Different brew methods call for particular grind sizes. Although personal taste affects how coarse or fine you grind your beans, there are some basic guidelines.
We’ve snapped photos of five different levels of coarseness, ground with a Baratza Maestro Plus. There are many other interim ground sizes, but hopefully this will give you a good feel for your preferred brewing method.
Cold Brew:
Extra coarse, similar to ground peppercorns.
French Press, Duo Coffee Steeper, Percolators:
Coarse grind, similar to sea salt.
Drip Brewers, Chemex, Pourover cones, Siphon Brewers:
Drip brewers and Chemex fall more towards medium coarseness, while pourover cones and siphons are a medium fine grind. The consistency of medium grind is similar to sand. This picture falls more within the medium fine category.
Espresso and some Pourover Cones:
Fine to extra fine. Think slightly finer than granulated sugar. It should be difficult to see individual grounds.
Turkish (Ibrik):
As fine of a grind as possible – it should feel and look like flour. You should barely be able to distinguish individual grounds.
Keep in mind, for the finer espresso and especially the Turkish grind, your grinder may need a re-calibration for a better quality grind : How To Recalibrate A Baratza Encore
Because we use Duo Coffee Steeper daily, we’ve kept our Maestro calibrated for coarser grinds.
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(Lead Photography by Chloe Wen)