Fellow Opus Grinder Review: Perfect for New At-Home Baristas – CNET

The $195 Fellow Opus is a brand-new coffee mill focused on individuals beginning their at-home barista journey. Fellow, the 10- year-old San Francisco business behind an ever-growing line of chic coffee devices and devices, carried out rather a difficulty bringing it to market. It looked for to make an all-in-one mill that can grind beans for whatever from espresso to cold brew, all while being wallet-friendly, elegant and simple to utilize. And to my pleasure, the Opus provides on all fronts. The curved, squat mill managed grinding coffee for nine-bar espresso pulls and pour-overs incredibly well throughout my 6 weeks of screening.

The all-in-one Opus is something of an unusual bird. Generally if you desire a terrific mill that can manage espresso and drip coffee, you ‘d either pay near to a thousand dollars or purchase different mills– one for drip and the other for espresso. There are mills like the Wilfa Uniform that expense around $300 and do a good task as an all-in-one. If you’re fairly brand-new to your coffee nerd-dom, a couple of hundred dollars can be a high barrier to entry.

Fellow is understood for its premium brew devices and devices that are mostly focused on the snobbiest of coffee geeks. It is a welcome surprise to see the business bring its knowledge to the Opus, an easy, friendly stepped cone-shaped mill, that looks excellent and can support your coffee expeditions, whether you’re pulling shots or making a French press. Fellow wisely well balanced focusing on the Opus’ cone-shaped burr set and motor with practical compromises, like utilizing plastic for the body rather of metal, to keep the rate low.

The Fellow Opus’ style stands out

Despite the Opus’ polycarbonate exterior, it still looks slick and is attentively made. The hopper cover fits completely and doubles as a volumetric measuring cup.

The catch cup has a magnet that not just guarantees it’s lined up completely on the base under the grind chute, however is incredibly rewarding to return in location. Inside the cup is a spout for putting. There’s likewise an insert you can utilize when grinding espresso which fits both 58- millimeter and 54- millimeter portafilters. The insert likewise fits my single-cup Hario maker producing a spick-and-span workflow.

The Opus has what Fellow calls “antistatic innovation” to minimize grind spray (believe the ionizer on a hair clothes dryer). In usage, it works very well. I never ever had premises spreading onto the base. The Opus is one of the tidiest mills I’ve ever utilized.

On top is a broad adjustable ring that appears like a crown of numbers and absolutely shares some similarity with the Wilfa Uniform. The ring has inbounds marker that go from 1 to11 (Clearly somebody at Fellow is a fan of Spinal Tap.) In in between each number are 3 increments, providing the Opus a 41- action modification variety.

Meet the Opus’ big burrs

At the core of the Opus is a 40- millimeter cone-shaped burr set with 6 blades, which Fellow calls Burly Burrs. The Opus is powered by a motor that provides 6 newton-meters of torque and 350 rpm. The mix of the burrs and robust motor lets the Opus punch well above its rate point. It managed light roasted coffee with no battle even at really great settings.

When grinding, the Opus has actually a stifled yet high-pitched whine. It’s not the quietest mill I’ve utilized, however far more controlled than a blade mill or low-cost burr mill.

Adjusting the grind is uncomplicated, though I want the tab on the modification dial were bigger or had a rubber or silicone covering. As it is now, moving the ring from one action to another takes a company grip. I discovered it simpler to get the whole modification ring like the cover on a container to turn it more exactly.

The Opus’ variety is remarkable. When grinding for espresso I seldom went under 2 on the dial, which produces an extremely great grind. What’s fantastic about the Opus, particularly for individuals more recent to grinding espresso, is the primary change ring supplies a great deal of space for calling in a shot. As your developing understanding grows, you may desire even more versatility, which Fellow has a creative treatment for. Under the hopper assembly is an easy-to-access inner dial that can be utilized for great modifications. If you choose to explore the inner ring, certainly have a look at Fellow’s video that strolls you through the procedure

Coffee grinds from the Opus are consistent, and I’m extremely delighted with the premises it produced. I must keep in mind that a more pricey devoted espresso or drip coffee mill will produce premises that are even more constant.

Pour-over cups of coffee that I made with Opus premises had a great brightness and sweet taste, and espresso shots had a smooth, syrupy body.

The Fellow Opus mill is simple to utilize

I worked as a barista for 13 years, and my least preferred part was taking a mill apart to clean it. I ‘d undoubtedly drop a screw, by mishap, into the body and need to turn it over in hopes that it would fall out. The Opus is unbelievably simple to take apart and tidy. You do not require a screwdriver, or any tool for that matter. It just takes a couple of seconds to pull apart the burr set.

One location where things do get a little careless remains in the bean hopper. After a couple of usages, it collects a little chaff that’s sat back up while grinding. The Opus does keep some premises. Typically it was less than half a gram. I saw that a basic tap on the hopper cover prior to eliminating the catch cup assisted knock the majority of it out.

Who is the Fellow Opus mill for?

While I do believe a great deal of individuals would take pleasure in the Opus, it’s absolutely not for everybody. If you are somebody who desires an inexpensive mill and does not appreciate quality or a simple workflow, you may see the Opus as too costly. For somebody who desires to check out various kinds of developing at house, it’s difficult to discover a mill as budget friendly and flexible as the Opus. On the other hand, if you are currently deeply bought your house barista setup, the Opus may have a lot of compromises, specifically if you’re accustomed to a more pricey mill like the Niche Zero

Despite my years slinging coffee, the Opus is ample for me. It’s developed well, enables me to alter my brew techniques quickly, and looks terrific in my kitchen area. I ought to acknowledge that one of the Opus’ most significant rivals is the freshly launched $199 Baratza Encore ESP which I have not utilized. (I’ll upgrade this evaluation if I attempt it out.)