# Sage BCG600 vs Baratza Vario



## Jon of Newbury (Oct 22, 2015)

So, I am looking to get a coffee grinder to make espresso. I understand I am looking for a consistent fine even grind.

I have narrowed my search down to the Sage BCG600 and Baratza Vario, partly because they will fit in the space in the kitchen set aside to coffee making. I think they will give me some decent ground coffee, but I can have the Sage for £150 and the Vario for £320. Is the Vario worth more than twice as much in the quality of coffee it allows the user to make?


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

Are you set on brand new or would you consider used? If you have £300 for a grinder you should be able to get something that will make decent espresso. A Eureka Mignon is well within your budget, works well, looks cool and is really small for what it's capable of. Many here would advise a used Mazzer Super Jolly which isn't really that big, and you can also use a camera lens hood instead of a hopper if height is a problem.

A couple of members have listed their Sage grinders for sale recently, not sure if they're still available. If I remember rightly there may be some shimming necessary to get these to grind fine enough for espresso on the early ones. There are a load of other suggestions that I'm sure you'll receive in due course. Forum member Coffee Chap often has used grinders for sale and knows a lot about them and what's worth considering so he might be able to help.


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## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

Hi Jon of Newbury, where are you based? Just kidding of course. Choice of grinder may depend also if you think you'll only do espresso drinks or want to try "brewed" coffee also. If just espresso then you'll find better for that amount -line ones hotmetal has mentioned.

If for brewed as well then those two have easy adjustment of grind size. A lot of people use a higher end hand grinder for brewed coffee with dedicated espresso grinder.

You could also consider the Smart Grinder Pro, which I think is better than the BCG600 or has more features anyway. I have one brand new and boxed up that I'm going to sell. It came free with the Sage DB machine and I've already got better, more expensive, grinders.


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## Jon of Newbury (Oct 22, 2015)

Thank you for the advice chaps. I was in John Lewis today and had a look at the Sage. Long story short, I liked it, I bought it. Very robust.

Jlarkin, what do you make of the Sage DB? It looks very cool and seems to allow the user a lot of control over the coffee making process. I don't think this is my next purchase at £1,000+, but I would be interested to know.


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## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

That's cool, I hope you get on well with it. I think the Sage /Breville kit is good for the price and it's well thought out for easy use etc. I don't think I've heard on hear of anybody with that particular model grinder, so you'll have to give us a little review (have to being a relative term) once you've used it a bit.



Jon of Newbury said:


> .
> 
> I don't think this is my next purchase at £1,000+, but I would be interested to know.


Ah you say that but that's how we all start out ;-). The way I go you'll be able to buy it off me second hand for a few hundred quid less when I decide on my next silly purchase. Hopefully though, I'll stick with this one for a bit. I really like the Sage DB. I've got that, the ECM Mechanika (which is sold pending the collection) and Bezzera Strega next to each other on my coffee island. I really have enjoyed them all for different reasons but the Sage seems very easy to live with. It's got handy features like the quick warm-up and simple descale process etc. that are a pleasure for home espresso making. I haven't yet fully mastered it to say the espresso I'm making is amazing, but I hope I will get there soon. Also as a lot of people say the steaming is very nice on the Sage DB, it's a little slower than either the ECM or the Strega but with the little paddle to control the power and it's gentle nature, I'm pretty confident that it'll help me to get some very good milk based drinks soon (they're already pretty good and I'm improving with it all the time)...


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## Fevmeister (Oct 21, 2013)

the vario is 5x the grinder the sage is


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Fevmeister said:


> the vario is 5x the grinder the sage is


says the man with a Vario....!


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## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

dfk41 said:


> says the man with a Vario....!


With a Lido 3 I believe?


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## Fevmeister (Oct 21, 2013)

jlarkin said:


> With a Lido 3 I believe?


both haha


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Had a Vario then!


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## Fevmeister (Oct 21, 2013)

dfk41 said:


> Had a Vario then!


ive owned two and still own one


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## jlarkin (Apr 26, 2015)

Jon's sorted with his grinder anyway - so this isn't off track:

Which do you prefer the Lido 3 or the vario?


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## Fevmeister (Oct 21, 2013)

jlarkin said:


> Jon's sorted with his grinder anyway - so this isn't off track:
> 
> Which do you prefer the Lido 3 or the vario?


That's a good question Joey

So many differences between the two so hard to give a definitive answer

Lido is £200 cheaper, hand powered, has a wider grind size ability, more of a feat of engineering, feels more substantial, smaller, portable etc etc etc.

If you strip everything like that away and focus purely on grinding the vario is better for espresso and probably for drip and the lido for anything coarser


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## Tafka (Apr 6, 2019)

Sorry to revive an old thread. Just wondered how you got on with the 600


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