Single dose coffee grinding is a popular option for those who are very serious about their espresso, and other brew methods as well. Today, an in-depth look at the Ceado E37SD. It’s a new version of Ceado’s respected E37S grinder that’s been setup specifically for single dose grinding.
Hey coffee lovers, Marc here from Whole Latte Love. Today, an extensive review of the Ceado E37SD. I’ll take you inside the grinder for a close look at parts like the massive 83 mm titanium burrs. I’ll have a look at Ceado’s Quick Set worm gear for micro-precise grind size adjustment that also allows for rapid macro size changes. Then, I’ll cover how to use the grinder for the best results, including using the included RDT sprayer, WDT cup, and espresso dosing funnel. Finally, I’ll finish up with some test results including grind retention.
If you’re not familiar with single dosing, it’s grinding only the amount of beans needed for each brew. It can be for espresso, pour-over, press, or any brew method. So typically you’d weigh the beans and only grind what you need. The hope being that you get about the same weight of ground coffee out of the grinder as the beans you had put in. As we’ll see in the test results later, the E37SD does an excellent job in that respect.
Aesthetics and Features
This grinder looks a little different than most. Starting at the top there’s no hopper, just a funnel mounted in a bellows. Grind size is adjusted by Ceado’s Quick Set Gear. It’s a worm gear setup which allows for super precise grind size adjustment. Just how precise? Well, it’s about seventy full rotations of the adjustment knob to do one full rotation of the top burr adjustment collar. It’s the most precise method of grind size adjustment I’ve used. With the mechanical advantage of the worm gear, there’s no need for a locking mechanism and no chance of grind setting drift. For large grind size changes, the worm gear can be disengaged. Turn the nut on top of the gear, push down, and the gear releases for free rotation of the adjustment collar. So it’s quick to go from very fine espresso grinding up to coarser ranges for brew methods like drip, pour-over, and press.
There’s a scale on the adjustment collar to indicate grind setting. It’s held in place magnetically so you can adjust as needed. You can dial into a grind and then set the scale reference how you like.
The grinder is controlled by a simple start/stop switch. When pushed, the grinder starts; push again and the grinder stops. If you don’t push to stop, after 30 seconds the white ring starts flashing. Once that happens the grinder will stop on its own after 10 more seconds. Or, push again while flashing and another 30 seconds cycle starts. So you can always turn the grinder off, add more time while grinding, or do nothing and the grinder stops on its own 40 seconds after the last switch press.
Now one thing I love about Ceado grinders, like their E37 series, is just how easy it is to get into the grinding chamber, and that when you open them up you never lose calibration. Just three bolts and you’re in. Put it back together and there’s no change in grind size. Inside the E37SD are these massive 83 mm titanium burrs. In most grinders you get a steel burr. Titanium gets you a much longer lifespan, typically three times longer than steel burrs. It’s a burr which stays sharper longer and it will not rust. As we’ll learn in a moment, no corrosion is important due to the way this grinder is used.
A couple of other things to notice in the grinding chamber. The top of the shaft has a smooth mushroom shaped cap that aids bean flow and keeps them in the chamber. Also, there are no exposed threads of the burr adjustment mechanism to collect coffee dust and oils and make adjustment stiff or jumpy. Now if you’ve ever used a grinder with exposed threads, you know how jumpy they get when dirty and how difficult those fine threads are to clean.
How to Use the Ceado E37SD
So let’s go over how to use the E37SD. Here are the extra tools it comes with to get the job done. There’s an RDT Sprayer, a WDT Cup, an Espresso Funnel, and a brush. Typically you’d weigh out your beans into a cup and then use the RDT sprayer to mist them with water. If you’re not familiar, RDT stands for the Ross Droplet Technique, a common method used to control and stop static buildup when grinding. Now you can RDT with any grinder, but do be aware there is the possibility of corrosion when using RDT in a steel burr grinder. With the titanium burrs in the E37SD that’s not a concern. While steel can rust, titanium does not. In my case, I get the best results with one or two shots from the sprayer when grinding for espresso. After spraying you shake and/or stir the beans to distribute the moisture.
Ceado advises starting the grinder prior to loading beans. The WDT cup, which comes with the grinder, slides into the fork at the bottom and can be used to collect the grinds for any brew method. If you prefer, you can grind right into a portafilter using the espresso funnel on top. Alternately, for espresso you can grind into the cup and then load your portafilter once again using the supplied funnel to prevent any spillage. WDT is an acronym for the Weiss Distribution Technique. It’s a method of stirring up clumpy grinds for more consistent extractions. It’s curious that Ceado called it the WDT cup, as even at very fine espresso sizes the grinds coming off those huge titanium burrs are fluffy and pretty much clump free. As grinding finishes up, use an open palm to tap the bellows a few times. This blows out any remaining grinds in the grinder. After that, depending on how particular you are, you can use the brush to sweep the chute to make sure you’re getting every last .1 of a gram.
From there tamp, or in my case level and compress with a leveler, and you’re on your way to a fantastic coffee. I think I’ve mentioned in other videos that I’m a convert to levelers. They give you great even distribution and they handle compressing the coffee as well. Try out The Jack Leveler and you’ll never go back to tamping!
Grind Retention Testing
So let’s get into the results of my grind retention testing. First, I’ve got to tell you that we’ve had this grinder out for a couple weeks for our tech support staff to use and test. I’m estimating they did somewhere north of 250 grind cycles during that time. When I brought the grinder back for this video, I opened it up and honestly, it looked like it had barely been used. It just had a little dust around a couple of edges, not even enough to really measure. It was pretty incredible.
For the retention tests I weighed out exactly 18 grams of beans, used two sprays from the RDT sprayer, grind, used the bellows to blow out residual coffee, and swept the chute. The two sprays of RDT can add between 0.1 and 0.2 of a gram to the weight, so it might not be unusual for the grinds to be slightly over the 18 gram dose. I repeated this test five times.
On the first two tests it was 18 grams in and 18 out. As things started to moisten up with the RDT or due to variations of under .1 of a gram between the two scales, on the third test I got 18.2 grams, then 18.1, and 18.2 on the final test. That’s pretty amazing.
Now Ceado doesn’t necessarily position the SD as a zero retention grinder, but using it with proper technique in my tests, for all intensive purposes it is a zero retention grinder. Keep in mind that a .1 gram variation in an 18 gram dose is equal to 1/180th of the total, well below the threshold of making any discernible difference in an extraction.
If you’re into or considering single dosing, the Ceado E37SD is a fine piece of equipment. It features super-precise worm gear adjustment, essentially zero retention, and beautiful fluffy grinds from huge 83 mm titanium burrs that for most users will grind a lifetime of coffee.
