Three Single Dose Espresso Grinders: From Basic to Coffee Shop Worthy
If there’s one thing I could complain about with home grinders it’s this.
The bean hoppers on them are so damn big that they’re almost a hindrance at times.
I know it’s nice to be able to dump a whole bag of beans into them and not worry about it.
But what about those of us that like to try different types of espresso?
After all, ‘espresso beans’ is just a made-up term. I’ve used countless filter coffee beans for espresso and had fantastic results.
So this post is for you, the discerning espresso snob.
NOTE: This contains links to Espressotec, an amazing local company that pay for Ad space on my website. I’m choosing to link to them, but you can go off and hunt for a local sales source wherever you are. Support local!
Why Use a Single Dose Espresso Grinder?
There are a few major reasons why you’d use a single dose grinder.
You can keep your coffee beans fresh longer
Since you only grind what you need, you can keep the rest of your beans in an air-tight container.
After all, one of the biggest enemies of coffee is air. It’ll make your coffee go stale quicker.
Keeping the beans nice and fresh means you’ll have more control over your espresso shots, since each dose is more consistent.
Consistency equals good espresso from your espresso machine.
Single dosing means you can easily try different types of coffee
You can buy small quantities of different beans and not have to worry about them going stale.
Or better yet start a coffee blog and people will send it to you for free.
Ahem.
This is actually especially great when you convince a barista to give you a little sample of their espresso.
You can easily switch to decaff coffee when you use a single dose grinder
If you’ve ever changed out a full hopper you know what I mean.
Beans go everywhere.
There’s cleanup.
Some are half-ground stuck in the grinder.
It’s a mess.
When the whole grinder is empty at all times you can easily toss in some decaff coffee then immediately switch to regular.
3 Single Dose Espresso Grinders for Home Use
OK, so what options are there for you?
Well, here’s my list:
The Baratza Sette 30 – The best budget espresso grinder
The Baratza Sette 30 is a great single dose espresso grinder for home use.
It has a low price point and is perfect for those just starting out with espresso.
The grind setting can be easily adjusted from fine to coarse, so you can find the perfect grind for your beans.
It also grinds very quickly. It’s actually pretty shocking how quickly.
I can grind a full 18ish grams in 4-5 seconds.
Baratza has an awesome single dose hopper addon that lowers the overall height of the grinder.
Plus it has bellows, which means you can ‘blow’ out any leftover coffee in the grinding chamber after you’ve finished using it.
The one major drawback of this grinder is that it’s loud.
Like genuinely ridiculously loud.
Click here to buy a Baratza Sette 30 and click here to buy the single dose hopper with bellows.
Eureka Mignon Zero Espresso Grinder – The Best Prosumer Espresso Grinder
The Eureka Mignon Zero is a great coffee grinder for those looking for something a bit fancier.
It has a medium price point and is perfect for those that want to get serious about good espresso.
Firstly the grind quality is really incredible. Because of the large, flat burrs, the coffee comes out light, fluffy with an even grind size on the particles.
Like almost every other prosumer coffee grinder at this price point, it’s very quick at doing its job.
You’re looking at about 10 seconds per shot. But it’s very quiet when it’s working.
What I really like about the Mignon Zero are the built in bellows.
This means you get next to no grind retention when using it.
As far as single dosing grinders go, I’d happily have this at home.
Click here to buy a Eureka Mignon Zero.
EK43 – The best high end single dosing grinder
OK, I know this thing is obnoxiously big and expensive.
But damn is it ever worth it.
First off you don’t just have espresso as your brew method when using an EK43.
With its huge flat burrs, It’s as equally as capable at creating great french press coffee as it is espresso.
Most prosumer espresso grinders can’t even touch a stock EK43 for grind quality.
But when you upgrade them with dedicated espresso burrs, you’re able to adjust grind fineness to an incredible level.
You can grind fine with these.
Grinding coffee takes next to no time at all – at about 2-3 seconds for a shot.
What about the bad sides of the EK43?
Well, it’s about a kilometre high, making it hilariously large for the average kitchen.
But there are a couple of solutions:
1) Get an EK43S. It’s a smaller version of the EK43.
2) Get a single dose hopper. This practically makes it a doserless grinder (OK that was a total lie, it can actually fit 250g of coffee into it).
This isn’t just the best single dosing espresso grinder, it’s one of the best coffee grinders in general.