Grinder to pair with a Gaggia Carezza?

Hi all!

I am about to purchase a Gaggia Carezza espresso machine with the commercial portafilter basket. I am budget-conscious and need to pair it with as low cost as possible but high quality Grinder.

I think I have narrowed it down to the Saeco MC2002, Gagggia MDF, Capresso Infinity or Solis Maestro (original). With the MDF obviously being the most expensive, I can't just assume that cost=quality. They are all close in price point.

Which would you choose for this machine in particular and why?

Thanks! Brendan

Reply to
Brendan
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I'd go for the Gaggia MDF, as I've seen it recommended over and over here at alt. When I got a good grinder with 50 mm burrs, it was the real beginning of espresso making for me - no more fine powder mixed with the grind, which over-extracts and makes bitter espresso, and wasted money on beans & machine.

I sent back a Maestro+ because of low grind quality, have seen reviews questioning saeco's reliability, and don't know what kind of burrs the capresso has but haven't seen good reviews on the brand in general. The MDF, on the other hand, is recommended all the time, has nice 50mm burrs, is reasonably well built and just plain owns the market for entry level espresso grinders as far as I can see..

tom

Reply to
tom b.

Among the four you list, there is no question that the Gaggia MDF does the best job for espresso. If you read the Coffeegeek reviews or this newsgroup, you will find more recommendations for the Gaggia than for the other three combined. I have been very happy with mine. It produces a consistent grind, and has no static problems. I wish there were more metal and less plastic in the machine, but then it would be priced with the Rocky or Mazzer Mini -- not at $149. harrym

Reply to
HarryM

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