by FL_Panthers 16 Replies latest social entertainment
As I'm making my seventh cup for the day, I thought it would be a good idea to have an appreciation thread. So:
What's the best ground coffee? Beans?
Where can you get a decent cup? (More difficult than it should be)
Which coffee makers are the best ?
Best way of serving?
Etc.
oh Coffee!!! we've been the Keurig route, it was alright for awhile but then it's a hassle if you need more than one or two cups at the same time.
Percolaters, top of the stove percolaters, freeze dried instant coffee, coffee in the instant packets, coffee in the Maxwell house premeasured envelopes.
Now we like Yuban brand, it's a nice flavor without being bitter and we use a Mr. Coffee machine with a delay-brew function. I've been doing the recommended vinegar cleaning once a month and so far no problems.
I also recently began having citron tea from Korea for the morning openers. It supposed to have a high Vitamin C content. It's really tasty, no caffeine.
Marina
Thanks Marina!
Oh well done for starting this thread. I've been trying to find a decent ground coffee for years, even bringing it back from Italy. The Italian supermarket coffee was close but no cigar. Still looking, any ideas please, in the UK?
7th cup? I fear contributing to your addiction! I just get a Starbucks a day (tall-venti,depending on if I share with hubby), keep the mess out of my kitchen and call it good! (I don't know how to make coffee, so I just drink tea at home. No one outside knows how to make tea, so I never drink tea outside.)
I used to like Yuban. McDonalds makes a good cup in a pinch, but I will get dunkin donuts coffee even if I am not eating a donut! (btw,plain cake ones are the best with a cup of black or regular)
With regards to machines, I'd recommend the la pavoni machine. my mate's got one and it makes really nice espresso. plus it looks damn cool (which is important). they come in brass too. it's a pain to clean though.
also those little nestle nespresso capsules make surprisingly decent (and consistant) coffee, and there's no clean-up afterwards. they might be the way to go if you're looking for ease.
In the US you can get a Bunn coffee maker for the home (same brand as the large ones in restaurants). They last forever as the water tank is stainless steel, and they begin to brew almost instantly as the tank holds hot water. You pour in say, 32 ounces of cool water and the Bunn pushes out 32 ounces of hot water, using a spray head to saturate all the grounds.
I highly recommend grinding your own beans, the flavor is wonderful and it only takes a minute in the morning. PM me if you want specific brand recommendations!
We have an old Bunn restaurant giant coffee machine (reclaimed from a restaurant that went out of business)...it came with three of those glass pitchers, there are warmers on the sides and back...there is a heater always on so it only takes minutes to brew a pot
so you can see that Coffee Shop Guy and I consume more than we probably should....Coffee Shop guys likes African beans , in his old days of owning a coffee shop he would order Tanzanian peaberry...the coffee beans are smaller and brew a nice dark yet smooth cup of coffee. Lately that has been really hard to come by in the US-
I like the South American beans myself...but I like my coffee really light and smooth, this morning (because we are out of Coffee Shop Guy's beans) I brewed Gevalia "Colombian" blend, its cheap and really good :)
CHG
FL-Panther - I love coffee, but seriously - you are drinking too much.
First but the Whole Beans, from a Fair Trade source. Make sure they are
100% Arabica, and try to get beans from Africa, or Brazil,or Columbia,
not South East Asia. Then get yourself a good Burr Grinder
(Burr is the type not brand ) Italian coffee is dark roast African coffee ground fine.
Use a French Press, or cone filter and pour boiling water slowly over the ground
beans. Drink it within 20 minutes. Coffee varieties should be chosen by your own
pallete and taste, medium roasts have more caffeine, dark roasts less.
Fine grinding and using an espresso machine for dense small cups or cappuccinos.
You can keep it simple with a French Press and a frother.
Id you really want to go all the way - get green beans and a roaster
and roast it yourself, they sell all this gear on Amazon.
I use a French press. For reasons I could never figure out, every coffee maker I've ever had quit working after six months to a year, it didn't matter if it was a $25 machine or a $135 machine. I finally gave up and got the French press, which I use with an Electric kettle. My husband much prefers the flavor, he is a serious coffee drinker, he drinks regular coffee at home, but goes to a coffee shop for a latte most days. I don't know how many times we walked all over different cities, because he was trying to find a coffee shop he remembered being "around here somewhere" that had really good coffee. He still talks about a cafe Viennese he had at a coffee shop in Seattle several years ago.
He prefers a an independent coffee shop, but will drink Starbucks, they are at least consistent. I am not a big fan of the whole coffee shop thing, I am happy with a cup of coffee at home, I don't get why someone would drive to one, wait in line to pay $3 or more for a cup of coffee, then sit in a noisy, crowded coffee shop to drink it. It just seems like a waste of time and money.
