The Varia VS6 grinder. All images courtesy of Varia.
Varia Brewing recently launched its first piece of coffee equipment suitable for commercial applications, the VS6 grinder.
The New Zealand-based company is currently selling orders of the machine — appropriate for light professional or prosumer use — for US$849, with machines scheduled to begin shipping next month.
The VS6 is variable both in speed and in burr style. The single-dose-oriented grinder will ship with blind 58-millimeter flat burrs installed, although it can accommodate conical burrs. A set of 63-millimeter conical burrs is sold separately.
“VS6 is our flagship flat burr grinder, with also the ability to be a conical grinder,” Varia Brewing Director and CEO Ramsey Gyde told Daily Coffee News. “Depending on the coffee or the brew method for that particular day, burrs can be easily interchanged to suit the coffee or flavor profile required.”
Both house-designed burr sets feature single-body construction, with each burr and burr carrier combined in a single piece. The flat and conical sets are also each available in the company’s numerous durability- and performance-oriented coatings.
“All of our burrs are custom and made specifically for our grinders,” said Gyde. “In addition, we create several burr geometries, coatings and material selections for upgrades.”
Like its smaller but similar-looking predecessor, the VS3, the VS6 is encased in matte powder-coated CNC-machined aluminum and its grind setting is adjusted manually by twisting the hopper, which on the VS6 holds up to 80 grams of coffee.
The threaded adjustment system is pitched finely enough for each visual marking around the hopper to indicate a 5-micron particle size difference. Markings also indicate the number hopper revolutions, keeping track of broad adjustments across different brew methods.
The new machine’s 300-watt brushless AC direct-drive motor spins its burrs within a speed range of 500-1,600 RPM, set by a rotary dial on/off button-knob.
Active ionization needles neutralize the static charge of grounds entering a removable dosing tube. A spring-loaded knocker helps loosen any clingy grounds.
The VS6 package includes a hard plastic travel case for storage and transport.
Gyde, a former professional coffee roaster, launched Varia Brewing in New Zealand in 2019. The company’s focus to this point has been on consumer brewing and grinding devices, often featuring new approaches to classic manual brewing/grinding solutions.
Launched in 2022, the VS3 was the company’s first electric product. Products introduced since include electric and non-electric equipment for brewing coffee, as well as the Evo handheld manual grinder and its motor-optional variation, the Evo Hybrid.
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Howard Bryman
Howard Bryman is the associate editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine. He is based in Portland, Oregon.
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