Part 1, Pour-over coffee
As Timemore Sculptor grinders start arriving around the globe, we are trying to answer the question we get from our users about the grinder. This is not a review per se but more of our experiences running the grinder for pour-over coffee. Our espresso review and more long term experience will come in the next part.
There are plenty of reviews out there by the initial reviewers with plenty of conclusions so we aren’t going to go there but what we will focus on instead primarily for our users here in Malaysia. While we bemoan our weak currency or purchasing power, value grinders are important to many of us. While there are some who will spend to get the 20% extra nuance or clarity, not everyone has deep pockets. You can read our two posts on why a grinder is critical to great coffee here (part 1) and here (part 2).
Until the DF64 and its derivatives showed up, there were few high-quality large burr (larger than 55mm) grinders available at affordable prices. So how does the Sculptor 078S fare overall?
Let’s get started
I put two coffees through the grinder, a Columbia and Indonesia medium roast by Curate Coffee Roasters. While the coffees were roasted for espresso, they both make a decent pour-over cup. Water temperatures were kept at 96°C and a Hario 01 Ceramic dripper. We dosed 20g each round for a 300g extraction, and grind was tuned to have total extraction complete within 2½ minutes. We put the same coffee – one Columbia and one Indonesia through 3 grinders – a Commandante C40 mk4 hand grinder, the Acaia Orbit and the Timemore 078s. The Orbit is equipped with the SSP Multi-purpose burr. Both Orbit and Sculptor were running at 900rpm. We did this a total of 10 times. Once each for each grinder and coffee and we repeated the test for the Orbit and Sculptor just to be sure. Before switching beans, 10g was ground through each grinder.
How does the coffee taste?
We look at overall body, tasting notes and finish. In the hand, of course, all coffees were lovely to drink. I can confidently state that you wouldn’t be upset if I served you any of the coffees from any of these grinders.
If I would to put a winner by a teaspoon, it would be the Orbit. However, it’s a RM7,000 grinder. The Sculptor was close but the finish and clarity of the tasting notes were a bit more muddied. The Sculptor lost more ground with the Columbia, losing some of the chocolate and mango notes but evenly matched the Orbit for the Indonesia most of the way.
The Commandante was very close but no way it is going to be better than the Sculptor. It does give it a serious run for the money though. It is a great grinder if you don’t mind the arm workout in the morning. At 900rpm, with a sound meter held around 60cm distance for typical counter standing position, the 078s runs around 74db which is really quiet.
For around RM 3,200 which is what the Sculptor 078s will retail for makes for a very solid proposition for many enthusiasts. The 064s which uses a very popular 64mm burr size will retail lower which makes that a fantastic value for all Malaysian coffee enthusiasts.
We will look as espresso coffees next and I will share more after having used it for 2 weeks. For now, if you’re looking to up your coffee game, the Timemore Sculptor is a great option in either 78mm or 64mm burr sizes. You’ll definitely notice an improvement in flavors especially if you’re coming from an entry level grinder or integrated grinder machine. The coffee was all delicious – no coffee was wasted.
If anyone here is wondering if the Timemore Sculptor 078S was seasoned before the tests, then the answer is no. Other than 150g used to test the grinder and purge out any manufacturing dust. The Orbit has seen approximately 1kg and the Comandante around 400g.
