Coffee

[Manveer]

How does the coffee from these espresso machines compares to the one you get from cafes? Probably similar?

What I get from the Gaggia Classic is similar. I haven’t bought espresso in a coffee shop in a while, though.

[Idlehands]

How does the coffee from these espresso machines compares to the one you get from cafes? Probably similar?
And how come no one in US brews what we'd call 'normal' turkish coffee, the one you actually boil water, add the roast and boil some more.

-Coffee expert level beginner.

we do
but the grind is absurdly fine for turkish

[iamsmu]

Where are some good places to buy beans from during a pandemic?

Roasted or not. I have a heat gun (and an air popper), so I might try roasting my own. I don't have a dog bowl though, just some normal metal bowls and pans.

[Manveer]

Where are some good places to buy beans from during a pandemic?

Roasted or not. I have a heat gun (and an air popper), so I might try roasting my own. I don't have a dog bowl though, just some normal metal bowls and pans.

My local roasters/coffee shops are open for pick up.

Sweet Maria’s seems to be popular for unroasted beans.

[iamsmu]

Sweet Maria’s seems to be popular for unroasted beans.

Thanks. Sweet Maria's has some good info. I fell down a rabbit hole for a while on the best popcorn poppers to use for roasting. . . .

I'm going to try a sampler. There's a flavor in some coffees that I just can't stand. It's a sharpness that's not acidic. I can't put my finger on it (maybe copper tasting). I need a sample to find the shared adjective. I'd hate to order 8 pounds of something with that character.

[Hanley]

I don't have a dog bowl though

..cat people...

Normal bowl should be fine...just shake it a lot. The dog bowl is heavy, so I can heat and stir (somewhat) precisely with a wooden spoon without the bowl sliding all over the place.

[hsilman]

I get my beans from Sweet Maria. Shipping times are still pretty reasonable.

I Also have a gaggia classic, but honestly I only use it a few times a month.

[murphyreedus]

It's $139 but it's really nice, and I'm really happy I got it.

I finally pulled the trigger on a grinder and ended up getting the Baratza. Probably overkill for me, but my wife apparently got annoyed enough at the pos grinder we have (since she's actually using it with us not visiting coffee shops right now) that she's very enthusiastic about getting a good one. I like the fact that they sell replacement parts for discontinued models as well, so I'm hoping it's a buy one cry once type of product. Should have it next week.

[murphyreedus]

Was supposed to be here May 1st, got here today. Guess I get to try it out tonight to start some cold brew.

Also ordered a Zojirushi thermal carafe. For some reason the 1.6L was like half the price of the 1L, so I went with that one. I usually brew with a Presto 12cup electric percolator right now, and the coffee goes from "pretty decent" to "blah" after an hour or two if I leave it plugged in and heating. It keeps the flavor much better but loses heat fast if I turn the heat off. Not usually a problem on the weekend when the wife is home, but during the week when by myself I usually take a few hours to kill a pot.

Now to start looking for local beans and figgering out how to make non-shitty coffee.

[Allentown]

Bought the Kirkland medium roast giant bag, trying to save a few bucks with the lower income and second kid on the way. Roasted by Starbucks. I should have let that be a warning.

Starbucks is terrible. The coffee they roast for other companies is also terrible.

[Idlehands]

It's $139 but it's really nice, and I'm really happy I got it.

I finally pulled the trigger on a grinder and ended up getting the Baratza. Probably overkill for me, but my wife apparently got annoyed enough at the pos grinder we have (since she's actually using it with us not visiting coffee shops right now) that she's very enthusiastic about getting a good one. I like the fact that they sell replacement parts for discontinued models as well, so I'm hoping it's a buy one cry once type of product. Should have it next week.

love my virtuoso . Actually grinds too fine if i do the lowest setting for espresso. Can't get a pull.
~20 is what I end up with autodrip.

[murphyreedus]

love my virtuoso . Actually grinds too fine if i do the lowest setting for espresso. Can't get a pull.
~20 is what I end up with autodrip.

I tried 30 this morning with the Encore and the Sam's Club bulk beans my wife bought. It's not bad, but not super flavorful, so I think I'll back it down into the 20s tomorrow. I do use a paper filter with the percolator, so I'm also tempted to try without it.

[Idlehands]

love my virtuoso . Actually grinds too fine if i do the lowest setting for espresso. Can't get a pull.
~20 is what I end up with autodrip.

I tried 30 this morning with the Encore and the Sam's Club bulk beans my wife bought. It's not bad, but not super flavorful, so I think I'll back it down into the 20s tomorrow. I do use a paper filter with the percolator, so I'm also tempted to try without it.

oh man. Bulk beans? That makes me sad. My local roaster is still open and they had a Rwanda that was amazing this week. If it's not 2 days old from roasting I want nothing to do with it!

[murphyreedus]

love my virtuoso . Actually grinds too fine if i do the lowest setting for espresso. Can't get a pull.
~20 is what I end up with autodrip.

I tried 30 this morning with the Encore and the Sam's Club bulk beans my wife bought. It's not bad, but not super flavorful, so I think I'll back it down into the 20s tomorrow. I do use a paper filter with the percolator, so I'm also tempted to try without it.

oh man. Bulk beans? That makes me sad. My local roaster is still open and they had a Rwanda that was amazing this week. If it's not 2 days old from roasting I want nothing to do with it!

I think the local roasters are open, but have to use up the existing supply first, and my wife bought an extra bulk 'Rona bag. I'll go through it pretty fast making cold press in addition to the percolator. Not really saying much, but it makes cold press that's at least as good as Caribou's, though I'm still trying to find a caramel flavoring that matches theirs.

[Allentown]

Bad coffee seems to do all right in a cold brew. The Kirkland Starbucks coffee was undrinkable in the Chemex but OK in a cold brew.

Got my wife a Cuisinart "Pure Precision 8-cup Pour Over" drip brewer, and I'm honestly pleasantly surprised by the quality of the coffee. Not quite Chemex level of tastiness, but close enough and convenient enough that I'm happy with the purchase. Has a pretty wide spread to wet all the grounds instead of just filling up the basket and assuming all the grounds will steep, will let the grounds bloom, gets just about the right temp, everything.

[Hamburgerfan]

For the past few months I've been making strong aeropress coffee with various mid-priced light roast beans. Is there any significant benefit to upgrading from the cheap blade grinder I've been using? I really enjoy the coffee I've been making, but I'm open to trying to improve it. Just don't want to spend a ton of money for marginal improvements.

[Manveer]

For the past few months I've been making strong aeropress coffee with various mid-priced light roast beans. Is there any significant benefit to upgrading from the cheap blade grinder I've been using? I really enjoy the coffee I've been making, but I'm open to trying to improve it. Just don't want to spend a ton of money for marginal improvements.

What’s a ton of money and what’s marginal improvement? $80-90 will get you a decent conical burr grinder which will produce a more consistent grind (more consistent particle size). I don’t know how much better it tastes - maybe not at all. The consistency from cup to cup would definitely be improved.

I only used a blade grinder for a little while until I bought a $10-15 manual burr grinder. Maybe you want to get one of those to see if you notice a difference?

[Idlehands]

For the past few months I've been making strong aeropress coffee with various mid-priced light roast beans. Is there any significant benefit to upgrading from the cheap blade grinder I've been using? I really enjoy the coffee I've been making, but I'm open to trying to improve it. Just don't want to spend a ton of money for marginal improvements.

What’s a ton of money and what’s marginal improvement? $80-90 will get you a decent conical burr grinder which will produce a more consistent grind (more consistent particle size). I don’t know how much better it tastes - maybe not at all. The consistency from cup to cup would definitely be improved.

I only used a blade grinder for a little while until I bought a $10-15 manual burr grinder. Maybe you want to get one of those to see if you notice a difference?

I noted a huge difference going from blade to burr. Flavor for sure, but the extraction was wild. I went from drinking a pot of coffee to being jittery after half a pot. Took a few weeks to get used to the new grind. Top three for coffee are freshness/roast, then grind, then brew method. I'd spend on the grind before going all over the place on the brew method.

[Wilhelm]

[mbasic]

chocolate too .... same thing: cocao production going to shit due to climate change, etc.

sad times