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Baratza Sette 270Wi Review - My feedback on the lovely Baratza Sette 270Wi

edited January 2019 in Grinders
Okay! I think it's a fitting time for my review! Having been using this grinder for 3 weeks now, and having spent a few weeks adding bits and pieces to this review and giving it a fair trial, here we go!

My reasons for the purchase:

1) This grinder seemed simple to use day-to-day. A movement towards simplicity in coffee and life in general.
2) Straight through grind path, sick of grinders with a whole long tunneled pathway with chutes/chambers that fill up. Seemed very little retention, much less wasted coffee.
3) Fluffy grinds, no clumping.
4) Super easy to clean.


Other add-ons which were nice, but didn't really matter to me:
-really quick
-weight-based dosing (am quite happy to weigh doses myself)


Even though the weighed dosing is a main feature of this version of the Sette, I bought it as it was the newest and improved version of the Sette, and wanted to avoid any of the issues the older models had (which after emailing Baratza they confirmed they had sorted out those older issues with the 270Wi).

So did it live up to my reasons for getting it?

1) Simplicity: yep! It truly is a very simple and easy to understand grinder to use. Set your dose, push play, and you get that!

2) Retention: not zero, but VERY low. I was sick of wasting coffee, and don't think it makes sense to have to waste so much in order to get rid of old grinds.

3) Fluffy/no-clumps: Have never seen grounds this fluffy and clump-free. Really really nice. Even upon using a much darker, oily roast that I had done (which in my experience tend to clump more), they were still fluffy.

4) Easy to clean: super easy, I'm doing full cleans more frequently as a result.


And the noise many have mentioned I did not even really notice. Sure it makes a bit of noise, but it is just such a joy to use that it doesn't even occur to me. It's grinding hard coffee beans, I'm cool with noise :P. And how fast this grinder is, truly, it's only noisy for a very short period of time.


Once you set up the portafilter hook/holder and push dose, it delivers the coffee very neatly into the centre of the basket. I was initially worried that my higher doses (22.5 grams) would go back into the chute/opening and clog the burrs but that wasn't the case at all. There's actually a little room up that path before you hit the burrs anyway, but the amount I dose it hasn't really reached the path. And I'm dosing between 21.5g and 23g depending on the bean. I may not even need to order the drop-down fork. If the mound did ever creep up there, removing the portafilter can knock the top layer off a little. Depends on your bean and dose! Many have gotten around that by doing it in two doses, and collapsing in between.

The vertical grind path and way the burrs are designed is... brilliant. Have never seen that style of grinding before, and gosh darn it's fast...

Distribution-wise, this has been an amazing part of this... even though it's fast, it shoots the coffee directly into the centre of the basket, but as the grounds are so fluffy, it distributes really well through the whole basket while dosing, and there's honestly not much need to have to add any extra steps. I think the lack of clumps really allows the basket to be filled easily, as the grounds can move more freely within the basket (that's my theory on the clumps debate [emoji14] ).

My method has been dose, one vertical collapse, a spin of my distribution tool (just to get the top 1/3-1/2 layer well distributed), and tamp. This is a massive difference compared to other grinders I've had, in which depending on the bean and grind consistency I'd have to go through a few different methods to get a nice even extraction. I've found (not exaggerating) pretty much every extraction through the naked portafilter to be so beautiful and even (something I really struggled to achieve with consistency in other grinders). Never has there been any stubborn dead spots.

In terms of the mess while dosing that some have gotten, mine has been mooostly pretty minimal, and mostly caused by my carelessness than the grinder! Some grinds do go onto the portafilter hook/holder and can fall off the mound, but no big deal. It really depends on the day/dose/bean, there is a bit of spillage at times, but I don't mind. (A little update, I have a feeling certain beans behave differently, my current Colombian bean is being much messier than others! Am now trialling two separate doses as this particular bean or even weather is leading to some static and mess)

I also did notice that if you did a full clean of the burrs (which I'm now doing probably once a week, as cleaning is a BREEZE), the first grind you do after will be a little 'staticky', and some grinds fly about a little and get stuck even underneath the burr carrier. But that's only for the first grind after a full clean.

In terms of retention, it's not zero, but it's very minimal. After you do a dose, there will be coffee grounds stuck within the gaps which it passes through to get to the basket. After purging everything out at the end, I removed the burr carrier, fully cleaned it out, measured the grounds and got 1.6 grams.

The weighed doses are freakishly accurate! Always pretty spot on, with maybe 0.1-0.2g deviation every now and then, no biggie! The intelligent feature certainly learns and adjusts things automatically the more that you use a particular dose setting.

It has a burst mode which works great to top up or even just to use manually. So if you've set the dose at 22g, and it doses 21.8g, you can push the play button and it will do a very short burst. You can do this as much as you like to top it to 22g (usually takes one or two 'bursts').

Also has the pulse mode (essentially manual mode) you hold down play, it tares whatever is on the forks, and it will grind for as long as you hold play. But be wary, it grinds fast haha, so you have to be on top of that. But it does come up with the weight you're dosing on the screen, handy!

Adjusting the grind is done with the macro and micro adjustment collars, and is very straight-forward. One thing that is strange is that you need to rotate the macro and micro in opposite directions for going coarser or finer (eg if wanting to go finer on the macro adjuster, you rotate it clockwise, on the micro you rotate anti-clockwise to go finer). Not a bother however, but perhaps it's simply how the threads run.

Dialing in a shot has been super easy, only took a few shots to dial in my Colombian Popayan Supremo, setting 12F/G got me in the ballpark, dosing 22.5 grams. I've found that changing the macro setting by one notch (from 12 to 11) is enough to go from a 1:2 doppio espresso to a 1:1 doppio ristretto within a slightly longer time and vice-versa. Which is awesome for easily switching if you're keen for a 'double-riz'! The micro settings allow for much smaller adjustments (in which I'm still playing with to determine their effect).

My first few shots were great, but then it started to get quite erratic in extraction output, so then decided to run about 1kg of old coffee through the burrs after a bit of research. Many opinions on seasoning, but thought it wouldn't hurt to.

Grind consistency and particle size is awesome too by the way! (Not that I have done microscopic tests hehe)

And the most important thing....... taste. After all, you can buy a grinder for all these wonderful whizz-bang features, but if the end product, the coffee you drink, is shocking, what's the point! It's safe to say..... the coffee is unreal. Am using a Profitec Pro 500, and initially in my inconsistent shots in early days it would taste great then some shots would not be very pleasant... but after a little tweaking and much more coffee put through it is settling. Still getting some odd results from grind changes as I'm still finding how a certain grind change will translate into yield, but I'm hoping it will settle further as more coffee goes through.

There's much talk of conical vs. flat burr grinders in terms of flavour profiles, and at this stage I can't overly tell. The shots have been lush, fruity, full, and overall very flavoursome. Been getting them more consistently too.

One thing that is always at the top of my priorities too is durability, so I really hope the grinder lasts a good amount of time. The plastic housing etc doesn't bother me one bit. It's as though Baratza put more time and money into the essentials and practical functionality (apart from the earlier model issues :P) rather than just the housing exterior, which I like. Of course we'll see how we go.

And recently I've had a fractured ankle and been hopping around on crutches, and this grinder makes the process so, so much easier. So if anyone out there had an injury like that, it's perfect for that situation! [emoji14]

I'll also do a little video review at some stage so you can see it in action. I've seen alot of commercial reviews but only a few user reviews, and I find video reviews so helpful to me so I hope it helps others in seeing how it operates.

And I'm well aware of people 'fanboying' to justify and validate their purchase of a grinder, but I'm legitimately impressed with its functionality, grind consistency, and espresso it produces.

I have used it only once for coarser grinds/pour over (still usually use my other grinder for that), and compared to my flat burr it made a nice enough brew, but I'd have to play with it more and get the right grind setting. It also overshot the grind weight by like a gram or two (which I've heard it's a bit harder to dose right for a coarser grind), but I'm sure if I consistently used it it would learn, like the clever cookie it is.

So in terms of cons, the only cons (for me personally) is the slight mess it can make at times, which to be honest I think it's hard to find a grinder that won't make a little mess. If you're filling a relatively small portafilter it's a given to have a few strays, some people go a funnel (which may be tricky with the Sette) or dose into a canister if they wish to avoid that. To each their own! I don't mind the little mess. After I'm done, I just brush it all into my knock box.

Another thing is there isn't really an on/off switch. So when you plug it in and switch on at the wall, it automatically switches on, and then after a certain time period (couple of minutes) it switches off. But not really a big deal, and to get the display back on you can just push any button. Just no off switch apart from at the wall.

It also at times can be tricky after a clean to get the burr carrier back in place haha. I'm still unsure what the secret is, but you just have to fit it right and line up SOMEthing correctly and it pops back in.

I can't think of any other cons at this stage if I'm being honest!

But any questions anyone has about it feel free to ask and I'll do my best. I know I researched a LOT on a few of forum threads, articles, videos etc (seriously... too much), and found it really helpful to get a wide range of user experiences. I've found at times with certain grinders many people quick to write negative experiences and issues about grinders, but not as many write positive ones (on many different forums, just from what I've seen), or moreso those folk who have loved their grinder have often kept it to themselves. So here's hoping that someone may get some benefit from this. I wanted to be honest with my experience of the grinder, and if I have any negative occurrences I'll post those too.

(I also wanted to be as thorough and extensive as possible haha, so if you've gotten this far through my ramblings, well done ;D)969e7e4c80c65f8d9df3b002998cb0ff.jpg

Comments

  • Wow... what a brilliant and thorough review.  I was looking at one of these when I decided to go the other direction and get the crazy-arsed Robur to stress-test my kitchen benches.  I love that you have your coffee notes attached to the hopper also.  I'm off to read this gem again.  Thanks for posting!!!!
  • on 1545962829:
    Wow... what a brilliant and thorough review.  I was looking at one of these when I decided to go the other direction and get the crazy-arsed Robur to stress-test my kitchen benches.  I love that you have your coffee notes attached to the hopper also.  I'm off to read this gem again.  Thanks for posting!!!!
    Ah cheers Brett! I waffled on a bit haha, but just wanted to add all my findings. Ah much respect for the Robur folk! I really do love this grinder, and it ticks alot of boxes for me. And yeah adding the coffee and tasting notes there is just a kooky something I like to do for fun, as though I'm at a cafe, just display what beans we have going at the moment (displaying to a crowd of like 2 haha).
  • Excellent and transparent review Simon.......well done. I have a lot of grinders.......literally one or more of just about every commercial model produced in the last decade. Of course I need these.......working with grinders for hours and hours every day. Historically, I would buy the most expensive systems as $$$ really don’t matter when it’s your time that’s more important. Often find myself with many grinders sitting side by side and yet still need another for testing samples.......which is where this Baratza is now making a decent show amongst coffee industry professionals. Wouldn’t have cared about dropping $2k on yet another conical fast grinder but with PITA retentions from most of the Commercials these little Baratza units are perfect for lining up testing of a dozen coffees in short time. Gets mighty tedious purging and dialling in grinders. My only observation for you Simon is to be cautious of your keen cleaning regime if you value reliability .....personally, I wouldn’t be playing with the burrs as often, but like everything in life if it’s what makes a difference for you and it’s important then by all means keep on keeping on. I certainly have similar affliction with my warehouse and roasters......cleaning them every day ! Baratza are to be applauded for chasing real change.
  • on 1545967859:
    Ah cheers Brett! I waffled on a bit haha, but just wanted to add all my findings. Ah much respect for the Robur folk! I really do love this grinder, and it ticks alot of boxes for me. And yeah adding the coffee and tasting notes there is just a kooky something I like to do for fun, as though I'm at a cafe, just display what beans we have going at the moment (displaying to a crowd of like 2 haha).
    Hey mate... My Robur exists not because it is the best fit for my situation but because you only live once.  Worse yet, it went brand new in the box to the legend that is AM for instant modification (polishing of the grind chute, removal of the auto-shop and wiring mod). My reasoning for this ridiculousness: I remember years ago seeing KK's BNZ at a function, using it, and thinking what a poor life choice he has made in this massive grinder for domestic use: I'm so incredibly jealous.
  • on 1546040139:
    Excellent and transparent review Simon.......well done. I have a lot of grinders.......literally one or more of just about every commercial model produced in the last decade. Of course I need these.......working with grinders for hours and hours every day. Historically, I would buy the most expensive systems as $$$ really don’t matter when it’s your time that’s more important. Often find myself with many grinders sitting side by side and yet still need another for testing samples.......which is where this Baratza is now making a decent show amongst coffee industry professionals. Wouldn’t have cared about dropping $2k on yet another conical fast grinder but with PITA retentions from most of the Commercials these little Baratza units are perfect for lining up testing of a dozen coffees in short time. Gets mighty tedious purging and dialling in grinders. My only observation for you Simon is to be cautious of your keen cleaning regime if you value reliability .....personally, I wouldn’t be playing with the burrs as often, but like everything in life if it’s what makes a difference for you and it’s important then by all means keep on keeping on. I certainly have similar affliction with my warehouse and roasters......cleaning them every day ! Baratza are to be applauded for chasing real change.
    Thanks Jeff, means alot. Yeah honestly I think its groundbreaking stuff that Baratza are doing, I love everything about this grinder, and it just makes sense how it was designed. The straight through grind path, different grinding mechanism, little retention etc. Also their customer support has been fantastic for not only myself, but many people have noted this. I can imagine how much you'd burn through dialing in! I know Etzinger worked with Baratza for their grinders, and are now (or already have?) releasing what are basically more commercial versions of the Sette. Worth checking out, much more pricey though! Ah, I have been wondering about cleaning, thanks for bringing it up! More than anything I want it to last, so I might now extend my removal of the burrs and cleaning for every kilo of bean or so (takes me about 3 or 4 weeks to get through). I was wondering what risk might be of constantly removing and reinstalling.. I don't want to wear any parts away. And it was mainly a good brushing and removal of coffee caked in there that I did, nothing too strenuous, but if it really doesn't need to be cleaned that often I may hold off. Cheers!
  • on 1546046273:
    Hey mate... My Robur exists not because it is the best fit for my situation but because you only live once.  Worse yet, it went brand new in the box to the legend that is AM for instant modification (polishing of the grind chute, removal of the auto-shop and wiring mod). My reasoning for this ridiculousness: I remember years ago seeing KK's BNZ at a function, using it, and thinking what a poor life choice he has made in this massive grinder for domestic use: I'm so incredibly jealous.
    Haha understood, makes sense to me! Roburs are awesome, never used one but they're a beast.. good on ya ;)
  • There’s at least one domestic grinder that can equal or better the Sette for grind quality, ease of use and cleanliness. This is what I end up with in my portafilter every morning- eb8fad436e64f1e54e097ebbb5e3521e.jpg And yeah the Sette was designed by Etzinger for Baratza. The Etzmax is their grinder that is either for commercial or high end home use and it came out earlier this year. The Sette looks great and will be an excellent choice for many a home barista, but from what I’ve seen the Etzmax is next level with some amazing features. My favourite of these is probably the quick change short hopper and hopper stacker. Very cool.
  • on 1546064659:
    There’s at least one domestic grinder that can equal or better the Sette for grind quality, ease of use and cleanliness. This is what I end up with in my portafilter every morning- eb8fad436e64f1e54e097ebbb5e3521e.jpg And yeah the Sette was designed by Etzinger for Baratza. The Etzmax is their grinder that is either for commercial or high end home use and it came out earlier this year. The Sette looks great and will be an excellent choice for many a home barista, but from what I’ve seen the Etzmax is next level with some amazing features. My favourite of these is probably the quick change short hopper and hopper stacker. Very cool.
    Awesome... ah is that from your Mahlkonig Vario? Heard very good things about that grinder, I know of one certain massive fan ;D. Yeah the grind quality is incredible on the Sette. I've had perfect extractions through the naked. The EtzMax looks incredible.. if I could afford it I'd go there... and looks damn sex-ay too! Imagine that side-by-side with a Speedster or something hehe.
  • Great and thoroughly written owner review  :thumb: For many years I have repeated over and over again that a grinder is just as important as the machine Good design to achieve the ideal grind should be the end goal Haven’t seen this grinder in the flesh but the review has painted a good picture for me As for myself an owner of a few large conical grinders I tend to make equipment decisions on 1) design 2) function 3) desired outcome ( grind) 4) repeatability 5) longevity With longevity I tend to keep my equipment for many many years and by keeping them in pristine condition throughout their life you get many years of service Gave up on upgradeitiss long ago Hope you have many years of faithful service  :thumb: And come back in a years time for an update KK
  • on 1546121603:
    Great and thoroughly written owner review  :thumb: For many years I have repeated over and over again that a grinder is just as important as the machine Good design to achieve the ideal grind should be the end goal Haven’t seen this grinder in the flesh but the review has painted a good picture for me As for myself an owner of a few large conical grinders I tend to make equipment decisions on 1) design 2) function 3) desired outcome ( grind) 4) repeatability 5) longevity With longevity I tend to keep my equipment for many many years and by keeping them in pristine condition throughout their life you get many years of service Gave up on upgradeitiss long ago Hope you have many years of faithful service  :thumb: And come back in a years time for an update KK
    Thanks mate! Yeah I've gone through a few grinders in my time, and so far this one suits me very well. I just love how it's designed, and it really makes sense for domestic use. I'm also big on durability, so fingers crossed it lasts! Will definitely give an update down the track :)
  • on 1546068415:
    Awesome... ah is that from your Mahlkonig Vario? Heard very good things about that grinder, I know of one certain massive fan ;D. Yeah the grind quality is incredible on the Sette. I've had perfect extractions through the naked. The EtzMax looks incredible.. if I could afford it I'd go there... and looks damn sex-ay too! Imagine that side-by-side with a Speedster or something hehe.
    Yeah mate, the Mahlkönig Vario indeed. It’s an amazing grinder and I’m stoked I bought it. There’s very few if any negatives to it as a home grinder. The build quality is excellent although I’m not sure it’d stand up to commercial use. The best things about it are the grind quality, ease of use, cleanliness, very low retention and versatility. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  • on 1546409385:
    Yeah mate, the Mahlkönig Vario indeed. It’s an amazing grinder and I’m stoked I bought it. There’s very few if any negatives to it as a home grinder. The build quality is excellent although I’m not sure it’d stand up to commercial use. The best things about it are the grind quality, ease of use, cleanliness, very low retention and versatility. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
    Nice! Will keep that in mind as a possible next grinder hehe!
  • Hi All, Firstly thanks to Simon for starting this one off with a very comprehensive review. Lots of time and effort. Nice one Simon! I’m also a fan of the Baratza Sette range and reckon that for performance they are first class. Also, I’m happy to report that since the latest improved stock arrived in June 2018, which included the Baratza Sette 270Wi, short term reliability issues are a thing of the past. Long term durability is still an unknown though. So, for Baratza Sette grinders performance is first class and value (performance for the buck) is outstanding. Long term reliability is still an unknown though and aesthetics is where these really fall short for me. I guess it’s the plastic body that keeps the value proposition so healthy right now though. Speaking as a hobbyist (not a retailer) I can tell you that as soon as I see a Baratza Sette with a SS body I’ll have one in my kitchen. I have no idea if one is in the pipeline for Baratza but I hope it is. Nice thread so keep the comments flowing on. Cheers All :) Paul
  • on 1546674535:
    Hi All, Firstly thanks to Simon for starting this one off with a very comprehensive review. Lots of time and effort. Nice one Simon! I’m also a fan of the Baratza Sette range and reckon that for performance they are first class. Also, I’m happy to report that since the latest improved stock arrived in June 2018, which included the Baratza Sette 270Wi, short term reliability issues are a thing of the past. Long term durability is still an unknown though. So, for Baratza Sette grinders performance is first class and value (performance for the buck) is outstanding. Long term reliability is still an unknown though and aesthetics is where these really fall short for me. I guess it’s the plastic body that keeps the value proposition so healthy right now though. Speaking as a hobbyist (not a retailer) I can tell you that as soon as I see a Baratza Sette with a SS body I’ll have one in my kitchen. I have no idea if one is in the pipeline for Baratza but I hope it is. Nice thread so keep the comments flowing on. Cheers All :) Paul
    Cheers Paul! Yeah am still loving it. Using it every day, and really impressed with its performance. I think it's still settling in and might take a couple more kilos (and will see if I need to install a shim. Am on around setting 11-12 for espresso). Durability-wise we'll see, really hope it lasts!
  • Also did my first display panel software update via Bluetooth. They can only be done by Apple devices (my phone is Android), but luckily I could use my iPod Touch for the update! Not sure what has been updated, but very cool process!
  • on 1546686817:
    Also did my first display panel software update via Bluetooth.
    Nice work Simon. That’s some serious tech.
  • Great thread and appreciate the ‘warts and all’ feedback KB. I agree that it would be a sexy beast dressed in polished stainless but probably add at least 1/3 to the price again.
  • Okee-dokee! It has officially been a full year that I've had the 270Wi, so thought I'd post a little somethin'! Ever since I started using it, I have loved every second of it. No major issues whatsoever, the only thing I can comment on is there has been the odd time when a dose has been a bit out. The most happened the other day, and it dosed a full gram less than the preset. That was the only time that happened, the other times were at max 0.5g out. This off dosing probably constituted 2% of my usage of it through the year. The other times were super accurate. And I reckon at times it could be attributed to the little amount stuck up in the chute gaps. So it grinds for a certain time based on the weight it's getting, but perhaps a tad bit stuck in that space falls in (when over) or gets caught (when under). I've never worried when it goes under, as you can easily use the burst mode to top it up. Still find altering the grind really simple and straight forward. Still haven't found a one setting/height with the portafilter holder fork so that I can use my spouted and naked. You can swivel the black rubber holders to adjust height as well, but it's either too high or too low for switching between both. Not really that big a deal, as I don't switch them rapidly, but usually when I'm dialing in a new bean I'll start with the naked to see how extraction goes, whether any alterations are needed, then when I've got that nailed I'll switch to the spouted, and just adjust the fork accordingly. I've done the bluetooth update every two months, even when I don't think it has any updates available haha, but it may just give it a nice reset. So that's it! One year on and still functioning awesomely. Grind quality is still exceptional, still as loud as an elephant haha but it doesn't last long how fast it grinds.
  • Excellent follow up mate! The noise was the deal-breaker for me... the Robur and even the Rocky aren’t too noisy. It’s not such a hassle since my kind are a bit older now but i could never go back to a Lux-style grinder. They’re a fabulous looking beastie, enjoy
  • Ahh yep fair enough. It is quite noisy!
  • Ah also, I thought I'd mentioned this already but I haven't. Another thing which has occurred, is that definitely some beans prove more staticky/messy than others... it's only been the one bean (and I've tried a fair few different sorts), a honey processed Colombian, and for some reason it is an absolute mess haha. Grounds fly everywhere, and I tried a fairly dark (accidental dark) roast of this bean too and the mess was worse. Then tried another different Colombian bean and it was also quite staticky/messy! Very strange, other beans are amazing though. If too staticky, not that big a deal, I just use the grounds bin to grind into.
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