Baratza - Virtuoso Series

I recently "upgraded" from an electric Baratza Virtuoso to a manual ZP6. I like the ZP6 a lot. It takes up less space and really doesn't take much time or effort to grind coffee. I do pour over with 15 or 20 g of coffee at a time, and it takes seconds to grind. I can't see myself going back to an electric grinder (unless I for some reason bought a Mr. Coffee and needed a lot of coffee grounds).

I have a 4 year old Virtuoso, and it has had a number of problems. The rotary part that pushes grounds into the tiny chute routinely breaks and needs to be replaced. I've taken the whole thing apart and put it back together, but it no longer grinds finely at all. It's incredibly difficult to clean.

Contrary position: I've been struggling to get my 4-year-old Virtuoso to work right for the last year, and it's a mystery to me. I can't get a response from Baratza support. The grind size is enormous, even after using tons of the different techniques people talk about on Reddit and YouTube. It used to be fine, but the very flimsy plastic rotary piece that pushes grounds into the chute broke down quickly and had to be replaced, and ever since I replaced it and put everything back together carefully, it's never quite worked. In addition, years ago the speed knob on the side broke and is permanently fixed in position, so to turn it on and off I have to plug and unplug the grinder.

Medium roast, unflavored beans. Ring plastic probably isn't an issue of hairline cracks -- the plastic is just flimsy, and the four protrusions stick out, so they break off. I've had 5 break off total on 2 rings in 4 years. I took everything apart and put it back together last year to replace the ring, and ever since, the grind size has been incorrectly large. So now I grind on the smallest setting, but it's like the largest setting used to be. Even so, tiny grinds gum up the works and get thicker and thicker, eventually clogging the chute, which is angled and hard to get to so it's extremely hard to clean. I have to pre-bend the cleaning tool (which I bought directly from Barratza), and even then it only kind of gets into the nooks and crannies. I maintain that it's just a poor design overall, with some consistently shoddy components. But I appreciate your offer to help!

Thanks, and my best guess is that you're right, something isn't quite leveled correctly somewhere. I've taken it apart and put it back together a few times, but that hasn't solved the problem. One thing I do note is that there are different types of washers in different locations, and the YouTube videos about disassembly and reassembly are pretty vague about which washers go where. I've tried to keep things consistent, but I just have absolutely no idea what the correct assembly looks like down to the level of every single piece of metal.

Thanks for the suggestion. I've taken the ringer out, settled it back in, and ensured it's a tight fit. That does not solve the problem.

I used to have a Baratza preciso and the difference in taste of that and a eureka specialita or a mahlkonig is absolutely shocking to me. My first stack was about $600 as well and I thought I was making good coffee too. Till I got an ecm classica and a specialita. It's basically a different type of drink frankly.

I’ll contradict some of the other opinions here: I used the Encore (not ESP) for years and was deeply disappointed. I upgraded to the Virtuoso and was still deeply disappointed. Both grinders produced too many fines and never gave me the quality of pourovers that barista friends served me at their shops. The clarity of flavor just wasn’t there. Even an $80 hand grinder was a massive upgrade over the \~$250 Virtuoso according to my tastes. My use case is exclusively light roast pourovers, and my preference is for cups with fairly high clarity, though I value some degree of body as well. Assuming you aren’t asking for a grinder that can do espresso, at your price point I would echo the recommendations for either a pourover focused hand grinder, or the Ode Gen 2 on sale, given that Black Friday isn’t far away.

I started out with a modded Baratza (stepless plus the burr from the Virtuoso) and a Flair Neo, and I got… 'okay' espresso for a while, but really I didn't get anything decent and truly tasty until I upgraded (+ took off the flow control on the Neo basket)

Baratza Virtuoso+ has served me well for three years with my Breville Bambino.

I just got a Comandante C40, and compared to my Virutoso+, it is in a completely different league. There are virtually no fines with the C40. The cups from pour over are fantastic. I have heard good things about the 1zpressos but could not justify the extra expense compared to the C40 in my location. People complain about longer grind times with the C40 due to smaller burrs, but for pour-over, I don't understand why. It is a joy to use.

Can I ask you what your grind setting is for the aeropress? I just purchased this grinder as an upgrade to an aging Capresso grinder, always produced reliably full bodied cups, and the past few brews with the Virtuoso have been bitter (grind setting 12) or flavorless (grind setting 14). Not sure what to do, and I threw away the box so can’t return.

Thanks for the reply. Honestly the only reason I’m unhappy with grind consistency of my virtuoso, is from making decaf. Decaf just grinds differently, creating lots of fines. I have to go up to at least 32 before I see less dust to clog my filters. I never had a complaint about the virtuoso until I started with decaf. That said, maybe the virtuoso is still a great grinder. Could be the problem lies in the decaf and not the virtuoso.

The Bratza Virtuoso+ ($250) would work and probably be an improvement. It has the premium M2 burrs. For brewed coffee, you don't need flat burrs, and machines that have them are usualy harder to clean.

Yes. It’ll just take you a while and might get old fast. I kept my Baratza Virtuoso around for anything over 20-30g

I’ve had a Baratza Virtuoso+, a Baratza Vario+, and now a Mazzer Philos, and I’d rank them in Bottom, Mid, and Top Tiers, respectively. 

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.

I have the Baratza Virtuoso. I love the work it does. I started roasting my own coffee to "save money" or just have fresher coffee.

Baratza occasionally has refurbed virtuoso+ on their site. That’s a helluva deal and plenty of folks use it with the MM If you don’t care about saving $$ just buy it new

I went back to my old trusty Baratza Virtuoso after years of disappointment using Fellow Ode V1 with SSP, and finally getting delicious and consistent cups again. Go figure

My Baratza Virtuoso+ was a workhorse for me for many years. I then received a 1zpresso K-Ultra as a Christmas gift. After being skeptical of hand grinders for a long time (particularly since my only experience with them was with the Hario Skerton), I was surprised that I almost immediately fell in love with my K-Ultra. I sold my Baratza on Craigslist three days ago.

Baratza Virtuoso has worked well for me. I’ve never used a hand grinder, but considering checking one out.

I’ve been on 11 and ok but 14 wasn’t great so I took it to 11 and been fine. I also looked up a guide for that grinder that provided a range of grind settings for AeroPress. Are you using the Aeromatic app? You can select your grinder and it corresponds to particular recipes. The Hoffman recipe suggested 11 for the Virtuoso. I’d keep tweaking til you find the right one. I’ve been mostly a pour over or moka pot drinker, so I’m still experimenting. Good luck!

Baratza Virtuoso. Great for every budget. Incredibly consistent. My go-to for home grinding. https://firelightcoffee.com/product/baratza-virtuoso-grinder/?srsltid=AfmBOoqQlgB0VaOkZNMuLHvui1qBt1r_oxzFWCIO6XOlVVf1wLkyiGrn