on snobbery

one of the fun things about being a snob on any topic (in my case, coffee, duh) is that the snob can derive great amusement from the rantings of a lesser snob or -- even more hilarious -- a pretentious, lesser-informed snob.

case in point

the guy spent 200 clams on a grinder from -- of all places -- williams sonoma. now, people are people and most of them are good, but we all know that most of the stuff sold at WS is sold because:

1) it's shiney
2) it's on display at WS

(true, i bought my all-clad pans from bad breath and beyond (at a good discount!), but they meet conditions 1 and 2 above)

any self-respecting coffee snob knows that you don't buy a grinder because it "looks tough" or it's "shiney" or "on display at williams sonoma". rather, you look for one with a reputation for a consistent, low-static grind, THEN you worry about durability (which seems to be the OP's firts concern) and finally, if it matters at all: looks. if you're concerned about looks, you can go with something italian. in fact, if you're concerned about grinding coffee at all, italian is a good way to go. ideally, you would want to rent an italian to sit in your kitchen and grind your beans with his teeth. failing that, for 200 bucks, i'd buy a zass and spend the remaining $130 on beans.

the guy is happy with his purchase, though, which is a pleasure denied any true snob. my rancilio rocky grinder is considered by most as a 9 out of 10 -- which means i must struggle not to purchase a 10/10 la cimbali.

in summary, the funny thing about this is that he bought the thing at all. for 200 bucks, i'd expect someone to do some research and come to the same conclusion as everyone else (especially at coffeegeek.com!). someone willing to drop 200 quid on a grinder sounds like someone who is really into coffee (and thus, again, would buy either a zass or something italian) or has way too much money to spend on "kitchen appliances" (which, imho, something like a mazzer is *not*). since he bought the dingus at WS, i'm guessing it's the latter.

(also, non-espresso coffee should be brewed at 195F, not -- as the OP said -- 200F. neener.)