Over at Know Your Grinder, we spend our time trying to make the perfect cup of coffee.  Brewing coffee is an artform, but it’s also a science – you might call it a very interdisciplinary drink.  In the United Kingdom, coffee lovers are downing around 70 million cups of coffee per day, and we think that if so much coffee is to be consumed, it may as well be top quality, and that means owning the best coffee grinder you can get, and that’s what we’re all about.

This is why we have looked into the matter, and uncovered the Three Best UK Coffee Grinders.  Do yourself a favour and get your hands on one of these babies ASAP.


 

#1 – KITCHENAID ARTISAN BURR COFFEE GRINDER 5KCG100

Artisan BURR GRINDER 5KCG100 grinders

Definitely on the higher end of the budget, is the KitchenAid Artisan. This retro classic is destined to look fabulous in any kitchen.  Available in four colours, all of these will illuminate your work area, especially the glossy and seductive Empire Red.

The KitchenAid Artisan has already been on sale across the Atlantic and received great reviews from the majority users. So whether you plump for the older model, or the new one, both will be great grinders, with the only slight differences being small width and height differences and one or two other minor deviations.

KitchenAid are a trusted name in kitchen appliances and this burr grinder both looks the cool retro part as well as having a nice sturdy weight to it. It will not be shuddering across your kitchen units dancing the can-can when it is switched on.

The low revolutions per minute should ensure that the coffee beans are not smashed to death brutally and apparently ensures a greater amount of flavour is extracted.

Of course, because this is a burr grinder and not a blade grinder, you already have purchased a superior grinding system for making sure the bean hasn’t suffered some kind of Freddy Krugeresque slashing, before it wends its way to your cup.

It has fifteen different grind settings – which is a fairly large choice and it makes a decent grind, producing everything from Cafetiere coffee to espressos and all the shades in between.

Are there any downsides to this beauty?

KitchenAid Artisan 5KCG100 grinders

The only thing mentioned really (about both models) is some concern about the fragility of the pretty glass.  The glass is good because it eliminates some of the static build up that comes with plastic casings – as well as looking swish and classy of course, but it does mean you need to TAKE CARE of it as well.

Some enterprising bods have found replacement plastic jars for it, though, just for the rough and tumble of everyday.
Obviously, if you are thinking of paying this much for a grinder, you are already quite serious about coffee. Rest assured, this is good quality grinder for the price and will look sensational to boot.

However, in researching this grinder we hit a slight quandary when we came across this beauty on Amazon, which is where we like to seek out all the good deals online.  It seems the model featured (the 5KCG100) is on its way out and is being replaced with the eerily similar KCG0702. This will be available, basically, as soon as the 5KCG100 has departed and is waiting in the wings for clearance to take off.  However, it is available through KitchenAid’s website, where there is a handy store locator to lead you to this prized possession.

STATS

DIMENSIONS: HEIGHT 34.3 CM X WIDTH 26.2 CM X DEPTH 15.2 CM
WEIGHT: 4.5 KG
WEIGHT PACKED: 5.9 KG
MODEL NO: 5KCG100
GRINDER TYPE: BURR GRINDER
MATERIAL: STAINLESS STEEL
BLADE DIAMETER: 5.7 CM
GROUNDS CAPACITY: 241 G
PRICE FROM:   £157+
ROTATION SPEED: 450 RPM
BLADE MATERIAL: STAINLESS STEEL
GRIND SETTINGS: 15
COLORS: EMPIRE RED, ALMOND CREAM, PEARL METALLIC, ONYX BLACK


#2 – ANDREW JAMES COFFEE (NUT AND SPICE) GRINDER

Andrew James Coffee, Nut and Spice Grinders

If you are new to coffee and grinding in general, this grinder may well be the place to start. It is generally inexpensive and a notorious bestselling model.

Unpretentious, this really does what it says on the tin and is designed for practical use and not looking at. Which isn’t to say there is anything wrong with the way that it looks, but it is definitely functional over stylish.

It has a two year warranty and most customers report satisfaction with it. Lower quality grinders of this ilk do have form for basically dying and/or starting to smoke, far sooner than the generous 24 months which this one comes with.

Capable of grinding more than just coffee beans, this may be used to prepare herbs and spices as well and makes short work of even the toughest nuts!

Despite being smaller it can still produce an impressive amount of coffee grinds in one go (up to 70 grams) which is enough for around ten cups.

As with all electric grinders (particularly this kind of blade grinder) care must be taken with its use to ensure safety. This has to be cleaned quite carefully, especially if you are using it for spices and then your coffee as well.

You may well find it is an idea to purchase two, if you are planning on grinding a lot of pungent spices, as well as wanting coffee on a regular basis. It is certainly cheap enough to buy two of them, for still under the price of a lot of other grinders and it has just as good innings as some more high end models do.

To pick this grinder up, you can buy it directly from the Andrew James website or you can find it for a reasonable price on Amazon.

STATS

MANUFACTURER: ANDREW JAMES
MATERIAL: PLASTIC
DIMENSIONS: 11.0 CM L x 11.0 CM W x 18.0 CM H
WEIGHT: 0.63 KG
GROSS WEIGHT: 0.96 KG
COLURS: RED, BLACK
PRICE: £12.99+
GRINDER TYPE: BLADE GRINDER
BLADE TYPE: STAINLESS STEEL
WARRANTY: TWO YEARS


#3 – HARIO CERAMIC BURR HAND GRINDER (SKERTON)

Hario Medium Glass Hand Coffee Grinders with Ceramic Burrs 1

Want to slow it all down a bit or make coffee off the grid? The third and final selection is a hand grinder which had proved a hit with coffee lovers all over the world.

Perhaps Japan is not the first place you would associate with coffee, but it may be with precision engineering and this is a quality manual coffee grinder, which may well outlast all your new fangled electrical whizzing and grinding whirligigs.  Here in the UK, this Japanese number has turned out to be a real hit.

Some people swear that hand ground coffee beans actually taste better (perhaps incorporating the sweat of your brow into the brew!) but others simply want something that they can use whilst out camping, or that can be easily transported from place to place.

Whatever your reasons for wanting a manual grinder, you should not find the Hario Medium Grinder (known also as the ‘Skerton’) wanting. It can produce some really excellent quality grinds. Once you get to know how it works, you’ll be knocking out five star coffees whether it is for fine grinds like espresso or coarser for a Cafetiere.

It is also possible to slightly alter the grinder to produce even better coarse grinds with the addition of a simple screw (available for purchase from Orphan Espresso) although it possibly may affect the finer grinds if it is not removed first before use.

These are peripheral issues, though, people like the fact this will last longer than a lot of the more expensive electric machines and is of course, far quieter and without any of the safety risks of fast electric blades.

To track down a Hario Skerton, you can get one directly from the Hario website, or you can do what I often do and find it on Amazon, where its usually priced to sell.

Hario Medium Glass Hand Coffee Grinders with Ceramic Burrs 2

STATS

MANUFACTURER: HARIO
MODEL: SKERTON
GRINDER MATERIAL: CERAMIC
OTHER MATERIALS: GLASS
GRINDER TYPE: MANUAL BURR
CAPACITY: 100 GRAMS
ITEM SIZE (MM):  W172・D93・H231
MODEL NO: MSCS-2TB
WEIGHT (BOXED): 567 GRAMMES
PRICE FROM: £21+


 

This is only a small selection of the grinders available, but should help provide a brief overview of the basics, whether you wish to spend a lot, or a little, use a burr or blade grinder or if you prefer hand grinding, the main thing is whichever method you pick is certain to result in far happier coffee results than simply using store bought grounds. Happy grinding!


know your grinder logo - cropped

 

One thought on “3 Grinders That Can Change Your Morning Coffee Forever

  1. Alex says:

    Thanks for the reviews, you provide lots of really useful information here. There really is nothing quite like grinding your own coffee beans (unless you have the chance to roast your own coffee too, that’s pretty cool!). The art of making really great coffee is getting all of the delicious nuances out of the coffee bean and into your cup. A whole roasted bean acts as a wonderful protective case for all of this deliciousness and once this shell is broken you begin to lose all of that amazing flavour so the more freshly ground the better! I would really encourage all coffee lovers to begin grinding their own beans and with such simple designs as the hand grinders here available or more fancy electric designs for the lazier man there’s no excuse not to!

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