Coffee Grinding: Find out which is the best grind for your coffee brewing method.

Coffee Grinding is an important part of brewing good coffee. Some well known tips are to always grind only as much coffee as you are going to immediately use and grind to suit your coffee brewing method. Before we get to which grind suits which brewing style, let’s explore why we grind.

Coffee grinding helps us get to those wonderful oils trapped inside the coffee beans. The oils are the key to providing rich flavors and aromas.


Burr grinders are recognised as the best choice. While blade grinders are okay, the do not give a consistent grinder. Hand grinders are also good to use. (Note: you get what you pay for, so spend wisely, not necessarily thriftily).



Okay, now which coffee brewing methods work best with which coffee grinding methods.

Extra Fine grinds: Espresso machines.
Fine grinds: Drip Filtration coffee makers with conical filters, Moka Pots.
Medium grinds: Drip Filtration coffee makers with flat bottom filters (not conical).
Course grinds: French Press (or Plunger), Percolator (if you still use one) and Vacuum Pots.

What happens if we get the grind wrong? We will end up with a weak coffee if using a course grind in an espresso machine. Conversely, if we use an extra fine grind in a conical drip filter system, the filter will get clogged up.

A medium grind in an espresso machine has given me a drip filtered style of coffee. This is not necessarily a bad thing, it shows that you can experiment a little. However, the listing above will provide you with some good guidelines.