Anyone Into Coffee?

[Myles B. Astor]

Lots of good coffee here. I just buy generic Safeway brand, and mix it 50/50 with other ground coffee selections they sell, such as Sumatra, etc. Yes, I am cheap, and saving my money for stereo gear.

And cat food!

[GaryProtein]

As far as relatively affordable coffee makers, this one is fantastic. Mine gets used every morning with some yummy coffee beans from Second Cup.

It's funny you should mention this one. We have this in the apartment and like it but a year after Gail got it, she wanted me to get another one for the house. I wouldn't take the Bloomfield out of the kitchen, so the other Technivorm Mocamaster is new in the box in the basement. I can't help thinking she wanted me to buy it purely so she could cannibalize it for parts should that become necessary.

[veindoc]

I have same one -works great

Nick

[sharkmouth]

And cat food!

Bit hard to get it out of the steel filters though!

[mauidan]

Is Chinatown as seedy as it seemed?

Yes.

Shane said you were admiring the custom SP10 he's working.

[Myles B. Astor]

Yes.

Shane said you were admiring the custom SP10 he's working.

Love the old rebuilt SP10 tables! Esp. the Panzerholz plinths.

[gusgranite]

Hate to tell you how they make instant coffee!

LOL, I know. It took a few years for coffee culture to make it to England... I'm going back a while here

[MikeCh]

Costco / Starbucks whole bean burr-ground to order each morning + Chemex & Chemex filters is all we do and is quite satisfactory if not excellent:
(tastes COMPLETELY different than Starbucks coffee purchased at a Starbucks = It's actually very good & not bitter but smooth brewed this way)

[elcoholic]

I started roasting 3 years ago this coming January with a modified hot air popcorn popper. After a year I moved up to a Behmoor 1600. The Behmoor folks are great. They just updated the 1600 to allow more customization and they are making the upgrade available as a kit. I roast 2 lbs a week, one for home and one for work. I buy my beans from Bodhi Leaf Coffee Trading Co. as they are great people, have killer single origin beans, and are local. They sell on line as well. I use a French Press or an Aeropress with the Able Disk instead of a filter. If I'm able to go to the next level of roasters it may be a Huky 500. My advice to beginners is to standardize your brewing method* so that time and temperature are fixed. Then the variables are the coffee and the grind. Once you get a decent burr grinder (I have a Baratza) then just the coffee and your roasting technique are the only variables. Keep a log and have fun.

Ditch the auto drip as they don't get anywhere near 185-200*F which is the required temperature for serious coffee brewing. French Press, Pour-over, Chemex, Vaccum pots and aeropress are all way better than any auto drip below the the $200 Behmoor Brazen level.

[mep]

Awesome that we have some people on the forum who are way into coffee. I would love to try roasting beans if I could get a good source for quality beans that you could trust. A friend of mine recently bought one of those starter kits that includes a popcorn roaster and several bags of beans. Something about a popcorn roaster doesn't appeal to me and it's probably based on bad memories.

Years ago before there were Starbucks every 5' on any street, there was only one place I could buy fresh roasted beans and it was a little dive restaurant/coffee house that existed to serve freaky clientele with even freakier servers. They had a popcorn roaster there. I used to cringe every time I went in there to buy some beans because I knew I was going to get weirded out. All of the women that worked there were hired based on how freaky they looked. Shaving your legs or armpits was absolutely not allowed. Your face/ears/head had to look like someone took a nail gun to it on full automatic.

So now when I think about a popcorn roaster, all I can see in my head is one of those freaky women pouring my beans in a bag while I'm seeing this huge bush under their arms.

[Myles B. Astor]

Awesome that we have some people on the forum who are way into coffee. I would love to try roasting beans if I could get a good source for quality beans that you could trust. A friend of mine recently bought one of those starter kits that includes a popcorn roaster and several bags of beans. Something about a popcorn roaster doesn't appeal to me and it's probably based on bad memories.

Years ago before there were Starbucks every 5' on any street, there was only one place I could buy fresh roasted beans and it was a little dive restaurant/coffee house that existed to serve freaky clientele with even freakier servers. They had a popcorn roaster there. I used to cringe every time I went in there to buy some beans because I knew I was going to get weirded out. All of the women that worked there were hired based on how freaky they looked. Shaving your legs or armpits was absolutely not allowed. Your face/ears/head had to look like someone took a nail gun to it on full automatic.

So now when I think about a popcorn roaster, all I can see in my head is one of those freaky women pouring my beans in a bag while I'm seeing this huge bush under their arms.

Wow Indiana is freakier than I thought!

We have this Brazilian restaurant downtown near Union Square where all the female waitresses are 6-4. That should give you a hint.

[mep]

How about some non-popcorn roaster recommendations?

[mep]

Wow Indiana is freakier than I thought!

Yep. Bloomington has a street called Kirkwood (I call it Kirkweird) which kind of reminds you of being in Austin, TX.

[CPP]

Awesome that we have some people on the forum who are way into coffee. I would love to try roasting beans if I could get a good source for quality beans that you could trust. A friend of mine recently bought one of those starter kits that includes a popcorn roaster and several bags of beans. Something about a popcorn roaster doesn't appeal to me and it's probably based on bad memories.

Years ago before there were Starbucks every 5' on any street, there was only one place I could buy fresh roasted beans and it was a little dive restaurant/coffee house that existed to serve freaky clientele with even freakier servers. They had a popcorn roaster there. I used to cringe every time I went in there to buy some beans because I knew I was going to get weirded out. All of the women that worked there were hired based on how freaky they looked. Shaving your legs or armpits was absolutely not allowed. Your face/ears/head had to look like someone took a nail gun to it on full automatic.

So now when I think about a popcorn roaster, all I can see in my head is one of those freaky women pouring my beans in a bag while I'm seeing this huge bush under their arms.

Damn man, I'm eating my breakfast with a nice cup of Kona. Hairy armpits

[mep]

Damn man, I'm eating my breakfast with a nice cup of Kona. Hairy armpits

I know. I always wondered who/what would want to crawl into bed with them.

[RedSectorA]

(tastes COMPLETELY different than Starbucks coffee purchased at a Starbucks = It's actually very good & not bitter but smooth brewed this way)

Starbucks have a tendency of over roasting their beans. The process of roasting bring out various compounds, some of which are sugar compound, if you roast it right the sugars and other flavour will come out, if you roast too dark you kill those flavours. Dark oily coffee is normally the result of over roasting, and in some other case the addition of oils to make believe you have a dark roast. In any event you should refrain from having excessively oily beans.

[Myles B. Astor]

Starbucks have a tendency of over roasting their beans. The process of roasting bring out various compounds, some of which are sugar compound, if you roast it right the sugars and other flavour will come out, if you roast too dark you kill those flavours. Dark oily coffee is normally the result of over roasting, and in some other case the addition of oils to make believe you have a dark roast. In any event you should refrain from having excessively oily beans.

I also thought part of it was that Starbuck's uses an acidic process too.

[mep]

Starbucks have a tendency of over roasting their beans. The process of roasting bring out various compounds, some of which are sugar compound, if you roast it right the sugars and other flavour will come out, if you roast too dark you kill those flavours. Dark oily coffee is normally the result of over roasting, and in some other case the addition of oils to make believe you have a dark roast. In any event you should refrain from having excessively oily beans.

So what roaster do you recommend? Is it really worth the trouble and can you do it better at home than what you can get from professional roasters who have quality beans?

[RedSectorA]

How about some non-popcorn roaster recommendations?

As a starter machine I would have recommended an I Roast II, but it's now discontinued. The FreshRoast roasts 90g of coffee and seems to be doing good job of it. It's basically a popcorn maker on steroid . I never used it though.

If you want to buy a machine and never look back you can purchase a HotTop, that's what I'm using. Fairly easy to operate and does a consistent job once you understand the process. It's a drum operated roasted the likes of commercial roasters. Parts are easily available if it breaks and you can find instructions on the net on how to operate and repair.

As for a place to buy these machines and green coffee I would recommend Sweet Maria's Home Coffee Roasting if you are in the States and Greenbenaery if you are in Canada. Sweet Marias have a pretty good website with instructions on how to roast, pitfalls.

Roast outside, it's pretty amazing the amount of smoke these machines can do. About 15 years ago I started roasting with a popcorn maker, I was roasting under the kitchen hood to reduce the amount of smoke to a minimum. By spring I needed to paint the whole kitchen as there was a film of coffee oil on the walls.

[RedSectorA]

So what roaster do you recommend? Is it really worth the trouble and can you do it better at home than what you can get from professional roasters who have quality beans?

If you can find a local roaster where you can have fresh beans on a weekly basis by all means start with that. If not roasting on your own is the way to go, that's how I got into that. Once you sample fresh beans perfectly roasted it will be hard to go back.

[wisnon]

Nothing less than this should be considered for "audiophile" coffee:
http://www.hoteliermiddleeast.com/pi...FoamMaster.jpg

At work we have 2 machines (bigger brother this this one) in the main cafetaeria and 2 small ones on each office floor: http://www.schaerer.com/webautor-dat...hsysteme-1.jpg

[mep]

We have some local roasters, but I haven't had any coffee from them yet that got me excited.

[RedSectorA]

We have some local roasters, but I haven't had any coffee from them yet that got me excited.

Sweet Maria's is the way to go then!

[hoosiertom]

It's funny you should mention this one. We have this in the apartment and like it but a year after Gail got it, she wanted me to get another one for the house. I wouldn't take the Bloomfield out of the kitchen, so the other Technivorm Mocamaster is new in the box in the basement. I can't help thinking she wanted me to buy it purely so she could cannibalize it for parts should that become necessary.

Love my Technivorm too....Only use it when lots of friends are in the house... I'm a cup at a time brewer for the obvious benefits.

[hoosiertom]

Sweet Maria's is the way to go then!

Mep,

+3 I've had nothing but great experiences with Sweet Maria's... Chazzano here in SE MI is my local source.... Get a decent budget grinder, Barratza Virtuoso for example and find the best local bean sources like others have suggested. A good drum roaster if you can afford it, good advice, some good green beans... and enjoy great affordable coffee.... You'll never drink Star*ucks again
Tom

[RedSectorA]

[QUOTE=hoosiertom;92698]

Sweet Maria's is the way to go then![/QUOTe)

You'll never drink Star*ucks again
Tom

Starbucks is the Bose of coffee.

As usual YMMV

[puroagave]

If you're in the bay area SM has 1 lb. Kenyan and Nicaraguan roasted beans to help see what appeals to your taste and budget.... or your BEST local roaster.. Find what you like first and then small steps in the jourhey and your BUDGET.

Some roasters: From Sweet Maria's: Behnoor Gene Cafe HotTop and from Coffe Shrub Quest M3 I want a Quest M3, but my budget says otherwise... Read their reviews and go to their blog site for more opinions, reviews and sharing

Coffe Mills: Barratza Virtuoso or Rocky Rancillo

Brewers : Drip, French Press, Chemex, Siphon.....

Take your time and hopefully you can avoid information overload... Remember there is no substitute for a learning curve.... It's a process ...

BTW, there's a great link from an Australian roaster about roasting Ethiopian beans...

Tom

thanks for the brief treatise. i've already been researching the Quest M3, the buzz on it looks positive.

[puroagave]

[QUOTE=RedSectorA;92713]

Starbucks is the Bose of coffee.

As usual YMMV

their roasts are like licking an ash tray. i always ask how long ago their drip coffee was made "its only been an hour..." really ?! its clear their employees don't even drink coffee. the best thing about Peet's is they'll brew me a fresh batch every time.

[Glareskin]

In my machine, the La Pavoni Professional, which is the tubes & vinyl under the coffee machines the Lavazza black works best. I have never tastes better coffee than at home.

[RedSectorA]

In my machine, the La Pavoni Professional, which is the tubes & vinyl under the coffee machines the Lavazza black works best. I have never tastes better coffee than at home.

Need steady hand pressure with those machine, I use an Astoria which I tweaked so my pump does the heavy lifting .

I think you need to try good fresh coffee though Glareskin, you won't know what your machine can do until then.

[GaryProtein]

. . . . My advice to beginners is to standardize your brewing method* so that time and temperature are fixed. Then the variables are the coffee and the grind. Once you get a decent burr grinder (I have a Baratza) then just the coffee and your roasting technique are the only variables. Keep a log and have fun.

Ditch the auto drip as they don't get anywhere near 185-200*F which is the required temperature for serious coffee brewing. French Press, Pour-over, Chemex, Vaccum pots and aeropress are all way better than any auto drip below the the $200 Behmoor Brazen level.

Definitely keep a log and take copious notes. After a week and three or four trial runs go by, you'll be lost without written notes. Change ONLY ONE variable at a time or you'll just be wasting you time because you won't be able to replicate what you have done. With my Bloomfield which has fixed brewing cycles, there are still variables to consider: amount of coffee, the fineness of grind. The amount of water is always the amount to brew a full pot. Even on things like the Mocamaster, you can't brew different volumes of coffee and expect consistent results. With a French Press and the vintage old Vacuum pots can you brew different volumes of coffee and have consistent results because ALL the water and ALL the coffee are combined immediately and for the entire brewing time. I love and still use my grandmother's all stainless steel Cory Vacuum pot.

Starbucks have a tendency of over roasting their beans. . . .

Just a tendency??? I thought that was their raison d'etre.

Starbucks is the Bose of coffee. . . .

THAT'S a great line, probably only appreciated by audiophiles.

[hoosiertom]

[QUOTE=RedSectorA;92713]

Starbucks is the Bose of coffee.

As usual YMMV

I've worked for 3 Hi-Fi shops and the ProAc importer ( Mostly for salesman accomadations ) The most common phrase was..... " Bose Blows"

[GaryProtein]

I've worked for 3 Hi-Fi shops and the ProAc importer ( Mostly for salesman accomadations ) The most common phrase was..... " Bose Blows"

Don't forget, "no highs, no lows, must be Bose" and also Bose is the acronym for "Better Off with Something Else."

[Glareskin]

Need steady hand pressure with those machine, I use an Astoria which I tweaked so my pump does the heavy lifting .

I think you need to try good fresh coffee though Glareskin, you won't know what your machine can do until then.

Thanks for the advice but I have tried dozens of coffees and somehow keep coming back to this one. It is the combination though. In my Jura that we use for daily coffee the Lavazza doesn't work.

[RedSectorA]

Starbucks have a tendency of over roasting their beans. . . .

Just a tendency??? I thought that was their raison d'etre.

Being Canadian I have a tendency of being polite

[RedSectorA]

. . . . My advice to beginners is to standardize your brewing method* so that time and temperature are fixed. Then the variables are the coffee and the grind. Once you get a decent burr grinder (I have a Baratza) then just the coffee and your roasting technique are the only variables. Keep a log and have fun.

Ditch the auto drip as they don't get anywhere near 185-200*F which is the required temperature for serious coffee brewing. French Press, Pour-over, Chemex, Vaccum pots and aeropress are all way better than any auto drip below the the $200 Behmoor Brazen level.

Definitely keep a log and take copious notes. After a week and three or four trial runs go by, you'll be lost without written notes. Change ONLY ONE variable at a time or you'll just be wasting you time because you won't be able to replicate what you have done. With my Bloomfield which has fixed brewing cycles, there are still variables to consider: amount of coffee, the fineness of grind. The amount of water is always the amount to brew a full pot. Even on things like the Mocamaster, you can't brew different volumes of coffee and expect consistent results. With a French Press and the vintage old Vacuum pots can you brew different volumes of coffee and have consistent results because ALL the water and ALL the coffee are combined immediately and for the entire brewing time. I love and still use my grandmother's all stainless steel Cory Vacuum pot.

Words of wisdom!

Water dosage is automatic on my Astoria, I weigh the ground coffee to 14 grams and I time my brew, it should take 25 seconds. If I'm off I change my grind. As for roasting I have a spreadsheet that I keep when I initiate any change or introduce a new kind of green bean.

[RedSectorA]

I started roasting 3 years ago this coming January with a modified hot air popcorn popper. After a year I moved up to a Behmoor 1600. The Behmoor folks are great. They just updated the 1600 to allow more customization and they are making the upgrade available as a kit. I roast 2 lbs a week, one for home and one for work. I buy my beans from Bodhi Leaf Coffee Trading Co. as they are great people, have killer single origin beans, and are local. They sell on line as well. I use a French Press or an Aeropress with the Able Disk instead of a filter. If I'm able to go to the next level of roasters it may be a Huky 500. My advice to beginners is to standardize your brewing method* so that time and temperature are fixed. Then the variables are the coffee and the grind. Once you get a decent burr grinder (I have a Baratza) then just the coffee and your roasting technique are the only variables. Keep a log and have fun.

Ditch the auto drip as they don't get anywhere near 185-200*F which is the required temperature for serious coffee brewing. French Press, Pour-over, Chemex, Vaccum pots and aeropress are all way better than any auto drip below the the $200 Behmoor Brazen level.

+1

[RedSectorA]

Need steady hand pressure with those machine, I use an Astoria which I tweaked so my pump does the heavy lifting .

I think you need to try good fresh coffee though Glareskin, you won't know what your machine can do until then.

Thanks for the advice but I have tried dozens of coffees and somehow keep coming back to this one. It is the combination though. In my Jura that we use for daily coffee the Lavazza doesn't work.

I'm not judgemental I'm just curious, you tried local roasters or the bagged variety in the past?

[rbbert]

What a surprise! There are just as many opinions about the "best" coffee and the "best" way to prepare it as there are about audio gear

BTW, Starbucks has offered many lighter roasts for a while now (although I haven't tried any so I don't have an opinion on how well they do it). In general, "over"-roasting and/or dark roasting is a way to help otherwise inferior beans taste good by burning out some of the unpleasant properties.

[GaryProtein]

I have tried Starbucks Blonde as well as Kirkland's Starbucks Blonde whose slightly different name I don't recall. They are both good and the Blonde Starbucks, I think is their best offering.

[RedSectorA]

What a surprise! There are just as many opinions about the "best" coffee and the "best" way to prepare it as there are about audio gear

BTW, Starbucks has offered many lighter roasts for a while now (although I haven't tried any so I don't have an opinion on how well they do it). In general, "over"-roasting and/or dark roasting is a way to help otherwise inferior beans taste good by burning out some of the unpleasant properties.

Haven't seen them in Canada yet, had to go to 4Bucks not too long ago while on a trip. It was either that or the dish washing water the restaurant I was at had.

Absolutely right about over roasting, you kill everything. So cheap beans and good beans taste the same

[puroagave]

What a surprise! There are just as many opinions about the "best" coffee and the "best" way to prepare it as there are about audio gear

BTW, Starbucks has offered many lighter roasts for a while now (although I haven't tried any so I don't have an opinion on how well they do it). In general, "over"-roasting and/or dark roasting is a way to help otherwise inferior beans taste good by burning out some of the unpleasant properties.

they call the light roast Pike place and its drek...you can tell the stores sell very little drip coffee nowadays b/c they drain it off in one of those thermos dispensers and sits for who knows how long - a total waste of my time and two bucks. and you're right, someone i know in the biz says its common knowledge Fourbucks buys broken/inferior beans passed over by just about everyone else.

[rbbert]

I know they have several more lighter roasts than just Pike Place. And as far as homogenizing the coffee experience, espresso does that to a large extent as well (at least compared to carefully brewed coffee). It's much harder to appreciate the differences between beans with espresso.

[mep]

While were bitching about Starbucks, has anyone noticed that their stores have damn few coffee beans for sale that aren't a blend? They don't even sell Colombian beans in their stores anymore which is like Baskins Robins not selling vanilla or chocolate ice cream. They obviously have more profit in selling you their beans. I'm not a fan of blends. Maybe I will take the plunge and get into buying high quality beans and doing my own roasting.

[GaryProtein]

One advantage of blends, from a SELLING point of view is that they can make each bag/batch taste much more similar than unblended coffees which vary from vintage to vintage.

Consider how Tropicana OJ tastes the same all year, as does Maxwell House coffee. UNblended products are going to taste different over time.

[MikeCh]

One advantage of blends, from a SELLING point of view is that they can make each bag/batch taste much more similar than unblended coffees which vary from vintage to vintage.

Consider how Tropicana OJ tastes the same all year, as does Maxwell House coffee. UNblended products are going to taste different over time.

As it is with wine too.

Coffee to me is just not that important. We grind and brew in the morning and for after-dinner parties during dessert. I don't want to drink crap tasting coffee from a percolator or a mr. coffee or other automatic so we've used the manual Chemex with a consistent burr ground bean offering.

Some make claims about the roast-type-length-color making the most difference and perhaps they're right, but in my own experience using the Chemex allows what I feel is very important too.....that of temperature control. When a percolator will boil the shite out of coffee or coffee shops that serve coffee in excess of 650 degrees Fahrenheit, I believe that too alters the taste and smoothness.

Using the Chemex allows you to take fresh ground, pour a little just-boiled water over the grounds to let it bloom for two minutes, then go ahead and perform the fill and let-it-drip process in a controlled environment.

With this method the coffee itself is very much laid bare for flavor profile.

[GaryProtein]

Both the Chemex and French press allows you to fully control the brewing temperature to be lower than most people use.

Does anybody here make cold brewed coffee?

That is usually coarse ground coffee allowed to steep at room temperature for about 12 hours. It could be perfect for people who want to start their coffee at dinner time and drink it at breakfast the next morning.

[RedSectorA]

While were bitching about Starbucks, has anyone noticed that their stores have damn few coffee beans for sale that aren't a blend? They don't even sell Colombian beans in their stores anymore which is like Baskins Robins not selling vanilla or chocolate ice cream. They obviously have more profit in selling you their beans. I'm not a fan of blends. Maybe I will take the plunge and get into buying high quality beans and doing my own roasting.

I don't per say have a problems with blends as I almost exclusively drinks blends, what I have a problem with is when they don't identify the coffees they put in their blends. They call them Flowery Perception , Morning Glory (pun intended) but no reference as to what's in there, man that pisses me off.

As far as roasting, Mep take the plunge you won't regret it. Read and watch videos on the Internet to get the lowdown, if you are still confused afterwords don't hesitate to PM me I will help you. In the end it's so easy it's scary. Funny thing is that roasting is a lost art, most people roasted 100 years or so.

[RedSectorA]

One advantage of blends, from a SELLING point of view is that they can make each bag/batch taste much more similar than unblended coffees which vary from vintage to vintage.

Consider how Tropicana OJ tastes the same all year, as does Maxwell House coffee. UNblended products are going to taste different over time.

As it is with wine too.

Coffee to me is just not that important. We grind and brew in the morning and for after-dinner parties during dessert. I don't want to drink crap tasting coffee from a percolator or a mr. coffee or other automatic so we've used the manual Chemex with a consistent burr ground bean offering.

Some make claims about the roast-type-length-color making the most difference and perhaps they're right, but in my own experience using the Chemex allows what I feel is very important too.....that of temperature control. When a percolator will boil the shite out of coffee or coffee shops that serve coffee in excess of 650 degrees Fahrenheit, I believe that too alters the taste and smoothness.

Using the Chemex allows you to take fresh ground, pour a little just-boiled water over the grounds to let it bloom for two minutes, then go ahead and perform the fill and let-it-drip process in a controlled environment.

With this method the coffee itself is very much laid bare for flavor profile.

To me coffee is like audiophilia, it's all in the details! It starts with the right coffee beans all the way to brew, you screw up one part and the experience is lost!

[jtinn]

The Pacific Northwest probably has more choices than almost anywhere and Ristretto Roasters is easily the best coffee I have ever had. The espresso is also marvelous.

You can find them at Ristretto Roasters Dot Com