Comments on: Advice, oh ye coffee drinkers

By: sheepish

sheepish — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 17:30:56 +0000

Not a great deal of advice here, because I’ve got cheap shit at home and expensive industrial machines at work. I will warn you that the coffee/espresso combo machines generally do not produce coffee. What I mean by that is that you are basically getting an americano - espresso and some hot water. Those are perfectly fine, but it’s considerably different than brewed coffee. I like brewed coffee in the morning, espresso-type beverages in the afternoon, so I don’t think that would be the choice for me. I’d personally go with two separate machines, but maybe there is a magical one out there?

By: feithy

feithy — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 18:21:41 +0000

Bodum coffee press and milk frother. They take up very little room, and produce lovely cups of regular or cappuchino.

As for espresso - use the stove top one. Yum.

By: wolfa

wolfa — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 18:43:03 +0000

I do need a normal coffee maker too, though, not least because Bodum is only good for smaller amounts and cools down quickly. But I think I will replace my Bodum and buy a frother.

By: Cougar Allen

Cougar Allen — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 20:05:47 +0000

The best way is to put a cone filter directly on top of a *steel* thermos bottle. The coffee is not exposed to oxygen (much) so it doesn’t get bitter and toxic.
#
You can get a machine with a thermal carafe but all I’ve seen have a glass thermos. Near-boiling water pouring onto cold glass is a bit of a strain. In my experience after a few months or a year of use they explode and I don’t like dealing with explosions before I’ve had my coffee. That’s why I recommend using a steel thermos bottle. I have to heat the water in a kettle and pour it into the cone filter by hand but that’s easy enough. We don’t need machines to do *everything* for us….

By: the Bailiff

the Bailiff — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 20:15:51 +0000

Just FYI, I have the stainless-steel Bodum press, and I love it. It’s one of the best kitchen purchases I’ve ever made!

By: wolfa

wolfa — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 20:16:09 +0000

Cougar: no. We don’t *need* machines, we *want* machines. We want machines that will do it for us in the morning so we do not burn ourselves. So we can get coffee the very moment we get out of bed! But mostly so we won’t burn ourselves on a kettle or by spilling lots of hot water.

There are lots of machines with thermal carafes — I currently have one — and I’m not averse to them, though I’ve never had the exploding kettle problem. This is maybe because I pour the water from the kettle into the water tank, and usually use warm water?

By: oliviacw

oliviacw — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 20:20:37 +0000

I LOVE my Cuisinart “Grind and Brew” machine. It makes up to 12 cups, but has a setting that adjusts temperature and such if you’re only making a small pot. It has a timer, and best of all it has a built-in grinder, so you can load it up with beans and water and get freshly ground coffee anytime. (Or you can use pre-ground).

It’s available from many fine retailers, including in Canada, I’m sure, but here’s one link:
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=13234132&RN=69
(It does come in other colors, but mine is red like this!)

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 21:45:40 +0000

I bought the cheapest 12 cup Mr. Coffee with a timer I could find at a Target store.

It has served me well, except the time I found a spider in the water resevoir part. But I removed the spider and all was fine once again.

I’ve been thinking about getting one of those french press thingies though. I have a roomate who does coffee the turkish way (at least I think she said it was the turkish way) which is super fine ground coffee boiled in a pan with water. No fancy machines, no fancy filters. I have not tried it though…

By: sheepish

sheepish — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 23:32:25 +0000

I have a french press thingy and it annoys me. I’m never patient enough to go slowly so that I don’t get a TON of grounds. Maybe I don’t have the grind setting right either?

By: wolfa

wolfa — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 00:11:37 +0000

Turkish coffee is delicious, but it needs to be savoured less often.

Sheepish, the grind should be as coarse as possible. But if you’re not patient, don’t bother with a French press — it’s not worth it. But it’s faster than a drip, isn’t it? You can have coffee 4 minutes after you put in the hot water.

By: Cougar Allen

Cougar Allen — Fri, 27 Jan 2006 00:34:11 +0000

I used to keep a Black & Decker one mug at a time coffee maker next to my bed, fully loaded so when I woke up I would push the button and in four minutes I would have a mug of coffee.

By: strawdog

strawdog — Sun, 14 May 2006 17:47:04 +0000

Dudes, although the machince can make some difference, it is the coffee ultimately that really matters. Stop buying Folgers and Maxwell House. Best idea is to buy green coffee beans and roast at home. If you don’t like that idea, buy them already roated and then grind them at home but only as many as you need per use. A dark or french roast is most versital until you discover your own favorite. Try diffenent beans from various regions of the world, it all makes a difference

By: I don’t buy it from the dollar store, either : a wolf angel is not a good angel

Sun, 14 May 2006 21:16:39 +0000

[…] Dudes, although the machince can make some difference, it is the coffee ultimately that really matters. Stop buying Folgers and Maxwell House. […]