Breville Smart Grinder Pro Coffee Bean Grinder - Stainless Steel BCG820BSS for Espresso, Drip & French Press - Perfect for Home Baristas & Coffee Enthusiasts

Admittedly I'm somewhat of a coffee "novice" - though I've been drinking coffee for almost 4 decades - my coffee making experience has been limited to mainly automatic drip or "pods" - honestly, I've not been too interested in good coffee or as in a hobby until very recently. My wife wanted an espresso maker and shortly afterwards down the rabbit hole I went. Our first purchase was a Breville Barista Express espresso machine which has a built-in grinder and works well enough for the task but may not produce grounds coarse enough for other coffee making methods (pour over, french press, drip, etc.) so rather than just live with the inexpensive blade grinder we already had I looked into a grinder that would give us that level of control and flexibility. After watching hours of reviews online my conclusion was that if I wanted to spend about four hundred dollars (grinder plus, a good set of burrs, and shipping on top) I could get a better grinder for espresso than the built-in with the Barista Express but my non-pressurized shots with the built-in grinder are pretty decent if I don't mind saying so. Which lead me to finding a grinder that my family can use for different coarse settings (easily) and doesn't require complicated re-adjustment to get to another brew method. The "easily" is the main thing - so in my opinion a "stepped" grinder is a good choice and one that's not specifically designed for espresso. I've only used the grinder a couple of times for espresso where I was trying different beans and wanted to leave the built-in grinder un changed.Some notes and observations:- the burr set appears to be the same as the stock built-in one from the Barista Express - Breville's web site seems to confirm this though only the upper/outer burr is available for purchase (when it is available).- I've not had to adjust the upper/outer burr itself - some people have reported that the factory setting is 4 and others say 6 - I'm an engineer so I've been tempted to tinker with it but I've been making far too good coffee to change things unless I have to.- there is a bit more "loss" with the stand alone grinder than with the built-in one - what I'm seeing is about .2 - .3 grams with the Smart Grinder Pro and maybe a tenth of a gram with the built-in grinder although I'm almost always grinding coarser with the Smart Grinder Pro - perhaps there's more being held back due to that. Most coffee I make with the Smart Grinder Pro isn't weighed it's volume measured so I typically grind a little more than I need so "retention" isn't an issue.- the Smart Grinder Pro is a little larger than what I'd thought when I've seen it in pictures and on video. absolutely not a deal breaker but if you're really tight on counter space you may want to measure things out or plan to re-arrange things.- there WILL BE grounds flying about - I've gotten in the habit of placing a towel under the grinder to catch the larger grounds that try to "escape" that makes cleanup a bit easier - you may not have this issue if you're grinding for espresso but for press, pour over, or drip they tend to jump out of the grinder's cup.- the display is easy to read and clear to understand - my eyesight isn't the best in the morning before I've had a cup - you can easily tell what the grind number is and where it falls on the "scale"- cups/shots and grind time is somewhat redundant - I think a lot of reviewers have called that out - it's not really an issue to start/stop/pause the grind process this feature is probably the only real "gimmicky" one - I suppose that the time or cups/shots would vary depending on grind size but as long as it has completely ground your beans and you've stopped the machine well then there you go.- this comes with a nice cup for your grounds, two portafilter adapters (54 and 58 mm).- the coarse / fine grind setting adjustment knob isn't the nicest use "experience" - the knob does feel a bit "plasticy" and "cheap" - I really don't expect a milled solid piece of stainless or anodized aluminum at this price point but I wonder how well this will hold up to years of use.- the price is a bit "high" for a conical bur grinder however - lots of ones at half the price (around $100) seem not to last as long, are more complicated to adjust or return to a setting that you can remember for the brewing method or has features such as the portafilter adapters. The ability to glance down and see that the grind number is in the range of the brewing method I'm doing is worth the extra money.The bottom line (for me at least) was that this grinder has gotten very good reviews by established "coffee folk" for good grinder for people starting out their coffee journey. Is this the G.O.A.T. grinder - I don't think so. Is it even the most consistent one - I don't believe so either - spending about $50-80 more for a flat vertical burr grinder along with a better set of burrs would likely give you better grounds but for someone who wants to grind some beans that's either not "into it" or who is just getting started I think this one makes a lot of sense. This likely will not be my last grinder - I'm certain as I become more skilled and discerning I'll want something "better" will I get rid of this one (give it to a friend / relative or donate it) probably not - there will be times where I want to grind a bag or three of beans for a large gathering and I'll dig the Breville Smart Grinder Pro out for that job - until then I'll be making 8 cups at a time with my Mr. Coffee and enjoy trying pour overs, french press and other methods.Review and updateOriginal Review (Purchased Sep 19, 2021) and 2 updatesThis review details my experience in switching from automatic espresso machines to a Breville BCG820BSS Smart Grinder and Calphalon BVCLECMP1 Temp iQ Espresso Machine, both purchased on Amazon.We've had automatic espresso machines since returning from a trip to Italy in 2006. We've owned 4 in total, 1 Saeco and 3 Delonghis. I once opened up our Delonghi Magnifica and the insides are a cornucopia of hoses, wires, and complexity. All 4 were prone to failure and long delays for round trip servicing. Our last Delonghi Magnifica ESAM 3300 round tripped for repairs 3 times in under 3 years. And the prices have risen sharply!Incorporating grinding, tamping, and brewing in a single machine creates complexity. I decided to trade a bit less in automation in the hope of far more reliability. That decision launched detailed research and comparison of both grinding and espresso brewing machines. I selected a a Breville BCG820BSS Smart Grinder and Calphalon BVCLECMP1 Temp iQ Espresso Machine. The grinder and espresso machine came to roughly $200 less than another Magnifica.I am nothing short of thrilled with my decision and would never go back to an automatic. Segregating the grinding from brewing and performing my own tamping greatly reduces the mechanical complexity and increases reliability. Surprisingly, the total daily time required to service the machines and make an average of 6 single shot lattes per day did not increase. Here is my routine:1) Walk into kitchen and hit both power buttons (quick startup means the machines are not on all day)2) Tap the Breville a second time to initiate the grind.3) Add milk to the frothing cup while the coffee is grinding.4) Firmly tamp the ground coffee and insert the portafilter into the Calphalon brewer, twist to lock, insert cup under, and move dial to single shot.5) Move the dial to steam and wait a few seconds for the temp to increase for steaming. When steam is ready, it pauses long enough to allow tilting the wand and inserting the pitcher.6) Steam the milk for 45-60 seconds into a very tight, smooth foam. (Calphalon provides an excellent tutorial on steaming which greatly improved the quality of my foam. I prefer the KRUPS XS5012 Stainless Steel Milk Frothing Pitcher (Amazon) to the Calphalon cup for its width and handle.)7) Wipe the foaming wand tip with a damp washcloth, drop wand tip toward the tray, move the dial to hot water for a few seconds to flush milk out of the wand.7) Pour the foamed milk into the cup8) Release the portafilter and flush it thoroughly with hot water spray at kitchen sink, and return it to the grinder. (I tried a knock box but it was messy.)9) Empty the brewer tray once a day, occasionally top off the machines with coffee and filtered water (big tank). I descale the brewer and clean the grinder burrs once a month.I've been doing this for almost a year now and my lattes are consistently wonderful.The Breville has a dial on the side for precise grind settings from espresso to drip and French press. Rather than constantly shift the grind, I leave it on 9 which works for both my espresso and wife's drip.The Calphalon includes both single and double shot baskets and dispenses the extra hot water required to dilute espresso to Americano.The Breville has a 1 year warranty so I purchased the extended warranty. The Calphalon has a 3 year warranty. The utter simplicity of the machines and operation lead me to believe the reliability will handily exceed that of the automatics.Update August 20, 2022 (second update)Breville grinderI really like the convenience of this grinder. The original grinder labored while grinding as did a replacement I ordered within the 30 day Amazon return. After another round of research, I decided to keep the second and live within its limitations, particularly the grind adjustments. About 3 months later, the grinder began laboring mightily to the point where it could barely grind coffee. I made a recording and sent it to Breville.Breville sent a replacement grinder and paid shipping for both the new and returned machines. The new grinder is clearly improved and grinds like a champ. I am extremely pleased with the new grinder.The Breville has a one year warranty so I purchased the extended warranty.Calphalon Espresso MachineI still like this machine and have developed a rhythm in using it. The machine is simple and has been reliable. My knock on Calphalon is a total lack of customer service. I used the website contact form to inquire regarding a second portafilter and single wall baskets. It was around a month before I received a response! Other reviews mention customer service issues. I would not ignore them. Keep in mind that purchasing an extended warranty provides no benefit or backup during Calphalon's 3 year warranty period.I am a home brew maniac. I do everything from espresso, to V60, to cold brew, Aeropress, French Press and everything in between. My main espresso grinder has become the Eureka Atom, which will also end up being replaced in time, but I digress. The Breville SGP is an excellent overall grinder, with incredible ease of use, AMAZINGLY accurate timed-dosing, and a well rounded feature set. There are so many well thought features on this grinder, it is hard to mention them all.. from the magnetic catch tray which allows you to easily dump off any stray grinds for a quick cleanup, to the easy to read, large LCD display, to the 60! grind settings (and even more if you adjust the outer burr), to the programmable grind times for each brew type, etc. It truly is an amazing grinder that punches above it's price point. For some reason, coffee "experts" and high end retailers like to bash on this little guy, and my guy feeling at this point is that it's because it performs so admirably for it's price, it makes other higher priced models a bit hard to justify, unless you're really specializing in high end espresso or the like. I find it is weakest in incredibly fine grinding for espresso, as it can struggle with light roasts (harder beans) and extremely large doses at these settings. Having said that; it can absolutely produce delicious espresso. Something else I'll speak to is just how good this thing is with retention. You can practically single dose with this grinder, as it has an almost straight through grind design. That is to say; you can measure out 20g of coffee for a nice pourover, drop them into the hopper and grind away, and you'll most likely get about 19.8g or so out of it. This is quite remarkable, and makes dosing and adjusting grind very effortless. I've extremely happy with my Aeropress and V60 results with the Smart Grinder Pro. Like most machines, there is no true "all in one, does everything under the sun perfectly" setup, especially at this price point. Even the ~$3500 EK43 isn't perfect. The Breville will struggle most at the extreme ends of it's grind sizes, and I don't find it goes quite coarse enough for my liking. You can still do a nice French press or cold brew, but it could definitely help to be able to get a coarser grind. In conclusion, do you;A - Need a good, reliable home coffee grinder for multiple brew methods, or want to specialize in pourover or Aeropress?B - Want a good looking, sleek, stylish machine to do this ^ ?C - Not want to break the bank?D - Want to buy from a company with excellent customer service, should you need warranty work or have general inquiries? Get the Breville Smart Grinder Pro. It's very, very good.The best coffee grinder for under $250. I purchased two other ones--the capresso infinity and the bodum bistro--and there's absolutely no comparison. The build quality, the very awesome little details (air-tight containers), the stunning quality of the extra-fine settings..... Trust me. It's worth forking out the extra dollars for this one over the cheaper models.It might be the best grinder in its price range, but it doesn't make it "good" still. The truth is there's probably no good grinders for this price. There're a few reviews here talking about it, and I read it before buying, thinking -- well, other 1000+ good reviews can't be wrong. So I went ahead and bought it (to use with rancilio silvia). Apparently those few reviewers were right!So here's the deal, you should buy this grinder in only 2 cases:1. You're not planning to use it for espresso. It's great for courser grind coffee (drip, v60, french press, etc.). I'm keeping mine for this!2. If 250-300cad is truly all you can spend on a grinder for espresso, and you won't ever have more, or it's superr urgent and you must buy it now, and also you are against buying used stuff.But #2 seems quite unlikely, so the short version is -- don't buy this grinder for espresso.It's inconsistent, coffee clumps all the time. It's noisy. At first you might think you're getting an even extraction -- try getting a naked portafilter and just see for yourself. After using it daily for about 6 months, I've been able to get it to flow evenly maybe 1 time out of 7-10. Crema is about less than half of what I'm getting out of the same beans in a new grinder that I just got today (eureka atom, though it could be anything else similar).Get a proper good Italian grinder, new or used. You will have to spend more likely, yes. But it's truly worth it. If you're choosing between spending a 1000 on an espresso machine and buy this grinder OR buy a 700 grinder and a cheapo espresso machine -- you'll likely end up with better results with a more expensive grinder.This is a solid grinder. I paid the extra money for it after reading the reviews of almost every coffee grinder on Amazon. Good thing for revews. Best buy that I ever made and paying the extra for the grinder was not a waste of money. It has the preset feature, so that I set it and my husband just has to add beans and push the button..how great is that..Would I buy another Breville Pro...Yes, without hesitationSam