# Is the Niche Zero Family Friendly?



## wave (Nov 13, 2020)

I am due for an upgrade as my current bean to cup is literally dying.

I have decided I will go with a Lilit Elizabeth but not sure about the grinder; I am between a Niche Zero or a Eureka Specialita.

I like the idea of single dose so I can change between coffees during the day. I am OK to weight each time but not sure if my wife will be really happy to move from a B2C to have to weight, tamp, etc. She will be fine with tamping but I do not think about weighing each time; same for our parents when coming over.

I have thought, as option, about weighting a few dosis and leave them on test tubes or similar. Feasible but not sure enjoyable in the long run.

Wanted to get your experiences on whether you use a Niche Zero as a family grinder rather only than for yourself. Let's say in total is about 4 coffees per day during weekdays and probably about 6 during weekends; more if we have friends coming over (once lockdowns are over)

Also if I go the Specialita route, how easy is to change beans. Do you need to run the grinder a few times to get it clean inside or just taking the hopper and changing beans is good enough?

cheers!


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## Coffee by the Casuals (Sep 15, 2020)

For the Niche: if you're going to pre-dose and leave in test tubes then she'll be fine. If you don't want to do that long term, and she's not happy to weigh into the hopper, then the Niche isn't much good to you.


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## BlackCatCoffee (Apr 11, 2017)

The Specialita has pretty low retention. Changing isn't a big deal. You could purge a few seconds or just drink a coffee that is a blend of the old and new. Retention is low you may not even notice.

david


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

wave said:


> I am due for an upgrade as my current bean to cup is literally dying.
> 
> I have decided I will go with a Lilit Elizabeth but not sure about the grinder; I am between a Niche Zero or a Eureka Specialita.
> 
> ...


 Pre weigh Your doses for them , this is what i do , does not have to be test tubes

With a mignon if you are changing beans then your either emptying out the hopper each time , or single dosing again , if you are single dosing you might as well get the niche as this is what it is built for


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## mctrials23 (May 8, 2017)

Maybe an unpopular opinion but making coffee isn't something that you can just walk up to the machine and do without any prior knowledge so unless they are willing to do a bit of learning they probably won't be happy with the output.

Is your bean to cup using a pressurised basket? Will they be willing to learn how to distribute and tamp etc?


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## Ozzyjohn (May 31, 2020)

I appreciate other family members can have differing tolerances - but for me, the weighing of the dose before grinding is one of the easier to master parts of the process - distribution and tamping as relatively more "tricky". One of the Niche benefits is that you don't really need to weigh the output once you've convinced yourself that it is as good as people say it is.

Having said all that, nobody else touches the coffee making gear in our house.


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## Doram (Oct 12, 2012)

mctrials23 said:


> Maybe an unpopular opinion but making coffee isn't something that you can just walk up to the machine and do without any prior knowledge so unless they are willing to do a bit of learning they probably won't be happy with the output.
> 
> Is your bean to cup using a pressurised basket? Will they be willing to learn how to distribute and tamp etc?


 ^^^^ This. I think anyone who can master using a hopper grinder and then Lelit Elizabeth, won't be put off by the fact they need to dose to a Niche.
If it were me, I would keep a jar of instant coffee in the cupboard for those who can't/don't want to bother with the espresso kit.


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## wave (Nov 13, 2020)

thanks all for the answers and advice.

@mctrials23, not unpopular but fair point. It is more a mater of time than ability or desire to do it; if you have 2 kids, preparing breakfast and trying to be on time for school run, last thing you want is also to weight beans  . Maybe the tamper is not perfect at that time but also your expectations for coffee quality are low.

When we are then all at home in a more relaxed situation then I am the one preparing the coffees and would have more time (to prepare and enjoy). Currently if the kids also want a hot chocolate it takes me long time to prepare all with the B2C; that that is another reason beyond quality why I want to move to a proper espresso machine with dual boiler.


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## ratty (Sep 22, 2019)

Personally I have my small scales next to the Niche with a small aluminium bowl always on it. The beans are in a small Airscape there too. I keep it half full, a few days worth, the rest are kept in a cold room under vacuum seal.

Switch cheap scales on, open Airscape container, by this time scale lag has zeroed. Pour beans into aluminium bowl until correct weight and then transfer to grinder.


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

ratty said:


> Personally I have my small scales next to the Niche with a small aluminium bowl always on it. The beans are in a small Airscape there too. I keep it half full, a few days worth, the rest are kept in a cold room under vacuum seal.
> 
> Switch cheap scales on, open Airscape container, by this time scale lag has zeroed. Pour beans into aluminium bowl until correct weight and then transfer to grinder.


 Pretty much same as me, except my "bowl" is a small plastic airline desert tray from the 90s. Allows me to inspect the beans and check for stones before tipping them in!


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## mctrials23 (May 8, 2017)

I think people tend to overestimate the time it takes to do little things like weighing out beans. The bigger issue is the perception of time and effort.

I can take 3 minutes to make a coffee or I can take 1:30 to make a coffee depending on how leisurely I am being. Having an OD grinder I could be even quicker if I wanted to.

Take PF out - wipe - grind into PF - tap to settle grounds -tamp - lock in - pull shot - steam milk at same time

VS

Pull water through group into cup - dry PF that is much wetter - stir to distribute grounds - use leveller - tamp - check tamp - lock in PF - pull shot - watch bottomless PF porn - steam milk

Its just a much bigger buy in to have someone use a semi automatic machine vs a bean to cup.


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## L2en (Jun 10, 2018)

wave said:


> thanks all for the answers and advice.
> 
> @mctrials23, not unpopular but fair point. It is more a mater of time than ability or desire to do it; if you have 2 kids, preparing breakfast and trying to be on time for school run, last thing you want is also to weight beans  . Maybe the tamper is not perfect at that time but also your expectations for coffee quality are low.
> 
> When we are then all at home in a more relaxed situation then I am the one preparing the coffees and would have more time (to prepare and enjoy). Currently if the kids also want a hot chocolate it takes me long time to prepare all with the B2C; that that is another reason beyond quality why I want to move to a proper espresso machine with dual boiler.


 Well, I have the same morning situation and I do weigh my coffee during grinding to get the 18g in. I think it will be a lot easier with Niche. Mine is coming in December, cannot wait! Otherwise I'm aming for the same combo as you, even if now I'm thinking of Profitec 600 as I had a nice financial pre-Christmas present.

On the other hand, I do have Nespresso for when my Mum visits, she really doesn't want to make coffee herself. Change from the B2C, that is going for sale.


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## Doram (Oct 12, 2012)

mctrials23 said:


> I can take 3 minutes to make a coffee or I can take 1:30 to make a coffee depending on how leisurely I am being. Having an OD grinder I could be even quicker if I wanted to.


 Personally I would prefer to wake up 1.5 minutes earlier if that was what it takes for me to have proper coffee. 😉


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## wave (Nov 13, 2020)

Thanks all for feedback.

One additional question. Does Niche usually delivers on time or even ahead?

Niche has Feb delivery date which would be an issue as I would need a grinder.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Coffee by the Casuals (Sep 15, 2020)

Seem to remember November deliveries came in October, but you pays your money and takes yer chance! You can't rely upon it coming early, unfortunately.


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## NikC (May 6, 2020)

Mine was a December order but it arrived today


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## Jony (Sep 8, 2017)

NikC said:


> Mine was a December order but it arrived today


 I would be happy with that.


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## wave (Nov 13, 2020)

At the end I went for the Eureka Mignon Specialita. Buying together with the Lilit had a bit of discount.

It was difficult to justify almost £200 difference, waiting 2 or 3 months + some hassle separating dosis upfront.

Realistically I do not change beans each day. For decaf I could grind for a few days and store aside.


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## NikC (May 6, 2020)

Jony said:


> I would be happy with that.


 I was - super happy


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