HarveyMushman Certainly in the UK I’ve only ever seen them used for bag grinding and I’d imaging the domestic market for them is pretty small.
Virtually every specialty third wave coffee shop uses EKs primarily for pour over.
Mahlkonig EK Omnia
When I got my first EK back in 2014, after the buzz Matt Perger caused, coffee shops began to install them. One in Madchester got one using mark I coffee burrs which couldn’t grind fine enough for espresso so they ditched the coffee burrs and went for Turkish which had a more aggressive edge profile allowing the burrs to grind finer. That sorted the problem for espresso. That said, EKs are best suited to shop espresso as the workflow is hard to keep up. I’ve seen places that pre-dose into phials which helps but dose on demand is much better. This looks like something the Omnia will address.
For a grinder that was destined to be consigned to history, the turnaround sales-wise for EKs has been phenomenal with Mahlkonig struggling to meet demand.
Systemic Virtually every specialty third wave coffee shop uses EKs primarily for pour over.
Interesting. It must have happened after I left London or I wasn’t paying attention. I was living in East London for 10 years or so in the 00’s/10’s when places like Shoreditch Grind and Ozone popped up but don’t recall seeing them. I moved not long after 2014 so maybe it was too early.
The shops where I live now are 10 years behind so maybe they’ll pop up more soon.
Chatting to a guy at Origin’s roastery a while ago he said it wasn’t ideal for switching between different beans/roasts (for pourover). Is that not true?
La Marzocco Linea Mini - Mazzer Philos
Ikawa Roaster
3Fe in Dublin were the first to experiment with the EK43 in their coffee shot. When the shots were spot on, they reported the taste was amazing. Unfortunately, they also got sink shots with no warning making it infeasible to use the EK43 as the go to espresso grinder. I don’t think many shops currently use the EK43 for espresso - for pour over definitely.
- Edited
HarveyMushman Chatting to a guy at Origin’s roastery a while ago he said it wasn’t ideal for switching between different beans/roasts (for pourover). Is that not true?
I think he meant in a shop setting. No grinder, once set up for espresso grind, will like be shifted for other roasts and pourover and back again. That said, in the home setting, the EK43 is a joy. My espresso range is between 0.5 - 2.00, V60 11-12 and Chemex 15-16 (max coarse setting for my burr set). I can move back and forth in the settings with ease. There aren’t many grinders that can produce excellent espresso shots and be equally good with pour over.
That said, one feature of the EK43 is shot ratio. It’s best in the range of 1:2 or higher. I pull 1:2.5 to get the shots I like with like roast but there is a trade off - you get less body/mouthfeel with longer ratios.
Actually, when I said the EK is a joy in the home setting - it is providing you have the space and don’t mind standing next to an industrial motor when its running. Fortunately, the EK will grind 30grms medium coarse in 5-6secs so the motor isn’t on for long.
Ok so this is a bit of a game changer then.
I’ve coveted an EK43S for a while but for some reason thought it wasn’t great for espresso and not easy to switch between brew methods.
I’m not too precious about pourover but would use it for Moccamaster each morning and a couple of espressos in the afternoon. Historically we’d preferred med-dark roasts but since getting the Ikawa we’re enjoying med-light / light roasts.
La Marzocco Linea Mini - Mazzer Philos
Ikawa Roaster
There’s no point in getting any big flat grinder unless you are into light roasts for either pour over and/or espresso.
The EK can even tame the most acidic beans - Kenyan and make an espresso made from a Kenyan light roast not only drinkable but enjoyable. Not many grinders can meet that challenge.
And switching between methods regularly isn’t an issue?
La Marzocco Linea Mini - Mazzer Philos
Ikawa Roaster
HarveyMushman And switching between methods regularly isn’t an issue?
No. I switch between pour over and espresso every day. Find dialling in for espresso with new beans very easy. I have a default setting - 1.0 on mine. I will tighten the grind if the shot is too fast and do the opposite if to slow. I can usually nail follow up shots at the second attempt. That said, even 15sec shots aren’t undrinkable but that’s maybe me and my taste buds.
The big plus about the EK is its ability to push extraction yields well above 20% - 23-24% with relative ease. This unlocks the beans sweet elements which help tame the acidic notes associated with lighter roasts. So you can get bags of fruit without it being mouth puckering.
I bought my first EK new in 2014 but my current EKs was bought second hand at considerable saving. If you are patient, and want one, they do come up on eBay etc. The EKs has a reputation for having tighter tolerances than the original EK43. I never had any with mine - maybe I was lucky. I have a dial micrometer from Titus engineering Germany which, when set up, can measure burr alignment. I have helped a few fellow owners service their first gen EKs and not found major problems with tolerances.
This is worth a watch.
Sounds ideal. And you’re using the factory burrs?
La Marzocco Linea Mini - Mazzer Philos
Ikawa Roaster
HarveyMushman Sounds ideal. And you’re using the factory burrs?
Mine is fitted with SSP Silver Knight burrs. Also has a few mods courtesy Titus engineering Germany - different augur and static burr holder.
This is a good example of what can pop up from time to time on eBay. This one sold in September.
HarveyMushman Sounds ideal. And you’re using the factory burrs?
When I got my first EK - you had a choice between coffee and Turkish burrs. As no-one had any experience of the differences, I went for coffee and regretted it as I couldn’t grind fine enough for espresso with light roast. Switched to Turkish burrs and problem solved. Reason I didn’t go for Turkish in first place, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to switch to pour over grind, i.e. not being able to grind coarse enough. That wasn’t a problem. Couple of years after I got my EK and probably responding to criticism from the coffee shop world, Mahlkonig quietly introduced Mk II coffee burrs which were more aggressive than the original coffee burrs but not as aggressive as the Turkish ones. Interestingly, Mahlkonig never acknowledged the change. It was sussed by a coffee head putting the Mk I and II burrs side by side where you could see a very slight change in the edge profile.
I think Mahlkonig have stuck with the Mk II burr profile and not altered it. I have a friend with an EKs with stock coffee burrs. Interestingly, her range is about 0.3 - 0.5 stop difference to my SSPs meaning where she would grind at 0.3 on her EKs, I would be around 0.5 ish. It also means she has, when her EK is cleaned and serviced, to ensure the burrs are set to chirping point when zeroing them. She leaves that to me😀
Servicing the EK is very straightforward. I do mine every six months - take off the front burr (very easy) clean and regrease and re-assemble and zero the burrs. Takes half an hour tops.
Thanks, really useful info.
I was planning to wait for the Mazzer Philos but that’s just using 64mm.
Looking at the new prices I’m tempted to just go new, especially as I’d probably want the S which I’m guessing comes up for sale less frequently.
Servicing is no probs, if I can keep old motorcycles running I can keep a grinder in good shape.
La Marzocco Linea Mini - Mazzer Philos
Ikawa Roaster
The difference in price between the omnia and the 43 doesn’t seem that big. I find it hard to understand why the mazzer ZM and ZM+ are so expensive givne the price of the OMNIA.