My grinder died mid-pour on a Sunday and I had 12 guests coming at 10am
So last Sunday I'm hosting a brunch for a dozen people, and right as I'm getting the last pot going, my burr grinder just stops. No noise, no nothing. Turns out the motor burned out after about 6 years of daily use. I had 2 pounds of whole beans sitting there and no way to grind them, and the nearest store that sells pre-ground was closed til noon. I grabbed a plastic bag, dumped some beans in, and smashed them with the bottom of a cast iron pan, which sounds funny but the grind was a mess, half powder, half boulders. The coffee came out uneven and kind of muddy, and I could tell who the real coffee people were because they noticed right away. A buddy said 'this tastes like it was made in a hurry' and he was not wrong. Now I'm hunting for a backup hand grinder so this never happens again, and I'm wondering if anyone here keeps a manual one around just for emergencies like this.