This is the comment thread for the Breadtopia blog post originally published here:
Objective and informative. Well done!
Thanks Eric for the latest demo of the grain mills. I have learned so much from this site. Many thanks to you. After some trial and error I can now pull off a very good tasting ALL whole grain, sourdough loaf. I don’t think I could have done it without your help on this site.
I am now looking to buy a grain mill. Is fresh ground whole grain much different in quality from locally available stone ground whole wheat flour? Thanks again!
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Eric, Thanks for a nice review of the mills. I flatter myself into thinking that my baking has progressed to where I could use a mill, but I do love kitchen toys.
The videos gave me the impression that the Nutrimill Harvest mill is quieter than the others. Is that your impression as well? It sure seems easy to use.
Happy baking.
GS
Hi Gary. It is indeed easy to use, but it’s not quieter. It think it’s a bit louder than the Komo just because the hopper lid on the Komo is heavier and has a foam rubber seal (of sorts) that is effective at dampening the sound some. But both the Harvest and Komo are quieter than the Nutrimill Plus or the Wondermill. Also quieter than the Royal Lee mill which to me sounds exactly like running a shop vac in your kitchen.
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I think so. At least most of the time. Even when the flavor difference isn’t marked, you have to figure there’s going to be a nutritional loss from oxidation after grain is milled. There’s no way to know how long it’s been since the store bought flour was milled.
I have had a country Living Grain mill for 14 years and it is an outstanding product. The flour is never over heated, The grind is easily adjustable and there is an optional motor that is runs at the ideal speed to make good flour. My Dh and I considered the mill and it’s motor an investment and it is been well worth the money. I haven’t bought whole wheat flour in years. What I grind at home is much, much better.
I was told that the whole wheat flour we find in the grocery store is white flour that has had the bran and germ added back in. There is a small mill near us and the wheat from thien is true whole grain. I find the flavor difference between commercial WW flour and true whole grain to be considerable.
So I have “milled” my wheatberries using my Vitamix. Care to comment?
The updated grain mill review was just in time, for me! After watching it, I ordered the NutriMill Harvest and cannot be more pleased. Thank you, Eric, for a great website, great products and great customer care!
Glad to hear you like it 
Luckily, for me here in Tasmania, where I sell grains and flours in my little home shop (The Garden Shed and Pantry), I can get flour milled to order, from Four Leaf Milling. They are organic farmers and millers in South Australia. The flour is in my shop a week from being milled. Of course, home milling on the day of baking is ideal but I reckon Four Leaf are fabulous.
Eric
I’ve really enjoyed learning to bake no-knead sourdough with your help. I’m thinking of moving to the next step of milling my own flour. I already have a kitchenAid mixer and am intrigued by the Mockmill and the efficiency of using the motor I already have. Would you say that that the results are as good as the regular KOMO mills? As much as I like efficiency, I would get the stand alone KOMO mill if the end result is better.
The Mockmill does a good job of milling grain. But the Komo mills are going to give you a bit of a finer grind on the finest setting and they’re also going to mill a lot faster.
Not having milled flour myself, I’m rather ignorant about how fine it needs to be. You mentioned that the KOMO mills finer than the Mockmill. Is finer better? Does the Mockmill mill fine enough? Is there an advantage to being able to mill finer than that?
I only make one loaf at a time, so speed is not that important to me. However, I do want a mill that will produce the best end product.
This a really good question and topic to discuss. Ideally we’d be in live classroom where we could feel the flour and see how various grinds perform with a range of recipes. Lacking that, I’m not sure I can add much more than generalities. Whether finer is better and what is fine enough is partly subjective and partly dependent on what you’re baking, in my (subjective) opinion.
I’m completely satisfied with the fineness of flour that’s easily milled in a Mockmill for the bread I bake. I think the vast majority of bread bakers would be too. Getting a super fine flour straight out of most home mills isn’t really possible. A super fine flour can be more desirable for some kinds of baking, like any laminated dough product, where the course bran in flour can present challenges. Where super fine flour is needed and your mill won’t make it, an easy home workaround is sifting the flour through a fine screen sifter.
There are pros and cons with everything. Most people can successfully take on a wide range of baking projects at home with a few basic and hopefully affordable tools.