What’s on your coffee bench?

[benb]

Originally Posted by KonaSS

Decaf drinker here as well. (hangs head in shame)

The is so little decent decaf in the market. That is why I started roasting my own coffee. Really enjoy the process and it is fun trying new beans and roast levels.

How do you decaffeinate the coffee at home? Or does decaffeination happen before roasting, so you can buy stuff that's already been caffeinated and then roast at home?

[stackie]

I really like the Clever brewer. It’s a plastic filter one brewer with a valve in the bottom. Simplistically, you place a filter in it, add your ground coffee, and pour 200degree water into it. Stir, let sit for 4 minutes and then pick up off volunteer and set on your drinking vessel. The rim of your vessel actuates the valve allowing the coffee to drain into the cup. Pull the filter out and toss in compost. Rinse the cover and your good to go. It’s essentially French press style immersion brewing, except with a filter do you do lose some oils. But cleanup so much easier than the French press.

Bonavita makes a similar one in ceramic.

I think these are easier than the aero press.

The clever brewers are about 22 on Amazon.

Jon

[Mzilliox]

Originally Posted by benb

How do you decaffeinate the coffee at home? Or does decaffeination happen before roasting, so you can buy stuff that's already been caffeinated and then roast at home?

decaffeination happens before roasting. you buy the decaf beans already decaffed, then roast to your liking. i used to roast a mexican decaf that was decent and we used it in shop for espresso as well. most decent coffees have ratings you can find, just like wines.

[ScottW]

Originally Posted by echappist

...
i would think Aeropress or pour-over would work equally well...

Originally Posted by R3awak3n

I say aeropress too. thats what I use for myself everyday everytime I am traveling for work

Originally Posted by stackie

I really like the Clever brewer...

Cheers guys, will look into these. Already been searching for local roasters and found a couple within a close distance from home.

[AngryScientist]

I have, and still use a lot of fancy equipment; and no one’s answers here are wrong of course; but I have found a real love in the last few years for pour over brewing. Once you get your proportions and routine down; it’s dead simple; repeatable and enjoyable. You can get away with a cheaper grinder for pour over too with the coarser grind that it requires.

With pour over, the single biggest factor is good fresh beans.

IMO; of course.

Originally Posted by ScottW

I realize this question is below the general level of discussion in this thread, but I don't know any serious coffee geeks IRL so here goes...

What is the easiest & cheapest way to brew good black coffee in single-serve quantities (say, 8 to 12 oz for a travel mug/tumbler)? Consider that I'm currently using K-cups at home. At work I use the free-to-me Nespresso pods which I brew on the largest volume, then again to add 50-100% more water so it resembles something more like normal coffee or an Americano. Point being, the bar for improvement is extremely low, but so is my desire to spend big money on this.
FWIW I do have a Cuisinart burr grinder from my pre-kid days when I had time to mess with making a full pot before rushing out the door in the a.m.
What should I be looking at in terms of brewing apparatus? Aeropress? Seems like cleanup with the filters would be a little easier/quicker than a French press.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by ScottW

Cheers guys, will look into these. Already been searching for local roasters and found a couple within a close distance from home.

not sure where in NoVA you are, but i'd recommend Misha's in Alexandria if that's close to where you are. It's the grungy café I mentioned upthread.

[Mzilliox]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

I have, and still use a lot of fancy equipment; and no one’s answers here are wrong of course; but I have found a real love in the last few years for pour over brewing. Once you get your proportions and routine down; it’s dead simple; repeatable and enjoyable. You can get away with a cheaper grinder for pour over too with the coarser grind that it requires.

With pour over, the single biggest factor is good fresh beans.

IMO; of course.

if you are at home, i agree pourover is superior to aeropress. for camping and travel, aeropress is the winner.

there is something so satisfying every morning about the routine and even meditative qualities of the pourover. and the cleanest cups possible result from this style of brewing. as mentioned above, a filter can absorb some oils, but the majority of this can be mitigated by simply pre wetting the filter, which also simultaneously warms your vessel. i no longer like the particulate matter from a french press in my coffee. i much prefer the clean cup and enhanced mouth feel of pourovers. aeropresses can make a lovely cup, but they can also make a pretty bad cup from time to time, and you (probably) have to add water.

[Monsieur Toast]

Originally Posted by Mzilliox

if you are at home, i agree pourover is superior to aeropress. for camping and travel, aeropress is the winner.

there is something so satisfying every morning about the routine and even meditative qualities of the pourover. and the cleanest cups possible result from this style of brewing. as mentioned above, a filter can absorb some oils, but the majority of this can be mitigated by simply pre wetting the filter, which also simultaneously warms your vessel. i no longer like the particulate matter from a french press in my coffee. i much prefer the clean cup and enhanced mouth feel of pourovers. aeropresses can make a lovely cup, but they can also make a pretty bad cup from time to time, and you (probably) have to add water.

I backpack and sleep out of my truck combined two months a year on average and make coffee with a pour over 100% of the time for my coffee after giving away my Aeropress. If I'm car camping I use a Hario plastic V60 ... cleanup is absurdly easy with the usage of a paper filter that gets dumped in the bucket or campfire after I make a cup. Cleanup is a splash of water in the plastic V60. With an Aeropress I have to clean the filter, the gasket, etc. The Aeropress required more work and water for me, which is a big deal in high desert and especially backpacking. When I'm backpacking I leave the Hario plastic V60 in the truck and switch to my Sea to Summit collapsible pour over (X-Brew Coffee Dripper).

That said, the friend I gave the Aeropress to brings it along camping & backpacking, so I see it in action every morning. It's not a complete hassle, but his cleaning process takes more time and effort. On top of it I prefer the coffee a pour over makes, so a no-brainer for me. But he's also perfectly content with the Aeropress, so I guess my point is .... use what you like?

[ScottW]

Originally Posted by echappist

not sure where in NoVA you are, but i'd recommend Misha's in Alexandria if that's close to where you are. It's the grungy café I mentioned upthread.

I'm over in the Falls Church & Annandale area. Will keep that shop in mind next time I'm headed that way. Looks like a short hop off the MVT which I ride a good bit when the weather is nicer. Closest roasters to me on the google map are Beanetics in Annandale, then Rare Bird up in Falls Church City.

[AngryScientist]

i concur that for camping, i also prefer pour over for simplicity and ease of cleanup. i have the snowpeak foldable pourover thingie and it's great. paper filter and grounds in the fire at night and done.

anyway, i'm home today and just breaking into some fresh beans from the local roaster. man, they are really good.

i do find with pour over, my preferred taste/strength is not always achieved with the same amount of grounds. based on the particular batch/roast, i do have to adjust the ratios a bit to get it perfect.

i also do not scrutinize about water temp. i let the water come to a boil, remove heat and sit about 30 seconds and pour. i've been thinking about an electric kettle for the kitchen to dial in the temp specifically - what do you guys think about that?

[benb]

I agree with the comments about just doing pour over for something simple at home... It has pretty much become my favorite, although I have never tried an aeropress, nor has anyone ever served me a cup of coffee from an aeropress.

I have a Hario V60 & I got a Chemex 6-cup for Xmas.. I use the Hario day to day for myself and the Chemex comes out if we have guests.

It's taken a while for me to get it figured out exactly how I like it but that control is there. For me what really works is a medium grind, as opposed to some of the recipes that are a bit finer. I do 15:1 with a medium grind and pour the water in about 4 pours, with time between for most of the water to drip out. This seems to reduce some of the acidity and really bring out the flavors.

Can't beat the price on this stuff either. Espresso stuff is just so expensive.. way easier for me to go to a cafe when I want that. I could make coffee for 20 years with the Hario for the price of a nice espresso machine I suspect.

I do think you need to get a good grinder & a scale to really get the best out of pour overs but that is not expensive either.. I have a $20 scale and a $99 grinder.. I've had about 4 grinders.. not sure where the price/performance scale starts to flatten out but the $100-200 range is a lot nicer than the $50 range. There is some hype about some of the cheap grinders but I've found they aren't that great and they are a lot of work. I had a Hario Skerton Pro and it is very overrated IMO. Not very consistent and a LOT of work. No way I would ever be making coffee for 3-4 people with the Chemex with a hand grinder.

[Monsieur Toast]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

i also do not scrutinize about water temp. i let the water come to a boil, remove heat and sit about 30 seconds and pour. i've been thinking about an electric kettle for the kitchen to dial in the temp specifically - what do you guys think about that?

I used an electric kettle at my old office so knew the temperature was always "perfect." At home I bring a kettle up to a boil on the stove, let it sit for maybe 5 seconds, and then start pouring. I used a Thermapen a few times to dial in temperature on my water at home before using, but honestly I never noticed enough of a difference between temperatures to justify making my mornings more complicated.

For me a cup of coffee has some latitude and forgiveness to it with regards to methodology when brewing. If I were pulling shots I'd be a lot more specific.

[Mzilliox]

i like you guys

[crankles]

In order of preference:

A nice double espresso, black or con panna if I'm in the mood.
An Aeropress Americano
A pour over.
Mokapot.
Dunkin Donuts, Regular (nostalgia..drank so many of these with a roofing crew in my youth that I indulge on occasion when back east).

The Aeropress and Melita are a bit of a wash. As mentioned above, the slight edge the aeropress has over the Melita in taste (IMHO) is negated by the ease of cleanup with a melita. I like both

[jpritchet74]

I am on the Silca mailing list, so when I got the email about these being available I couldn't resist. Only 10 in the world and I have #6.

So now my next machine will have to be a Rocket.