Strong suggestions for ideal cup of coffee

Max Jacobson

Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2001 | 8:22 a.m.

Last week we established that the best way to drink a great cup of coffee is to grind it fresh. There is nothing to match the aroma of fresh-brewed coffee, and making it all by yourself in the privacy of your kitchen is one of life's greatest pleasures.

To do this, you'll need a competent grinder, and we should mention the differences between the types of coffee grinds. Coarse-ground coffee is good for percolators and coffee presses, while a medium grind is good for just about anything. In this grind, the grains should resemble salt.

Fine grind is best for espresso, because there is more surface area for the water to come in contact with, thus producing a stronger cup of coffee. There is also Turkish grind, where the grains are as small as crushed pepper. You can get this at some supermarkets, which use big, commercial coffee grinders.

Joel Randall, who runs the Daily Grind, a coffee bar inside a Jaguar/Porsche dealership on West Sahara Avenue, says that "grinding yourself a great cup of coffee requires a burr grinder." What he refers to is a rather sophisticated mechanism that looks a bit similar to the blade of a circular drill, a round piece with little "burrs" fixed onto various points of the wheel.

The less-expensive and, for Randall, less-attractive alternative to that is a blade grinder, which uses a double-edged metal blade that spins on an axle at an extremely high rate of speed. The major disadvantage of a blade grinder is a lack of consistency in the pieces that are ground in it. It's also possible, if you like a fine style of grind, to burn out the motor on one of these grinders if you let it spin too long.

Burr grinders, on the other hand, grind coffee beans by crushing, rather than chopping them, against a stationary surface. The only disadvantages are noise and the fact that the coffee can fly out all over your kitchen if you aren't careful.

Both types of grinders are found in coffee and kitchen stores around town. Here are some possibilities, prices and observations about what to use at home:

One place to buy a great burr grinder is Henderson Restaurant Supply, 1201 American Pacific Drive, where Kay Laramy sells everything from food mills to chef's knives -- in short, whatever you need in the kitchen.

Laramy sells the Capresso burr grinder for $50, and it has some wonderful features. The Capresso will hold up to a half-pound of coffee beans, and the ground coffee container can be detached from the unit and stored in the fridge.

Laramy calls the Capresso a "fabulous grinder for the home." It has a setting for the number of cups to be ground, from 2 to 12, and also a side dial which determines the fineness of the grind, which has 17 settings from coarse to extra-fine.

For a typical French-roast filter coffee, for instance, you would choose a setting such as eight or nine. For espresso, you'd choose 12.

The Capresso has an electronic timer, automatic shut-off when the container is full and is easy to clean. It's a true boon for the serious coffee drinker.

Luddites can also buy a hand-crank grinder here, pretty wooden boxes topped with pottery bowls made by Pfaltzgraff, a well-known pottery company.

Place the beans in the bowl and crank. The coffee falls into a drawer that slides open. The major advantage is beauty, but it's hard to get a wide variety of grinds or uniformity with this contraption.

The average price for a hand-crank grinder is $40, but Laramy has a catalog on hand with several options and prices. She will be glad to order one for you, if the one you choose is unavailable.

Meanwhile over at Sur La Table in the Aladdin's Desert Passage mall, there is an interesting and large selection of other types of grinders. Two beautiful burr grinders are made by the French auto giant Peugeot, for $69.95 and $99.95 respectively.

Both basically function the same way, but the more expensive one has a sliding, chrome top, and is strikingly beautiful. You turn the wheel to the right for a coarse grind, to the left for a finer one.

One more burr grinder sold is the Bodum, for $79.95. Sur La Table also sells the Hon grinder from Turkey, which looks similar to a giant brass thimble, for $39.95. The idea with this one is that you turn the top half, which you fill with coffee beans, until the bottom half is filled.

Sur La Table sells its share of blade grinders as well. Donna Hitchcock, one of the know- ledgeable sales people here, was happy to demonstrate how to achieve a finer grind with a blade grinder. You just spin the blades longer, and it helps if you can identify the grind you like visually.

The German company Krups makes a hand-held, small-blade grinder for $19.95, or for $29.95 if you choose a chrome finish. Capresso also makes a blade grinder sold here for $19.95, called the Cool Grinder.

According to Hitchcock, all the blade grinders are roughly comparable.

Finally there is the coffee giant Starbucks, with locations all over the valley. Some Starbucks carry mills and grinders, part of what the company calls its "retail line," and others do not. Check the individual locations to see whether they do.

The price for a Starbucks blade grinder, inscribed with the company logo, is $19.95. But for a burr grinder, the price jumps to $125, a pricey-but-attractive unit fitted with stainless-steel burrs.

This unit has three simple settings, for espresso, drip and coffee presses. And despite the fact that it is quite nice to look at, the Capresso at $50 seems the best and most practical one to buy.

For more info about coffee grinders, check out the website aabreecoffee.com.