Another Coffee Discussion

Colin Wood said:

I've accepted that my palette isn't advanced enough to appreciate truly great coffee, which is a bummer, really, because I really like the look of all the fancy coffee brands.

That said, I can at least acknowledge when I'm drinking a bad cup of coffee.

Same here. I was starting to think I was the last man on earth who wasn't capable of cataloging your various subtle nuances, and happily documenting my observations. It kind of makes a fella feel like the odd man out.

Not like I don't have preferences now and then, but the expert nose gene must have skipped a generation. 

I'll do DYI cold brew in a French press overnight in the fridge. Just grind up some Bustela or whatever Aldi/Lidl find, add water, press in AM,  and drink. Will put the rest in a jar or bottle to drink later if don't finish. I rarely want hot coffee but if do will do french press again, but to tack on another Alton Brown tip, ad just a pinch of salt after bloom.

Duke said:

I haven't found anything I like much better than Cafe Bustelo espresso roast whole bean.

Bonus points:  it's cheap.

 

We're heathens and get Bustelo in k-cups delivered from the Bezos site on a subscription basis. 

Right now I'm drinking an espresso blend called "Full Send" that I bought from a guy at a local farmer's market. It's pretty tasty.

I'm probably doing things wrong though. I like my home made coffee light and sweet so the snobs probably think I'm trash.

I love a good cappuccino with nothing added, made by someone who is much better at coffee than I am. There's an very old-school (like no women allowed, cash only, guys playing a friendly game of cards) Italian coffee shop in Vancouver that makes spectacular coffee. The place does give you the feel that Big Fat Tony has his own office in the back.

Bustelo seems like the Honda Accord of coffee here. Nothing flashy but gets the job done day in and day out. On the plus side, their iced coffee tastes pretty dang good.

With that in mind, I try to support local roasters. Backyard Beans (Lansdale, PA) and Broad Street Grind (Souderton, PA) are worth checking out.

Kirkland Colombian whole bean has been my go to since I discovered it, but when I can't get to Costco I usually go 8 o'clock Colombian whole bean as my fall back. I'm apparently a medium roast kinda guy. Never found a dark roast that I liked.

ShawnG said:

I'm probably doing things wrong though. I like my home made coffee light and sweet so the snobs probably think I'm trash.

I love a good cappuccino with nothing added, made by someone who is much better at coffee than I am.

The correct way to drink coffee is however you enjoy it.

Adding things to coffee doesn't take any flavors out of it. More likely you're adding complimentary flavors that bring things into balance (e.g. sweet to balance bitter) and watering down flavors (with milk). Most store-bought coffees are going to be darker roasts anyway because that's easier to keep a uniform flavor and is more shelf stable. So adding sweetness and milk makes 100% sense.

If anything, those unbalanced base coffees are really good for adding stuff to. Better than the fancy stuff.

It's like the difference between a mid shelf and top shelf whiskey. The mid shelf stuff often makes better cocktails. On it's own, it's unbalanced and has harsh notes. But when you dilute it and add sweetness those big rough notes still provide enjoyable character. If you make a cocktail with an expensive and well balanced Scotch, you lose all the subtle notes that make it great and it ends up tasting flat.

Biggest mistake making coffee at home: Most people don't use enough coffee grounds. More coffee will make the end result *less* harsh.

I prefer cream.

Milk is just coffee coolant.

I found using "too much" coffee in my Moka Pot just makes the coffee more acidic, rather than adding any flavour.

In reply to ShawnG :

I agree on cream or half and half. My favorite is a little bit of eggnogg.

Moka pots and espresso are different from drip coffee. There, you're forcing the water through the grounds and holding it in a limited volume. So over packing it makes your filter bed too dense which slows the water passing through. My advice on more grounds is really for drip making coffee.

Who could recommend a good coffee maker? She wants a "fancier" one to replace our good old Cusinart unit. I have no clue why, but told her I'd ask. She wants a Jura and I want to keep using old faithful until it croaks. I just looked at the MoccaMaster and will have her take a look. Any other recommendations?

Folgers. My son is a coffee snob. I'm not. Why is it that someone else's coffee always smells better and tastes better  than the one I drink every day, once?

FWIW according to Noah Whiteman in his book "Most Delicious Poison" paper filters filter out a chemical in coffee (I forget what it is) that raises cholesterol. Might be hooey, might not.

"money no object"... then I'd start dailying Calypso (light roast) in whole bean in my pour-over setup from Keats & Co brand via "Good.Store" where 100% of the profits go to charity.

it's a bit pricey, so I only order from them from time-to-time... but, if you want to try something new, and have a "feel good" at the same time, might be worth a shot.

ymmv, enjoy what makes you feel good, etc.

I was on YouTube and remembered that I am subscribed to this guy, James Hoffmann. He goes into a level of coffee nerd that I didn't know existed. If you want to go down a deep-dive coffee rabbit hole his channel is worth checking out. 

In reply to Chris Tropea :

I like watching Hoffmann's videos for the education factor, but it's almost comical how opposite our palettes are.  I hate many of his favorites, and he hates mine, lol.

When I first got into drinking coffee it was because my office had a Keurig and a selection of free K Cups.  Smelling everyone else's cuppa every day was enough to get me hooked too.  Later I moved on to French press and aeropress, but I eventually got tired of the continual prep and cleanup.  These days i just drop an espresso pod in my machine and get my brew in seconds.

Chris Tropea said:

I was on YouTube and remembered that I am subscribed to this guy, James Hoffmann. He goes into a level of coffee nerd that I didn't know existed. If you want to go down a deep-dive coffee rabbit hole his channel is worth checking out. 

shame Chris, shame!  James is too fun and entertaining to lead one down a nasty, dirty, wet rabbit hole... if he's leading you anywhere it'd most certainly be a clean, comfortable Hobbit hole.

lotusseven7 (Forum Supporter) said:

Who could recommend a good coffee maker? She wants a "fancier" one to replace our good old Cusinart unit. I have no clue why, but told her I'd ask. She wants a Jura and I want to keep using old faithful until it croaks. I just looked at the MoccaMaster and will have her take a look. Any other recommendations?

Why does she want the Jura? What features is she looking for? What's wrong with your Cuisinart? I'm kind of a snob about these things and Cuisinart is one of the first brands I would recommend.

I looked up the Moccamaster... and it just looks like a stupidly expensive drip coffee maker. I wouldn't spend money on that.

If you want to improve the quality of coffee you're drinking at home, your better bet is to invest in a good burr grinder. Grind exactly how much coffee you want, freshly, with a perfect, consistent grind. I'd rather have well ground coffee out of a cheap drip coffee maker, than poorly ground (or worse PRE-ground) coffee in a fancy coffee maker.

This gets you 97% of the Moccamaster taste.  Maybe 80% of the build quality.  50% of the price.

The coffee snob in my office brought his and it's noticeably better than the Bunn commercial machine.  Hotter water and better distribution of the water over the grounds.

As noted earlier, I normally do Turkish preparation, but my GF recently got one of these pour-over rigs, and I was pleasantly surprised with the results, especially considering the price. That said, I agree 100% that a good burr grinder is step #1.

Coffee is my one vice, don't drink, don't smoke, gamble, recreational drugs, nothing.  So I try to be open on different coffees when I can.  I bought a French Press but I've been too lazy to use it lately.

Biggby is my go-to for mornings, and try to have a 2nd choice to swap in and out. Sometimes Dunkin, sometimes a random hippy-free-range type brand, or a flavored coffee.  Hazelnut, Highlander Grog, something.  But for me, two teaspoons of sugar and a dash of 1/2 and 1/2, she gets extra sugar and 1/2-1/2.

I have the Northbound monthly coffee subscription. 2 pounds a month at a reasonable price. They have solid coffee, roasted medium or "light", but its all relative. They arent light like the new wave of roasters likes to do. I've had light coffee that had tasting notes of "green tomato", and while the notes were spot on, it turns out I don't want coffee so light it tastes like unripened veggies. If that's you, Northbound is worth a shot. Their roasts generally do fine either as espresso or as a pour over. American Beauty from them is a good daily driver espresso, too.

There's some other really great roasters, some local, but I just can't fathom spending $80+ on 6-10 oz of beans. I'll splurge occasionally and get a $20 pour over from the local place when they have their primo beans on the menu, but that's enough for me...

In reply to Crxpilot :

My one critique of that, is that I have a strong preference for an insulated carafe over a heat element on the bottom.

Beer Baron 🍺 said:

If you want to improve the quality of coffee you're drinking at home, your better bet is to invest in a good burr grinder.

You seem like exactly the kind of person who could offer a recommendation or two at different price points.

In reply to DarkMonohue :

For which? Coffee makers or burr grinders?

The next underappreciated thing that will really change the quality of your coffee is the water. Use nice clean filtered water.

I require coffee to operate. I cannot live without it. 

My go-to lately has been Peet's Big Bang. It's just a solid medium roast coffee that ticks all the boxes for me. I brew it both hot and cold in my Ninja Coffee Bar coffeemaker, and it's great either way. This is the one I have: 



I think it's the CM401. It's as good as a drip machine gets; I love the thing. Filtered water every time along with regular clean cycles keeps it alive.