CoffeeForums Coffee Facts

Coffee is best enjoyed by using the whole coffee beans which are suitably roasted before using them. The process by which these roasted coffee beans are ground is known as milling or grinding. The grinding of the roasted whole coffee beans is done by a coffee machine grinder. The grinders use various mechanical processes to get the grinding done in a satisfactory manner. There is a huge difference to the flavour of the coffee if the grinding is not matched precisely to the brewing needs. There is a definite relation between the grinding and the brewing, and methods of making coffee where the coffee grounds will require to be exposed to the hot water for a long time, will require the coffee bean to be ground more coarsely. This is because the finer grains of the coffee if exposed to hot water for a long time tend to get altered in the flavour and become unpalatable and bitter.

There are mainly 4 processes in the coffee grinding process:

Burr grinding

Chopping

Pounding

Roller grinding

The coffee grinding machines use 2 different types of components in the burrs:

Wheels

Conical burrs

These components crush and grind the whole coffee beans in such a manner that facilitates the smooth transformation of the coarse coffee beans in to finer particles. The process is done in a gentle manner so as to extract the inherent oils in the coffee beans and these oils when combined with the hot water during the brewing release heavenly aroma and flavour.

The different varieties of the coffee beverages require different grades of the fineness of the coffee grounds. Like for example the fineness required for an espresso coffee will be totally different than that needed for the Turkish coffee. Also the French press or the drip brewing methods will require another grade of fineness. The coffee machine grinders are usually provided with the settings which can help in customizing the different settings and selecting the fineness of the ground coffee as required or as suited to the type of coffee you will be planning to drink.

The electric coffee machine grinders which use the discoid type of burrs are actually faster and well suited for the domestic use, where the amount of coffee beans to be ground is less. The other types of burrs are the conical burrs and these work more silently and also are easy to clean up.