Not to be all “back in my day” about it, but when I was first getting into coffee, having a grinder with a burr, any burr, was a big deal. Flat, conical, ceramic, stainless steel, didn’t matter so long as it wasn’t a blade. Nowadays the grinder market is lousy with choice and at exceedingly reasonable price points. And so it is with the latest grinder option heading to the market. Grinista is a new grinder option that looks to do it all, and it’s live on Kickstarter now.
As with most new brands trying to break their way into the specialty coffee equipment space, Grinista takes a lot of its design cues from Fellow; it looks a lot like the Ode. But that—and the 64mm flat burrs—are about where the similarities stop. While the Ode focuses solely on filter coffee, the Grinista touts itself as a one-stop shop for all coffee preparation methods, from espresso and Turkish coffee to French press and cold brew.
And if the Ode is a meditation on simplicity, the Grinista is an exercise in maximalism. The Shenzhen, China-based company has loaded up the grinder with just about every bell and whistle available to the modern coffee grinder. Stepless grinding, built-in scale and timer, magnetic assembly, even adjustable RPM speed, the Grinista has it all. Another thoughtful touch comes from the grinds catcher cup, which seats perfectly inside a 58mm portafilter basket for easy grinds transfer.
The Grinista is also bringing a new feature to the grinder market: auto-knocking. Using the knock button, the grinder’s “auto powder knocking feature shakes off coffee residue from the burrs and grinding chute, reducing waste.” This, per the Kickstarter, leads to a grind retention of less that .1g per 10g of coffee.
The only design flaw—which may not be a flaw at all, depending on how you brew—is the hopper size. The single dose bin has a maximum capacity of 40g. So if you brew, say, a 50g Chemex each morning, you’d have to grind in batches. The Grinista motor is able to produce 5nM of torque, whereas the Ode produces 6nM.
Coming in both matte black and white options, the Grinista offers light and dark wood accent add-ons for the dial and hopper lid for fun mix-and-match customization options.
With about a week and a half left in the campaign, Grinista has blown past their $10,000 goal, raising nearly $80,000 thus far from over 400 backers. But there are still rewards and deep discounts aplenty. Would-be backers can still secure their own Grinista for $199, 50% off the $398 MSRP. Estimated delivery date for the rewards starts in February of 2025.
There’s never been a better time for the home grinder market, and coffee drinkers are the beneficiaries. For more information or to back the campaign, visit Grinista’s Kickstarter page.
Zac Cadwalader is the managing editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.
