Grinder for Gaggia Classic

[lhelms]

I bought my husband a Gaggia Classic a few years ago and he has been getting his espresso ground at Peets. I would like to buy him a grinder for Father's Day. What is the best grinder I can get for use with a Gaggia Classic? I would like to spend $300 or less if possible.

Thanks

 

[Surfer]

I bought my husband a Gaggia Classic a few years ago and he has been getting his espresso ground at Peets. I would like to buy him a grinder for Father's Day. What is the best grinder I can get for use with a Gaggia Classic? I would like to spend $300 or less if possible.

Thanks

300 or less for espresso your looking at one of the Le'Lits or the Preciso, if you check on Thursdays Baratza list refurbs so you may score one cheaper. If your going to do this, start ordering/buying fresh roasted beans too. You'll want to use the regular basket, not the pressurized one which is for preground/not having a grinder.

 

[lhelms]

300 or less for espresso your looking at one of the Le'Lits or the Preciso, if you check on Thursdays Baratza list refurbs so you may score one cheaper. If your going to do this, start ordering/buying fresh roasted beans too. You'll want to use the regular basket, not the pressurized one which is for preground/not having a grinder.

Thanks for your reply. What are your thoughts on the Virtuoso ($229) or the Breville Smart Grinder ($199)? Plan to order fresh beans from Blue Bottle and Heart Roasters.

 

[Surfer]

Thanks for your reply. What are your thoughts on the Virtuoso ($229) or the Breville Smart Grinder ($199)? Plan to order fresh beans from Blue Bottle and Heart Roasters.

Their great grinders but not for espresso, their both stepped and meant more for coarse grinding (press/pour over/drip etc) of which they are excellent for. I owned a Smart Grinder and even shimming it, very tiny tiny window for espresso dialing leaving no room and shots tasted mehhh. I own a Preciso, its stepped, but it has the micro collar that basically makes it act step-less leaving more room for espresso dialing then you'll ever need lol. Virtuoso uses the same burr set as the Preciso, but it lacks the micro adjustment arm that makes the Preciso great for espresso use. Check Baratza refurb section on their site tomorrow, they update the listings every Thursday, might snag a deal on a Preciso.

Tons of roasters online, a lot offer nice free shipping incentives. I've ordered from Heart before, but their pricing is high. I have way too many other roasters that charge less for a pound vs their normal 12oz bags and some like Fair Mountain that do 2lbs shipped deals for like 28-30 bucks. Even check your area, google/yelp for roasters around you.... might be surprised to find some nice ones near you that you never heard of.

 

[shadow745]

I will second the advice on sourcing fresh roasted coffee. I have sampled lots of single origin/blended espressos from many artisan roasters across the country. Some were good-great, some not worth sampling even when free. I can honestly say that great coffee doesn't have to be expensive. Of all the coffees I used at home and tried commercially this remained my standard which all others were compared to... I've never found a coffee that can match it consistently and I say that after plowing through thousands of pounds of it over the last 5 years.

Coffeeshop Depot

This roaster is local to me, always roasts/ships to order and offers superb customer service. A class act without the arrogance many other roasters tend to have. A 5# bag with shipping/state sales tax cost me about $52, which gives me approximately 130 17 gram double shots at a cost of .41 each. I let it age in the bag for 5 days, then vacuum pack/deep freeze in glass Mason jars. I pack 156 grams into each wide mouth jar and use 52 grams daily for 3 doubles. Perfect system for my use and the coffee stores well in this manner.

 

[Surfer]

I will second the advice on sourcing fresh roasted coffee. I have sampled lots of single origin/blended espressos from many artisan roasters across the country. Some were good-great, some not worth sampling even when free. I can honestly say that great coffee doesn't have to be expensive. Of all the coffees I used at home and tried commercially this remained my standard which all others were compared to... I've never found a coffee that can match it consistently and I say that after plowing through thousands of pounds of it over the last 5 years.

Coffeeshop Depot

This roaster is local to me, always roasts/ships to order and offers superb customer service. A class act without the arrogance many other roasters tend to have. A 5# bag with shipping/state sales tax cost me about $52, which gives me approximately 130 17 gram double shots at a cost of .41 each. I let it age in the bag for 5 days, then vacuum pack/deep freeze in glass Mason jars. I pack 156 grams into each wide mouth jar and use 52 grams daily for 3 doubles. Perfect system for my use and the coffee stores well in this manner.

Just added that company to my roasters list to try, nice! You do the same freezing system I do for batches, been doing that for like 2 years now no prob.

 

[Qualityfabrication]

very good keep it up dear i really like your all post