For more than ten years, when you asked a barista what grinder to get for home, they’d always say the same thing, without even thinking: “Go for a Baratza Encore.”
- Specialty Coffee Association Award Winning Grinders – Baratza grinders are preferred by coffee professionals and backed …
- Go-To Entry Level Grinder – Baratza’s best-selling grinder, with its small footprint, is THE choice for brewing coffee a…
- User Friendly – A convenient, front-mounted pulse button, plus a simple ON/OFF switch make it easy to grind fresh coffee…
It was just your average coffee, nothing too special. It wasn’t pretty, and it sure was noisy, but that thing was absolutely bulletproof.
Things have really changed in the market. Yep, new grinders such as the Fellow Opus and the Turin SD40 are on the scene, and with all their cool features, they make the mostly-plastic Encore seem really old-school.
We took another look at the original Encore and its new relative, the Encore ESP. We wanted to find out if the older model is still top-tier or if it’s been replaced by something fresh.
The “Tank” Reputation
“Tank” isn’t a bad name, you know. The Baratza Encore was king for so long because it’s so easy to repair. Most kitchen appliances aren’t really made to be fixed anymore; when they stop working, you’re usually expected to just toss them out.
Baratza simply operates in a different way. If your Encore breaks in five years, you won’t be buying a whole new one. You could just buy a plastic gear for, like, four bucks, or a motor for fifteen, right off their website, and then fix it yourself.
I’ve actually come across some Encores in businesses that have been going strong for more than ten years. “It’s really dependable and that’s just tough to beat.”
The Problem: The “Espresso” Gap
The old Encore always had one big problem. It just couldn’t grind for espresso. The steps we took to adjust things were just too big. Click #8 was too fine, which messed up your machine. Click #9 was too coarse, making for a really sour soup.
Baratza eventually said, “Yeah, this is an issue.”
Check out the Upgrade: The Encore ESP
Here’s the major update you need to know about. Baratza just put out the Encore ESP. It might look the same on the outside, but inside, it’s a completely different machine.
- The Burrs: For the Burrs, people usually go with the standard M3. The ESP comes with the M2 cone burr, which grinds faster and sharper. It used to be something you had to pay extra for.
- The Adjustment: The ESP has this dual-range adjustment system, which is a key part of “The Adjustment.” The first 20 clicks are micro-steps, just for espresso. The other clicks are just for drip coffee and French press.
- Specialty Coffee Association Award Winning Grinders – Baratza grinders are preferred by coffee professionals and backed …
- Go-To Entry Level Grinder – Baratza’s best-selling grinder, with its small footprint, is THE choice for brewing coffee a…
- User Friendly – A convenient, front-mounted pulse button, plus a simple ON/OFF switch make it easy to grind fresh coffee…
The Grind Quality Test
We put both the classic and the ESP to the test.
For Drip/Pour-Over
This is for your drip or pour-over coffee. The old Encore is still great. You get a pretty consistent grind with this, and there’s a lot less of that annoying coffee dust compared to those cheaper blade or ceramic burr grinders. It makes a nice, clean, sweet cup of V60.
Espresso time!
The old Encore doesn’t quite cut it in this situation. It’s just not precise enough.
The Encore ESP is really something else. “We were able to really dial in a shot of light-roast Ethiopia and it came out surprisingly accurate.” It goes head-to-head with grinders that are double the price, and it certainly holds its own.
The Noise Factor
We need to keep it real. That Encore really cranks. It just uses a really strong DC motor that’s hooked up to a gearbox to slow things down. It’s like a blender, but all muffled up.
Newer competitors like the Fellow Opus are quieter, but they often lack the raw torque to chew through dense, light-roast beans without stalling. The Encore just keeps going, no matter what.
So, what’s the verdict? Which should you actually get?
It all comes down to your espresso machine.
Go with the Classic Encore if: All you’re into is drip, French press, or AeroPress coffee. It’s still my go-to for filter coffee, always dependable. It’s straightforward, the parts aren’t expensive, and it should hold up for ten years.
Go for the Encore ESP if: You already own an espresso machine, or if you’re thinking of getting one. You pay a little more and get metal parts inside where it counts, the quicker M2 burr, and it can actually make real espresso. This is currently the best all-around grinder you can get for your money.
The Verdict So, here’s the deal: The old favorite, the Encore, isn’t totally dominating the market like it used to. But the Encore ESP really did a great job holding onto its top spot, even with all those new competitors popping up.
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