Baratza Encore ESP Pro Review

Where the Encore ESP Pro sits in Baratza's lineup

Baratza now has three Encores for the home market: the original Encore, the stepped Encore ESP that arrived in 2023, and this 2025 Pro.

Baratza's own marketing calls it stepless, and the reviews back that up — but it is stepless with a digital readout that approximates your position in half-step increments on a 0–60 scale, which is a more honest description than "infinite precision." In practice, you turn the collar and a number on the display ticks up or down, giving you a reference point you would not otherwise have on a true stepless grinder.

The critical change versus the standard Encore ESP is in the espresso range. Baratza doubled the espresso steps from 20 to 40 and kept the adjustment to roughly 2.2 microns per half-step inside that band, with a steeper 50-micron jump from 40 to 60 for filter work.

The Pro also adds an integrated flow-control disk, an ionizer for static, a 0.1-second timer, and auto-stop grinding on single-dose mode.

Grind quality

Forty-millimetre conical steel burrs are the right size for a $300–$350 all-rounder — large enough to do respectable espresso without pricing the grinder out of reach, small enough to stay quiet and compact.

Reviews at Sweet Maria's and Whole Latte Love both report clean, sweet shots on machines like the Lelit Mara X, typically grinding between settings 25 and 35 for 20g doses. That leaves meaningful headroom both finer and coarser, which matters if you switch beans often.

For filter, the 2.2-micron resolution in the espresso band is largely wasted, and the 50-micron jumps above setting 40 are coarse by hand-grinder standards but perfectly adequate for V60, batch brew, and French press.

If you brew only pour-over and want the finest possible adjustment, a hand grinder like the 1Zpresso K-Ultra will out-resolve it for less money. If you brew espresso, the Pro's fine end is the point.

Build and hardware

The body is anodised cast zinc rather than the plastic used on earlier Encores, and Seattle Coffee Gear specifically called out the feel as premium. The burr carrier, adjustment collar, and single-dose hopper collar are metal where your hands touch.

Plastic survives only where it makes sense — the catch bin, the dosing cup, the bean hopper.

The hopper deserves a paragraph of its own because the assembly confused at least one reviewer at CoffeeGeek. The bean hopper uses a rotating internal vane: close the vanes, seat the hopper in the collar, then open the vanes to lock it in place.

It is clever, but Baratza's quick-start guide does not explain it well. Expect a 30-second "what is happening" moment the first time.

Workflow in daily use

This is a hopper grinder that also supports single dosing, not a single-dose-first machine with a hopper tacked on. You get a 227g hopper for everyday use, a smaller single-dose collar, a dosing cup that fits 58mm and 54mm portafilters, and a catch bin for filter.

The bin area has stage lighting, which is a small but welcome touch when grinding into a dark corner.

Retention is listed below 0.5g, which is competitive for an electric conical at this price — not as low as a dedicated single-dose grinder, but close enough that switching between beans is not a chore. The ionizer does the job: chaff does not cling to the chute and grinds fall cleanly.

Auto-stop is a real time-saver in single-dose mode: the grinder senses when beans have cleared the burrs and shuts off, so you do not have to time a short pulse and pray. Combined with the 0.1-second timer for hopper use, the Pro handles both workflows without nagging.

Noise and footprint

At 120W and 550 RPM with 40mm burrs, the Pro is quieter than most Encores that came before it — Seattle Coffee Gear noted a significant drop. It is not silent, but it is the kind of grinder you can run while someone is on a call in the next room.

At 3.7kg it is solidly planted, and the cast-zinc body helps with that.

How it compares at $300–$350

Against the standard Encore ESP, the Pro is a meaningful upgrade for anyone pulling espresso. The doubled espresso resolution, the digital readout, the flow-control disk, and the quieter motor all address real complaints about the earlier model. If you only brew filter, the regular Encore or Encore ESP remains the better value.

Against hand grinders in the same bracket, no electric will match the resolution per dollar. The 1Zpresso K-Ultra or X-Ultra will give finer adjustment, but they will not give you a timer, a hopper, an ionizer, or a 0.1-second auto-stop. The Pro is the right pick if you want electric convenience with espresso-grade precision.

It is the wrong pick if you only brew one method or you are happy dialling in by ear on a hand grinder.

What to watch

This is a 2025 release, and long-term reliability data does not exist yet. Baratza's repairability has historically been excellent — every Encore ever shipped can be opened with a screwdriver — which is one reason to trust the brand with a new model.

The hopper assembly quirk is a documentation problem more than a design problem, and Baratza has updated support material since launch.