What’s on your coffee bench? - Page 50

charliedid · #**736** 12-03-2020, 07:03 PM

I just let the grounds dry out a bit when using a French press. Pull the plunger out and knock it in the waste can. When things are a bit drier in an hour or so I use a "jar spatula" and it makes quick work of the grounds. Easy as pie.

C40_guy · #**737** 12-07-2020, 02:23 PM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiI-GSRgWrw

If you like warm, sweet coffee...

tctyres · #**738** 12-07-2020, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by C40_guy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiI-GSRgWrw

If you like warm, sweet coffee...

https://youtu.be/rfbb4yRBH64

d_douglas · #**739** 12-21-2020, 11:28 AM

I confess, I am a coffee lover and have not once looked at this 11pg thread.

Yesterday, I dropped into an excellent coffee shop while out on a family adventure. They sell espresso machines as well as having a busy coffee shop (and it is a standard stop when going to the best mountainbiking on Vancouver Island!)

Anyways, the owner happened to be there and strikes up a conversation as I am looking at a couple of machines sitting on a counter. Turns out they also service machines privately and commercially far and wide, so they're more expert than just making good coffee!

After a spiel about a used Silvia (one that I was hoping to buy one day) that had just been sold to someone else and a couple of other machines, I was struck by his rather honest comment that he thought that 'espresso is kinda 'over'". He proceeded to tell me that there is such a limited pool of espresso beans versus other options. He said he doesn't even use his machine anymore, as he loves pourover coffee so much more because he can try a single origin bean from somewhere and there is so much more diversity of flavour - he likened it to the varietals of grapes for wine.

It was an interesting claim for someone trying to sell a $1000 machine to me, and I appreciated his honesty. I love coffee and these days, it comes in the form of a double shot Americano (and yes, its ironic that Canadians call it an Americano!) or (gasp) - we have a nespresso machine at home.

I am slowly convincing my wife that nespresso is evil (though Ive tasted way worse coffee) and that we should go back to a more conventional way of making coffee. Also, when I drink drip coffee (good stuff), it makes my stomache churn a bit and this doesn't happen with espresso - why is that?

Anyways, pourovers? Espresso? I am asking because now I am thinking about options for great pourover coffee instead of a machine (which has been in my sights for years). What are your thoughts? Or should I read this thread and my pourover questions will be answered???

mwynne · #**740** 12-21-2020, 11:37 AM

Both!

For me, it's a morning pourover (and usually a light/medium roast, play with different roasters), and then usually an afternoon cortado or something like that (I tend to prefer a traditional espresso roast, but that's partly due to the limitations of my machine). I get different things out of different brew methods - plus the roasting and cafe industry is always changing.

Was that perhaps out at Drumroaster?

9tubes · #**741** 12-21-2020, 11:46 AM

To me, espresso and pourover are two entirely different drinks. Different taste, different buzz.

jkbrwn · #**742** 12-21-2020, 12:05 PM

Interesting perspective. I think home espresso is better than it’s ever been at a cheaper entry point than it’s ever been, so for me, I’ve had a lot of fun this year trying different espresso. So much so that I neglected pour over. However, I recently purchased a very nice double walled carafe from Fellow and in doing so have been doing 500ml of pour over in the morning and a double in the afternoon. It’s been great. Best of both worlds.
As it’s now cooler in Los Angeles and pretty darn cold in the morning, I wanted something warm that I could just sip on to warm me up. So pour over is obviously perfect for that. The carafe keeps a second cup warm and tasting good for over an hour, so it’s been a great buy so far.

echappist · #**743** 12-21-2020, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jkbrwn

Interesting perspective. I think home espresso is better than it’s ever been at a cheaper entry point than it’s ever been, so for me, I’ve had a lot of fun this year trying different espresso. So much so that I neglected pour over. However, I recently purchased a very nice double walled carafe from Fellow and in doing so have been doing 500ml of pour over in the morning and a double in the afternoon. It’s been great. Best of both worlds.
As it’s now cooler in Los Angeles and pretty darn cold in the morning, I wanted something warm that I could just sip on to warm me up. So pour over is obviously perfect for that. The carafe keeps a second cup warm and tasting good for over an hour, so it’s been a great buy so far.

Sorry, I chuckled a bit when I saw that. It doesn't get nearly that cold in LA.

Back on topic, I used to drink only espressos, but I'm older now and live in a really cold climate (upper Midwest). Once upon a time, I wouldn't have contemplated French press, but I'll say that it's really nice to have on a cold day.

For whatever reason, I tend to run cold these days. The room is 68 F (20 C), and I'm wearing a long sleeve Craft base layer, a LS jersey, a LS jacket, and a puffer vest. Despite all that, I'm still feeling cold. So consumption of French press has gone up.

Also, +1 to the (presumably silicone) spatula idea above. Makes disposal of grounds a lot easier.

jkbrwn · #**744** 12-21-2020, 12:27 PM

I know it’s not that cold, but when it’s 85°+ for most of the year, when I wake up and it’s 63° in my apartment, it feels cold. You also have to bear in mind that the San Gabriel Valley experiences both temperature extremes. Gets very hot and very cold. My 1957 built apartment building was not built with any insulation either. Trust me. It’s cold.

Also back onto topic, the best thing about espresso for me, other than flavour, is the speed. Can make and drink it in less time than it takes to make a pour over. Much faster if you need a morning kick pre-ride.

d_douglas · #**745** 12-21-2020, 01:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mwynne

Both!

For me, it's a morning pourover (and usually a light/medium roast, play with different roasters), and then usually an afternoon cortado or something like that (I tend to prefer a traditional espresso roast, but that's partly due to the limitations of my machine). I get different things out of different brew methods - plus the roasting and cafe industry is always changing.

Was that perhaps out at Drumroaster?

Yes, I guess that is the case - theyre different drinks. I treat coffee as coffee. I used to drink lattes, then have tried to wean myself off the high volume of milk - hence Americanos (with oat milk). We have a nice S/S French press that I bought my wife two xmases ago and it gets used more often for tea. Maybe I should revive that tradition?

I love the smell and look of a gorgeous crema that comes with espresso.

Oh yeah, it was Drumroaster! Its great coffee and treats. My kids hate driving, so that is the carrot at the end of the stick - a treat while my lady and I guzzle a java.

mwynne · #**746** 12-21-2020, 01:11 PM

I mean in our house the pourover (and now espresso machine) get the most use. But we also used to do a lot of french press and still do on occasion, also use a moka pot now and then, do cold brew seasonally, take the aeropress camping...

I like a small (4-8 oz) milk drink, but I also bounce between dairy and non-dairy kind of at random.

I finally go out to Drumroaster for the first time a little while back and it is so good! Had some brilliant baking from them, and picked up a bag of their Julekaffe - a very nice roast for pourover.

froze · #**747** 12-21-2020, 05:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by d_douglas

Anyways, pourovers? Espresso? I am asking because now I am thinking about options for great pourover coffee instead of a machine (which has been in my sights for years). What are your thoughts? Or should I read this thread and my pourover questions will be answered???

I've actually heard this before, not sure what to think of it though, espresso coffee shops keep popping up like flies on flypaper, so there must still be a market for it.

Pour-over coffee is cheap to buy the equipment for too. Who makes the best pour-over device? I personally think they're all virtually the same, just look at the designs and how they work I think proves that but people who think there is a difference seem to prefer Chemex over the others, but I think that's because it looks nicer than the others and not that it makes better pour-overs. I have two types, I have the Hario V60 for home and a GSI ultralight for camping, guess what? I can't tell the difference in the flavor of one coffee maker over the other! That leads me to believe that there isn't any difference, just buy one with high reviews, and the V60 gets a perfect 5 star from Amazon with over 3,000 reviews, so that says something about the V60, plus the V60 can be had in different colors and designs which is way cool if you want to look good in your particular kitchen.

I do like the taste of a pour-over coffee, but I like to change things up, so I rotate between the Pour Over, Aeropress, Moka Pot, French Press, Turkish, and Cold Brew. I know, that sounds crazy to have all those but they're all cheap to buy, they average about $25 each, as does the V60 pour-over. So I have about $150 in coffee makers, but instead of spending $400 for a manually operated espresso maker, I can make all sorts of different flavors from 6 different ways. All the ways I have are easy to make except for the Turkish one, that one is more time consuming and a bit more tricky to brew correctly.