thermal cutout and thus preserving the gears.
4. Speed Control
The reason why this grinder has been such a success since it first came into production is not only because it is a conical burr.
Many private users, as well as small cafes, are willing to invest over 100 bucks than it costs because of the quality it offers. The eggs of success lie in more than one basket.
Encore offers a unique feature which you won’t spot in many other grinders. Let me introduce to you the speed control.
A smart combination of gear with electronic speed reduction is used to establish control over burr’s rotation at 450 RPM. The slow speed reduces such crucial factors in the grinder as overheating, static generation and noise.
More so, the slower speed lets the beans feed smoothly into the system. The burrs can receive the beans evenly, in a gentle flow, without them getting stuck and piled up, a common trouble in fast-speed grinders.
5. Burrs
As oppose to blades. Much has been said about the superiority of burrs grinding versus blades.
Those who drink know the difference in taste. Those who make their own coffee understand the importance of an even ground. Consistency and evenness of the mill can sustain or kill your coffee.
A blade hits the beans in a blender-like manner, bringing about an inconsistent grind. That is a problem when brewing coffee; different sizes of granules will result in a different taste when dissolved in hot water.
To avoid that, burr to the rescue. Burrs promise to eliminate the problem of various extraction rates, which lead to wonky tasting drinks.
To avoid that kind of taste, you’d need your coffee bits be all pretty much similarly sized. This is where a burr grinder comes handy.
Every burr grinder follows the same principle: sharp surfaces and precise adjustment allow for cutting the coffee in a guided manner. This results in a far more consistent grind.
Check the video below for the quick preview of the Baratza Encore Coffee Grinder so you can see it in action…
Pro & Cons of Baratza Encore Conical Burr Grinder
This is undoubtedly one of the best grinders on the market. But even if so, it is sure to have also few weak points to surprise us with for the simple reason that nobody is perfect. Let’s see, therefore, what these are alongside the multiple strengths.
What I Like
- Easily grinds up to 12 cups
- Easy to clean
- Quiet action
- Conical burrs
- Speed control
- Calibration system
- High torque motor
- Thermal cutoff switch
- Minimum grind is left in the grinder
- As much as 40 settings grind range
- Innovative gearbox
What I Don’t Like
- Struggles with dark beans
- Struggles with oily beans
- Some found it too slow
- Some found it too noisy
- Not great for fine espresso grind
Check The Latest Price on Amazon
Why to Choose Encore Coffee Grinder by Baratza
There are so many reasons to go with this grinder whether it is for its conical burrs or the innovative gearbox.
Many wonderful features and price under just 200 bucks make it a great purchase.
It might be slow for some people who are rushing in the morning; it’s true. But then, it makes sure to keep your machine working at the same quality for years and years to come.
All the little details that the creators of this grinder have thought about, such as the calibration system, the thermal cutoff switch, and the speed control just show how much they care about the quality of their product.
A product’s value can be considered by three parameters: final result, aka the coffee; customer satisfaction and longevity of the item. All of these are of high standards here.
Another good thing about this grinder is that you can buy certain accessories to attach to it and enhance its performance, making it more personalized and suitable for your private needs.
These possible accessories are the Esatto and the hopper extender.
The Esatto transforms your grinder into one that grinds by weight. The hopper extender can more than double an existing capacity of the bean hopper.
Final Verdict
This grinder seems to suit perfectly the at-home barista, providing one with a multi-tasking machine which works up to high standards.
Getting a burr grinder will certainly improve the quality of your coffee. You are sure to have a better tasting cheap coffee made on a more expensive grinder than vice versa.
With this machine, you can rest assure regarding the evenness of your grind, too, and that is not a tiny detail. This will define your whole drinking experience.
If you are looking to buy a grinder and your budget allows, you should definitely consider this one.
Don’t buy blind, make sure to read reviews, listen to what the seller has to say. Try it out if you get a chance, checking the thing by yourself is always the best.
As the saying goes, “Better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times“. I would go with that.
*Disclaimer: Our Baratza Encore Coffee Grinder review is based mostly on our expertise and the experts we consulted with and the information provided by the manufacturers. We do test many products, but it’s not possible to test them all. As such, please remember the above recommendations are our opinions, and before using any product, please check manufacturer’s website for more information.
Related Videos of Baratza Encore Grinder
And a video describing how to clean Baratza Encore Conical Grinder.
