Coffee

I just used my new French press. That's Damn good coffee.

That is all.

I'm on an involuntary partial coffee hiatus (somehow my body seems to have decided to reject substantial amounts of caffeine after twenty years of enjoyment/abuse), but as long as we're talking about awesome home coffee prep, I gotta put in a shout for the Bialetti coffee makers, like this. (I don't know whether aluminum's been vindicated on the alzheimer's front; I tend towards the stainless versions)

Comes out like a larger volume of something a big milder than espresso...

So good... I miss it so much.

The problem with the french press is it exposes the coffee to the steeping water too long so you also extract out bitterness. My grandma used a french press and I've never been impressed with them.

The best coffee maker is a simple cone with a filter. The water is only exposed for the beans long enough to extract the oils and flavors but not long enough to extract the bitterness. The manual cones with filter makes better coffee than a coffee maker also, as a coffee maker also will extract too much bitterness. I use a coffee maker day to day but when I go camping the cone makes much better coffee than I have on a day to day basis.

I own a coffee shop. Trade secrets:

Filter the water VERY well. Coffee is 98% water. We use triple water filters- a cartridge type, a charcoal type, and a UV type. As a minimum, use a canister type charcoal filter.

Use fresh beans. We don't stock more roasted beans than we can use in 5-7 days. If you walk into a shop that has all those varieties on display in glass jars, expect bitter coffee. Don't freeze it, either. It dehydrates the oils.

Grind your own. Serve within 5 minutes of grinding the beans.

Disclaimer: I do all this stuff (wrong) at home. But the coffee I serve at the store meets all these requirements, and I have NEVER had anyone say it wasn't better than all the other stores in town.

benzbaron wrote: The problem with the french press is it exposes the coffee to the steeping water too long so you also extract out bitterness. My grandma used a french press and I've never been impressed with them.

If your coffee is bitter, try using more beans and/or brew for less time. Here's how I make it: I boil 12 ounces of water in the microwave, and coarsely grind about six tablespoons of fresh coffee beans. I use high quality beans, roasted in town within the previous week of purchasing them, and store them in an air tight freezer bag. A pound lasts me about two weeks. I pour the water over the beans, and make sure to stir the mixture before plunging, so that all of the beans are adequately soaked. I let it steep for three minutes, and then plunge and pour all of the coffee out.

If you encounter bitter coffee with a French press, try the following:

Use better beans and grind them fresh

Use more coffee grounds

Brew for a shorter amount of time

Regardless of the brewing method, ensure that your apparatus is cleaned out really well. Residual stale coffee can ruin an otherwise good pot.

After discovering what really good coffee tastes like, it's hard to go back to the insipid stuff that most restaurants, hotels, and even some coffee shops use.

I love me some quality coffee, but I use a Keurig for my morning fix and suffer with the swill brewed at the office that they call coffee. My french press made very good coffee but I'm perpetually late heading out the door - there's no way the wife was going to deal with the press but she'll drop the Keurig cup into the holder and press the button for me.

I don't really drink coffee but my wife loves it. I got her a vacuum pot a few years back. She says it beats her french press hands-down. Everytime we have company they comment on how good the coffee is, plus watching it brew is fun.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxIs2GVsqgY
Basically, the coffee is only in contact with the water when the water is up to temp, the water can't be too hot or too cold since it's all physics.

Got my wife one o' them fancybutt automagic espresso machines, and it's kindasorta turned into a football. I go through way more coffee than she does, and I've gone from the occasional cuppa with creamnsugar to make it decent, to nothing but black and unmolested outta this machine. Just discovered some Brazilian french roast beans from a place up the road that we've become rather fond of, and there's nothing like just turning it on and pushing a button and having this Rolls of a machine grind, tamp, and pull a shot for ya first thing. Heck it's even GRM. I've done repair work on it myownself and it still works and everything!

DrBoost wrote: I don't really drink coffee

I thought I was the only one...

I really like my Aeropress:

It's similar to french press, except you force the water through the grounds and a paper filter under pressure with a rubber-sealed plunger. Since you steep the grounds for a shorter time in cooler water, it comes out much less bitter. Great value for around $25, and you can also make coffee with any source of hot water, so they're great for travel.

Chuck uses an Aeropress. He raves about it.

In reply to JoeyM: So did I. Even when it's 100 degrees out if one of my supervisors shows up the first thing the want to do is get a cup of coffee. I don't think I've ever finished one.

Wally, where on earth do you go in NYC for a decent cup of coffee? I tried the hotel, coffee shops, delis, donut shops, even the Starbucks I hit in Times Square, and one near Central Park... and it was all watery and with no kick to it. Germany, on the other hand, makes coffee to die for. Mind you, they don't seem to like to do refills.

Lesley wrote: ... where on earth do you go in NYC for a decent cup of coffee?

Buddy the Elf found this place,

Trust me, try the vac pot. It relies on physics so it's perfect every time and I've never had anyone try the coffee we make and not remark on how good it is. And this is sometimes the supermarket 8 o'clock coffee.

I gave up coffee 45 days ago....What the Heck was I thinking?

DrBoost wrote: It relies on physics so it's perfect every time

I plan on using this quote in conversation more often. Thanks

JoeyM wrote: I thought I was the only one...

Another non-coffee drinker here. My father has his one or two Timmie's a day, but I only drink tea (and not that wussy E36 M3, just standard black tea).

bastomatic wrote:

DrBoost wrote: It relies on physics so it's perfect every time

I plan on using this quote in conversation more often. Thanks

No problem. Are royalties involved at all?

Been through everything. My choices? Aeropress for just me, Melitta type cone into a thermos for a group. Both of these choices do better with less fuss about the beans (Yes, I grind my own, but just use a cheap "mini food processor" whirling blade type) than my french press or espresso machine does. YMMV.

I might have to try one of those aeropresses. That looks pretty cool.

A buddy had a vacuum pot. Definitely the best way to make coffee, but it's more fragile and more involved than other methods.

I've been pretty pleased with my little Bialetti stovetop espresso maker. Price was right, brewing process is pretty simple, stout enough to put up with me, and it makes just the right amount for the girlfriend and me.

I think I'll go fix some now.

Lesley wrote: Wally, where on earth do you go in NYC for a decent cup of coffee? I tried the hotel, coffee shops, delis, donut shops, even the Starbucks I hit in Times Square, and one near Central Park... and it was all watery and with no kick to it. Germany, on the other hand, makes coffee to die for. Mind you, they don't seem to like to do refills.

I don't drink coffee, only diet Pepsi and the occasional tea. I think I figured out the problem you were having with the coffee here though. Everyone seems to mention the importance of a clean pot and I have a feeling that doesn't happen much since every thing is open 24/7 and I don't think I've ever walked into a place and caught someone cleaning anything.

Has anyone ever had a cup of coffee brewed by a Clover coffee machine? It's pretty impressive.

Starbucks actually bought the company out so that their competition couldn't get any more.

I can't believe I just watched 2 and half minutes about a coffee machine. What I really can't believe is that it was interesting. Funny that Starbucks bought the company out, yet they can't sell coffee on their own merit. They have to rely on marketing and fads. I'd much rather go to a small coffee house than a Starbucks to get coffee.

Wally wrote: I don't drink coffee, only diet Pepsi and the occasional tea.

Diet Mt. Dew, or the generic equivalent. (I'm a cheapskate.)

DrBoost wrote: I'd much rather go to a small coffee house than a Starbucks to get coffee.

Starbucks makes decent raspberry slushies, but they get annoyed if you call them that.