One other thing is the clumping that you get in a Mazzer Mini at the espresso grind settings. Compared to modern non-single dose alternatives like the Mahlkonig x54, the Mini clumps quite a lot. Easily solved with a shake in a dosing cup or via WDT. Also the Mini is quite loud compared to modern grinders.
Hard to beat that Mazzer build quality and still kind of amazing that these are still competing with modern grinders.
I wish there was an option to get conicals in a Mini, I feel like that would have me covered on all bases (build quality, unit size, fluffiness, hopper workflow). Can't bring myself to love the Niche aesthetically, or deal with single dosing workflows anymore.
Edit: maybe I am the problem, blaming clumping might be contentious (https://londiniumespresso.com/blog/n...rinder-is-poor). Still, I find other grinders to be much more forgiving than the mini/SJ.
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Mazzer mini vs 2022 options
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The milk based coffee has a lot more body and taste wise not much in it more milk chocolate flavour i do not like dark chocolate compared to Mazza with super jolly burs as i don't drink espresso straight but purging the beans every day on the Mazza was a pain for only a couple of drinks a day.Originally posted by Steve4802 View PostThanks Gary. I see the benefit to the retention. I reckon about $60 of beans wasted a year to clear the MM retention; bit of a bugger...
With regards to the Niche, did you observe a notable change in cup or in the consistency of the pour, or just the much improved workflow and retention ?
Steve
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I changed a few years ago from from a MM to a Euerka Mignon Specialita, but also added the single dose hopper and blow up. Much better for single dose and now zero retention but still allows you to grind for batch, v60, aero press etc. so much more flexibility than a niche Zero.
I find the angle isn’t an issue when grinding into a dosing cup.
Andy
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If single dosing, the "retention issue" is easily overcome via the use of a $2.00 Stubby Cooler as a bellows on top of the inlet chute.
Mal.
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Thanks Gary. I see the benefit to the retention. I reckon about $60 of beans wasted a year to clear the MM retention; bit of a bugger...
With regards to the Niche, did you observe a notable change in cup or in the consistency of the pour, or just the much improved workflow and retention ?
Steve
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I went from a Mazza Mini Electronic A with super jolly burrs to a Niche Zero and very happy with it down to the workflow to pulling the burrs out and cleaning 5 minutes and its all done hardly any coffee retention inside the chamber compared to the Mazza which you have to purge the beans every time and the heavy retention of coffee left in the chamber as we only make a couple of milk based coffees a day.
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That's some really great points Philly. I am genuinly not searching for an excuse to upgrade, but more 'checking in' to see if I might be missing out on something I don't know about or understand? FWIW, my energy on the machine side is trying to get the most out of my Silvia which I've also had for 15 years. Many far better machines out there, but I'm finding chasing improvements in distribution, precision baskets, pid and (soon) verification of temp and pressure with scarce type tool is a very fun and worthwhile endeavour. The physics geek in me (perhaps hopes as much as expects) this will make a fantastic and economical setup that, with care, can become consistent and (very nearly) match the top end at a simple espresso level; sans the flexibility of flow profiling etc. It also is awesome at steaming and I'd rather steam on it that my mates $4k profitec.
I started thinking about grinders as I was thinking if in fact I can dial in the Silvia with a lot of further tinkering beyond what I've done and really understand the temp and pressure side of thing, lock away distribution as best I can with oversized tamp, scales and wdt; THEN am I missing anything much on the grinder front, or is the next step up to go a higher spec machine? Which I can't yet foresee for a long time.
Point is, haven't played with any higher end modern grinders so no real idea of the potential improvement in grind output. I want to push Silvia as much as I can and that would mean ensuring the grinder is also up to scratch. I hope and expect the MM is?
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Don’t really have experience with the Mazzer mini but I have had experience with a Eureka Specialita, Niche Zero and an Ode with SSP Cast.
what I found going from the specialita to the NZ was a significant improvement in an SD workflow that really worked for me. Not needing to continually weigh things pre and post grinding the beans. A lot of what I observe is a preference to SD grinders more so from a workflow preference perspective rather than stale beans etc.
What I think you could consider is that moving up to a newer style grinder at 64mm flat burrs perhaps could help satisfy the coffee geek in you. Ability to buy, install and try a variety of different burr sets. This is the reason I really enjoy my ode. Let’s be honest we don’t all need fancy gear but we want them
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Hmm,a little lunchtime reading shows I'm perhaps a little ignorant in this space. I see a few key points (1) retention, (2) flat vs conical (3) orientation if flat burrs: angle / vertical / horizontal (4) RPM and suitability beyond espresso. And (5) alignment.
So to clarify, it's only espresso at the moment and I still am not overly concerned with retention. It would cost me about a $50 at the end of every year with a 3g purge every day. If about 0.2g of yesterday's coffee (1 bean) still found its way into the shot I'd expect that would be largely indescernable.
Orientation angle is interesting, but (hopefully) at higher espresso rpm I would expect that's also not a big factor?
As I write this, I'm wondering if the original broad point is still valid, but as well as a workflow compromise and extra retention, there is possibly also a hit regarding flexibility beyond espresso?
A lot of this coffee equipment really just comes and goes with fashion, particularly now in the internet age where a good review or two makes the next great thing which is the be all and end all for a couple of years. Any of the high end grinders are clearly very high quality, I'm certainly not disputing that, and much better targetted at single dosing home use. I'm more just trying to appreciate if it would likely make much difference to a MM with new burrs, itself the 'be all' home grinder, but 10 years ago. Provided a few clearing grams of coffee are pushed through and one isn't fussed about speed or grinding beyond espresso use?
I expect many who have upgraded to the likes of Niche Zero or even higher end grinders would have done so from the MM. Find much of a difference beyond the much improved workflow.? Did such a difference pale in comparison to beans, distribution, precision baskets etc.?
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Mazzer mini vs 2022 options
Hi All,
I've had my Mazzer mini (Doser version) for over a decade. Every time I disassemble and clean it I'm amazed at the build quality. I plan to replace the burrs soon and it got me wondering, retention and speed aside, how does the grinder compare to any other options in 2022?
It is step less and well built. As such, I'd expect it is reasonable to say it can grind as good as any other grinder on the market, in terms of quality of grind and results in the cup? if not, why is this so and what am I missing? Burrs and tolerance of construction and stepless are surely the only things that truly matter?
Also, assuming the above is correct, I'd be interested in eeking all the performance I can out of the old mini. Are other burr options improved over the stock mazzer ones? I don't care for a few seconds longer grind, so I'm not talking larger than 58mm, but more asking if other burrs such as 58mm SSP's may produce a better result?
Are there other brand options other than SSP or mazzer?
I know retention matters, however I manage this by dropping in 2-3g of beans and clearing the hopper before then grinding my 18g beans for the shot. This should generally mean beans are fresh and not stale from yesterday. While less retention might be nice, I don't like the idea of throwing away something that does the job extremely well just because a slightly more refined option now exists. I bought the grinder for its quality so that it would last for years. The only reason I'd consider an upgrade to another (2nd hand) grinder would be if it may give a better result in cup.
Looking forward to your thoughts and experience as to how the MM stacks up in 2022 and if it is as good as any other grinder, particularly with the right burrs.
Steve

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