Krups GVX Burr Grinder

First, let me say that I am NOT a coffee connoisseur (heresy, I know). Just a guy with a drip machine and a need for much morning brew. I wanted to grind my own because I hate the flavored coffee taste that I always seem to get from the grocery store grinder. I'm also busy and lazy.

I really like this grinder; and I like it for the same reasons that the guy from Hawaii hated it. I want to spend my morning drinking coffee, not preparing it (one cup at a time? yeah, right). Pour the beans in (no more measuring), push the button, and before you can fill the maker with water, you have just the right amount of grind ready to go. Yes, there's a little sticking to the plastic container, but I've never had it cause any mess just tap it on the sink before you remove the lid then pour it into the filter. Grind size and quantity takes a couple of attempts to figure out exactly what you like, but seems pretty consistent once set. Only gave it 4 stars because there are features on the more expensive units that would be nice a BIG, sealed, hopper that would hold several days worth of beans; and glass grind containers that would completely eliminate the static issue. However, for my use, and for the price, this thing works great. Hope it holds up over time.

I've been the owner of this grinder since February 20, 2005. In that time span, I would guess that the beans have gotten "stuck" (whereby the burrs spin freely without doing anything) maybe 5 times TOTAL. I make coffee about 3 or 4 times a week. So that's somewhere between 30 and 45 operations, and it's goofed up 5 of those times. NOT ONCE have I had to disassemble anything. You just hit the grind button again to stop it, jostle it GENTLY back and forth, and hit the grind button again. Of course, you lose the timed grind that is supposed to happen, but I view it as a VERY MINOR inconvenience to have to stand there and manually turn it off when it's done grinding.

As for the complaints of size, I think we've pretty much come to a consensus among the reviewers that it's NOT freakishly huge, or whatever that one reviewer said. It's modestly sized, and certainly less blockish and imposing than, say, the Rancilio Rocky, for which you'll pay 5-10 times as much.

The noise is not an issue for me, because it's no noisier than the old blade grinder I had. You've got to look at these kinds of issues like you would evaluate a car. Yes, a Rolls Royce is going to have less road noise than a subcompact Toyota, but the Toyota isn't going to set you back $50,000, and it's going to use less gas, AND it's going to get you there in just as much time. So there might be some noise (particularly when the beans get lodged funny), but it's no worse than the KitchenAid blade grinder that will wake up not only your partner, but also your dog and the local fire department.

Lastly, the grind itself. I will agree with the complaints that have been lodged previously. First, the grind is generally too fine for the setting. I haven't tried french press yet, but I get the suspicion that it'll be too fine even on the coarsest setting. Additionally, there's a little bit of overground powder that comes through with every grind. This shows up as a very thin layer of sludge at the bottom of a brewed pot. And finally, the cup dial does not accurately reflect everything I've learned and been taught about how much bean goes into one cup of coffee. It does grind too long for the cup setting. But you learn this quickly, and it's a pretty easy fix. If you're making 4 cups, set the dial to JUST above 3 cups. Voila. And if you're making fewer than 3 cups of coffee, you should find a roommate. There's no good way to make coffee in that small an amount.

My final thought on this grinder is that people who give it one star are being way too hard on it. I'd honestly give it 3 and a half, but I'll go with 4 just to boost its self-esteem a bit. You're paying $50 people. It's not a Rancilio. It's not a Mazzer, it's not an Isomac, it's not even a Starbucks Barista. But it's pretty good, and affordably priced, and it's a hell of a lot better than a blade grinder.

For those of you who might WANT to spend $350-500 on a burr grinder, but know you reasonably SHOULDN'T, this is the grinder for you. Just learn to live with its quirks, and you have a fantastic bargain on your countertop.

**UPDATE**

French press works great. My favorite use for this setting: I grind up a baggie-full before I go camping, and with my Lexan French press, I get a spectacular cup of coffee, which makes my fellow campers extremely jealous.

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One other reviewer stated that this grinder is ungodly big soooo not true. At a little under 10 inches tall, 5 inches deep, and 4 and 1/2 inches wide, this grinder is WAY smaller than my previous Cuisinart Burr Grinder which just recently broke. And the noise! DECIBLES quieter than my Cuisinart!!! It is such a low sound for a grinder. Mainly sounds a little louder than a murmur....First time I grinded coffee, I nearly jumped for joy that the volume was loads lower than my other one! Grinds were also very even. I grind in between medium and fine, and I did not see extremely powerdy grinds or even course grinds. Everything was very even in it's texture! Great grinder. I love it already!!!

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I got this grinder because it seemed ridiculous to pay three or four times the price for the nice industrial-strength Kitchen Aid grinder that I saw sitting next to it on the shelf. After a few months of using it, I know why it's cheaper -it continually fails, even on fresh, oily Peet's beans. As another reviewer noted, when it jams, you have to unload the whole thing into a bowl, disassemble it, note disconcertingly that the insides are made of plastic, and put it all back together.

And in actual use, this grinder leaves the largest countertop coffee-ground piles of any grinder I've used.

It's extremely frustrating and I wish I'd bought the Kitchen Aid to start with. Poor build quality, short lifespan, and poor design.

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After a "long term road test" of this Krups Coffee Grinder, I wanted to summarize my experience. I have used it pretty much daily. It replaced another Krups grinder (blade not burr) that I had used off and on for 20+ years.

Good:

1. Easy to use, particularly for getting beans into it and ground coffee out of it.

2. Does not get coffee everywhere (a key modification was to put it on a little tray that catches the ground coffee that falls out as you remove the ground coffee container).

3. Moderate noise level. It is not "quiet" and has gotten noisier over time. That makes me suspect that the noise level of individual units may vary a bit. But it is much quieter than the Krups blade unit it replaced.

4. Has been reliable. My previous burr grinder (different brand) failed within one week.

Bad:

1. Plastic grounds reservior is very staticy, so grounds adhere to the plastic. I carry the container to the sink, and give a sharp rap on the bottom of the sink, to get everything loose off.

2. Beans do not feed evenly, sometimes the grinder freewheels with no beans feeding down and you need to whack it. I found that the grind affects this (finer grinds seem to feed better) and the beans; very oily (i.e. dark roast) beans do not feed as well as drier beans.

I still have ranked it 4 stars as I thought it was a very good value. It has lasted nearly a year without an issue and I have worked around or adapted to the shortcomings. I would not spend money to replace it: it meets my needs.

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