Baratza - Vario (Modified)

I have a fellow opus and baratza vario. Although I like the vario, it’s just so loud. The fellow has a nice fit and finish to it.

On my bar currently is a Fellow Ode, Baratza Vario, and a Timemore 064s. Had SSP cast in the 064 but probably swapping them to the Ode now. All that to say, I could have just one of any of these and be perfectly happy. Timemore is probably my favorite as far as quality and workflow, plus it can genuinely pull double duty. Ode is great but obviously you’re not getting espresso there. Vario is an old design with clunky workflow but the burrs are great—in fact, the Mahlkonig X54 is essentially just an updated Vario. All these are great grinders.

Buy the best grinder you can afford. Used grinders can be a good deal…no seasoning the burrs & lower price. I am a fan of the forte bg or the vario if you swap out the burr carrier. You can get deals on either especially if you are willing to do work. Baratza has all the parts. Research hyper aligning the burrs.

Baratza Vario doesn’t get enough love. Especially the updated Vario + But know that any grinder going back and forth between coarse and espresso is going to require re-dialing in and “wasting” a bit more coffee than if you have dedicated grinders that you can make micro adjustments on. That said I have an original Vario that was rebuilt 1x to the metal internals. I’ve had it almost 13 years?? I do exactly what you want to do with it

I have a timemore c2 that I use as my travel grinder. When I travel with the family and have to make a pot of coffee, its kind of a pain because I have to fill and empty the grinder a few times to make 10 cups. I would not want to do this all the time, but its fine for a few weeks out of the year. Maybe you can find a decent used burr grinder for a good price. I have a really old vario that is now relegated to grinding for pots of coffee at home.

Just looking at it, I can see it's got the same internal design as the burr grinder Cuisinart has been making for decades now. It's better than a blade grinder, but it's on the lowest quality rung of electric burr grinders. The cheapest baratza is significantly better.