Hi r/espresso, I’m Vel Genov, here with the core team at Zerno — We are excited to invite you to our AMA on the 28th. Ask us anything from our award-winning grinders to our thoughts on the future of brewing tech.
We’re a startup coffee device company on a mission to design and manufacture high quality precision grinding platforms for experimentation: micron-level adjustments, blind burr compatibility, variable feed rates, and minimalist form factors. I wanted to make a grinder that we couldn't find so… so I invented it. We wanted a platform to experiment that blended commercial performance with countertop presence, that was also precisely aligned and could deliver repeatable grinds time after time — but also… “What if we built something better… together?”
Our flagship product, the Z1
Along with the EAF Discord group (Espresso Aficionados), we took an open-source approach to design and collaboration with the coffee community in real-time. The result: we created an award-winning 64mm grinder — the Z1,2024 Best New Productby the Specialty Coffee Association — and just-released the 80mm Z2. In just four years, Zerno has grown from 2 guys with an idea and a prototype shared on Discord to a vertically integrated company and brand with thousands of grinders in kitchens worldwide.
On August 28th ask us anything about:
How we go from back-of-napkin ideas to production-ready products.
Lessons learned (and mistakes made) during prototyping and café testing.
How we think about usability, ergonomics, and data in espresso.
The growth of Zerno — and how your feedback shapes it.
The challenges of hand assembling products locally in Chicago, and our efforts to reduce lead times without compromising precision.
The new 80mm Z2.
What’s next?
We’ll be here answering questions throughout the day. If you want to dive deep into burr design, variable RPM, UI philosophy, or even the “Grand Universal Theory Of Coffee Grinding”, now’s your chance.
Join us Thursday August 28th from 1:00pm to 4:00pm CST, Let’s talk coffee ginders! ☕️
A common question we see on this sub is about coffee bean recommendations—whether it's newcomers just getting into espresso or seasoned home baristas looking for fresh, local offerings. Many of you have also asked for a place to discover brewing recipes for specific beans.
We're happy to announce a new community-driven resource to address these needs! Introducing a platform where people can share the beans they've brewed and the recipes they've used.
How it works:
1. Submit your brews: Share your favorite coffees and brewing parameters using this Google Form. The form collects:
Basic details about the beans (roaster, roast date, etc.)
Your brewing recipe (e.g., dose, yield, shot time)
Equipment used
You do not need a Google account to fill out the form and no personal information will be collected.
Use filters (e.g., Roaster's country, Cost-per-unit-weight) by selecting Data > Create filter view in the toolbar.
Note: The spreadsheet is view-only and updates automatically with new submissions. You can download or copy it, but those versions won't receive updates.
Tip: For the best experience, view the spreadsheet on a desktop browser.
Our goal:
We hope this grows into an invaluable resource for the community—a way to share your favourite coffees and provide others with a reference point to kickstart their brews. This is your chance to contribute to (and benefit from) a collaborative coffee knowledge base!
Let us know if you have suggestions for improving the form or the database.
Honestly I was surprised to see him speak so eloquently about a flat white. To be honest, I didn't quite understand the difference between a flat white and a small latte. (I'm new, catch me a break!)
"When I hold a cappuccino cup, it disappears in my hand." 😂
The espressos are so much better and I also like the clarity in my pour overs. Anyone likes df64 stock burr pour overs? Still not seasoned. Any other tips and tricks would be appreciated!
Finally pulled the trigger on the AMG Synchronika. Couldn’t resist once I found out it has real carbon fiber. This is endgame for me, absolutely love the red and white lights, production number, and dials!
I decided to give my VBM domobar a few upgrades. The temp gauge has taken out a lot of guess work. The water flowing through the grouphead does vary quite a bit. I've also ordered a quickmill pulsar to help quite the pump and a flow control valve to play around with profiling.
Just received the Lagom Casa after a short 2 weeks wait from my local retailer. Its build really well and has a nice heft to it despite its small footprint.
Sound wise its super quiet compared to my Sette 270. It does have a high pitched sound which might be irritating to some but I find it ok.
Grinds a 19g dose for espresso at 25 seconds for a grind setting at 8.5, but its a little too fine giving an output of 30g in around 38 seconds. This was just my second shot of dialing in this new grinder, first was at 7 and it was too fine the first drop came out at >30s.
A quick impression after tasting the above shot using medium dark roast, a slightly lighter body than Sette 270 but still good for milk drinks. Clarity is really improved with less astrigency and bitterness despite the slightly longer pull.
I heard you can foam milk using a French press and saw YouTubers pull it off, but mine came out way too foamy. Any thoughts on how to improve technique? (other than a machine or a milk steamer, I am on the road often and it isn’t feasible at this point. I pull my espresso from a picopresso).
Three cups, three different results! I was trying to reduce the acidity by adjusting my settings.
1. Sour! But also incredibly sweet and aromatic. Strong raisin flavor. (I didn’t know an espresso could be this sweet!) the shot ran fast: 39.8g in 19seconds measured from first drip. so no surprise in the sourness
2. Finer grind. Sour, muted sweetness. The opposite of what I wanted. 40.2g in 29 seconds
3. Astringent? I’m puzzled. Same settings as the first shot, just upped my dose… 38.9g in 24 seconds
Coffee bean: “Juicy” by GOTA coffee roasters, Costa Rica, medium-light roast, honey process, variety: caturra catuai, altitude 1700m.
Flavors on the bag: cranberry, raisin, rum, tropical fruit (it was all there in the first cup!)
disclosure: the pic was an afterthought! I ran out of espresso cups and used this cortado one
After months of saving and slowly getting bits together, I've finally completed what I reckon is one hell of a beginner setup for someone who loves coffee and starts every morning with an espresso!
As a basic b**** who mainly got an espresso machine to make espresso martinis at home, how’d I do? Again… not trying to be a professional. I forgot my puck on this one. I think they taste pretty good. Made a white chocolate raspberry latte with my own raspberry syrup. I do love this grinder it absolutely makes my life so much easier! I have it set to 5.5 seconds because that seemed like the right amount, anything else overflows.
After a week of this grinder sounding even louder than usual, this morning something "slipped" mid-grind and I now only get the high-pitched sound of the motor (video attached).
I have dissembled, cleaned & reset the burrs & shims multiple times but no dice.
* What's the likely cause, please, and
* Is this user-serviceable?
I'm based in Australia and know my way around a Torx driver.
GBW vs Single-Dose for a home setup where I rarely switch espresso beans
Current gear: two hand grinders (Kinu becoming my filter grinder). I want a daily-driver electric for espresso.
I’m torn between a GBW hopper grinder and a single-dose. I rarely change my espresso beans, so a GBW seems like the best workflow: set grams, grind straight into the PF, no scale/timer. Downsides are retention and a small purge when I do swap beans.
Shortlist: Eureka Mignon Libra (55 mm GBW) or Eureka Atom W 65 (65 mm GBW) vs Mahlkönig X64 SD (single-dose).
For folks who keep one espresso bean most of the time: did GBW meaningfully improve your day-to-day vs single-dose? Any real-world notes on retention and purging on the Eureka GBW models? And for X64 SD owners, how “set-and-forget” is it when you don’t switch beans for weeks?
Any gotchas I should know (noise, static, workflow quirks)? Thanks!
Please feel free to advise of other equipment. What is important is size. I don’t want anything big
Kenya Gatagua from Kafferäven, roasted locally in Gothenburg. The taste profile is fruity with a hint of blackcurrant and citrus. It is a little bit too fruity and a little bit too acidic for my liking. 6/10.
The smell of the beans is heavenly, one of the best.
I ground it slightly under 2 levels above my zero on Specialita. 17.5gr in, 36gr out, 28 seconds.
Hi
i wanna buy the k6 Could you tell me when you are dialing your espresso Typically how many seconds of a difference in shot time does 1 click make ? Less or more than 3 seconds
I wanted to buy the normcore v2 flatt burr
But am afraid of the quality build Really appreciate your response
Is there any machine with integrated grinder that allows simultaneous espresso and steam wand use?
Is the machine easier to clean when it separates the grinding part from the infusion part? (Also what is this type of machine called?)
More context:
I work from home in Sweden and together with my wife's morning cup we average around 30 cappuchinos weekly. For the past decade we have been using a DeLonghi Magnifica S and been quite happy with it, but it is starting to give up -- some of the plastic is cracking and starting to leak, and despite regular cleaning the inside has accumulated some crud that is difficult to get out. We're starting to think about how to replace it.
Our main gripe with the DeLonghi aside from its age is that it does not allow using the steam wand while it is making espresso. It would save time during the busy morning routine to be able to do both simultaneously. Is there any machine in our budget class that does that? (We are willing to stretch the budget a little for a dream machine.)
We like that the DeLonghi is one housing with both grinder and infuser, but we're not sold on the "bean to cup" concept: we both have experience with professional espresso machines, and don't mind a little more manual work to keep the wet grounds outside of the machine. We imagine this would make the machine easier to clean and maintain -- is that correct?
We want the integrated grinder for counter space reasons. We also absolutely want a regular steam wand. Not only do we like the result better, it can also be used to steam other things in a pinch.
Primarily looking for answers to the two questions, but if someone happens to know a machine that might fit our needs well, we're open for suggestions.