Baratza - Vario™ W+ (ZCG988WHT1BUC1A)

There is a comparison of many grinders you're looking at [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/LanceHedrick/comments/139zzei/addendum_to_sculptor_video/). There is a description of the coffee produced although they are very much toward Lance's preferences. I have a Baratza Vario W+ which makes excellent coffee and is relatively forgiving. While Baratza's are not the most trendy (single dose, low retention, static reduction, etc), they are very well built and have a history of reliability and support should something go wrong (you can actually buy nearly all of the parts or have them service the machine). With newer models you will likely gain features or lower the price but you run more risks on longevity.

Another vote for Baratza. I've had my Baratza Vario-W+ for going on 15 years and it has been flawless. Like others have said, parts and servicing is easy. I replaced the motherboard on it once, but that was due to a power spike after a power outage. Not a cheap date, but it'll give you many years of service. I also like it as you can get consistent weighs due to the built-in scale. Solid build, great service, easy maintenance...Just my .02

I would spend more and get. The baratza vario w+.... Grind by weight is really nice. Press a button and get an exact dose by weight

It is but it's about the same price as the niche zero and far more useful for folks who are looking for convenience over single dosing

They only sell the + now. One of the upgrades they made was to make steel standard since most people were upgrading to steel anyway

Yep you’re right I’ve been looking at the W+ and I think it was mostly because of the steel burrs. Thanks for all your help on this one

I don’t have issues switching between grinds with the vario-w. Just change the grind when running and there aren’t beans in the hopper. I’m not storing beans in the hopper anyway. 

You may be able to find a used Baratza Vario-W around that price. The ceramic burrs are not recommended for multipurpose use, so if you're interested in more than espresso or want to pull something more modern, try to find the steel burrs instead.

The baratza vario w can do either espresso well or the others well - but doesnt not switch between them well. The answer for me was to have two of them! one for espresso - one for everything else.

With not a lot of detail to work with I'll say Baratza Vario W+ or its nicer brother Baratza Forte BG. Both use the flat steel burr for filter brew. Don't buy the espresso version with ceramic burr, it's not great for filter brew. They are great for normal consumers (even for coffee geeks). Both have an integrated scale for ease of use, fits a typical 12oz / 340gr coffee bag in hopper for non-single dosing*. Anybody can use the grinder; press the start button then voilà! Perfect dosing without any measuring, water spray, etc. Baratza also sells single dosing hopper if what you're looking for. *It's also a 1L Mason jar of coffee, if you freeze your coffee in a mason jar. The only downside is the noise.... It is noisy. It's also not the new flashy trendy grinder but it's been in production since 2011. But don't change something that isn't broken.

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.

Flat burrs seem to bring out the fruit notes more. I have an opus, ceado, and vario.

🤣🤣 after a while I learned to recognize the difference. To me, I taste much more sweetness on the flat burrs.

I have had a vario for 4 months now. I performed the alicorn procedure per the resources provided here and it works great! I can pull high altitude single origin shots and everything. The problem i’m running into is that the grinder falls out of alignment after some time. In 4 months, it’s fallen off twice. I re-align, and am back to winning, but it’s not the quickest process, and I worry that something is wrong. Anybody have the same issue?