Whatever type of coffee you’re making, two of the most important variables are the size of the grind and the amount you brew.
If you want to tweak your method to get the best flavors out of your coffee beans and into your cup, your grind settings will be one of the first things you adjust.
The Breville Smart Grinder Pro offers a wide range of grind settings, suitable for all sorts of brewing methods. Whether you’re making a cold brew and want a very coarse grind, or you need a fine grind for a shot of espresso, the Smart Grinder Pro has you covered.
To help you in your quest to find the best coffee grind size for your beans, we’ve put together this guide explaining how to adjust the grind size settings on your Smart Grinder Pro and which settings are best for different styles of coffee.
Smart Grinder Pro setting options
Adjusting the Smart Grinder Pro grind size and grind time
The Smart Grinder Pro has a range of 60 grind sizes that you can control using the dial at the side of the machine.
As you turn the dial to adjust the settings, the grind size will be displayed as a number between 1 and 60 on the LCD screen. At the top of the LCD display, there’s also a helpful indicator that shows you where in the grind range you are and an approximate range for French press, percolator, drip, and espresso.
The Grind Amount knob beneath the display allows you to control how long the grinder will run. You can adjust the grind time in 0.2-second increments to control how much coffee will be ground for your dose.
Once you find a grind size and grind time combination that you like, you can save the setting by pressing and holding the grind amount knob.
You can scale up to grind for multiple servings by pressing the Shots/Cups button. This will quickly multiply the grind time to give you multiple servings at your set volume.
How to change the range of grind sizes by adjusting the Smart Grinder Pro’s top burr
Is your espresso pulling too fast, even at the lowest grind setting? Luckily, you can adjust the range of grind sizes on the Smart Grinder Pro by adjusting the top burr.
If you’ve played around with that range of 60 grind settings and found that the Smart Grinder Pro is still grinding either too fine at the coarsest setting or too coarse at the finest, it’s time to jump inside the machine and make a top burr adjustment.
Adjusting the top burr lets you change the range of grind sizes available with the grind size dial. This obviously isn’t an adjustment you’ll want to make daily, but it’s good to know you can adjust your range to grind finer or coarser on either end of the range.
Remove the hopper and the top burr to adjust the internal burr on the Smart Grinder Pro.
You’ll notice a set of numbers (1-10) on the top burr’s inside ring. These are the grind range settings — the lower the number, the finer the grind range. The red dot on the outer ring indicates which number it’s set to. Most machines come set to 6.
Remove the metal wire handle from the top burr to make your adjustment. Once you’ve removed the handle, the top ring can spin freely. Turn the top ring to align the red dot to your new setting number.
Once that’s set, put the wire handle back in place and replace the top burr inside the grinder, turning it clockwise to lock it into place. Put the hopper back on, and you can test your new grind settings.
Setting the Smart Grinder Pro for different brewing methods
As a rule of thumb, the Smart Grinder Pro’s 60 grind settings will give the following grind sizes:
- Fine: 1-24
- Medium-fine: 25-34
- Medium: 35-44
- Medium-coarse: 45-54
- Coarse: 55-60
Read on for recommended Smart Grinder Pro settings for different brewing methods. Different beans will require different settings, of course. You can use these recommendations as a starting point and tune them to suit your own preferences and needs.
Aeropress
When deciding on your grind settings for an Aeropress, you need to consider how long you plan to let the grinds steep before pressing your brew through the filter. In general, you’ll want a fine to medium grind size for an Aeropress — the finer the grind, the shorter the brew time.
I like to use the following Smart Grinder Pro settings for Aeropress, with a brewing time of one minute:
- Top burr: 5
- Grind size: 28
- Grind time: 10.2
- Cups/Shots: 1
Chemex
Chemex works best with medium-coarse grind size. With the Smart Grinder Pro, grind settings for Chemex should be in the 45-50 range, with the upper burr set a bit coarser than the factory setting.
Try these settings on your Smart Grinder Pro as a starting point for a 4-cup Chemex:
- Top burr: 8
- Grind size: 46
- Grind time: 12
- Cups/Shots: 4
Cold Brew
Making cold brew calls for a very coarse grind so it doesn’t over-extract and become bitter during its long steep. Set your Smart Grinder Pro to its coarsest grind settings for cold brew.
The grinding time will vary depending on how large the batch you’re making is and how strong you want the cold brew to be. A common coffee-to-water ratio for cold brew is 1:5 — one part coffee to five parts water.
I use the following Smart Grinder Pro settings to make a 6-cup batch of cold brew:
- Top burr: 10
- Grind size: 60
- Grind time: 20
- Cups/Shots: 4
Espresso
For espresso drinks, set your Smart Grinder Pro to a finer grind setting. You’ll have to test different settings to dial in the grind.
Try a finer grind if your espresso pulls too quickly and gives you a thin, sour shot. If it’s pulling too slowly and the shot tastes bitter and over-extracted, set your grinder a bit coarser.
Use the following espresso settings as a starting point:
- Top burr: 5
- Grind size: 12
- Grind time: 11.2
- Cups/Shots: 2
French Press
French press is much less fussy than most brewing methods. A coarse grind is best for most French press brews. I like setting my Smart Grinder Pro’s top burr to 10 and the grind size in the 50-60 range.
- Top burr: 10
- Grind size: 55
- Grind time: 14
- Cups/Shots: 4
Hario V60
You’ll want to use a scale when you brew with the Hario V60. We recommend about 25 grams of coffee and 340 grams (12 ounces) of water for a 10-ounce mug of coffee. Use the following Smart Grinder Pro settings for a Hario V60, and adjust as needed.
- Top burr: 8
- Grind size:46
- Grind time: 9.4
- Cups/Shots: 2
Moccamaster
When brewing with a Moccamaster, you should aim for a medium-coarse grind size with a texture like rough sand. If the coffee is ground too fine, the water might move too slowly through the ground and over-extract or even overflow the brew basket.
Try these Smart Grinder Pro grind settings for your Moccamaster brew:
- Top burr: 9
- Grind size: 43
- Grind time: 19
- Cups/Shots: 4
Final thoughts
The Smart Grinder Pro has a wide range of grind settings, making it capable of grinding for all types of brew methods. Hopefully, this guide will be helpful as you experiment with grinding coffee for different brew styles.
Happy Caffeinating!
