A Review of the Capresso Infinity 565 Electric Burr Grinder

Well you're in luck. Here's my review of the Capresso Infinity 565 Electric Burr Grinder.

While I'd like you to read the entire review, I will give you the bottom line first. I'd rate this 4.5 out of 5 stars. I'm thrilled with the grinder:

Pros:
Consistent grind
Many grind settings
Quieter than most other brands I've seen

Cons:
The grinds get a "static cling" making it time consuming to clean.
Was not able to find this at a discount. Retailers like Bed and Bath or Linens 'N Things put out 20% coupons but the fine print says Capresso products are excluded.

For those not familiar with different types of coffee grinders I'm including primer on grinders and grinds:
For the most part, there are three different kinds of grinders: blade, flat wheel burr, and conical burr.

Blade grinders are the least expensive. Generally, they don't grind the beans evenly. If you like espresso which needs to be a very consistent and fine grind you should move on to a different type of grinder. I have read that blade grinders cause a lot of friction when grinding and that friction give the grinds a burnt taste. I can't comment on it. I have no experience with those kind of grinders but I have had a friend tell me it's true.

The next type of grinder is a flat wheel burr grinder. The research I've done indicates that these are the one of the best methods of grinding coffee. Here's the way it works: Two disks: one is fixed in place and the other spins and the beans are crushed between the two. Since the disks spin more slowly than the blades, theoretically there's less friction, no burnt taste and the grind is more consistent. My last coffee grinder was a Braun. That great machine which lasted me almost 30 years was this type. Unfortunately, the model is no longer made!

The most expensive type of grinder is the conical burr type. This grinder produces the most consistent grind. They use a conical shaped grinding surface. The Infinity which I am reviewing is this type of grinder.

Coarse grind versus fine grind:

Different types of grinds are needed for different types of brews. The finer the grind the longer it takes the water to pass through and the stronger the coffee. Espresso done in an espresso pump machine, for example, requires a fine grind, while the very strong Turkish coffee requires a very fine grind.

Now to the Review
The Capresso grinder comes in styles: Chrome finish and a plastic casing. I paid $90 for the plastic housing model which is almost 3 pounds lighter and $40 cheaper than the other model. The reviews I've read indicated that there's no difference in the way they work or how long they last.

This grinder has 16 different grind settings! Four different grinds each for coarse, medium, fine and extra fine. The recommendations from Capresso are (in case you want to use this for your current grinder)

COARSE
French press coffee makers
Percolators

MEDIUM
Steam Boiler Espresso Machines
Drip Coffee Makers. When using the GoldTone filters use a somewhat coarser setting; When using filter paper, try a finer setting.

FINE
Espresso pump machines
Fully Automatic Coffee Centers
Stovetop mocha machines
Manual filters with manual brewing

EXTRA FINE
Some espresso pump machines
Manual preparation of Turkish coffee (two finest settings)

In terms of noise, the Capresso seems to be one of the quietest grinders I've seen. As to the way it works, I have been thrilled with the consistency of the grinds in each of it's settings.

The bean container holds just over 8 ounces of beans and the coffee container holds about 4 ounces of ground coffee. Now the instructions tell the user to ONLY grind what will be used at that time because left over coffee loses its taste.

The grinder has a timer which is supposed to allow you to set to grind from 5 to 60 seconds. I haven't actually paid attention to the timer to see how accurate it is. The instructions also tell you to clean immediately afterwards so the oils left behind don't get rancid and ruin the grounds for the next batch. Well, I grind enough for about a week's worth of coffee and clean the grinder after each time. Cleaning this baby is a bit of a chore. I do have a special brush used to clean the burrs and the chamber from which the coffee grounds fall to the container. It's gotten to be a habit and I do it each time I grind beans. It's really not that bad after you get used to it.

One thing I had read in several reviews of this is that the grinds have a tendency to get static cling. I don't know if it's the grinder or because of the type of grinder but the coffee grounds cling to everything. It makes it more difficult to clean the inside of the grinder and also makes it difficult to get ALL the grounds out of the coffee container.

I purchased this from Amazon.com for $90 and did not pay tax or shipping. I have not seen this on sale locally at all and have not seen it cheaper anywhere else. I bought it from Amazon because I didn't have to pay tax or shipping, so it came out cheaper than it I had gone into a local store to purchase it.