Capresso infinity conical burr grinder review

I’ve sometimes been guilty of taking entry-level coffee equipment for granted. If you will, gateway specialized coffee equipment. Your interest in specialty coffee is really piqued by the first reasonably priced espresso machine, flexible kettle, or conical burr grinder that whets your appetite.

That can only be a positive thing, in my opinion, if something encourages people to experiment with coffee and drink wonderful coffee.

This grinder, the Capresso Infinity conical burr grinder, is exactly what we have here. An entry-level electric burr grinder that is reasonably priced and an excellent starting point for larger and better things (like even better grinders!). Let’s get started with our Capresso infinity conical burr grinder review

Capresso infinity conical burr grinder review 2023

Build Quality & Design

Although mostly comprised of plastic, the Capresso burr grinder doesn’t feel cheap.

That may be because Capresso chose a pretty thick ABS plastic for this particular grinder, which makes sense given its weight. Black and stainless steel are the two color options available. Please note that I am referring to the silver color of the Capreso, which they refer to as stainless steel. Unfortunately, stainless steel is not used to make it.

Aesthetics

A stylish grinder is the Capresso Infinity. This grinder could be comparable to the Baratza Encore in terms of appearance. Its body, hopper, and grounds collecting container are all of the same forms.

The Capresso Infinity is small and should fit under most kitchen cabinets at little about 15 inches tall. 8.8 ounces of coffee beans fit in the transparent plastic hopper that is located on top of the grinder. Around 4 ounces of coffee grinds are stored in the transparent plastic grounds collection bucket.

Design

The hopper may be turned to change the grind; turn it one way for a coarser grind and the other way for a finer grind.

It’s really simple to utilize this grind adjustment. The hopper can finally be removed by fully rotating it past the French press setting. This will allow you access to the burrs so you can thoroughly clean the grinder both inside and out.

The Capresso Infinity employs a timed grind with a range of 5 to 60 seconds, as opposed to an on/off option. We have the digits 1 through 10, as you can see on the dial there. The dial’s 1 mark will grind for around 5 seconds, while the number 10 will grind for approximately 60 seconds. I myself like a straightforward on/off switch or an automatic on/off function, but that is simply a matter of taste.

Durability

This grinder’s top-notch burr set may be its best feature. In this price category, ceramic burrs are the most common type of burr. Moreover, ceramic burrs are prone to chipping and cracking even though they can be incredibly sharp and maintain their sharpness for a very long time.

A small stone can occasionally be found in a bag of coffee, and if it comes into touch with a ceramic burr, it can cause harm. I’ll miss you, Burr-dy. Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. Burrs made of stainless steel are much more robust.

The Capresso Infinity is made nearly completely of plastic, as I have explained. ABS plastic, the specific substance used by Capresso, appears to be reasonably robust and heavy-duty.

I wouldn’t worry too much about the plastic casing of the grinder because it isn’t a portable grinder. The plastic dial knob would be the only component of this grinder that would raise durability questions. Despite the fact that Capresso doesn’t sell new parts, a simple item like a knob should be easy to locate online.

If I had to guess, I’d say that before this grinder breaks down, you’ll outgrow it. A notable improvement over blade grinders or pre-ground coffee is the Capresso Infinity. But chances are that you’ll eventually want to upgrade from this grinder to something a bit more adaptable if you want to become a true coffee alchemist.

The Capresso Infinity has a 1-year warranty, which is very important to mention.

Ease Of Use

It would be easy for the Capresso burr grinder to be any simpler to operate given that it is an entry-level grinder. Turning the bean hopper is all that is required to adjust the grind settings. The grind size can be changed in one of two ways: coarser or finer.

Turn the dial on the face of the grinder to grind your coffee. A grinding process is time oriented. If the dial is set to 2 the grinder will run for about 10 seconds. Finding the correct dial number to use for 20 grams of coffee may require some experimentation or may result in an error.

The Infinity is quick and simple to clean. By unscrewing the coffee bean hopper past the French press setting, it may be removed. After that, you may take out the inner burr and use the included brush to clean everything. Since the supplied brush is quite small, it’s definitely preferable to buy your own.

The Infinity electric burr grinder shouldn’t be too difficult to use if you’re used to using a blade grinder. It will undoubtedly be simpler to dial in your coffee, that much is clear.

Grind Range & Rating

There are 16 grind adjustment settings on the Capresso Infinity burr grinder, which range from fine, normal, and coarse grind sizes. The conical burr grinder in question is intended for use as a filter coffee grinder. It is not designed to pull authentic espresso shots.

While you can probably make an espresso shot with a pressurized portafilter, it won’t be possible to make a true espresso using this grinder. It’s not that the Infinity can’t grind really fine, the problem is that there are too many steps between each grind setting.

For instance, if you have an espresso shot that is almost perfect, it just needs to brew for a few more seconds. You most likely won’t be able to perfect that shot with the Infinity so that the espresso tastes amazing. For that, we require smaller adjustment settings as well as more of them.

The Capresso Infinity grinds pretty consistently at a fine to medium setting with its 38mm conical steel burrs. The grind consistency is fairly excellent at a level that I would use for cupping, which is somewhat coarser than my current V60 mix. It’s not ideal; there are a few discrepancies. Overall though, not too terrible for a grinder at this pricing.

The uniformity of the grind for AeroPress size grinds is also quite nice. Once more, it is by no means the front-runner. But, the Infinity is a good starting point for experimenting with various manual brew techniques and producing a nice cup of coffee.

Finer grind settings are where Infinity really shines. Nevertheless, things start to break down when using settings with a coarser grind, or what may be considered a conventional French press setting. There are too many boulders and fines. A consistent grind is impossible at these coarse levels.

To be entirely fair: a) the same thing happens with most electric burr grinder devices in this price range, and b) it surely performs a whole lot better than a blade grinder.

Value For Money

The Capresso Infinity conical burr grinder is about as affordable as you’re going to get for a coffee grinder with a steel burr set. Even though it might not be the greatest coffee grinder available, if you know what to anticipate, I would say this grinder is an excellent buy.

If you already have a manual grinder like the Lido 3 and were eyeing the Infinity as an electric option for those sleepy days, you will be disappointed. Compared to the Capresso Infinity, burr grinders like the Lido 3 and Baratza Encore perform far better. The durability, reliability, and adaptability of the grinders all support this.

But, if you are accustomed to utilizing blade grinders, the Infinity is a huge step up in quality and offers unbeatable value. You will receive a competent grinder that will enable you to explore the tastes of your coffee more than you could with preground coffee.

……Avoid purchasing a Capresso Infinity if……

You Are Looking For A Dedicated Espresso Grinder

The Capresso Infinity isn’t the grinder for you if making espresso coffee is your thing or if you intend to do so soon.

While it can produce a grind size fine enough for espresso, it lacks the number of settings required to precisely adjust the grind. Choose one of the other coffee grinders that are more geared toward making espresso.

This grinder can be a nice option if you want to start brewing using the AeroPress, V60, or French press. Far superior to that dingy, outdated blade grinder!

Low Grinds Retention Is Important To You

When a grinder retains some of our coffee grinds, we refer to this as grinds retention. Often, this coffee is kept in the chute or the burrs’ teeth.

More coffee is retained by certain models than others. In fact, some coffee grinders advertise that they retain “zero grinds” and utilize this as a selling advantage. The fact that a blade grinder doesn’t retain any coffee grinds is actually its one and only benefit.

On the other hand, the Capresso Infinity keeps a lot of ground coffee. a lot, almost. We’re talking a few grams or less. Many factors will determine if this is permissible.

This retention level is almost probably a problem if you often alter your grind size or drink various coffees every day. Some retention is probably not a huge deal if you create a large carafe of batch brew every day with the same coffee.

Look at various grinder models that feature a low retention design if low retention is something you’re concerned about. With its price tag in mind, the Baraza Encore is a great choice for that.

You’re Interested in Specialty Coffee Already

When you take the pricing into account, the Capresso Infinity is a great entry-level grinder. It is an excellent upgrade over a blade grinder and makes a wonderful first burr grinder.

Nevertheless, if you’ve used other burr grinder models before and have brewed high-quality coffee for some time, you’ll likely be happy with a device like the Baratza Virtuoso.

The Verdict

Take a look at the Capresso Infinity conical burr grinder if you’re searching for a grinder to get you started on your specialty coffee journey.

It would be challenging to find another device at its price range with such simplicity, reliability, and build quality.

While it’s not ideal, it’s a great place to start and an affordable way to explore the amazing world of specialty coffee. That was our Capresso infinity conical burr grinder review

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