Getting a new coffee grinder...
is often a joyous and exciting experience for every coffee lover, but one thing tends to always hang over our heads as we prepare to grind our first batch; burr seasoning. If you haven't heard of seasoning your grinder burrs you wouldn't be alone, as its not something that everyone has heard of or believes is even a worthwhile practice. But in short, much like a new car or a cast iron pan, many believe that a new set of burrs needs to grind through a varied amount of coffee before it's capable of providing the best possible performance and brew results.
Personally, I take issue with seasoning on a few different fronts, but it all boils down to all the details just seeming so arbitrary. No one knows how much coffee needs to be ground; it could be one pound, it could be 100. Some say it's purely to get coffee oils on the burrs and chamber to allow for a smoother grinding experience, and less retention. Others say its to wear down the harsh angles on the burrs for a more consistent grind distribution.
So armed with two sets of Mazzer Kony burrs (in the Niche Zero) one of which is two years old and well "seasoned", and the other brand new, fresh out of the box I decided to put them to a battery of side by side tests to see if grinder seasoning really makes a difference, and if so, how much. So hit play on the video above and let's brew this!
April 22, 2022
FWIW, the instructions that come with the SSP red speed burrs recommend seasoning with a dark roast, on a coarse grind setting, to oil the burrs. But the stated aim is not to improve the grinded result, but rather to protect the grinder motor by reducing friction, before tackling lighter (harder) roasts with a finer grind. I’ve no idea whether it actually adds up — but I guess it’s another potential reason to season. I confess I did dutifully grind my way through a bag of cheap dark roast beans, at least, before tackling anything I planned to drink.
May 13, 2022
[…] Unlike most grinders on the market the Lagom P64 has multiple burr options, so essentially this review will be broken down into two major sections. One covering the body, chassis, and motor by Option-O, as well as another section on my burr choice; the SSP Multi-Purpose. I'll also go into all the usual suspects in grinder reviews like workflow, features, and of course it wouldn't be a proper Sprometheus video without some tests around extraction and burr seasoning. […]
May 3, 2023
[…] not be worth the time, effort and waste of coffee. Asa Baiz of Little Giant Coffee Roasters, ran a side-by-side test and found the difference in taste, extraction, and grind size distribution to be negligible. That […]