For french press, pour overs, aeropress, etc, this is a fantastic grinder. The grind is fairly uniform, the grinder is easy to use, and the entire thing is well made and made for repairs--an investment that will last a lifetime or more!
However, for espresso, you *can* recalibrate the grinder to grind down to small enough grinds. This taking off the shell and essentially shifting the grind size range down. By this I mean let's say 0-40 is the range for however your Virtuoso + is currently calibrated. If you recalibrate it to the finest setting, the range, relative to the original, then becomes something like -8-32.
As such, this does work for espresso--I managed to dial in some recipes with the use of puck screens and such to compensate for pressure. But the step size itself is fairly big for espresso. What I mean is that the ideal grind size for whatever espresso you want to make is very likely in between grind sizes--and there is no way for you to calibrate this grinder to be in that middle ground. Well, there is: you can do the stepless mod, but per Youtube, this comes with its own compromises (the hopper will shake a lot so you will have to stand there holding the hopper for consistent grinds). Either way, works well for my current espresso skill level and usage.
That being said, if you have one of the lower end entry level machines with the pressurized baskets (like mine) and just simply want to make a mocha or strong coffee but not a "proper" or "perfect" espresso, then the grind size/steps kinda don't matter all that much. These types of baskets are meant to eliminate all the nuances of proper espresso making. When you start messing around with unpressurized baskets though, you may be somewhat unhappy depending on how you like your espresso.
In case you are interested in the grind sizes I use, here they are below. Keep in mind my Virtuoso + is calibrated to the finest possible setting (Baratza has videos showing how to do this).
French press - I use an Espro P7, so I use a medium grind because I can filter out the grounds. I use size level 28 and the standard 1 min bloom, 3 min brewing, 30 sec plunge technique
Espresso - I use a Casabrews CM5418 but unpressurized baskets. The one I have dialed in the best (as well as I could with this machine and grinder) is the IKAPE 51mm high extraction beehive basket. For this basket, I use 15.5g of medium/medium-light beans at size 4 with the GEMINI 51mm Puck Screen at 0.8mm thickness. The puck screen is primarily to keep the showerhead clean and compensate for pressure as well as volume since I cannot dial in the grind size any better. The pressure ends up being ~8.5-9 BAR on my machine. it will be a bit on the sour side but still good.
If you want something a bit more on the bitter side, then with the same basket, I do 16g of the same beans, grind level 5, with the MHW Bomber3 51mm 0.8mm puck screen. The pressure will be 6.5-7.5 BAR with my machine.
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Product Description
Enhanced Burr Set
Easy, Intuitive control.
40 steps of grind adjustment
Small but Mighty Grinder.
Don’t Dump it, Fix it!
Most small, consumer appliances are designed to wear out, or stop being useful in a very short time. These appliances are difficult and expensive to repair, so consumers are trained to dump and replace which has big environmental implications.
In contrast, we’ve purposefully designed Baratza grinders to be maintained like commercial grinders and maximize their value. With regular cleaning, maintenance, repair, and even rebuilds our grinders can give an excellent, accurate grind for many years.
Compare with similar items
This Item  Baratza Virtuoso+ Coffee Grinder ZCG587BLK, Black | Recommendations  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $249.95 | $199.95 | $529.95 | $599.95 | -18% $82.03 List: $99.99 | $195.00 |
| Delivery | Get it as soon as Wednesday, Mar 26 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, Mar 18 | Get it as soon as Monday, Mar 17 | Get it as soon as Monday, Mar 17 | Get it as soon as Monday, Mar 17 | Get it as soon as Monday, Mar 17 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Sold By | Amazon.com | Amazon.com | Azimuth Articles | Azimuth Articles | Amazon.com | Fellow Industries Inc. |
| capacity | 230 grams | 120 grams | 300 grams | 5 ounces | 0.75 pounds | 110 grams |
| material | Metal | Plastic | Plastic | Plastic | Stainless Steel | Stainless Steel |
| style | Automatic | Modern | Modern | Modern | Matte Black Burr Coffee Grinder | Adjustable |
Outstanding Burr Grinder
This is the fifth and best burr grinder I've used. I am a pour over coffee maker and absolutely love having the beans ground to perfection, which this Virtuoso + does. I love the light that shines into the grounds chamber (see photos). One strong recommendation for an add-on that is very cheap but super useful: Buy a bellows (see photo) to place on top of the hopper. It works so well with this grinder, flushing out any grounds left in the hopper and in the burrs chamber. Pressing the bellows hard doesn't make the grounds go anywhere except the ground coffee chamber. SO worth it. All in all, a 5-star item well worth the high price.
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2024
- Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2024
- Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2024
Top reviews from other countries
- Hardeep AsraniReviewed in India on January 21, 2023
Amazing for brewing, not so good for Espresso
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phantasiemanenquatschReviewed in Germany on September 9, 2021
Hochwertige und praktische Haushaltskaffeemühle
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