Varia · Dial-in chart
Varia Hand Grinder grind settings
On the Varia Hand Grinder, start pour over at 32 clicks, espresso at 20 clicks and French press at 50 clicks. Every other method, with the range to adjust in, is below.
The shape of this dial
The top line is the universal grind index every BrewMark recipe uses. The bottom line is the Hand Grinder’s own dial. The connectors show how one maps onto the other.
Hand Grinder settings for each brew method
Start at the recommended setting, brew, then move within the range by taste. Sour or weak means go finer; bitter or harsh means go coarser.
| Method | Setting | Range |
|---|---|---|
| TurkishNear the fine end of this dial. Turkish wants powder, around 150 µm. | 9 clicks≈ 150 µm | fine end |
| EspressoFine. Aim for a 25–30s shot and adjust from there. | 20 clicks≈ 340 µm | 16 clicks – 25 clicks |
| Moka potFiner than filter, coarser than espresso. No tamping. | 27 clicks≈ 460 µm | 25 clicks – 29 clicks |
| AeroPress (short steep)For 1–2 minute recipes. Go coarser for longer steeps. | 30 clicks≈ 510 µm | 29 clicks – 31 clicks |
| Pour over — V60 / coneThe reference point for most published pour-over recipes. | 32 clicks≈ 540 µm | 31 clicks – 35 clicks |
| SiphonMedium. Short contact over steady heat, so start here and taste. | 34 clicks≈ 570 µm | 32 clicks – 37 clicks |
| Pour over — flat bottomKalita, Orea and similar. Slightly coarser than a cone. | 35 clicks≈ 590 µm | 33 clicks – 39 clicks |
| Steep and release — Clever / SwitchSteep, then drain through a paper filter. If it drains slowly, go coarser. | 37 clicks≈ 620 µm | 34 clicks – 41 clicks |
| Drip / batch brewAutomatic brewers. Coarser to suit the longer contact time. | 38 clicks≈ 640 µm | 35 clicks – 43 clicks |
| CuppingMedium-coarse, for tasting side by side. Keep it the same across every bowl. | 39 clicks≈ 660 µm | 36 clicks – 43 clicks |
| ChemexThe thick filter needs a coarser grind to avoid stalling. | 43 clicks≈ 730 µm | 39 clicks – 47 clicks |
| French pressCoarse. Too fine here is the usual cause of a muddy cup. | 50 clicks≈ 840 µm | 47 clicks – 53 clicks |
| Cold brewCoarsest setting you have. 12–18 hours of contact. | 55 clicks≈ 930 µm | 53 clicks – 59 clicks |
≈ µm is the particle size, approximate, after Honest Coffee Guide’s scale for the Hand Grinder. It is not the maker’s microns per click, which measure how far the burrs move.
How much room you have to adjust
That is the resolution you actually have to work with on the Hand Grinder. Where the number is small, a single step moves the cup more than you would expect — so change one at a time and taste before moving again.
Coming from another grinder?
Convert a grind setting to the Hand Grinder
If a recipe quotes a setting for a different grinder, this maps it onto the Hand Grinder’s dial using the same curve the chart above is built from.
Converting between two grinders that are not this one? Open the full converter.
How these numbers were worked out
Every grinder gets mapped onto a shared 0–100 grind index, where 0 is espresso-fine and 100 is the coarsest useful setting. Five reference points on the Hand Grinder are placed on that scale — espresso, moka, filter, French press and coarse — and the settings in between are interpolated.
The Hand Grinder joined the catalog in October 2026. Its reference points were worked out rather than read off a maker’s chart: Honest Coffee Guide places every setting on this grinder on one scale of particle size, and each point sits where that scale reaches the size the same method lands on across the grinders we have checked. These numbers are counted the way Honest Coffee Guide counts them (clicks from zero), not read off a scale printed on the grinder, so count from where the burrs just touch; the dial may run further than this chart. That makes them a starting point rather than a specification, and they are marked unverified until a manufacturer’s chart confirms them. Sources: Honest Coffee Guide.
Because the Hand Grinder uses conical burrs, the curve between those points is fitted with a monotone cubic spline rather than straight lines. Conical burr dials are rarely linear, and the spline guarantees the curve never doubles back — a coarser index always produces a coarser setting.
The result is that “medium-fine” resolves to a real number on this grinder rather than a vague instruction. It is a starting point, not a guarantee — burr wear, bean density and roast level all move the target, which is why every row above gives a range as well as a number.
Free wall chart
Put the Hand Grinder numbers next to the grinder
The main methods on one sheet, laid out on the Hand Grinder’s own dial so you can see where the settings bunch up. Print it, pin it, stop reaching for your phone with wet hands.
Or have the Hand Grinder chart emailed
The same settings, sent once, for when you are standing at the grinder and nowhere near a printer.
One email with the chart. Nothing else unless you ask.
Make these numbers yours
This chart is the same for every Hand Grinder in the world. Log what you actually brewed and it stops being — the app remembers the setting that worked for your beans and shifts the starting point toward it. Free on iOS.
Get the iOS appGrinders that dial in like this one
Similar burrs, scale or dial range — which means settings translate between them more predictably than across the whole catalog.
Own a Hand Grinder? Tell us your setting
If you’ve dialled in a method on your own Hand Grinder, the number you landed on is the best evidence there is. Readings are checked by hand before anything changes here.