Which to buy · Every setting
Baratza Virtuoso+ vs Eureka Mignon Specialita
Conical against flat — the Virtuoso+'s scale curves where the other runs straight. The Virtuoso+ is numbered 1–40; the Mignon Specialita turns 0–24 rotations.
Which to buy
Choose the
Virtuoso+ if you…
- want 40 fixed steps — Baratza suggests 8 for espresso, 15 for V60 and 28 for French press
- want a timer from 0.1 to 40 seconds that stops itself
- want the option to single-dose — Baratza sells a single-dose hopper and dosing cup for it
Choose the
Mignon Specialita if you…
- want stepless adjustment
- want a hands-free fork that holds the portafilter
- want 55 mm hardened steel flat burrs
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Sources: Baratza — Virtuoso+ · Baratza — Virtuoso+ manual · Eureka — Mignon Specialità
| Virtuoso+ | Mignon Specialita | |
|---|---|---|
| Brand | Baratza | Eureka |
| Scale | Numbered dial | Rotations |
| Dial range | 1 – 40 | 0.0 rotations – 24.0 rotations |
| Burrs | Conical | Flat |
| Espresso → filter | 8.5 numbers | 6.5 rotations |
| Filter → coarse | 24.2 numbers | 7 rotations |
Converting a setting
If a recipe quotes a setting for one of these grinders, read across for the equivalent on the other. Rows are spaced evenly by grind size, not by dial number — on a conical burr those are not the same thing.
| Virtuoso+ | Mignon Specialita |
|---|---|
| 7 | 1.5 |
| 9 | 3 |
| 11 | 4 |
| 13 | 5.5 |
| 14 | 1+1 |
| 16 | 1+2 |
| 18 | 1+3 |
| 21 | 1+4 |
| 25 | 1+5 |
| 28 | 2+0 |
| 32 | 2+1 |
| 36 | 2+2 |
| 39 | 2+3 |
| Mignon Specialita | Virtuoso+ |
|---|---|
| 1.5 | 7 |
| 3 | 9 |
| 4 | 11 |
| 5.5 | 13 |
| 1+1 | 14 |
| 1+2 | 16 |
| 1+3 | 18 |
| 1+4 | 21 |
| 1+5 | 25 |
| 2+0 | 28 |
| 2+1 | 32 |
| 2+2 | 36 |
| 2+3 | 39 |
Side by side, by brew method
Where each grinder lands for the same brew, worked out from its own dial curve.
| Method | Virtuoso+ | Mignon Specialita |
|---|---|---|
| Espresso | 8 | 2.5 |
| Moka pot | 11 | 4 |
| AeroPress (short steep) | 12 | 5.5 |
| Pour over — V60 / cone | 15 | 1+1.5 |
| Siphon | 16 | 1+2 |
| Pour over — flat bottom | 17 | 1+2.5 |
| Steep and release — Clever / Switch | 18 | 1+3 |
| Drip / batch brew | 18 | 1+3 |
| Cupping | 19 | 1+3.5 |
| Chemex | 20 | 1+4 |
| French press | 28 | 1+5.5 |
| Cold brew | 34 | 2+1.5 |
The shape of each dial
Where the connectors bunch, that grinder’s dial is compressed and single steps count for more. Comparing the two shapes tells you which gives finer control, and where.
Baratza Virtuoso+
Eureka Mignon Specialita
Dialing in the Virtuoso+
Same 40-step collar as the Encore, meaningfully better burrs. The practical difference is not the range but the spread within it — at any given number the Virtuoso+ produces fewer fines, so a setting that ran bitter on an Encore often lands clean here. If you are migrating from an Encore, start at the same number rather than compensating, then adjust by taste.
Dialing in the Mignon Specialita
A stepless espresso grinder first, everything else second. The micrometric adjustment means small movements do real work at the fine end, and the settings below should be read as starting positions rather than detents. It will grind for filter and does it competently, but you are working at the far edge of a dial designed for a different job.