Peugeot - Paris u'Select Manual Pepper Mill - Adjustable Grinder - Beechwood, Natural

Oh. My. God. This thing is MAGNIFICENT.I pulled it from the box with great trepidation because I bought another brand, the Trudeau 071322 Excalibur, and it had big flaws and a rusty screw on the grinding mechanism with the chrome plating worn off of the mechanism, and the replacement was really rusted over. Go over there and see the photos, I'm not kidding. After two of those Trudeau demo units/factory rejects, I was over it and decided to spend twice the money and get this Peugeot, hoping they would do it right and give me a flawless product.They did. I liked the darker chocolate color, but reasoned that with this natural color Peugeot, they couldn't hide any flaws behind paint or stain. Wise move, if I don't say so myself. This thing looks better in your hand than in the photo. Beautiful. Where the Trudeau had rough turnings with more raspy cross-grain grooves turned on lathes with dull tools and were lacking enough sanding and stain, this Peugeot has totally smooth grooves and beads, and was sanded to a very fine and smooth finish. Just beautiful. Somebody there really takes great pride in his work.I looked underneath at the grinder mechanism and it was spotless and new, unlike the trash that was dumped on me twice by the people at Trudeau.It's hard not to just caress this thing in your hands like a beautiful woman. The curves...the smoothness...the attention to detail. Who would think that a pepper mill could be downright sexy? I'll have to see if this thing can be modified with a Fleshlight insert...but I digress.Since the teeth of the mill draw the peppercorns down into the mechanism as you turn the top clockwise, I figured it goes to reason that the reverse would be true. The first thing I wanted to do is see how finely it would grind. I thought that somebody might have ground some pepper in it before, and I wanted all of the large particles out of the grinding mechanism so it would be at minimum tolerances for the level 1 grinding. SO...I turned the pepper mill upside down, then turned the top counterclockwise, pulling any bits of pepper out of the mechanism to the inside of the storage compartment! This cleared the mechanism of all peppercorn pieces. Then I turned it right side up again. With it set on level 1, I commenced to grinding, and it made a really nice and fine powder. Not like flour or anything, but a very nice fine grind. What is that I smell wafting up to my nares? I then leaned close and gently sniffed the pepper aroma. Aaaaaaahhh...I'm in love.Then it was time to max out the size and see what that looked like. Nice, decent sized pieces, but not so big as to be obnoxious. I could see putting these on a steak and pounding them into the meat.I love the markings on the wood to select the grind size, and the Peugeot logo. They're tastefully applied and in a nicely contrasting brown color, not stark black.This natural wood is really beautiful and flawless, I could not be happier. I've never held a nicer pepper mill in my hands. These Peugeot boys have this s*** down. If you want a big wooden peppermill that looks great and puts out the perfect grind, look no further. I'm just giddy about it. People at work have been laughing at my excitement about a pepper mill. They don't understand. I'm not going to make them understand by transporting my treasured Peugeot to work, where some jackhole might drop it on a concrete floor or lose the nut off the top. They can keep their grubby mitts off of my U'Select. They can't believe I spent $90 on a pepper mill, but I'm the kind of guy who feels this way: if you're going to buy something you have to live with, make it quality. Spend the extra bucks to get great performance and value. It only hurts when you lay down the money. From then on, you're in paradise every time you use it.I also bought an OXO, which is a great little grinder, for guests, but they better keep their stinkin' hooks off of my Peugeot Paris U'Select, or they'll draw back nubs!I never thought I'd say something good about France, but Peugeot earned it! Five stars!!!UPDATE: I ate some fish, shrimp and basmati rice two nights ago, and it just didn't taste as good as the night before. Then it came to me at about 3:30 in the morning as I woke up from a dead sleep: somehow I forgot to use the Peugeot Paris U'Select to apply some pepper! I was pissed off the rest of the night and the next day!!! You know, when I'm about to die and somebody asks if I have any regrets, that will be the one.

Best. Peppermill. Ever. Grinds smoothly and evenly. Worth every cent.

Grinds fast and smoothly. I set mine on coarse, works great.

I'll never go back to pre-gound pepper in a pepper shaker. Literally, pepper is SO much better and makes foods SO much yummier when the pepper is freshly ground! I use this every day, many times a day. And my only regret is that it doesn't hold a months supply of peppercorns! :D Going to need to buy a second one to have in the kitchen, so I don't have to refill them every week or 2 :D I love the look of this size, and the color, and am quite pleased with it :) It feels like quality, is lovely to use (no ground pepper sticking to your hand when you're done), and works like a charm. Super easy to switch between sizes of ground pepper, too. This is a Wirecutter pick, great price, and I'm so happy I went with it!

I am forced to return this beautiful pepper mill because Peugeot won’t answer my three calls and one email. It’s missing the lock nut and finial. I love my dark red one and want this one for white peppercorns.

OK, Andy Warhol on the topic of WWF might not be the right quote to describe a pepper grinder, but it was the highest praise that sprang to mind, because this pepper grinder is That Good.If you eat, you should probably eat black pepper; it is delicious. It is good ground ultra-coarse on steaks, normally on arugula salad and egg dishes, super fine in soups and sauces. This grinder has you covered - perfectly - for all of that with its awesome 6 settings. Peugeot - yeah, they do make cars - and they have been making pepper grinders for MORE THAN A CENTURY. Folks, they have got all the bugs worked out. They have got it right. Just pick a size and a wood type - I have the 9" Natural - and get yourself one of these and keep it your whole life. Skip the plastic "rabbit" grinder; they're fun but they break after a few months. Skip other grinders; they clog, or don't grind right, or break. I am a little shocked at how expensive these grinders are, but I have had a tiny Peugeot grinder for the table for about 8 years, it's still going strong, it became my main kitchen grinder too, and the main problem with it is that its little spherical top piece rolled under the stove and I can't reach it.I love this grinder. If I lost it I'd immediately go get another. What else can I say?Finally, a word on salt mills: You don't need one. Salt is hygroscopic and salt plus water plus any kind of grinder metal equals rust. Peugeot makes a salt mill but come on people you do not need to grind salt. Get kosher salt, get iodized salt, get sea salt, get it in the coarseness you want it, and quit thinking about it - the flavor and properties of salt don't really depend on the grind like fresh ground pepper does. But if you care more about looks than right food science, Peugeot has you covered because they sell these grinders in matching sets. So get one of those instead, it's cheaper than buying them separately.

Very easy to use, requires light easy twisting to grind. Used Costco brand peppercorns and the courser grind did not work so well, finer grinds worked great. Size is great.