Coffee

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Wesley
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Coffee

Post by Wesley »

I was hoping to make a sub-thread to the Food thread, but whatever.

How many coffee drinkers out there? I would like to share stories with brewing techniques, choice of roast, coffee drinking habits, as well as memorable experiences involving drinking or making coffee.
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My favorite brewing method for the past few years has been the old Stovetop Percolator method. There is a pot that is taller than it is wide, and in the pot there is a hollow stem with a wide, inverted funnel for a base. A basket sits atop the stem with a filter for the ground coffee. As the water comes to a boil, the little bubbles collect in the upside down funnel and push some hot water up the tube and onto the grounds, where they will soak through the coffee and drip back down into the rest of the water. Coffee purists (read : snobs) will tell you this is terrible because the water gets too hot and extracts too many acids from the ground coffee bean. Not so! If you have the temperature of your stove at about medium/high, it will bring the water to just over a simmer. This way it is not a violent rolling boil, so it pushes the water up the tube more slowly, and the water in the tube has time to cool a little bit before dripping over the coffee. You let it go like this for as long as it takes to make the coffee as strong as you would like it. It takes more time than some other methods -- which I (or someone else) can describe later -- but it delivers a very rich, flavorful cup of coffee.
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BeatStick
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Re: Coffee

Post by BeatStick »

I started drinking coffee last year, at the age of 15-16, and I really like it. When I was younger my dad told me how he used to have a lot of sugar in his coffee, but around the age of 20, his dentist told him to cut down on it, and eventually he stopped having any sugar at all, so I thought I shouldn't have any sugar in my coffee to start with, and thus, I have a little milk in my coffee instead.
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UnknownSoldier
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Re: Coffee

Post by UnknownSoldier »

I've drank coffee for close to 18 years now. and while Zot the method of your choosing can make a rather nice blend I personally have found that the best way to make coffee is over a camp fire. How you ask? The solution is rather simple. most coffee blends now adays call for 3 - 4 spoon fulls per pot. In my opinion this makes the coffee rather weak. Taking a camp fire pot you add half a cup off coffee grounds. proceed to boil over an open fire for 10 to 15 minutes. There is no reason to filter the grounds. This makes a syrup type coffee that can be drank by itself or putting some in a cup you can add water to lighten the strength. This being said the camp fire pot that I use will hole around 6 cups of coffee, and when completed your left with about 4.5 cups of the coffee syrup. It has about the same density of maple syrup and while most people find it bitter to the point of not being drinkable without watering it down I've come to enjoy it. The same process can be done on the stove however it does not have that smokey flavor you get from wood.
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Yaz Pistachio
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Re: Coffee

Post by Yaz Pistachio »

I don't like coffee straight. I like coffee flavored things.
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UnknownSoldier
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Re: Coffee

Post by UnknownSoldier »

Yaz I would suggest to you to place some chocolate syrup into the next cup of coffee you get. Thats how I got my ex wife sterted drinking coffee.
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chex
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Re: Coffee

Post by chex »

I get iced coffee from Dunkin', and add caramel, sugar and cream.
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Re: Coffee

Post by Yaz Pistachio »

UnknownSoldier wrote:Yaz I would suggest to you to place some chocolate syrup into the next cup of coffee you get. Thats how I got my ex wife sterted drinking coffee.
That actually sounds really good.. I'll try it :)
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Wesley
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Re: Coffee

Post by Wesley »

The method I described and the method U.S. described both use the same kind of pot. The cowboy coffee pot, or campfire coffee pot. Here is a diagram showing how the water goes from the bottom to the top, then through the grounds, then turns into coffee.
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BeatStick
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Re: Coffee

Post by BeatStick »

Wow.
I really like coffee, but you're like... experts.
:D
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Giana
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Re: Coffee

Post by Giana »

I dont like coffee,i need it and i try to find replacements for it,but i dont like it.
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UnknownSoldier
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Re: Coffee

Post by UnknownSoldier »

Actually the pot I was talking about is your typical every day stove top pot. No perculation involved. just a steady boil of the coffee grounds in water. once fully complete you can put on pancakes if your of mind to. great way to stay awake. I believe the saying is, strong enough to stand a spoon up in
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Donden
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Re: Coffee

Post by Donden »

I don't have an special way to make my coffe, got a coffemachine at home ^^ Just to fill it with water and beans ^^ It cuts the beans down (right way to say it?) when you press the button for coffe ^^ I like strong coffe, but I put in just a little little milk to fix the taste :)
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Re: Coffee

Post by Wesley »

Okay! Now moving on to another kind of coffee maker, the Single Pass drip coffee maker. This is the most common kind of electric coffee maker in the world. Grounds go in filter paper up top, water is heated in a separate tank, then dripped through the grounds and into the pot. Like this: Image
The coffee maker Donden described is a really high tech version of this, where it grinds the beans right before brewing for very fresh, bold flavor. These types of coffee makers are very convenient, very easy to use, and they make an unoffensive cup of coffee. Perfect for a college kid or first time coffee drinker. Personally I do not like these because with the water only touching the grounds once, and not for very long, there is a bunch of flavor and stuff left behind in the grounds and in the filter that never reaches your cup! Purists often like these because they say the more expensive ones control the temperature of the water so as not to over-extract the acidic oils from the bean. Blah blah blah. You know who was making coffee for a long long time before these were made? Damn near the whole world! But I don't want to make this into an argument for or against any method of making coffee. The nice thing about these coffee makers is that they are cheap and you can buy them in any department store in the world.
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Re: Coffee

Post by LaLou »

I use that one only once or twice a year.
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Re: Coffee

Post by bella »

I have the usual coffee machine, good enough for my morning coffee, whereas I have fond memories of my grandma grinding coffee on Sundays, putting a filter on a nice coffee pot and letting hot water drip through the filter full with fresh coffee. And there was of course a Sunday cake. I loved her fruit cake with peaches and almonds...

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Another machine I sometimes use is one which works with coffee pads; the coffee (and milk) is sealed in little plastic containers (much waste, I know). Usually I use it for Latte Macchiato, the other brews have a bitter aftertaste.
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Re: Coffee

Post by Forky »

I usually brew coffee in a commercial machine aswell, if i need loads of coffee. When i want a cup for myself i use either a filter with ground powder and our hot water through it, right into my cup under it. Or i use instant coffee powder. Yes, that sounds like a deadly sin, but it tastes "okay" - I know how good a fresh ground coffee can be :P
Instant coffee powder is more like coked coffee shock-freezed.

Uhm, The cowboy pot you use reminded me of that espresso pot many use around here:
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The water goes through the powder only once here, but goes through it as steam aswell. Even with normal coffee this tastes well and is quick to brew.

Some other methods regarding to coffee machines: You can add different stuff to the coffee powder, like salt, ground cardamom or even cinemon. The cardamom tastes interesting, but doesn't fit everyone.


Hey and there are these Bodum cans: you fill water in a pot with coffee powder and push down a sieve - tadaaaa:
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But i don't like them, because the coffee powder escapes partly and when the powder is in my mouth it's just eeeew...
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Re: Coffee

Post by Wesley »

Awesome! But maybe too much for just one post. Let's talk about the espresso pot:
With Espresso (NOT EXpresso, you silly Americans!) the brew is made with the water at a very high pressure and temperature. Once the water boils, the pressure of the steam created pushes the water up through the coffee into the storage part of the pot. This method extracts almost EVERYTHING from the ground coffee! Tons of flavor, all the caffeine, and a bunch of the acidic oils that you don't get from Mr Coffee. It is like having a whole cup of coffee in one sip. It is strong enough that if you dilute it with milk or anything, it will still be very rich and flavorful. That cappuccino you just drank? Yup, it started with a shot of espresso, then they added some steamed milk and milk foam. More about that later.

The espresso pot in Forky's post is not the only way to make espresso. A creative Italian gentleman, who wanted his employees to take less time for their coffee break, is credited with the invention of the modern espresso machine. It uses levers and valves to shoot the boiling water and steam at about 130 PSI through the packed coffee grounds. WOW! All because he thought his workers were taking too long to brew coffee the regular way.... Anyway, since the first exciting and dangerous high pressure espresso machine was invented, the design has been adjusted and refined, the recipe and grind of coffee has been played with, now people can get the "perfect" shot of espresso to make whatever kind of coffee drink they want!
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Re: Coffee

Post by Wesley »

Now the other pot in Forky's post: The French Press.

This is a good pot for authentic coffee flavor. There is no paper filter, just a fine metal mesh, so you don't taste the paper in your coffee! You put the grounds in the pot, pour in the hot water, and put the lid on. The filter is on a long handle that goes through the lid, and after you think it is strong enough you push down on the handle which makes the screen push the grounds to the bottom of the pot. I don't own one of these, but seeing my friends use them it seems they are a bit of a chore to clean up. The coffee is tasty and takes flavor well. And you don't need a stove or a hotplate to use this, just water and a microwave will do the trick! I have even seen a single serving size French Press coffee pot, and I may get one just to satisfy my curiosity and to add to my collection.
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Re: Coffee

Post by LaLou »

My mum has one of those. It's the reason I never drink coffee there. There is always a residu of the coffee grounds in the cup, and I don't like the taste of this coffee.
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Re: Coffee

Post by Wesley »

I find that with a French Press you have to grind your own coffee. Commercial grinds are too uneven and have too much small stuff that can get through the mesh and into your mouth. If I were to get a press like that, I would grind my coffee very coarse and just let it brew a little longer.
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