Oh my, TIMEMORE. This can be a corporate to control.
I’m no longer certain when the corporate was once based (solution: 2012); I know they made an enormous access into distinctiveness espresso in 2017 with the Chestnut G1 grinder, which took two years to increase, and ended up a real Reddot winner.
This distinctive and succesful grinder was once adopted quickly by way of the Nano grinder, which featured a novel (there’s that phrase once more), fully pleasurable to make use of, folding steel deal with.
Then TIMEMORE were given truly critical. 2018 noticed the creation in their C2 Chestnut sequence: a grinder that truly modified the sport as to what the cheap, manually cranked espresso grinder might be. An identical in measurement the Porlex Mini (the grinder that rebooted the handbook grinder marketplace, however was once by no means a just right performer), or the Hario Mini (the precursor to the Porlex), it’s best actual comparisons to the Porlex was once a equivalent value and measurement.
The whole thing else concerning the C2 was once higher. Higher development. Significantly better burr balance. Extra actual grind changes. Some way higher conical burr. And that critical steel frame. Interested in neatly below $80. Recreation changer.
Variants of the C2 quickly got here out. Slender fashions. Max fashions. Much more upgraded burr units. Advanced Nano fashions. However nonetheless, TIMEMORE wasn’t executed.
Not like maximum grinder producers (yup, even Baratza and Comandante), TIMEMORE made up our minds to make their very own burrs. No longer simply cause them to, however innovate them. They went titanium. They went nitrate covered. They explored more than a few ranges of hardened metal. The tooled round with reduce patterns. Then they made up our minds to create a brand new form of burr, one in particular engineered to accomplish on handbook, hand crank grinders.
The S2C burrset was once born: Spike to Reduce. Designed to first section and chop espresso beans all the way down to a uniform measurement, or bite, then grind the ones uniform chunks all the way down to an exacting particle measurement you dial into the grinder’s atmosphere.
In 2020, they presented their S2C burrset in a brand new extremely top rate hand grinder, person who, if I’m fair, put the business main “elite” hand grinder (the Comandante) to a small quantity of disgrace. TIMEMORE presented the Chestnut X grinder. 42mm S3C burrset. Folding deal with design. Squared off frame design for higher dealing with. And a primary in handbook grinders: a twin, micro and macro adjustment dial providing a loopy 120 steps of adjustment. It turned into, and stays the corporate’s flagship.
I’ve had a number of possibilities to position the Comandante C40 (an previous variant) up towards the TIMEMORE Chestnut X, and it was once transparent each and every time which was once the easier grinder.
They nonetheless weren’t executed with grinders. As of late, the corporate gives a dizzying array of handbook hand grinders (and shortly, an excessively top finish electrical one) that are compatible into virtually each and every value level. And the most productive section is, the leading edge era and lines in their flagship Chestnut X have moved down the road.
And don’t even get me began on their efforts within the espresso scale house (that’s for some other publish).
Let’s dive into probably the most most up-to-date choices from TIMEMORE. That is an creation publish, however we do have complete opinions in development on 3 of those grinders.
Timemore Grinders for 2023
The present lineup for TIMEMORE grinders is rather considerable. By way of my rely, they’ve 14 present handbook, hand cranked grinders, together with 7 simply throughout the C3 sequence (presented about 18 months in the past). Others come with a number of C2 fashions (whole bargains at $80 or much less), Slender variants, Max variants, Nano, the X, and the G1 continues to be available in the market.
The C3 sequence is TIMEMORE’s widest vary, and it could get a bit of complicated. Fortunately, their naming device is helping outline the grinders’ featureset:
- C3: The bottom type, with plastic body within for the spindle.
- C3 S: The brand new silicone base at the grinder contributes the “S” section. Even have a steel body within for the spindle.
- C3 Professional: Options the folding deal with design.
- C3 ESP: Comprises the 30 click on top answer grind adjustment dial and the silicone base.
Some fashions incorporate two of the weather above. For example, the C3ESP Professional has the steel body, silicone base, 30 click on top answer dial, and the folding crank arm (it additionally has a steel crank knob – no plastic in that pet). The C3S Professional has the steel body, silicone base, folding crank arm and steel crank knob.
Then there’s the C3S Max, which ups the espresso dose quantity to 30g, and lines the folding deal with, the all steel development and the silicone base. Why no C3S ESP Max? As a result of who wishes 30g of espresso floor for coffee!
Right here’s a chart equipped by way of TIMEMORE that is helping with the fashions within the C3 lineup.
Opinions, Incoming
We now have the C3S Professional ($100) and the C3ESP Professional ($110) right here to do complete opinions on. Early days nonetheless, however I will be able to say those are very good hand grinders. The S2C burrset makes the grinding motion close to easy, and it’s slightly rapid. The folding crank fingers are weirdly addictive to make use of (fold up, fold down, fold up, fold down!). The whole thing about those grinders screams high quality of construct.
One Extra Factor…
We even have some other grinder from TIMEMORE that I haven’t discussed but.
The Chestnut X is their flagship and difficult to seek out every now and then. It’s additionally redonkulously dear at $300 (regardless that nonetheless less expensive than a Comandante C40 MkIV). It has the entire swoonish bells and whistles, together with that business main 42mm S2C 880 hardened metal burrset.
Regardless that probably the most Chestnut X’s options have filtered all the way down to the C3 sequence (or even the C2 sequence), something that has no longer is the grind capability or the 42mm S2C burr. So TIMEMORE made some other Chestnut X. They name it the Chestnut X Lite. It’s $100 lower than the flagship type. And we’ve got one to check.
The Chestnut X Lite has the X’s capability and similar 42 S2C burr set. Similar interior development, most commonly. Similar motion, similar particle distribution measurement for the grinds, similar very top rate really feel to all of it.
The Chestnut X Lite does no longer have the micro-macro adjustment device of the flagship grinder, as an alternative simply conserving the macro 24 click on burr grind selector. It additionally does no longer have the folding crank arm (that’s the object I omit probably the most). It additionally does no longer have the flagship type’s squared off frame: as an alternative it’s the commonplace spherical type maximum different TIMEMORE grinders have.
Eschewing the ones options allowed the corporate to introduce the Chestnut X Lite at $100 lower than the flagship grinder: it retails for just below $200 USD. The most important value financial savings, I’m informed, come from the spherical vs. squared off frame form, adopted by way of the non folding crank arm, then the micro adjustment dial for grind variety.
To be fair, I may do with out the squared off frame form, I may even do with out the micro adjustment dial (regardless that a variant of the ESP top answer dial would were just right), however I feel the folding crank arm is TIMEMORE’s signature for hand grinders, and if they may be able to put it on the newest iteration of the C2 grinder which retails for $80, they will have to have put it at the X Lite.
However I’ll get into that much more within the complete overview.
Mark has qualified as a Canadian, USA, and International Barista Championship Pass judgement on in each sensory and technical fields, in addition to operating as an trainer in espresso and coffee coaching. He began CoffeeGeek in 2001.
