When it comes to enjoying great coffee, the grinder can make all the difference. Conical burr grinders are the most precise and desired type of grinder but there are so many to choose from. Baratza is a brand that is well known for its high quality and well made grinders.
Today we are going to look at a few of their grinders: The Virtuoso and the new line of Sette (Set-Tay) grinders.
These are grinders that are designed primarily for home use but could be used in light cafe type usage as well.
Adjustability, consistency, and ease of use are all important factors when choosing a grinder. And these grinders vary. Let’s start with the simplest and most easy to use of these Baratza grinders.
Baratza Virtuoso
The Baratza Virtuoso is an improved and updated model based on the Encore, their most popular grinder. It has an on-demand button on the front for pulsing into your portafilter and a timer feature on the side to control how long you grind.
Adjusting the grind is easy with just a simple turn of the bean hopper that allows for 40 different adjustments. From espresso to french press and even for cupping.
Features of the Virtuoso Grinder
- 40 mm conical burrs manufactured in Europe
- Grinds 1.5-2.4 grams/second
- 8 oz bean hopper
- 5 oz bin capacity
- grind range 250-1200 microns
- 60 second grind timer
- Burrs can be user calibrated as well as easily removed for cleaning
More features and pricing info can be found here.
While the Encore was Baratza’s entry level grinder, the Virtuoso is the next step up, improving upon the design. The high torque DC motor turns slowly and quietly and will not heat up your coffee as it grinds, even during long grind cycles.
Not only does it grind your coffee well, it looks elegant with its sleek new design. The hopper does come off once it is emptied of beans so that you can clean the grinder and access the burrs.
Baratza also makes a hopper extension that can add an additional 9 oz of coffee. If you want this grinder for espresso, they also make a portafilter holder so that you can grind directly into your portafilter. The portaholder is installed in the the place of the grinds bin.
This is a great option for anyone that wants to get into a burr grinder and wants reliability, consistency and the ease of adjustability and use. It also comes with a 1 year warranty.
What’s Different About the Sette Line of Grinders?
Baratza set out to completely redesign and rethink the way it makes coffee grinders with the Sette. They really thought out of the box for this one. The nice thing, is that they have created 3 different options within the Sette line and each offers a little bit more as the price steps up.
They have used the unique 7 shape to not only give it a new look, but also lets you easily grind directly into the grounds bin or your own portafilter. This new design is possible because of how the burrs work, the outer burr spins while the inner burr is fixed. And the quality is assured with these steel European burrs made in Lichtenstein.
The hopper features a shutoff valve controlled by a key like lever that lets you easily close the beans hopper to remove your coffee so you can switch between roasts. If you change coffees often, you will love the minimum retention of grinds that the Sette offers.
All of the Sette models were designed to be able to fit under standard kitchen cabinets at 24″ tall. So it can fit in your kitchen easily. The grinds hopper is made of anti-static plastic and has a pour spout so you can easily transfer your grounds into your preferred brewing device.
Sette 270
The Sette 270 is the debut grinder of this series featuring the new technology. Thanks to how the burrs are situated in the grinder, this has a minimum retention of grinds, which ensures you have the freshest ground coffee.
Features
- 40 mm steel conical burrs
- Grinds 3.5 g/sec fine, 5.5 g/sec coarse
- 10 oz hopper capacity
- 5.5 oz grounds bin capacity
- Digital control timer within 0.1 seconds
- 3 adjustable timed presets
- Adjustable holder for hands free portafilter direct dosing
- Macro and micro grind adjustment
- Removable hopper with shutoff valve
A time based grinder, the Sette 270 features a digital display with 3 presets that are adjustable to get the precise dosing you need. The two time adjustment buttons allow you to dial the time within 0.1 sec.
It has a macro and a micro grind adjustment allowing over 300 possibilities for grind size. The macro has 30 steps of adjustment and the micro has a stepless adjustment with 9 indicator marks that you can move between for your precise grind.
The grinder is remarkably fast for a home grinder, yet still produces espresso with amazing crema.
The adjustable arms are easily moved and hold the included anti-static grinds bin, portafilter or even a manual brewing device such as the Hario v60 or Aeropress.
To hold your portafilter, the arms swing down and an adjustable fork swivels out to hold onto the portafilter for hands-free grinding. This fork adjusts with the included allen wrench to get the perfect fit.
The bean hopper holds 10 oz (approximately 300-400g) and Baratza sells a hopper extender accessory to fit an additional 10 oz of beans. If you do a lot of manual or french press brewing, Baratza sells an additional burr for accurate coarse grinding since this is primarily an espresso grinder.
This grinder as you use it, will settle as the burrs break in, making it difficult to get a finer grind. A kit is included with extra shims to overcome this issue.
Sette 27oW
For serious coffee and espresso enthusiasts, the Sette 270W pulls out all the stops. This is a weight based grinder which saves you time trying to figure out how long to grind the weight of the coffee you need. Like the 270, it has all the features that sets it apart but then improves upon it with the ability to grind by preset and custom weights. Depending on the dose you need, you can set it to within 0.1 grams.
Features
- 40 mm steel conical burrs
- Grinds 3.5 g/sec fine, 5.5 g/sec coarse
- 10 oz hopper capacity
- 5.5 oz grounds bin capacity
- Digital controls for weight within 0.1 g
- 3 adjustable weight presets
- Adjustable holder for hands free portafilter direct grinding
- Macro and micro grind adjustment
- Removable hopper with shutoff valve
This is a powerful grinder at the top of the Sette line because it is weight based. While it is designed as a home grinder, it might be able to withstand some light cafe use because of its abilities to quickly and accurately dose your coffee. The adjustable forks are connected to the scale so it doesn’t matter what you grind into, your coffee will be weighed either way.
The only difference between this model and the 270 is the weight based functionality. If you weigh your coffee scrupulously, this is the grinder that would probably suit you best. It is a revolutionary home grinder that won’t disappoint.
Sette 30 AP
The Sette 30 AP is the most basic and inexpensive of the Sette line. It is nice to have an affordable option with this new technology. It still has some of the great features of the 270 for those who don’t want to pay a lot of money for their burr grinder. It produces exceptional espresso grind still but also is a great grinder for manual methods such as the Aeropress or Hario V60.
Features
- 40 mm steel conical burrs
- Grinds 3.5 g/sec fine, 5.5 g/sec coarse
- 10 oz hopper capacity
- 5.5 oz grounds bin capacity
- Digital control timer within 0.1 seconds
- Adjustable holder for hands free portafilter direct dosing
- Removable hopper with shutoff valve
The Sette 30 AP offers 30 steps of adjustment and uses the same AP grinder burrs as the Sette 270 and 270W use. This makes it possible to still get some of the options of these higher end grinders at a fraction of the price.
It is a digital timer based grinder with two time adjustment buttons within 0.1 seconds. It also has a play/pause button to allow you to pause your dosing to check your grind or adjust how it is filling your portafilter.
The two arms that hold the grinds hopper are adjustable to fit your portafilter still or other brewing device.
The Final Call: What’s the Best Value for Your Money?
These 4 grinders from Baratza offer a little bit more options with each step up. It really depends on how serious you are about your coffee.
If you are just getting into grinding your own, the Virtuoso or Sette 30 AP may work for you just fine depending on your needs. For a little bit more, you can get the time based 270 but in my opinion, why not go for broke and get the 270W?
I weigh all my coffee anyway so it saves a step and reduces extra equipment on my counter by eliminating the need for an additional scale.
The Sette models offer the ability for the user to calibrate the grinder with extra shims and also the extra accessories like the coarser grinding burr for french press. The 270W really becomes a versatile grinder with these additions and the already great features it has.
We are glad Baratza thought outside the box for this grinder. It is refreshing to see a company transforming and creating new machines that are well made.
