Reddit reviews Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill, Mini Slim, Plus, Black

My best tips:

Fresh beans + fresh grind + good water = great coffee pretty much regardless of your brewing method.

The 4 ways you can increase the quality of your coffee is to focus on improving these things: beans, grind, water, brewing method.

This is my set-up:

Beans: I get whole beans sent to me in the mail every two weeks from Moustache Coffee Club. This ensures I always have fresh beans on hand.

Grind: I use this Porlex hand grinder and really like it. I used to use this Hario hand grinder, which was cheaper. I haven't yet splurged for an electric grinder. Maybe some day.

Water: I use a kitchen thermometer to make sure my water is between 195 and 205 degrees Fahrenheit. This is the optimal range for brewing. I also use this Bonavita kettle for heating the water.

Brewing method: I started off using a Melitta pour-over cone. I've since moved to the AeroPress. I also have a French press. The AeroPress is what I use almost exclusively. I also have a kitchen scale to measure out the water and beans. I use a 16:1 ratio of water to beans. For the AeroPress, 16g of beans and 256g of water fits perfectly. When I measure the water, I aim for between 256 and 260g. I'm not so obsessive that I make sure it's exactly 256 every time.

This sounds like a lot (and there's more, but this is a good start), but I built up to this over a period of a few years. Take your time. Keep learning and exploring and have fun.

This Hario? https://www.amazon.com/Hario-Ceramic-Coffee-Mill-Mini-Slim/dp/B01GPMH590/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=hario&qid=1565050152&s=gateway&sr=8-6

I second this. Grab that Yirgacheffe blueberry bomb whenever you can! Their Central American light to medium roasts are also a safe bet. I had a bag of Guatemalan from Hopscotch that was BURSTING with watermelon. Man I miss that bag of beans...

If you want to step up that morning cup I recommend buying whole beans. Something as cheap as this hand grinder will produce a nice even grind. Coffee ground fresh before brewing makes a massive difference that anyone can appreciate.

Brown County roasts a good bean too. Just stick to light and medium roasts. I've had few dark roasts around here that weren't burnt and oily.

like /u/cchiker said, it depends on what kind of coffee you want to make. I prefer pour overs and take mine black, so here is my "budget" coffee gear list:

Hand burr grinder $60 - https://www.amazon.ca/Hario-Mini-Mill-Slim-Plus/dp/B01GPMH590/

Hario v60 dripper starter set $30 - https://www.amazon.ca/Hario-V60-Coffee-Starter-Clear/dp/B00JJIOJ7E/

Gooseneck kettle $50 - https://www.amazon.ca/Hario-VKB-100HSV-V60-Coffee-Kettle/dp/B008L3R8BM

1lb of locally roasted single origin beans $20

From experience, after about 7-8 days, the quality drops off a bit. By 10-12 days, I think there's a noticeable loss of flavor.

At the risk of sending you down a dangerous rabbit hole, this dripper is what I use with the OEM filters. When I'm on travel/vacation, I grind with the Hario mini which produces a nice, consistent grind (as inexpensive grinders go). AT 10-11 clicks out from the finest setting it will take about 2 minutes to grind 15-17 grams (enough for 350-400ml of water, and faster than said water will boil in a typical microwave).

If you batch your beans into zip-lok baggies (~1 weeks worth each) you can freeze them and they will easily hold for a month.


Other roasters of note in the area include Red Rooster (in Floyd) and ones who's name I can't remember in Draper - Sugar Magnolia on main sells the latter. Both are more expensive (those two ~$16-18/12oz) than Mill Mountain ($13-15/16 oz) and I've not found them "better". Then again, I'm not a big fan of modern, fruity/acidic coffee.

What kind of grinder do you have? A good grinder goes a long ways. I would recommend at least a Baratza Encore it’s like between 100-200 bucks totally worth the money. But I will probably upgrade to a virtuoso + in time. If you want something more low budget to dip your toes in I recommend a Hario MiniMill.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B007F183LK/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523307658&sr=8-1-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=baratza+encore+grinder&psc=1&smid=A302OQK4GZWXCC


https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01GPMH590/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523307695&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=hario+mini+mill+plus&dpPl=1&dpID=31BVJId0wqL&ref=plSrch

Then as others mentioned combined with a scale is where I would start. My girlfriend got me one from Walmart, most recipes are measured in grams; so you want something that can do that.

If you begin to treat it like a science expirement as I do I recommend a V60 or a chemex. The chemex was much easier to use IMO. It’s not as versatile as the aero but you once you get dialed in it makes a nice cup. But I also recommend a goose neck kettle.


Also if you’re interested you can try and find different aero recipes here to refine what you like the best.

http://www.worldaeropresschampionship.com/recipes/#/lukas-zahradnik/

As far as beans go, I’m a recent convert to HappyMug.com. But Counter Culture and S & W roasters are on the to try list also. The importance is freshness. If you go the way of a local roaster I would ask about when they were roasted if the bags aren’t dated. I was bamboozled into buying a little less than fresher beans than I get from happy mug recently.

I’m still fairly new I creeped for a long time took the plunge in November. I’ll never go back, hopefully you too join the cult.

GL HF mate. Let us know how you’re journey goes.

By durable, do you mean one that will last a long time, or one that will survive repeated tumbles down a hill inside a backpack?

Assuming the later, the Hario Mini-Slim+ seems to be manufactured reasonably well and made of decent materials, tho I have seen some reports of the catch-cup developing cracks. I'd describe the grind consistency as "fair" at best, tho it is capable of making a decent cup.

Some of the Porlex clones cost quite a bit less and can actually put out a more consistent grind, but their materials and manufacturing are quite suspect; 'not entirely sure that I'd trust them to hold up in the long run. Having said that, I have had a pretty good experience with the SimpleTaste ceramic burr grinder which is a Porlex Mini clone and mechanically very similar to the Harios on the inside.

I actually own both:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/jxk61q28t0v3aom/some-hand-grinders.jpg?raw=1

...and it's a bit of a toss up as to which one I'd recommend based on durability. If grind consistency were the only criteria and the grinder were only to be used inside a home environment, I'd probably recommend the SimpleTaste based on my own experiences with it.

You may note that I also have an Aergrind in that photo, which is only a little bit outside of your price range. I just can't recommend it based on my personal experience with it. Mine is incapable of grinding beans; the outer burr slips and rotates freely inside the housing. Prima Coffee says that this is a known problem with the design, so it's a bit of a crapshoot as to whether you get one that has the problem or not. They're also perpetually on back order and it can be months between restocks.

I'm using this grinder: https://www.amazon.com/Hario-MSS-1DTB-Mini-Coffee-Grinder/dp/B01GPMH590/ref=dp_ob_title_kitchen

Those grinders aren't really the same style as the more expensive espresso grinders. Your grinder pushes coffee beans through intersecting bumps, rather than shearing beans with sharp blades.

Did you buy the burr grinder recently? If so, I'd suggest returning it and buying a burr grinder like this one, which can grind fine enough for your machine, assuming you have the forearms to grind it all.

If not, I'd suggest going to a supermarket and grinding small portions of beans at a time in their dedicated grinders on an appropriate setting. Your machine should pull decent shots then. Let me know if that doesn't work!

I really like coffee so a french press and this little hand grinder make me really happy every morning: https://www.amazon.com/Hario-Ceramic-Coffee-Mill-Mini-Slim/dp/B01GPMH590

It's really hot and I don't have enough power for AC so I like this little usb rechargeable fan: https://www.amazon.com/OPOLAR-Powered-Battery-Enhanced-Personal/dp/B06WGLGJ94

When it's cold I'm really happy I have a wood stove. Not just for heat but also to stop it from getting too damp inside, let me dry my boots, and give me an easy way to make hot water for tea.

Before I setup pressure water I used the Whale Gusher Galley pump and it always worked really well. I'm definitely glad I upgraded to pressure water though (I'm using the seaflo 33 series 12v pump now).

Oh and my USB rechargeable electric toothbrush: https://www.amazon.com/Electric-Toothbrush-Rechargeable-Optional-Fairywill/dp/B06VWD8NY3

Fwiw if you’re not making big batches I really recommend the Hario mini mill burr grinder. It’s a hand crank, but I used to use it for espresso and it worked great - ran me maybe $30 at the time and the new version which fixes a few design flaws is around $35. Also, I always use the Stumptown French press guide with ~10 tablespoons (have a scale but never got into using it for coffee, only baking) and usually get good results.

V60 (amazon): https://www.amazon.com/Hario-Plastic-Coffee-Dripper-Clear/dp/B001RBTSMM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1541449217&sr=8-1&keywords=hario+v60+plastic

Grinder (amazon): https://www.amazon.com/Hario-MSS-1DTB-Ceramic-Coffee-Mini-Slim/dp/B01GPMH590/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1541449268&sr=8-7&keywords=hario+skerton

With a v60, one of these kettles would help a lot too (something similar is perfectly okay too, but pay attention to the skinny spout: https://www.amazon.com/Bonavita-BV382510V-Variable-Temperature-Gooseneck/dp/B005YR0F40/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1541449338&sr=8-3&keywords=bonavita+variable+kettle

And coffee all depends on local roasters in your area, but they put the regions on the bags, so just find some ones from africa, or focus on tasting notes they list.

Hope this helps!

I have one of these that I use for boiling water. Guess that works.

So for starters, just the V60 and the filters will do. Do you mean this grinder?