Eureka Mignon XL espresso grinder in the test

The Eureka Mignon XL performed well in our espresso grinder test. A total of 24 espresso grinders were compared, in the price range of 100 to 2000 Euros. The grinder test was conducted over several months by Swiss champion barista Michel Aeschbacher, his barista team, and in collaboration with the Zurich University of Applied Sciences. Thank you for your support!

Eureka Mignon XL Oro - Compact Quality

The Eureka Mignon XL positions itself in the upper segment of home espresso grinders. Eureka thus closes a gap in its own product range between the more affordable Mignons and the entry-level professional class. With a price of around €680 and around 800 Swiss Francs, the Mignon XL belongs to Eureka's premium category (Oro designation), yet still clearly remains in the segment of home espresso grinders.

The Mignon XL weighs 7.2 kg and packs this into a width of 12 cm, a depth of 18 cm, and a height of 38 cm. Compared to the Mignon Magnifico and Specialita, it does not differ in width and depth but is 3 cm taller.

If you are looking for a quieter espresso grinder, the Eureka Mignon XL is a good choice. With a volume of 77.2 decibels, the grinder demonstrates a relatively quiet performance compared to 23 other popular home espresso grinders. Values below 80db were rated as good by us.

The Eureka XL is available in chrome, matte black, white, gray, and Ferrari red. For our test, we used the chrome version. This is attractive to look at, but very susceptible to fingerprints. A polishing cloth should be kept nearby if you choose this finish.

The stepless disc grinder has a diameter of 65mm and is treated with Eureka's patented Diamond Inside technology. Eureka claims that the grinding disc has a longer durability of up to 1,500 kg of ground coffee. We have not tested this, but we can provide an assessment of the quality of the grinding discs based on the particle distribution further below.

Recommended specialist dealers for the Eureka Mignon: Lücke Technik*

Good Espresso Is No Coincidence!

In both the comparative tasting and the individual tests, we consistently drank good espressos brewed with the Eureka Mignon XL. Individual good and very good espressos are sometimes outliers. However, the Mignon XL provides several arguments for good consistency.

With a retention of 3.1 g, this espresso grinder is among the better grinders. We consider retention up to 3.5g to be good. Retention is the residual ground coffee left around the grinding chamber that is not dispensed when grinding stops. In the next grind, the ground coffee in the retention area is then dispensed first. Depending on how long ago the last grind was, a portion of the grind may therefore not be fresh.

Over ten grinds with a set output of 18g of coffee, the Eureka Mignon XL showed a standard deviation of 0.27 g. This is also a good value.

Especially with cheaper espresso grinders, the ground coffee often heats up significantly, which can lead to a negative change in taste. With an average temperature of 34.4 degrees Celsius and a small increase over 6 grinds at 30-second intervals, the Mignon XL also delivered good results here.

Only in terms of speed does the XL place in the mid-range. In ten seconds, the Mignon XL grinds 28.7 grams of coffee. That's a decent amount; it can be worse, but also better.

The espresso tasted velvety-strong and complex - it was reminiscent of marzipan and brought out the best in our Apas Espresso. If you want to try Apas, you can order it here in Germany/EU and here in Switzerland.

Particle Distribution of the Eureka Mignon XL

Let's take a look at the particle distribution of the Mignon XL. A total of seven different curves were measured by us. For this, we took a sample of ground coffee and analyzed it in the ZHAW Wädenswil laboratory.

The Eureka Mignon XL was coded as Grinder 15 (M15). The tests were numbered accordingly, see also legend. T1 in red (see above) represents a check of the ground material upon delivery. The grinder was set very fine and shows a correspondingly high fine content and a correspondingly low main peak.

Tests 2, 3, 4, and 7 align excellently here, which is desirable. The same recipe was set for these grinds. For this purpose, we weighed 18g of coffee and adjusted the grinder so that the grind size was calibrated for an extraction of 45g of coffee in 25 seconds.

In T2 and T3, 6 espressos were extracted every 30 seconds in between. The study examined whether the temperature of the ground coffee increased and whether this had a significant impact on the particle distribution. We could not detect such a deviation. In fact, the average temperature was not high at 34.4 degrees Celsius.

Next, we adjusted the espresso back to the original brewing recipe (T4) and took a corresponding sample. This was the initial sample for determining the fine particle content and main peak. The Eureka Mignon XL has a fine particle content of 21.63 percent. Thus, it performs on average (21.96%) within the grinder field. We sometimes noticed a slight dryness in the aftertaste of the espresso, which can be attributed to the fine particle content. However, this was not predominant.

The coarse peak had a width of 238. The average coarse peak was 249.6. This indicates that the Eureka Mignon XL has a slightly higher proportion of particles in the desired grind size range and thus performs somewhat better than average.

Subsequently, we first adjusted for a Ristretto (T5) and then a Café Crème (T6). Curve 7 shows the particle distribution when an attempt is then made to return to the exact same grind setting, based solely on the marking on the grind adjustment dial. Unfortunately, this was not as precisely possible as desired. The coarse peak after resetting was 249 in width and the fine particle content was 21.4%. The espresso consequently ran slightly faster and needed readjustment.

The grind adjustment of the Mignon XL Oro is not precise enough for flexible switching between different drinks and beans.

Suitability for Single Dosing

More and more home baristas prefer single-dose grinding for coffee. This involves weighing the desired amount of coffee, putting it into the grinder, and grinding it directly. This way, no coffee beans age in the bean hopper, and a quick switch between different coffee beans is possible. It also allows for changing the brewing recipe, from espresso to café crème and back.

For a grinder to be suitable for use as a single-dosing espresso grinder, it should have low retention, completely grind out the grinding chamber as much as possible during longer grinding times, and be precisely adjustable.

While the retention of the Eureka Mignon XL is relatively small at 3.1 grams, at least 0.3 grams of coffee always remained in the grinder even after prolonged grinding. This can definitely be improved!

Furthermore, the precision of the grind adjustment will not always be sufficient to hit the mark when switching from recipe to recipe and from bean to bean. Therefore: the Eureka Mignon XL can certainly be used as a single-dose grinder, but it will not be able to compete with grinders that were developed specifically for this purpose. With an update such as a bellows bean hopper, at least the performance of the residual coffee powder can be improved.

And how easy is it to change coffee beans when the bean hopper was full?

When the Mignon XL's slide is closed, the bean hopper can be removed. The bean hopper itself holds up to 300g of coffee. However, we recommend not filling it completely and instead adding coffee to the hopper more often. The bean hopper is transparent and not airtight. This causes the coffee to react with light and oxygen, accelerating its aging. Rancid off-flavors can develop surprisingly quickly.

Underneath the bean hopper, below the closing slide, there are 15.2 grams of coffee. This needs to be removed before, for example, a different coffee can be used. Compared to many other grinders, this is relatively little.

Conclusion: Good Home Espresso Grinder

The Eureka Mignon XL convinced us as a home espresso grinder. It delivers at least good, and in some areas even very good, results across the board.

The operation of the grinder's display is intuitive and practically simple. The grind adjustment could be more precise, but it is, for example, more accurate and easier to adjust than the smaller grind setting of the Eureka Mignon Specialita or Magnifico.

Most importantly, the espresso also tasted good across the different extractions. With the Eureka Mignon XL Oro, you are definitely choosing a good grinder.

If the espresso with the Eureka Mignon XL doesn't taste good, our article on espresso preparation or one of our coffee courses might help you.