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Coffee is the most popular beverage in the US. The total consumption rate of coffee in the world is 400 billion cups every year. But 450 million cups of coffee are consumed in the US every day.
Suffice to say that coffee is a very important drink. Most of us start our day with a delicious cup of Joe and sometimes coffee is the only reason we can function. Coffee has a lot of benefits and we will discuss those in today’s article.
But in today’s article, we are going to talk more about coffee grinders. We will give you reasons why you should grind your beans personally and give you a rundown of two of the most awesome coffee grinders out there. We will compare the Baratza Encore vs Wilfa Svart coffee grinders and even talk about their features.
This tried and true grinder has been on the market since 2012 and is our most widely used grinder. Its grind consistency and reliability make it a great little workhorse for your home espresso, drip or French Press coffee setup.
Table of Contents
Benefits of coffee
Coffee is one of the most famous hot beverage that is consumed throughout the world and makes an essential part of a morning ritual. But coffee has so many advantages.
Coffee makes you mentally sharper. It blocks the production of adenosine in the brain which causes the feel-good hormones like oxytocin and norepinephrine. These hormones are largely responsible for rapid neural signaling and interaction thus increasing your mental capacity.
Coffee also helps with weight loss. Caffeine in the coffee boosts the level of adrenaline levels in the body which can result in a greater fat loss during a workout. Also, it increases your stamina so your workout can be longer, harder, and overall more effective. Caffeine also helps you to achieve weight loss goals by increasing your metabolism.
Another way coffee helps with weight loss is that it is one of the lowest-calorie drinks. So if you are dieting or are looking to reduce your caloric intake then this is the perfect drink for you while also keeping you relatively hydrated.
Coffee is also a great source of antioxidants. It helps to detox the body when it enters the system. Coffee is also great against inflammation. Coffee works wonders in the body by improving blood circulation and providing you with essential micronutrients such as riboflavin that is Vitamin B2, pantothenic acid or Vitamin B5, Manganese, potassium, magnesium, niacin or vitamin B3, etc.
Coffee also reduces the risk of prostate cancer, Type II Diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, lowers the risk of stroke in women as well Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, colorectal cancer, oral cancer, kidney stones, liver cancer and so many more disease and disorders.
Coffee is also great for the preservation of muscles and reduces muscle soreness after a workout session. Coffee also increases the level of good cholesterol in the body. Another important function that coffee plays in the body is it enhances DNA repair while also helping you meet your daily fiber level in the body and keeping your bowel healthy.
Coffee also works well for the skin as it contains antioxidants that help to improve skin texture and composition. Coffee also helps us maintain overall good health by lowering stress and fighting depression. It protects against estrogen, and breast cancer as well as endometrial cancer. Coffee ensures healthy eyes by protecting the eyes against cataracts, eyelid spasms, and retinal damage. Most of the times, people don’t turn to coffee for stress, but to drugs for stress relief. Hence, such people should visit a drug rehab clinic and undergo their treatment, if possible.
Coffee also prevents the risk of asthma and prevents erectile dysfunction in men. Coffee can even add a few years to your life.
How much coffee to drink in a day?
This is one of the most common questions that everyone seems to ask. How much coffee is too much coffee? The correct amount of coffee to drink is 1-2 cups per day. If you exceed to this limit you might not get proper sleep and you can suffer from bowel problems like constipation.
Caffeine in high amounts is detrimental to your health as your system will then be dependent on caffeine intake to perform various functions. In short, you will get addicted to coffee since caffeine is a type of drug. However, if you need treatment for drug addiction, you can visit el paso drug treatment program, which is one of the best to get rid of all kinds of addictions.
If your goal is to reap the maximum benefits out of your delicious coffee then limit your coffee consumption to 1 to 2 cups a day. And always have your coffee before 5 pm. This ensures that the coffee will not interrupt with your melatonin production, which is a type of sleep hormone. Also, it is always smart to put coconut oil or MCT oil in your coffee.
The oil digests slowly in the body which allows the caffeine to digest slowly as well. This keeps you caffeinated longer and reduces the risk of a caffeine crash.
Have you ever wondered what happens to your body after you drink coffee? I know I have. We will now talk about the sequential steps that occur in your body after the consumption of coffee. Have a cup of coffee now and let’s see what is going on in your body.
First 10 minutes
Within the first 10 minutes of your coffee consumption, the caffeine in the coffee enters your bloodstream. Your heart rate and blood pressure are slowly rising.
20 minutes
It has been about 20 minutes since you had a cup of coffee. You don’t feel it but you are starting to become more alert and focused. More in-tune with your environment. You may be starting to truly think about your problems and come up with solid solutions. You don’t feel quite as tired as you were feeling before.
30 minutes
The caffeine is still in your bloodstream and as a result of this, your body is producing more adrenaline, the fight-or-flight hormone. You don’t notice it but your pupils have dilated slightly and therefore you can probably take in more visual information. This means that your vision is getting a little sharper.
40 minutes
The level of serotonin, a happy hormone, is rising. This rise in serotonin leads to improvement in fine motor neurons and that leads to an increase in muscle strength.
4 hours
The time since you drank coffee has increased and so has the rate at which energy is released in your cells. Because of this increased level of energy release, excess fat is rapidly getting burned even though you are not doing any strenuous activity. You are just sitting and reading this article. Your resting metabolism has also increased.
6 hours
The caffeine is causing a diuretic effect in your body. A diuretic is any substance that causes the body to urinate. Apart from water, you are also losing some essential nutrients and vitamins. This can lead to a very slight calcium deficiency in the body.
So that is what happens to your body when you drink coffee. It makes you sharper and better focused and helps you to make well-informed decisions. Pretty cool, right?
A guide to coffee grinds and coffee brewing
Coffee is delicious but every coffee connoisseur has its own coffee grinding and brewing process. Even big coffee stores like Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, etc. have their own secret grinding and brewing formula that they keep undisclosed.
The way you grind your coffee beans and brew them ultimately determines how your coffee will taste. It is the make-or-break process. Some people buy their coffee beans already ground from some obscure coffee shops while some people are self-proclaimed baristas and love to ground their coffee on their own.
When it comes to ground coffee, there are generally a few coffee grind sizes. You have the coarse ground coffee. Then there is medium ground coffee, the consistency of the coffee bean, in this case, is similar to your normal table salt.
Medium fine ground is somewhere between the medium ground and fine ground coffee and the last type is fine ground coffee. In this case, the consistency of the ground coffee is like that of dirt. An ultra-fine grind takes it to another level and can be compared to flour.
Another factor that will impact the way your coffee tastes is the coffee beans themselves. Specifically, how roasted the beans are. Light roasts generally have a fruity aroma. They are light brown to cinnamon in color and do not have any oil on their surface. They are more preferable for drinking black coffee.
Medium-light roasts are medium brown in color. They taste slightly sweeter than light roasts and have a balanced aroma, flavor, and acidity. Medium roasted coffee beans are the most preferred type of roast in the U.S.
Then there is medium-dark roast which has a richer and darker color. They may have some oil on their surface. What differentiates medium-dark roast from medium-light roast is that it has a distinct bittersweet aftertaste. The flavor and aroma of this type of roast are very apparent. The acidity of this coffee beans roast completely disappears as well.
Dark roast coffee beans are black in color. They have this shiny surface because of the oil on their surface. They have a significant amount of bitterness. These beans are perfect for espresso and lattes. Also, the addition of milk brings out their taste even more. In today’s well-connected world, you can get ground coffee from any hipster coffee shop or even your local grocery store. And that is great, but apparently pre-ground coffee is not the best.
Grinding your own coffee definitely is the best way to brew personal coffee. This claim is not just backed by all the aesthetic coffee lovers and hipsters out there, it is also backed by science. It is really simple. And the pre-ground coffee beans are more susceptible to becoming stale and losing their original, rich taste. This mostly happens because of air and moisture.
The air contains a lot of gases and elements including oxygen. And you remember how your half-opened bag of tortillas goes stale if you do not pack it tight? Well, the same thing happens to your ground coffee beans as well.
Grinded Coffee
Your coffee contains complex compounds like caffeine, riboflavin, etc. that gives it it’s signature aroma and taste. Most of these compounds are not stable so they react with oxygen in the air and bring about oxidation of the coffee beans. This oxidation results in a loss of great taste and aroma.
When you grind your coffee beans, you start this process. Unless you do not brew your coffee right away, this process will cause a loss of the signature flavor and aroma of the coffee beans. This is one reason why you should brew only freshly ground coffee.
Another reason is moisture. As we saw, some coffee beans have oil deposited on them. These oils are soluble in water meaning they can mix with water. This water-oil solubility is the reason why coffee tastes so delicious and rich. As we already know, our air has high moisture content and this moisture in the air also reacts with the oils present in the coffee beans. When you grind the coffee beans, the surface area required for the moisture to get absorbed by the coffee beans also increases. This again spoils the taste of your coffee.
And the last reason for grinding your own coffee beans is carbon dioxide depletion. Coffee beans are very porous, this allows easy diffusion of gases into and out of the coffee beans. But when you grind your coffee beans, the porosity of the coffee beans increases due to an increase in surface area.
This results in the loss of carbon dioxide which is another reason for the delicious taste of the coffee beans. So if you do not immediately brew your coffee you are essentially compromising the taste of your coffee. If you are not already convinced then think about the contamination. You know the environment of your home and therefore are assured that no one sneezed into the coffee beans or anything like that. Besides, grinding your own coffee means you have total control over how much you want to grind your coffee.
If you are convinced and now thinking about which coffee grind to buy then don’t worry, we’ve got you covered there too. We have two coffee grinders the Baratza Encore and the Wilfa svart. We will pitch them against one another in a head-to-head comparison and see which one grinds the best.
Some coffee grinders have blades while some have burrs. Blades are cheaper but it is perfect for beginners. But the blade grinders can produce uneven grinds which are not suitable for making espresso. Burr grinders, on the other hand, are more precise and give consistent grinds.
Burr grinders are either flat or conical. The conical burr grinders are more affordable and make less noise. Burr grinders generally have a high-speed motor. But you have to be careful with high-speed motors as they produce more heat which can burn your coffee beans and again change the aroma and taste of the coffee beans.
Before we begin, we will look at some of their basics and features first, just to give both of them comparable ground.
Baratza Encore
The Baratza has made its name in the coffee world and the Encore is the newest entry-level coffee grinder from them. It does not let you do all the complicated coffee barista work but it is perfect for anyone navigating the world of coffee for the first time. The Encore gives a great medium and fine grind.
The Baratza Encore is an example of a conical burr coffee grinder. The burrs are 40 mm in size and as mentioned, conical in shape. The Baratza Encore has 40 individual settings which ensure a perfect grind every time. The 40 individual settings range from coarse to ultra-fine. The settings are precise and repeatable.
let’s talk about the 40 mm conical burrs. They are not just impressive but efficient and functional. The burrs in the Baratza Encore are specially designed to meet the demands of even the choosiest coffee brewer and drinker. The burrs give accurate grinds with minimal to no loss of that delicate balance of aroma and flavor.
The Encore gives a precise medium to coarse grinds that are compatible with the popular manual brewing methods for making espresso and other types of specialty coffee requiring coarse to medium ground coffee beans.
The burrs, which are specially manufactured in Europe not just ensure that you get the perfect evenly ground coffee of your preference but it is also notorious for their good durability and therefore will remain sharp and functional for a long time.
The Baratza Encore has an efficient DC motor that keeps the coffee beans cool and prevents them from overheating or burning. The Encore has a simple but effective direct drive gear reduction transmission that moves power from the DC motor to the conical burr.
This, in simple English, means that there is a gear that is directly powered which moves the power generated by the DC motor to the conical burrs without loss of any power. This ensures that the power consumption of the Baratza Encore is relatively low.
There is also a thermal overload present here. The main function of this thermal overload is to make sure that the motor does not overheat even when used excessively. The ground holding capacity of the Encore is only 142 grams or 8 oz. Do not worry this does not mean a disadvantage of the Encore. In fact, this much ground coffee bean holding capacity is an advantage.
The Baratza Encore has low ground coffee beans holding capacity to maximize the freshness of the coffee beans. Remember how we talked about oxidation, moisture, and carbon dioxide depletion bad for the coffee? So this was done by design to make sure that none of the factors negatively impact the taste and even aroma of the coffee.
The Encore is great for manual brewing and espresso brewing methods. You can use the 40 settings by turning the hopper. This allows you to quickly and efficiently choose your desired grinding setting. The grind size ranges from 250 microns to 1200 microns.
However if for some reason, you think that your burr is not working the way it should then it can be calibrated. The Baratza uses an innovative calibration system that ensures that the Encore grinder is working with its full range of grinds. The Encore, if necessary, can even be calibrated according to the needs and requirements of the user.
The rotation of the burr is slow at 450 rotations per minute. This is additional assurance that the risk of overheating or burning your coffee beans is even lower so you can enjoy a perfect cup of coffee every time.
The Encore uses a combination of gears and electrically driven speed redactors that help to slow down the speed of the burrs. The slow speed also cuts down the noise level and static generation in the grinder. It also makes sure that the beans smoothly go into the burr.
The Encore grinder can be operated with an easy on and off switch. If you are worried about the cleaning process of the Encore conical burr grinder then let me assure you that it is not as complicated as you think. The Burrs are easily removable without the use of any tools. So you clean them and when you are done then insert them back into the grinder so the Encore is ready to rock and roll.
This tried and true grinder has been on the market since 2012 and is our most widely used grinder. Its grind consistency and reliability make it a great little workhorse for your home espresso, drip or French Press coffee setup.
Wilfa Svart
Now we will talk about the contending coffee grinder. Wilfa is a Norwegian company that prides itself for making authentic Norwegian-styled products that bring your everyday coffee ritual a new level. The full model name is Wilfa Svart Aroma Coffee Grinder CGWS-130B. But we will refer to it in this article as just Wilfa Svart.
The Wilfa Svart is a chic and stylish way to start your morning. It too has a DC motor which is an upgrade from previous Wilfa models. The upgraded motor present in the Wilfa Svart makes your coffee grinding experience a silent and accurate operation. The Wilfa Svart coffee grinder has just 5 different grind level settings that will help you personalize the coffee beans to your preferred grind. However, it is not compatible with espresso.
This sleek grinder has steel-coated conical burrs that ensure a perfect cup of Joe every time. The conical burrs produce a very low amount of heat even when used to their full capacity. The delicious taste and aroma of the coffee beans are also preserved in this coffee grinder.
The other distinguishing feature of the Wilfa Svart coffee grinder is that the coffee bean holder and the ground coffee container are made of UV protected plastic which helps to keep the coffee beans and the ground coffee away from direct sunlight.
The Wilfa Svart also has a timer system so you can grind your coffee and do not always have to be present while your coffee grinder goes to work.
Comparison
Now, this is what we have been waiting for. The battle of the grinds where we will compare them and decide which one wins. Alright, here we go.
Availability
You can buy the Encore from the Baratza website or from Amazon. The choice is yours. On the other hand, the Wilfa part is a bit tricky with regard to its availability. Generally, you have to search for the sites from where you can buy this coffee grinder, and even then chances are you might have to pay in pounds. So that is a real bummer.
Grind Level Settings
This is a tricky one right? Because one side you have the Encore with its 40 individual settings and the other side you have the Svart with its 5 grind settings.
Okay, so obviously the clear winner in this round is the Baratza Encore with its 40 different and individual grind settings. That one is a no-brainer.
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Espresso
Espresso is probably one of the most preferred types of coffee in the U.S. From businessmen and businesswomen to your sleep-deprived college student, most of them drink espresso. You can make espresso using the coffee beans ground by the Baratza Encore.
We wish we could have said the same in the case of the Wilfa Svart but unfortunately, you cannot brew the ground coffee for espresso however you can make a mocha pot. It is not as strong as espresso but it is delicious.
For this reason, again, Baratza Encore wins.
U.V protection
The Wilfa Svart has a U.V-protected plastic coffee beans holder and ground coffee holder. This ensures that direct sunlight is not absorbed by the coffee beans. Direct absorption of sunlight causes your beans to get damaged.
This feature is not available in the Encore. So Wilfa Svart wins here.
Timer
Another feature that Wilfa Svart has that the Baratza Encore does not have. So Wilfa wins here.
Honest Opinion
Alright, so we saw the basics features of both of these products and compared them. It is now time to declare a winner.
The Baratza Encore takes the cake!
It is convenient and efficient. And maybe the most awesome thing is the 40 individual settings level for a grind. You can basically brew any type of coffee you want with these 40 settings.
The ease with which anyone can operate this coffee grinder is pretty awesome too. You do not have to be a barista extraordinaire to operate the Baratza Encore coffee grinder. It is designed for beginners, who are just beginning to see the benefit of grinding their coffee beans. So operating this coffee grinder is easy. Although read the user manual first.
It is very, very hard to burn or overheat your coffee beans in this coffee grinder. So if that is a concern then trust us when we say it will not be a problem. As we mentioned before there are several ways to minimize the heat when grinding beans. There is the overhead heat reducer as well as the slow speed of the burr. All of these minimize heat production and grind your coffee beans perfectly.
It is overall a great coffee grinder. It grounds coffee evenly, you can easily calibrate it and it can be easily cleaned.
So, with that, we end our review and we hope that you have gained insight into these coffee grinders. let us know what you think, we’d love to hear from you!
This tried and true grinder has been on the market since 2012 and is our most widely used grinder. Its grind consistency and reliability make it a great little workhorse for your home espresso, drip or French Press coffee setup.
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