Wilfa Svart vs. Baratza Encore

WILFA VS. BARATZA - WHAT ARE THEY?

Right from the start, I dare say that this duel will probably be pretty even from the start, because here we have side by side home electric grinders from two modern and innovative brands.

Wilfa is a Swedish brand of home appliances, but its wide range of products does not detract from their quality. There is also a great emphasis on design. In addition to coffee grinders, you will also find top-of-the-range drip coffee machines at Wilfa. These also deserve attention. When you say Wilfa, many of you probably also think of the famous Norwegian barista and roaster, Tim Wendelboe, who works with Wilfa. Wilfa grinders are popular not only with him, but with many other baristas around the world.

If you've ever been on the lookout for electric grinders for the home, you've probably come across Baratza too. Kyle Anderson and Kyra Kennedy arebehind Baratza, and they focus solely on electric grinders for the home, business, or gastro establishment. They've been on the market for over twenty years, and all the while, they've continued to innovate and improve their products.

To choose the right grinder, it is important to take into account many features, so let's take a look at all of them in turn.

TOP FEATURES OF THE WILFA SVART COFFEE GRINDER

Having good beans is one thing, a quality grinder is another. So is the Wilfa Svart the right choice? You've probably chosen an electric grinder because you need to grind large quantities of coffee. The Wilfa Svart CGWS-130B offers you a capacity of up to 250g of coffee, so you can make plenty of coffee afterwards.

You'll be pleased with the wide range of grinding coarseness settings. The grinder offers 70 grinding grades , but you will also find pre-made indicative scales for filter coffee in adrip coffee machine, French press, Aeropress, dripper like the V60 or kalita and moka pot. Adjust the coarseness simply by turning the hopper. You'll also find a built-in timer in the grinder, this will ensure a more precise grinding batch.

However, I would still choose to go the route of weighing the coffee beforehand and only use as much coffee as you really need, after all ,storing coffee in a vacuum containeris better than in the grinder's hopper. Further on the grinder you will find only one button to start the grinding.

The last thing you want in the morning is to turn the crank on a manual grinder, maybe that's your reason for buying an electric grinder too. Which comes with another question. What about the noise?

It's not exactly the quietest domestic appliance, and unless your family or housemates are particularly light sleepers, you probably won't wake them up. As a result, they may still appreciate you making more coffee for them too. This model, the Wilfa Svart CGWS-130B, is also a little quieter than its predecessor, the Wilfa Svart WSCG-2. It also copes better with harder beans, i.e. lighter roasts. Above all, the better motor avoids overheating and thus the leakage of essential oils from the coffee. This makes the coffee much tastier.

Compared to cheap eclectic grinders that have chopping blades, Wilfa will offer you high-quality grinding stones made of steel. You will also appreciate the motor protection to prevent coffee from getting stuck between the stones.

TOP features of Wilfa:

Large coffee hopper
Sensitive grinding coarseness - 70 degrees of coarseness, 5 preset levels
Relatively quiet
Powerful slow-running motor
Motor protection against coffee getting stuck between the stones.

WHAT WILL IMPRESS YOU WITH THE BARATZA ENCORE GRINDER?

One of the biggest differences from Wilfa is that theBaratza Encore grinds coffee for both filter and espresso. Wilfa Svart can't do that. Still, it's more suited to alternative coffee brewing, so I would only choose it for espresso grinding as a last resort. For example , theBaratza Sette 270Wi will serve you well as an all-purpose grinder with which you can grind coffee in all ways . If you're going to delve into the world of home espresso making, you'd be wise to focus on espresso coffee grinders specifically. With Baratza, your choice will be the right one if it falls on the Forte APgrinder .

The hopper capacity is smaller compared to the Wilfa, but only by a few grams. The hopper can hold up to 227 grams of coffee. The ground coffee hopper, on the other hand, has a capacity of just 142 grams. Another minus is the slightly higher grind volume, although many people probably wouldn't even know the difference. What will be noticeable, however, is the number of coarseness settings, only 40 of which can be found on the Baratza Encore, although even that is not a small number. In the end, the coarseness of the coffee is quite comparable to the coarseness of the coffee ground by Wilfy Svart.

For a drip coffee machine, an electric coffee grinder is almost a necessity. The Baratza Encore will grind up to 142 grams of coffee at a time, making more than 2 litres of filter coffee. Source: Baratza.com

Theconical shape of the metal grinding stones ensures that they don't heat up, and so they don't heat up the coffee beans that would leak essential oils. The controls are quite simple, on the side you'll find a rotary dial that can be turned on or off, i.e. on or off. The other option is a button on the front of the grinder, but it works on a hold basis, so you control how long the grinder will grind. So the fact that the Baratza Encore lacks a timer doesn't strike me as that big a deal, because either way it's better to weigh your coffee in advance.

The Baratza Encore has a powerful motor with 450 rpm, this is enriched with a custom gearbox that ensures that the grinder won't jam and get damaged if an unknown object falls into the grinding system.

TOP features of the Baratza Encore:

Wide range of grinding coarseness settings
Large coffee hopper
Two ways to start the grinding process
Motor protection against damage from unknown objects

MAINTENANCE OF WILFA AND BARATZA ELECTRIC GRINDERS

Fortunately,maintenance of both coffee grinders is no big deal. The containers for the ground coffee can be easily removed and washed. In the case of the Baratza Encore 40 mm, the grinding stones can be easily removed without any tools. With the Wilfy Svart, just turn the transparent hopper counterclockwise and slide it out to get right to the stones.

Once in a while, I also recommend cleaning the grinder with a special grinder cleaner, such as Cafetto Grinder Clean, which cleans the grinding stones of coffee residue and ensures better functioning.

Maintaining your Wilfa electric grinder is no hard nut to crack, so there's nothing to worry about. Plus, cleaning your grinder regularly will help your coffee taste just a little bit better. Source,

ELECTRIC COFFEE GRINDER - DESIGN OR NOT?

As I mentioned earlier, design is one of the key features for Wilfa and this is also true for the Wilfa Svart. The CGWS-130B model has gained a sleek black finish over its silver predecessor, the Wilfa Svart WSCG-2. Another interesting feature compared to other coffee grinders is the non-protruding coffee hopper. And although it's an electric grinder and thus larger than a manual grinder, it's no giant and you don't have to worry about it taking up a lot of space on your kitchen counter.

The body of the grinder is made of steel and so the grinder is stable enough, so you don't have to worry about the electric grinder bouncing around on your kitchen counter. The hopper and ground coffee container are made of high-quality plastic. The container is also coated with an anti-static coating to prevent coffee from sticking. We'll stick with the container, it's the one that garners the most negative feedback with the Wilfy Svart, mainly due to its shape, which is impractical when over-pouring coffee.

The Baratza definitely gets its plus thanks to its two colours, white or black. The Baratza has more centimetres in height and less in width, so you don't have to worry about it not fitting next to the drip tray. The grinder is made of high-quality plastic, but weighs a few grams more than the Wilfa Svart, so stability is guaranteed. The bowl on the front has a simple cuboid shape and is absolutely trouble-free when straining ground coffee.

The choice of classic black and elegant white will definitely make you happy when buying a Baratza Encore. In short, this electric coffee grinder will suit any home or office. Source: baratza.com

ELECTRIC COFFEE GRINDER FOR THE HOME - INVESTMENT OR CHEAP?

In this category, the battle is very close as the price of both grinders is very similar. Fortunately, you don't have to dig particularly deep into your pockets to buy a home electric grinder. The Wilfa is priced at approximately under CZK 3,500. Which is a pretty solid price considering all that the Wilfa Svart electric grinder has to offer. Moreover, its quality is underlined by theSCAcertification , i.e. the International Selected Coffee Association.

The Baratza Encore is about 200-300 CZK cheaper, that is, in its black version. In the white version, which was only launched in 2020, the price is comparable to Wilfa Svart.

WHICH ELECTRIC COFFEE GRINDER IS THE RIGHT ONE?

The duel between these two electric grinders was very even indeed. However, let's first summarize the individual pros and cons of both grinders.

Compact size, black minimalist design, easy operation and a lot more is offered by the Wilfa Svart electric grinder. You definitely won't go wrong with its purchase. Source.

WILFA SVART		BARATZA ENCORE
PLUSES	MINUSES	PLUSES	MINUSES
- wide range of coffee grind settings and pre-set orientation scales - large ground coffee container that can hold up to 250 g of coffee - grind timer (not such a big bonus for me, but it may be a big one for some) - motor overload protection -anti-static coating in the ground coffeecontainer -compactsize - versatile minimalist design - low price - easy maintenance and operation - made of high quality materials - SCA certified	-impractical shape of the ground coffee container - not suitable for espresso grinding	-40 degrees of coarseness possible - from French Press to espresso - two ways to start the grinding process - protection against motor jamming and overheating -practical container for ground coffee - compact size - easy maintenance of the grinding stones - 2 colour versions - low price - more demanding but simple preparation methods -made of high quality plastics - large enough hopper and container for ground coffee	-smallerhopper and container for ground coffee than Wilfy -no grind timer (some might miss it)

So taking all this into account, it's not an easy decision to make. However, if you primarily want a grinder designed to grind coffee for alternative brewing or drip coffee, I would personally choose the Wilfa Svart CGWS-130B grinder. Plus, as I mentioned earlier, I would look elsewhere for a grinder designed to grind coffee for espresso.

And why Wilfa? After all, it has a few more of those pluses. But that doesn't mean you're stepping on the wrong to buy the Baratza Encore, that's for sure. In both cases, these are very high quality electric coffee grinders for the home at a very nice price.