Super Value - Best coffee grinder for the money on the market. Nobody else even in the same ball park! EAVB_TDNAANAKQY
Positive Product Points
Easy to use. Kyle (owner of Baratza) stands behind his work. The product continues to be improved upon and updated. They recently added a new front panel with memory for only $20.
Negative Product Points
The only significant thing I didn't like was that the times you set had no memory. When you unplugged the grinder, you lost those settings. There has since been a new front panel released to address that problem.
Burr is hard to remove for cleaning, but never seen a decent burr grinder where that wasn't the case, so not sure I can fault the issue.
Calibration is difficult to get to (although it does exist, unlike most grinders).
Detailed Commentary
I'd been researching grinders for a while as I was increasing the quality my coffee palette and needed a new grinder to match. The more I experimented, the more I realized I really liked regular coffee (French press) more than espresso. Most of the high end grinders I saw catered very well to espresso grinds, but didn't necessarily do coarse grinds (like for French press) very well.
The Baratza Vario seemed to be the only grinder on the market was good for both grind sizes and most things I read said that it gave the grind quality of the high end $1000 grinders for half the price. I finally bought one have been one happy camper. Although the size was acceptable at the initial calibration, i was able to find out from the owner of Baratza (more on that in buying experience section) how to calibrate it coarser to get an even better grind for French Press.
The Vario has taken my coffee experience to the next level. One of the best purchases I've ever made.
Buying Experience
One of the best buying experiences I've ever had. I found out while looking for the best price that Baratza was stationed out of my own town, Bellevue, WA. I emailed them to ask if I could just drive over and purchase one locally, but they don't have their own storefront or infrastructure for retail selling. I was able to work out a deal, though, by buying the Vario online from Chris Coffee and then picking it up locally at Kyle's (owner of Baratza) house.
It was very pleasant and convenient. I was able to purchase the Vario, no sales tax (as it was out of state), no shipping charges, and pick it up the same day.
Then a week or two in I emailed Kyle back to ask about calibrating it coarser. He sent back detailed instructions and an offer that if I had trouble, I could come over (again, since he lives locally) and he's show me personally. I couldn't ask for somebody to stand behind their product better.
