Fellow Opus Grinder Review 2023

The new Fellow Opus Conical Burr Grinder, released on February 21, promises to deliver precision grinding for both espresso and filter coffee without taking up too much space on your kitchen counter. The Fellow Opus is an addition to Fellow's sleek product line, which also includes the Fellow Ode Brew Grinder. The Ode is a brewed-coffee-only grinder that has been a hit in the specialty coffee community, thanks to its attractive design, ease of use and grinding capabilities. The Opus is Fellow's attempt to address home espresso brewing: With 40+ precision settings suited for a variety of brewing methods, antistatic technology (to prevent your coffee grounds from flying everywhere) and a compact design, the Opus guarantees a consistent coffee-making experience.

I tested the Fellow Opus Grinder over a week to see if could consistently grind coffee for espresso ... [+] and drip.

I tested the Fellow Opus coffee grinder for a week to see how the modern piece of kitchen equipment performed and whether it lived up to the brand's promises. I brewed both espresso and drip (or filter) coffee, using coffee from my best coffee subscription boxes review, a piece I also wrote for Forbes Vetted. I observed the grind, tasted coffees and took notes as I went. My target brew times for espresso were 28 to 32 seconds for a 1:2 brew ratio, a rough standard for café-quality espresso. For filter coffee, I used 40 grams of coffee and 660ml of water in both pour-over and an automatic brewer.

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Types of brew: Espresso and filter | Cost: $195 | Capacity: Up to 110 grams (3.9 ounces)

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I tested the Fellow Opus Grinder by grinding different types of beans for both espresso and filter coffee for a week, brewing some of my favorite coffees both as double espresso shots and as pour-over and automatic drip coffee. With a tried-and-true favorite coffee from Go Get Em Tiger, the Opus performed admirably, delivering a consistent grind size every time. It was also easy to switch between grind styles. As I was dialing in to find the correct grind size on the Opus’ rotating dial, each setting gave a satisfying click, making it easier to track my desired grind size.

Despite its small footprint, the Opus grinder features 40mm conical burrs that deliver a precise and consistent grind size across a range of coffee styles. Unlike flat burrs, these can grind finely enough to make espresso, making the Opus a versatile machine if you want to brew a range of coffee styles at home. Its predecessor, the Fellow Ode grinder, uses larger flat burrs in contrast.

Here's how the Opus grinder stood up to my two types of tests.

Espresso: Great espresso is notoriously difficult to make at home. Professional equipment is the only route to success, but it's often prohibitively expensive. Great espresso requires a very precise fine grind, with an even distribution of particles that can brew an espresso without clogging the machine. That's a very difficult task for a grinder at any price point.

In testing, the Opus was a solid option for grinding beans finely enough to achieve great espresso ... [+] that tasted rich and sweet when brewed.

I have been able to make great espresso with my Breville Dual Boiler espresso machine and Baratza Sette grinder, both of which were a significant investment. In making espresso, I found the Opus a solid option for grinding beans finely enough to achieve great results. My espresso tasted rich, sweet and brewed evenly within my set parameters. Sometimes getting the correct setting for perfect espresso can be a bit finicky, and the ideal setting took some trial and error to achieve, but overall it performed well. I found that "dialing in" my espresso (trying to find the correct grind setting to brew my 30-second espresso) required me to go back and forth between settings to achieve ideal results, with one notch being too fine, but the next being slightly too coarse. Once locked in, my brew of Go Get Em Tiger's Mexican Mixteca produced a satisfying espresso that was rich, syrupy and sweet.

Drip: For drip, or filter, coffee, I brewed pour-overs in a Chemex and Breville 6-cup coffee maker. While overall I was happy with the coffee I brewed, I did find that my Fellow Ode, which is designed specifically (and only) for filter coffee, achieved a slight edge in clarity in the cup when tasted side by side. The Opus-ground brews were good, but when I switched to my regular Ode grinder, I got more distinct flavor notes and less bitterness in each cup, as well as more consistent brewing times, which indicate more evenly ground particles.

The Fellow Ode slightly edged out the Opus in testing, producing a cup of coffee with more distinct ... [+] flavors and less bitterness.

As an all-purpose grinder, the Fellow Opus truly excels, and it has some excellent features that make it stand out. One of my favorite touches, common across Fellow's grinders, is a magnetic catch for the grind cup, which is a nice element that helps keep the brew space tidy. The antistatic technology kept the coffee grounds from sticking to the grinder, making it easy to clean. My other home grinder, a Hario V60 Electric Coffee Grinder, spews grounds all over the place and demands some intensive cleaning after every brew. With the Opus, the grind cup successfully trapped all the coffee I made, leaving a mess-free station. This feature offers a big improvement for coffee drinkers who want to grind their beans fresh daily, with less mess.

The machine also doesn't retain coffee in the grind chamber, which makes it easy to transition between grind sizes since little to no ground coffee remains in the grinder after use. Because the grinding chamber sits directly above the catch, I didn't have any leftover grounds to purge before my next grind. That means you won't be contaminating your fresh coffee with older or differently sized grounds, and also that every grind is as fresh as possible.

The Opus’ fast 350 rpm burr speed allowed me to grind coffee incredibly quickly and efficiently. I was able to grind 18 grams of coffee, enough for a double shot of espresso, in less than 10 seconds, which was comparable to my Baratza Sette. Lesser-quality grinders can take far longer, and I don't like to wait for my coffee. I also enjoyed the timed autostop feature, which stopped grinding after 30 seconds for my filter brews. I was able to grind my premeasured dose of beans within the shortest setting every time (30 seconds), and I never needed to use the longer (up to 2 minutes) timer on this grinder when brewing my Chemex and machine-brewed coffees. The lid of the Opus also has a handy measuring divider, one side for 20 grams and the other for 40 grams, both approximate but helpful in the absence of a scale. However, I do consider my scale an essential part of the brewing process, as it keeps everything precise and consistent.

One of the most impressive features of the Fellow Opus is just how quiet it is. The Opus has a gentle whir that seems impossibly quiet compared to other grinders I’ve used. I actually downloaded an app to check the grinder noise against my anecdotal observation, and the Opus ran at about 38 decibels when grinding coffee, compared with my Hario V60, which came in at a much higher 60 decibels.

As a design object, the Fellow Opus is distinctly modern: It's minimal, blocky and unobtrusive. It's small enough to fit in any apartment kitchen, yet it looks great sitting on a large countertop as well. Its black, round chassis sits squat on a sturdy base and is dwarfed by my other coffee equipment. The Opus feels as though it were designed to be a pleasure to use—the magnetic cup holder snaps the cup into place, each click of the grind adjustment is smooth and satisfying and the button to begin grinding is a gentle but authoritative ignition to my morning routine. Even the lid to the grinder's hopper slides in place as if it were a carefully aligned piston in an engine.

The sleek, compact Opus is both functional and aesthetically compelling.

The Opus comes with a 2-year warranty for faulty materials or craftsmanship, with an extended warranty with VIP service available to products registered with Fellow. To keep the grinder working well into the future, Fellow recommends that you don't store beans in the hopper for extended periods. They also advise using Urnex Grindz every 3 months to clean the burrs, and wiping the outside with nothing but a damp cloth to keep the Opus clean.

While there are other grinders specifically designed for filter and espresso respectively, and at a similar price point, I found that for a dual-purpose grinder the Opus performed well, looked great and had enough standout features that I would recommend it. The Opus is well suited to a coffee generalist who wants to brew good coffee and espresso at home, and is mindful of their countertop coffee style. A true espresso aficionado will want a dedicated grinder of a different quality (and price level), but for a dual-purpose grinder, the Opus works great.