Coffee Talk

[Freed Roger]

Jeepers - look at all these types of coffees

I'm guessing it's like beer, and you don't go jumping into funky tripels or barleywines right away. What's a good bean that's commonly available (i.e. @ Whole Foods ) that might lead to expanding my horizons?

[heyzeus]

[ghostrunner]

Also, check reviews on the French presses as always, but cheap ones can be perfectly fine. I used a model similar to this for years and it was great. ($14).

http://www.amazon.com/Primula-6-Cup-Tem ... 408&sr=1-4

I use a thermal one now, but they stupidly left the spout exposed so it doesn't really keep it warm for that long.

Thrill - I haven't tried the Chemex or other pour overs. Probably won't at this point unless I use someone else's, just because I'm satisfied with the press.

What sold me on the press was trying it when I worked at Starbucks many years ago - they will actually make you a press if you ask for it. It seemed to taste better than anything I'd had previously. I'm not sure if it's due to the oils (which you lose with the paper filters) or something else. It's supposedly less acidic too, which can be better for some people's stomachs.

I've seen that argued (chemex vs press) before and it seems to boil down to personal taste. Chemex - cleaner coffee, more time spent during the brew, less time spent cleaning up. French Press - some particles (more "body"), less acidic, clean up can be a pain.

The big problem with Starbucks is their water temperature. They make it hot trying to keep it warm for a stream of customers and the beans come in 10 pound sealed bags. Apart from lowering the temperature, there's no way to do what they do on that scale. The beans they sell to customers aren't fresh by any means, but I've bought beans there or at the grocery when I know I'm not going by the place where I prefer anytime soon. Beats having no coffee.

I should add, I'm a lousy coffee snob as I use cream and sugar. Purists are all about black coffee, which is fair, but all the same stuff about taste and body still applies no matter how you take it.

[thrill]

I should add, I'm a lousy coffee snob as I use cream and sugar.

Immediate disqualification.

I'm guessing it's like beer, and you don't go jumping into funky tripels or barleywines right away. What's a good bean that's commonly available (i.e. @ Whole Foods ) that might lead to expanding my horizons?

Not really, in my experience. If you like black coffee, you won't be overwhelmed. It'd be more like the difference between eating McDonald's hamburgers your whole life and then suddenly being fed a fresh and delicious, grass-fed beef hamburger. Although in some cases, people are so used to terrible coffee and have grown to love it that fresh coffee is gross to them.

This looks like a place you might want to swing by sometime - http://www.sumpcoffee.com/
Douche factor looks pretty high, but that's to be expected.

[Freed Roger]

This looks like a place you might want to swing by sometime - http://www.sumpcoffee.com/
Douche factor looks pretty high, but that's to be expected.

Luke has recommended that place. Turns out we had a coffee thread a few years ago. Feel free to use your mod-merge powers if you wish.

[Jocephus]

[a_smith]

if you want the best way to make your coffee taste better get a burr grinder. You can get a decent hand grinder for $40.
Blade grinders are better than nothing, but they beat the snot out of your beans and take a lot out of the flavor.

The chemex is just an awesome way to go. Elegant simple.
For $80 you can have a chemex and a hand grinder and make the tastiest coffee of your life.

If you want a great drip coffeemaker look at a Moccamaster. Pricey, but they make great coffee and they never break down.

Thanks for the suggestions Thrill I am going to order some coffee from 30/30 the next time I need some.

[Freed Roger]

I have a cheap grinder. I dont understand how it can be different, it still ends up as grounds.

[a_smith]

blade grinders don't grind evenly which is bad for taste. you want the right thickness for your method-thicker for french press, super fine for espresso because you want to control how long the water is in contact with the bean. When you use a blade grinder you get uneven grinds, which results in bitterness and other problems.

they also heat up the beans which hurts flavor


that said, any grinder is better than buying pre-ground coffee

[thrill]

I have a cheap grinder. I dont understand how it can be different, it still ends up as grounds.

smith nailed it above. Basically everything he and I are talking about just makes coffee go from good to great. If good is good enough, don't sweat it. A burr grinder just makes it a consistent size which means if you are grinding for a french press for example, you'll get all larger grains of coffee. If you use a blade grinder, some grains will be large and filtered out by the press but some will be super small and get through the filter which will give you a dirtier cup, which if you're using fresh, well roasted beans, will drown out the subtleties of the flavor. Also like he said, it heats up the beans while grinding. If you're using beans that have been carefully roasted by a roaster to perfectly suit the complexion of the specific, single origin bean, roasting it further while grinding will change that flavor profile and make it harsher.