™
Ceramic Burr Coffee Grinder
Operations Manual
®
Ceramic Burr Coffee Grinder
™
Operations manuals are available in the following languages at
www.baratza.com
English.pdf
Spanish.pdf
French.pdf
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Thank you for purchasing the VARIO ™ Coffee Grinder. With the
VARIO ™ , it’s now easier than ever to make professional quality coffee, whether at home, the office, or your café.
Below are detailed descriptions of the features that put the VARIO ™ in a class of it’s own.
Precision, commercial-quality ceramic burrs
Manufactured in Germany by MAHLKÖNIG, the VARIO’s ™ ceramic burrs are of the same material and durability as the industry’s highest-quality line of commercial coffee grinders. Ceramic burrs remain sharp for up to twice the lifetime of the highest quality steel burrs.
Grind on Demand with electronic dosing
Grind on Demand operation with electronically controlled dosing grinds only the coffee you require for each shot directly into your espresso porta filter or ground coffee bin for Filter and French Press.
Innovative grind adjustment system
Macro and Micro adjustments are quickly and repeatedly achievable with the intuitive VARIO ™ adjustment system. The range of grind and the accuracy of the settings are truly impressive. The VARIO ™ has
230 distinct settings of grind from Espresso to French Press.
The VARIO ™ houses a high torque DC motor with a belt drive transmission. The precise timing belt drive provides for smooth, quiet operation and thermal disconnection of motor and burr casing. Additionally, the VARIO ™ possesses an auto-reset thermal safety circuit that protects the motor from overheating.
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Table of Contents
Introduction .......................................................................................... 1
Table of Contents ................................................................................. 2
Parts Identification ............................................................................... 3
Safety Information ................................................................................ 4
Initial setup and operation ................................................................... 5
Setting the Macro and Micro Grind Adjustment ............................... 5
Normal Grinding Operation ............................................................. 6
Programming Grind Dosing Times .................................................. 6
Sleep Mode ................................ .................................................... 7
PortaHolder ™ Installation ................................................................
7
Burr Calibration ............................................................................... 8
Cleaning the Housing and Hopper .................................................
9
Cleaning the Burrs ..........................................................................
9
Automatic Cleaning .........................................................................
9
Removing the Upper Burr ...............................................................
10
Replacing the Upper Burr ...............................................................
10
Replacing the Bean Hopper ........................................................... 10
Help and Troubleshooting ...................................................................
10
Warranty ..............................................................................................
11
Grinding Notes ....................................................................................
12
Baratza Contact Information ................................................................
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Parts Identification
Hopper lid
Whole bean hopper (250 grams)
LCD grind time indicator
Grind time adjustment buttons (2)
Start / Stop button
Manual grind button
Programable grind setting buttons (3)
Macro grind adjustment lever
Grind button LED (3)
Micro grind adjustment lever
Ground coffee bin (250 grams.)
Upper burr carrier
Ceramic burrs
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Important Information
Please read the information below very carefully. It contains important tips for the use, the safety and the maintenance and care of this appliance. Please keep these operating instructions for future reference.
Your new VARIO ™ is rated for either
120 VAC or 230 VAC. Please confirm the voltage of your VARIO™ on the nameplate attached to the bottom of the grinder. The 120
VAC Vario can be used from 100 to
130 VAC and the 230 VAC VARIO ™ can be used from 200 to 240 VAC.
Please insure your supply voltage range matches the nameplate voltage on you VARIO ™ .
Only clean the grinder housing with a dry or slightly damp cloth.
Do not use this grinder for anything other than its intended use
(i.e. grinding whole roasted coffee beans). Maximum continuous duty cycle is 25%. Longest continuous grind time is 90 seconds.
Disassemble your grinder only as directed in the care and cleaning section of this manual. If you cannot remedy a malfunction, please visit the web at www.baratza.com for assistance.
Repairs are to be performed only by authorized service centers. An improperly repaired grinder is a source of risk to the user and voids the warranty.
Baratza will not accept any liability for damage or injury if the grinder is used other than for its intended purpose or is improperly operated or repaired. All warranty claims will be void.
For Your Safety
Do not operate the grinder with a damaged cord or plug, or if the grinder malfunctions.
Do not leave your grinder unattended while turned ON.
Shut off and unplug the grinder from the electrical outlet before cleaning. To unplug, grasp plug and removed from the outlet-never pull on the cord.
Do not immerse the grinder, plug or cord in water or any other liquid.
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Initial Operation
Attention
Place the VARIO
TM
Grinder on a level surface. Insert the hopper
(with the lid on) by lining up the two small tabs on the base of the hopper with their respective slots, turn clockwise until the back tab lines up with the mark on the back of the grinder. Insert the plug into an AC outlet. Remove the lid from the hopper by lifting off. Pour the desired quantity of roasted whole coffee beans into the hopper up to a maximum of
8 oz. / 250 g. Replace the lid.
Press button 1 then press START.
If the blue LED next to the START button lights up, but the grinder motor does not run, continue turning the hopper clockwise (firmly).
Setting the Macro and Micro
Grind Adjustment
Move the Macro lever up or down to the desired range of grind size
(Note: whenever moving the Macro lever up the grinder should be running). Set the Micro adjustment lever to the middle of the scale.
Grind a small amount of coffee by pressing the START button, then pressing it again to stop. Check the particle size. If the particle size is close to what you desire, now use the Micro lever to “fine tune” your grind size. If the particle size needs a big change, then adjust the Macro lever to a new position, then fine tune with the Micro lever.
The full range on the Micro scale is equal to one “click” or position on the Macro scale. With both levers, moving UP produces a smaller particle size and DOWN produces a larger particle size. The actual grind size for a particular setting will vary depending on many factors, including: degree of roast (light vs. dark), freshness, humidity, type of bean, oil content, etc. With use, you will determine the setting that is right for your taste, brewing style and your favorite beans.
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Normal Grinding Operation
Press the desired button (1, 2, or
3). The blue LED next to the button will light and the display LCD will show the corresponding programmed grind time in seconds.
Press START button to begin grinding. While grinding, the LCD will count down the seconds to 0.
When the LCD reaches 0 seconds, the motor will stop and the display will reset again to the programmed time. For greater quantities of ground coffee, press the MANUAL button then START. The grinder will count up to a limit of 90 seconds then shut off automatically.
At any time during MANUAL, you can stop the grinding by pressing the START button. The motor will stop and the LCD will reset to 000.
The limit of 90 seconds is not user adjustable.
After adjusting the grind (particle size) to your desired setting, press the desired button, and then press
START. The grinder will run and the display will count down from the preset time.
The grinder will stop automatically when time reaches 0. To stop at any time during grinding, just press the START button again. Depending on the amount of coffee ground, you can easily program more or less grinding time as follows.
Programming Grind
Dosing Times
The VARIO ™ is equipped with three programmable dosing grind times. The buttons are labeled 1,
2, 3. These programmable buttons only adjust the grinding TIME, they do not adjust the coarseness of the grind. The buttons are factory preset with the following times:
1 = 10 seconds
2 = 20 seconds
3 = 30 seconds.
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1. Press the up or down arrow just below the LCD display to adjust the time. Press and hold the arrow for 3 second to advance the time more quickly.
2. Once you have reached the desired time setting, press the corresponding button (1, 2, or 3)
and hold for 3 seconds. The time shown in the LCD display will blink to confirm the setting is stored.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 above for each of the other two buttons.
The quantity of ground coffee you need depends on the type of bean, coarseness of the grind, brewing method and personal taste. With use, you will find the most suitable settings for your personal taste.
Sleep Mode
This is a programmable feature to allow the lights and display to turn off after a pre selected amount of time elapses since last grinding.
Also there is the ability to “force” it to sleep mode by pressing and holding the START button for 3 seconds. As soon as the lights turn off you can release the button.
Touching any button will “wake it up” (but will not perform the function of the button pressed). To select sleep mode delay, press and hold the MANUAL button for 3 seconds until the display shows “S00”.
“S 00” means Sleep mode never happens. The up or down arrow allows selection for 3 minute delay
(S03), 5 minute (S05), 10 minutes
(S10), 20 minutes (S20), 30 minutes (S30) or infinity (S00) . Press the MANUAL button to store the value you desire.
PortaHolder
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Installation
Insert the PortaHolder ™ into the grinder until it clicks. Then insert your porta filter into the PortaHolder ™ by tipping the basket down so the lip of the porta filter slides under and gets hooked by the hook bracket at the top rear of the Porta-
Holder ™ while the base of the basket is supported by the two metal fingers that extend from the PortaHolder ™ If the porta filter basket is not horizontal in the holder, remove the screw and move the bracket higher or lower in order to level the portafilter basket.
To use, insert your porta filter into the PortaHolder ™ . Press the desired dose button, then press
START. The grinder will run for the preset dose time and stop automatically.
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Burr Calibration of the VARIO
TM
A secondary 2mm allen head calibration screw has been added. It is located in the round hole between the discharge chute and the calibration grommet (see photo).
This calibration screw allows the user to easily adjust the calibration in the finer direction while the grinder running.
To make the adjustment, empty all beans from the grinder, lower the
Macro and Micro levers all the way to the bottom and run it briefly to expel any partially ground coffee.
With the bin removed press the
Manaul button and then the Start button. While the grinder is running, raise the Macro arm all the way to the top (1). You should not hear any change in mo tor speed.
Now raise the Micro arm up to gin to hear the motor slow or labor a little (you can hear the sound on
YouTube, “baratza Vario calibration”). If you do not hear the motor labor or would like your VARIO
TM to be calibrated finer, use the spe cial Vario tool provided with your grinder (see photo below). Insert the tool and turn in the finer direc tion (counter clockwise) until you begin to hear the motor slow or labor. If you would like to calibrate your VARIO
TM
courser, insert the
8 tool and turn clockwise (opposite direction of the arrow on the tool).
If you do not have a tool you can substitute a 2mm Allen wrench and turn clock wise while looking from the base of the grinder up.
Cleaning the Housing and
Hoppers
Remove the plug from the AC power outlet. Remove the hopper by twisting it in a counterclockwise direction until it stops and then lift the bean hopper from the housing.
Wash the hopper, hopper lid, and ground coffee bin in warm soapy water, rinse and dry.
Caution: Do not put the bean hopper, hopper lid, or ground coffee bin in the dishwasher. Hand wash only. Do not immerse the grinder housing in water.
Cleaning the Burrs
If the grinder is used daily, the burrs should be cleaned every few weeks. Cleaning enables the burrs to achieve the most consistent grind possible. Cleaning also removes coffee oils which will stale and degrade the flavor of the ground coffee. Do not wash the burrs.
Automatic Cleaning
A thorough fast, and easy cleaning can be accomplished using GRIN-
DZ™ grinder cleaner. GRINDZ ™ is a product designed to dislodge coffee particles and absorb and remove odors and coffee oil residue.
Simply place the recommended amount of GRINDZ ™ (35g) into the empty grinder hopper. Adjust the grind setting to 5, press MANUAL, then START until all of the GRIN-
DZ™ has been ground, and then press START again to stop the grinder. Once complete, we recommend passing through some coffee to remove any GRINDZ ™ residue. Discard the ground coffee. For information on GRINDZ ™ go to www.urnex.com.
To purchase GRINDZ ™ go to www.
baratza.com.
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Remove the Bean Hopper and
Upper Burr
Remove all the beans from the
Bean Hopper. Rotate the hopper counter clockwise until it stops, lift the hopper off the grinder. Using the Baratza Burr Tool included with your grinder, rotate the metal burr carrier clockwise until it stops, then lift straight up and out of the grinder housing (wiggle the burr carrier if necessary to loosen it).
The ceramic burr is mounted to the underside of the burr carrier.
Clean the burr using a stiff brush.
Use the bristle brush to remove any loose coffee residue on the fixed burr and the lower burr mounted within the motor housing.
Replacing the Upper Burr
Wiggle and push down firmly on the burr carrier to ensure that it seats properly. Using the Baratza
Burr Tool, rotate the burr carrier counter clockwise to lock in place. Note the lock icons and arrows on top of Baratza Burr
Tool indicating direction to turn.
Rotate burr carrier counter clockwise to lock in place.
Rotate Baratza burr tool clockwise to remove the burr carrier.
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Replacing the Bean Hopper
To replace the bean hopper, line up the two small tabs on the base of the hopper with their respective slots in the top of the grinder housing and insert the hopper into the grinder. Once the hopper is in place rotate it clockwise until it clicks to a stop (about ¼ inch or
0.4 cm).
Warranty and Service
Length of Warranty:
One-year from date of purchase.
United States
Warranty Information
If your grinder fails within one year: e-mail: support@baratza.
com or call
877-701-2021. Baratza will deliver an identical or comparable replacement grinder to your door, free of charge, and arrange to have your “failed” grinder returned to us.
When you receive your replacement grinder, please use the carton and packing material and the return shipping label supplied to return the “failed” grinder to us.
Also, please include your name, address and telephone number.
the unlikely event of a product safety notification and assist us in complying with the provisions of the Consumer Product Safety Act.
The serial number is located on the bottom of the grinder.
Please keep your sales receipt that shows the date of purchase and complete the following for your personal records:
Serial Number (located on bottom of grinder):
Date Purchased:
Store:
Go to: www.baratza.com or call
425-641-1245 for international warranty information.
Proof of Purchase and
Product Registration
You can register your grinder at www.baratza.com. Registration will enable us to contact you in
For repairs or parts contact
Baratza LLC
3923-120th Ave. S.E.
Bellevue, WA. 98006
877-701-2021 e-mail: support@baratza. com
Parts: www.baratza.com
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Grinding Notes
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© 2012
Baratza, LLC
3923-120th Ave. S.E.
Bellevue, WA. 98006 www.baratza.com
® rev: 112012
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