Oro Mignon XL (Premium Variant)

Regarding machines, they truly do not make that much difference. I’ve used a few $10000 La Marzocco (and similar), a $400 Breville, a 45-year-old La Pavoni lever machine (and a handful of HX/dual boiler machines in the $1500-2500 price range as well). Ultimately, the job of a machine is rather simple — pump some hot water at the correct temperature through the grinds, and the dumbest thing you can imagine to do that job does it sufficiently well (my La Pavoni is basically an electric kettle with a hand pump attached to it). A lot of the increased cost buys you a bit of consistency in terms of temperature stability, durability when subject to commercial volume, and the ability to pump out a lot of drinks quickly, particularly regarding milk steaming. Regarding grinders, they do make a big difference, but serious diminishing returns kick in before you get to the $1000 price point. For me, there was a massive difference in consistency between the assorted Baratzas I had used and the Mignon XL I upgraded to, and I can make a pretty good argument that the $ spent on that upgrade has saved me a good amount on beans and will pay for itself over some time horizon, but I have zero desire to upgrade the grinder further after 4 years. I’m not familiar with the assorted Chinese grinders, but a lot of folks here swear by them. Regarding shot quality in general, the most useful variable to turn $$ into quality espresso (besides buying better beans in general) is willingness to dump a suboptimal shot in the sink. I spent a day walking around Portland years ago in search of the best espresso, and the best shot I had was at Clive when demoing some equipment… the key being that they dumped two shots before giving me one to drink. Obviously, depending on the cost of the beans you’re working with, “good enough is good enough” may kick in. With my current setup (a 45-year-old La Pavoni + Mignon XL) I reliably get shots comparable to what I get at my very excellent local cafe using the same beans, and better than most other cafes out there.

I’d raise the diminishing returns threshold closer to $1000 — going from assorted Baratzas to my Mignon XL was a bigger improvement than between any machine I’ve used (Bambino vs. a $10,000 commercial La Marzocco).

The Flair workflow is a pain, especially when making multiple drinks. I have one and a La Pavoni and the Flair only gets travel use. (Edit: Didn’t realize the 58 has a more “normal” workflow than the classic Flair). I bought my mom a Bambino Plus + Sette 5 years ago and she absolutely loves the setup. The machine hits a real sweet spot as a step up from a Nespresso, as the instant heat is EXTREMELY practical for exactly your use case (early morning pre-coffee caffeination), to the point where I’m shocked that nobody has really nailed that in the “step-up” machines. There are better grinder options today, and you have some choices with the machine (you can find a second-hand La Pavoni around that price range, or any of the options you listed). If I were to swap pieces of my setup for my mom’s, I’m fully confident I’d get a similar (or perhaps better) shot out of her machine with my grinder, but the gap between her Sette and my Mignon XL is serious (though the price sweet spot may be somewhere in the middle).

I just keep my old Baratza for brew and use a Mignon XL for espresso. The Eureka’s adjustment mechanism is great for small adjustments within espresso, less good for being able to make a major adjustment and get back to where you were. It’s generally nice having the espresso adjustment stay put — getting things dialed back often burns a shot or two of beans. I think the Baratza Forte is basically designed for what you’re looking for, though I can’t speak for it personally.

The high end of the Mignon line (Stark/XL) is fantastic with a very reasonable footprint.

Cheaper + Footprint? Mignon’s footprint is 5”x8”. Philos is 6”x14”.

I have a Mignon XL which is a timer based on-demand grinder and I find it works quite well. I replaced a Vario-W that I used for 10 years with it and while I honestly don’t notice much difference in the cup, the Eureka is faster, quieter, and more consistent….the speed and noise can’t be overstated, it’s not even close. It was a bit of a step backwards in terms of usability with going from GBW to timed dosing, but the Vario grinds into a catch bin so in some ways the Eureka was an improvement. I’ve since added a large adjustment dial to it, and an olive wood hopper lid. I use a scale to weigh the portafilter before and after I grind and I find the timer works quite well at achieving consistent output.

2 electric and 2 hand grinders. Fellow Ode gen 2 for anything non-espresso, and Eureka Mignon Oro XL for espresso. Hand grinders 1zpresso JX pro and Comandante C40. The C40 was a gift from my parents for helping dad decide what to get for his new post-retirement coffee interest. I sometimes use hand grinder at home when making coffee just for me, to see how conical compares with flat burr of the Ode.

Do you mean the hopper? You wouldn’t want that to be glass, trust me. The price is pretty much the burrs. I have one of these grinders and the build quality is very solid. The way you can justify it is you use it multiple times a day, and that’s just what it costs for a 65mm flat burr grinder. There are some slightly cheaper Chinese ones you can get, but that’s pretty much just what they cost. If you want to know why you would want a flat burr grinder: consistency, and flavour. The more consistent your grind, the easier it is to dial in your coffee. Things like fines (basically really small particles in your grounds), can drastically change the speed in which your coffee flows.

I have a Eureka Mignon Oro XL and a Fellow Ode (Gen 1 with gen 2 burrs). I currently use the XL as a single dose espresso grinder and the ode for filter coffee (pourover and clever dripper). However, I'm selling my espresso machine and will just need one grinder for pourover and a high end batch brewer (probably a ratio8). Should I keep the Eureka and use it for filter coffee? I'm not sure I'll enjoy the workflow. Should I stick to the Ode? Or should I sell both grinders and get something else? If yes, what?