For some time now, we’ve considered the Baratza Encore to be the best coffee grinder you can buy, pound for pound. It offers the most consistent and uniform grounds you can get for the price, and its 40 grind settings flawlessly handle every coarseness level from espresso to pour-over to drip coffee.
We didn’t really think the Encore needed improving...but that’s just what Baratza has done with the forthcoming Encore ESP.
At first blush, the Baratza Encore ESP looks an awful lot like the Encore. Both have the same basic exterior design (though the ESP’s graphics have been cleaned up a little), with an on/off switch on the side, a front-mounted pulse button and a rotating hopper that doubles as your grind selector. But on the inside, things have been fine-tuned to make the Encore ESP even better for making espresso.
The Encore ESP still has 40 mm conical burrs (now M2 instead of M3) and 40 grind settings, but the settings are split into two sections. The first 20 are micro settings that are intended to dial in your perfect fine espresso grind, while the upper 20 are macro settings that allow you to quickly adjust for coffees that require coarser grounds. On the original Encore, all 40 settings are macro adjustments.
Furthering the ESP’s espresso bona fides is the new included anti-static 54mm dosing cup (and 58mm adapter), which allows you to easily load your espresso grounds directly into your portafilter for mess-free easy tamping. Another innovation of the ESP that all coffee drinkers will enjoy is the removable burrs, which can easily be popped off and cleaned without the use of any tools.
The Baratza Encore ESP is already popping up in coffee shops around the country, and it’s expected to be available for purchase from retailers beginning February 23. The MSRP of $199 is a slight uptick from the Encore’s $169 MSRP, but if you’re grinding for espresso, the upgrades are well worth the extra cash.
