Which upgrade first?

[FLTiger]

While I likely won't get into roasting my own beans (no room here for equipment, and just frying bacon is enough to set off the smoke alarm), I am interested in improving the quality of my morning coffee. I am currently buying whole beans, usually from Starbucks (Kenya) or from a local Kaldi-supplied coffee shop (Kenyan AA Keekorok, Full City Roast). I grind them as needed in a cheap whirly Krups blade grinder (10 scoops of beans per) and brew in a cheap Krups coffee pot (6 cups at a time). The Krups pot has a drip delay for making smaller coffee amounts, and I use it for the first couple of minutes of the brew cycle. Once brewed, I pour it straight into a preheated Nissan Stainless carafe.

I plan on taking three steps to improve the quality of my coffee.

• Upgrading the grinder
• Upgrading the coffee maker
• Finding a local supplier for fresh roasted beans

Of the first two items, which will have a bigger impact on the quality of my cup? I am contemplating the smaller Technivorm as my coffee maker upgrade (the one that brews straight into a carafe).

Any ideas on how to find a local resource for freshly roasted beans?

 

[SiBurning]

I think it depends on which coffee maker you choose. If you choose something with a paper filter, like the Technivorm, the coffee maker might be a better first choice. Other types benefit more from the grinder, so you need them both to really shine. For example, you could get a press pot and have a lot of powder in it, or a stovetop espresso gadget that makes weak and uneven coffee. Since you need both to make them work properly, you may as well get the grinder first and get whatever little benefit you can meanwhile from your current machine. Going with the Technivorm, you might decide after getting a grinder to try a gold filter, which would probably just produce a lot of powder with the whirly grinder.

I think you're already taken the biggest steps to improving your coffee--deciding you want to do better, and looking for better beans.

 

[benvh]

Beans for sure. You could have a $1000 grinder and a Hario vac pot, but if the beans are bleh: G.I.G.O as they say. I dislike Starbucks beans immensely, but if you like the flavor - to each his own. Problem is you're not going to consistently get beans that are less than 2 weeks old. I'd find a local roaster and buy fresh beans. It makes a huge difference! I home roast and never drink coffee that's more than a week old. I can't ever go back.

After that, a good burr grinder that will give you a nice, even grind would be the next step. Sounds like you're already grinding right before brewing which is probably the best thing you can do in all of coffee making. An even grind will improve the cup quality, but what you're using with some fresh beans will be just fine. Some brewing methods are more finicky than others, but drip or FP will do just fine with a whirleyblade.

Third I'd say is the coffeemaker. I say that because I have some expensive equipment, but I can make a fantastic cup with a .99 pourover or a $10 french press using my homeroast and Rancilio Rocky grinder.

Ben

 

[breadstick]

I read an article on art of manliness about making the perfect cup of coffee that changed my coffee making experience forever. My wife and I have been buying whole beans and grinding them for quite a while. We bought a french press a while back, but it didn't provide the results we were hoping for so we stopped using it. After reading the article, we decided to give the following formula a try:

Boil water.
Let it cool for a few minutes (we do 2) after it boils.
Grind about a tablespoon (YMMV with amount of coffee for your taste) per cup of coffee. We use a cheap bean grinder from Wal-Mart, around $10 I think.
Put coffee in french press ($10 at Wal-Mart) and let steep with lid on for four minutes.
Press plunger on french press, pour coffee, and enjoy.

This is by far the best method that we have found to make great coffee every time. We usually get our beans from one of two local spice shops.

We recently found Goshen brand tattoo blend coffee and it will probably be some time before we try another brand of coffee. This stuff is amazing.

 

[benvh]

Water needs to be 195-205 for brewing coffee. Usually that's right off the boil.

I think the SCAA specifies 10-11g of coffee per 5-6 fl oz of water. That's around 2 Tbs, depending on the degree of roast, of course.

 

[FLTiger]

Upon discovering that I will remain employed as a contractor for at least a few more months, I finally broke down and forked over the cash for a refurbished Virtuoso grinder.

 

[Jim]

Great news Bob, Good luck with it.

 

[takeshi]

I plan on taking three steps to improve the quality of my coffee.

• Upgrading the grinder
• Upgrading the coffee maker
• Finding a local supplier for fresh roasted beans

Of the first two items, which will have a bigger impact on the quality of my cup?

I'd second benvh. In general, beans, grinder then brewing equipment. A lot of people seem to fixate on the brewing equipment first for some reason.

Any ideas on how to find a local resource for freshly roasted beans?

I get mine from my favorite coffee shop. Currently they happen to roast their own. A shop producing good coffee should have good beans.

Prior to that, I used my nose -- the roaster was across the street. And supplied the same coffee shop above when they first opened. And the owner worked for roaster I used to go to before this one.

I'm not sure how I found the roaster before that though...

 

[FLTiger]

Great news Bob, Good luck with it.

I suppose the best news was that they are keeping me around on this project. When I interviewed for the position, I was told that it would likely only last through December.

I'd second benvh. In general, beans, grinder then brewing equipment. A lot of people seem to fixate on the brewing equipment first for some reason.

I've acted on that as well, though it has been a bit haphazard. I am currently drinking coffee I purchased online from Counter Culture, the Kenya Single Lot that they recently featured as their discounted "feature coffee of the month."

I get mine from my favorite coffee shop. Currently they happen to roast their own. A shop producing good coffee should have good beans.

Prior to that, I used my nose -- the roaster was across the street. And supplied the same coffee shop above when they first opened. And the owner worked for roaster I used to go to before this one.

I'm not sure how I found the roaster before that though...

As far as local coffee shops go, we just don't have much here in Tallahassee. That said, I will admit to not having done due diligence in searching for local flavor.

 

[FLTiger]

More updates....

I went searching this past weekend, and I am pretty sure that I found the only local source for fresh roasted coffee in Tallahassee--All Saints Cafe. I went back this afternoon and picked up a pound of "Ethiopian--Medium" (one of the two varieties they had on hand). We shall see how good it is tomorrow morning.

I also purchased a Bodum French press on Sunday, the 8 cup Brazil model from Target. Now that I have a grinder that can deliver consistency, I thought it worth trying. I finally gave it a shot this morning.

It was very good, even with the Starbucks Kenya that I was using up. The only downside that I can see is that it seems to require much more coffee than I use when I make it in the coffee maker.

I am looking forward to tomorrow morning's cup!

 

[Jasonian]

It doesn't "require" more coffee.. it just gives good advice in its ratios and assumes that you're using good quality coffee that you'll actually want to taste!

 

[FLTiger]

It doesn't "require" more coffee.. it just gives good advice in its ratios and assumes that you're using good quality coffee that you'll actually want to taste!

Even so, I foresee going through a bit more coffee per week if I keep using the press. We shall see how I feel two months from now, after the "wow" has worn off. In the short term, I see no advantage to returning to my old Krups maker.

 

[SiBurning]

Play around with the time and the grind size. A finer grind lets you steep faster, or brings out slightly different things at different times.

I wouldn't play much with lowering the temperature, unless you can immerse the thing in a hot water bath, or have an insulated press pot.

 

[Jasonian]

Even so, I foresee going through a bit more coffee per week if I keep using the press. We shall see how I feel two months from now, after the "wow" has worn off. In the short term, I see no advantage to returning to my old Krups maker.

I drink French Press coffee most often out of sheer convenience and transparency of flavor.

 

[FLTiger]

I went searching this past weekend, and I am pretty sure that I found the only local source for fresh roasted coffee in Tallahassee--All Saints Cafe. I went back this afternoon and picked up a pound of "Ethiopian--Medium" (one of the two varieties they had on hand). We shall see how good it is tomorrow morning.

The coffee from All Saints was a little disappointing. Unfortunately, I am not so experienced to properly articulate why that is the case.

Play around with the time and the grind size. A finer grind lets you steep faster, or brings out slightly different things at different times.

I wouldn't play much with lowering the temperature, unless you can immerse the thing in a hot water bath, or have an insulated press pot.

You speak of running when I can barely crawl!

I am sure that I will begin changing things up at some point, but my current procedure (Virtuoso set to 37, water off boil for two minutes prior, 4 minutes steeping, very gentle slow press) is sufficient for now. I might play more with it on the weekends.

I drink French Press coffee most often out of sheer convenience and transparency of flavor.

I see where some complain about the clean-up after French press. Honestly, rinsing this apparatus is no more involved than rinsing my Krups carafe, gold filter, and filter holder. It *might* take a minute or two longer to boil the water, but that is about it. If I'm still using this method a month from now, I'll look to buying an electric kettle.

On a side note...I keep forgetting that you sell your own fresh-roasted beans. After my current supply is gone (and the PT's Coffee Kenya Peaberry that is en route), I'll give your Ethiopian a try.

 

[Jim]

Bob did you try adjusting the grind a little? A few clicks either way can change the whole cup.

Can you say it was sour or bitter?

 

[Gokke]

While I likely won't get into roasting my own beans (no room here for equipment, and just frying bacon is enough to set off the smoke alarm), I am interested in improving the quality of my morning coffee. I am currently buying whole beans, usually from Starbucks (Kenya) or from a local Kaldi-supplied coffee shop (Kenyan AA Keekorok, Full City Roast). I grind them as needed in a cheap whirly Krups blade grinder (10 scoops of beans per) and brew in a cheap Krups coffee pot (6 cups at a time). The Krups pot has a drip delay for making smaller coffee amounts, and I use it for the first couple of minutes of the brew cycle. Once brewed, I pour it straight into a preheated Nissan Stainless carafe.

I plan on taking three steps to improve the quality of my coffee.

• Upgrading the grinder
• Upgrading the coffee maker
• Finding a local supplier for fresh roasted beans

Of the first two items, which will have a bigger impact on the quality of my cup? I am contemplating the smaller Technivorm as my coffee maker upgrade (the one that brews straight into a carafe).

Any ideas on how to find a local resource for freshly roasted beans?

Newly roasted and especially newly grinded coffee should be treated with respect and no electric coffemaker does that imo. If you never tried a coffee press (www.bodum.com) give it a go. But a good grinder is a must. The Mazzer Mini is the top choice but less will do. Ascaso grinders from Innova is a very good choice aswell.

Finally you should consider roasting your own coffee. Its not as complicated as it sounds. In fact you can do it in a pot or a frying pan even. However a small popcorn maker and 2 plates for cooling down the coffe is a nice beginner set.

Good luck

Gokke

 

[FLTiger]

Bob did you try adjusting the grind a little? A few clicks either way can change the whole cup.

Can you say it was sour or bitter?

Unfortunately, I didn't have any time for experimentation this morning. I made a full "8 cups," put some in my coffee cup and the rest in my insulated travel cup, and went about the business of the day.

I don't think that it was sour or bitter. It was...merely satisfactory, whereas yesterday's coffee (brewed with Starbucks Kenya which could have been who knows how old) was much better.

 

[rockviper]

SWMBO and I have tried many different methods of coffee brewing. Well, I do the making of it and she provides commentary on the end product's quality French Press is #1 followed by the old style percolator. Drip brewer actually ranked lower than boiling a pot of water with the grounds in it.

 

[doesnotcompute]

I drink French Press coffee most often out of sheer convenience and transparency of flavor.

What he said. A Bodum French Press will cost you very little, an Ikea one even less.

Ditch the Starbucks (also known as Charbucks, because of their excessively dark roasting) for some beans from a roaster who knows their stuff (in my case, I buy from www.hasbean.co.uk).

A burr grinder should be next.