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Sasha Pavlovich is a coffee expert with years of experience as a barista, and she knows quite a bit about caffeine and coffee. She manually curates every single page on CaffeineStats.com to make sure that you are getting the right information at your fingertips.
Sasha's expertise is backed by a strong foundation of credentials. She is a certified Coffee Roast Master, specializes in Green Coffee Analytics, and is a certified Sensory Cup Taster.
Did you ever regret not buying an item and then finding yourself in a situation when you needed it?
Well, that happened to me when I got a pound of single-origin Kona beans, my friend Tom gave me.
I wished I had replaced my broken coffee grinder. The DBM-8 Cuisinart Supreme grind automatic burr mill is what I needed.
This Cuisinart Burr Grinder is one of the best you can get at an affordable price. You can get it now for under $60.
It’s compact, yet the hopper fits 8 oz (0.3 kg) of beans. That should fit enough beans for a few coffee pots.
It has a powerful motor. In all truth and reality, the most important part of the grinder.
This Cuisinart Coffee Grinder offers an 18-month warranty. This is a lot for an appliance. The last printer I bought came with a 30-day warranty, and it was quite pricey. Most appliances offer a 90-day warranty. Just on this alone, you are already getting a great deal if you buy this grinder.
It looks beautiful too. Although it’s mostly plastic, it’s covered all around with thin stainless steel. This feature of the Cuisinart DBM-8 also adds sturdiness to the grinder. It’s a bit noisy, but I can’t recall any grinder not making any noise. It’s “grinding”, after all.
Now, the Sboly Conical Burr Coffee Grinder, the number one seller at Amazon, is similar to this item, but a little more expensive. I tried to compare their warranty but could get nothing definite. If their warranty was great, they would show it off as they do their conical burrs.
The DBM 8 Cuisinart Grind Automatic Burr Mill doesn’t have any conical burrs, but there are many high-end grinders that cost over $2000, that do not have conical burrs. Ask any barista if they have a problem with their Mazzer Robur or Super Jolly. These two grinders don’t have conical burrs. If you want to know a little more about that debate, click here.
Sure, burrs will dull down with time. But it will be a long time before you go through 500 pounds (226.8 kg) of coffee for that to happen. You can replace them, but by that time you might want to upgrade, just because you can.
By now, we are all aware of the importance of grind size. It’s not an option, but an essential feature. This DBM 8 Cuisinart Burr Grinder has 18 dial settings for you to play with according to your needs. For an everyday regular coffee machine, a medium grind works best.
You can go very fine for your home espresso machine. Although nowadays, most home espresso machines come with pressurized filter holders that retard, slow down, the extraction time, and yield a decent espresso. So, you don’t have to stress if you are not sure how fine to grind it.
Now, if you are “particular” about your espresso, then you should consider spending more money and look elsewhere.
The opposite is also true. French pressing and cold brewing require a coarse grind.
A word of caution, if you go too fine it will jam up. Any burr grinder will jam up if you over tighten the burrs too much.
Another outstanding feature of the Cuisinart supreme grind automatic burr mill grinder is the automatic timer. You can select the number of cups you intend to make, and it will stop by itself.
Something to keep in mind is that the weight will vary depending on many factors we have already spoken about. A small scale doesn’t cost much. It’s good to always follow the 6:1 (water: coffee) recipe ratio for drip coffee and 7-12 grams for an espresso shot.
These numbers are for the home barista as a guideline. You may alter them as you wish or, most importantly, as you “believe”. There’s a lot of that in our coffee world.
The bean hopper comes apart for easy cleaning. This is an essential feature to keep your grinder past its 18-month warranty. You want to use a brush (included) and brush away any residual grinds, chaff (dried skin, husk), around the chamber.
The burrs require special attention because coffee releases oil during the grinding process. Too much build-up will generate more friction (heat) and that will not only make your coffee taste funny, but it will prevent your burr grinder from failing. Imagine waking up super early to make an important appointment (or deadline) and having a coffee nightmare!
The burrs should never get wet during your cleaning session. If you wet the bean hopper, it should be completely dried before you fill it with beans. I would clean them once a week.
Maybe this is not critical, but it’s significant to many. The look of any appliance can alter your decor significantly. No one wants a cheap-looking appliance sitting next to their coffee machine.
The stainless steel built, although thin, blends in very nice with pretty much most colors. It also adds a bit of rigidity to the overall construction of the grinder.
I know I already made a witty fact-based comment about the noise, but this could be an issue for some people. If you have roommates or a partner that sleeps a little more than you, then this burr grinder is noisy enough to wake up everyone. This is one of the trade-offs of having a powerful motor in such a thin layered case.
There are other grinding possibilities for coffee that don’t require a grinder. One problem with going that route is an uneven and inconsistent product.
Although I used my Magic Bullet to grind my Kona, the truth is that I went too fine. It tasted a bit too strong, with a slight bitterness. What if I had used the right burr grinder?
Would my experience had been different? Did I ruin a bunch of tasty beans? Well, you can’t ruin Kona, but I ruined my experience. I tried it coarser and it tasted delicious.
Buying a grinder is the best investment you can make if coffee is your passion. It supersedes buying an expensive coffee machine. Ideally, you would want to buy the best you can afford.
But the best doesn’t always have to be expensive. If you can dish out hundreds of dollars for a coffee grinder, then you should. Nevertheless, there are good, affordable options to choose from.
The home barista needs something simple to use. You need to be able to adjust the grind size with ease. The more options you have in adjusting the grind size, the better. Different varieties of coffee favor certain grind sizes to enjoy them.
What you want to achieve is an ideal water contact with your coffee grounds. Grinding to the right coarseness ensures your brewing equipment delivers and yields you a decent cup of coffee.
Another factor to consider is its size and your needs. Most likely you’ll brew just a couple of times a day. So, it doesn’t have to be too big, and it should be able to fit in your kitchen.
Even if you have a large kitchen, you don’t want a monster of a machine taking up space.
I’m pretty sure you like to hear what others have to say. Real reviews can help us decide when buying. I looked around for testimonials by real users. What a surprise! You always find the negatives, but most people were satisfied with their purchase.
The complaint about the noisy motor was a constant. If the product had a denser, thicker build, it would definitely cost you more. Remember, you’ll grind for “seconds” at a time. Grind enough to complete your task.
Another thing, some people don’t like about this grinder, is its plastic built. The plastic does not interfere with the functionality of the grinder.
Sure, you can easily smash the container and bean hopper with a simple drop. These easy-to-break replacement parts are easy to find on the Internet. Although, they could cost you almost the price of a new grinder.
If you feel you want something better, there are alternatives. Of course, Cuisinart is not the only alternative out there. Though special in its class, it has its limitations for some people. It grinds coffee alright, but that might not be enough. You are getting a decent product for a fair price.
Feel free to explore. Click on the links.
This burr grinder is very much like Cuisinart DBM-8. The burrs are ceramic and conical. There’s not much of a difference in price, but for almost the same price, the Cuisinart is the better deal.
They claim you can go as fine as for Turkish coffee. You’ll know sooner or later if you choose this grinder when it jams up. Just don’t try to grind a lot. Resetting it is easy. Just turn the burrs to a coarser setting, and that should do it. This also goes for the Cuisinart Supreme Grind Mill. It comes apart for easy cleaning, an advantage over the Cuisinart.
Well, the Oxo is the better one of the two. It also costs more money, about a hundred bucks. It feels like a better construction, although its performance is about the same as the Cuisinart and the Sboly. Why spend more when you can get the Cuisinart for an equal experience?
Some people specifically said it was inconsistent for espresso. That’s relative because, perhaps, the problem was the users and not the grinder. All these types of grinders tend to have a lot of “fines” on the grounds. This clearly illustrates that even a grinder, at twice the price, is not twice as better.
This next grinder I already reviewed in the past. You might wonder why included this manual grinder with the electric one. If you want more control over the final product, the Java Presse could be an option. You won’t be grinding corn, so don’t worry about the cranking. If you are always on the go, this grinder could be an alternative. You could take any of the other two because they weigh less than 5 pounds (2,267.96 g), but you’ll need an inverter for your car or a source of electricity. The Java Presse you can take on your next hike, something you can't do with the Cuisinart burr grinder.
I purposely did not include the Baratza in the comparison because it belongs in another category. It retails for over $200. It’s a different quality as well. Comparing Cuisinart, and the competitors to it would be unfair. If you can afford the Baratza, then that’s a superb choice and a great buy. If you own an espresso machine, a Baratza will give you a consistent grind.
The Cuisinart coffee grinder is an excellent, reliable, and budget-friendly choice.
It will grind coffee at different coarseness, according to your needs. It’s nice-looking, and it doesn’t weigh much. One review, by a truck driver, says he takes it with him to work. He enjoys grinding coffee for his pour-overs. That’s a money-saving idea for someone who spends his life on the road most of the time.
One word of caution is not to grind a few pounds of coffee beans in one go. The idea is to grind enough coffee for you to use when needed.
You really don’t want to grind a lot and then store it. You’re defeating the purpose of owning a grinder. The coffee will lose its aroma. Rather than doing that, buy ground coffee. Most roasters pack it to last a while.
Comparing grinders is very much like comparing cars. A Ford Escort will take you everywhere you want to go as well as a Mercedes-Benz.
Nevertheless, you’ll enjoy the features and feel of the Benz and justify its price. The cheaper and the expensive grinder will both grind your coffee well enough to make a decent drink.
Well, what if you are a coffee purist? There are different kinds of coffee purists, but I’ll pinpoint two: the ones with a lot of money and the ones with a more budget-friendly attitude. Extra money for coffee beans is always a good trade-off. Enjoy the 18 months warranty you get with the DBM-8 Cuisinart Supreme grind automatic burr mill.
