Sound like you are ready to join CSA (Coffee Snobs of America) http://home.comcast.net/~mdmint/coffee/csa12steps.htm
Those first two points of the CSA 12-steps are spot-on. 1. We admitted we were powerless over fresh home roasted coffee, but of course we can manage it.2. We came to believe that no power could force us to drink pre-roasted or pre-ground or perish the thought canned coffee.
Picked up a small french press this week. Quite enjoy it. I've only been using pre-ground coffee though since I donated my gorgeous stainless steel grinder to my unit so when we go to the field next time we can have some fresh ground coffee instead of the instant garbage they have in the IMPs.
I'd never make it in the Coffee Snob crowd. I can't tell the difference between coffee ground after 18 seconds or 18 minutes Seriously, though, I have found a difference in my fresh home roasted Dirigo Blue and store bought. And it really is quite a difference that I enjoy.
I am guessing an IMP is the equivalent of the US MRE. The MRE's used to have Yuban instant "coffee", I don't know what they have now. That had to be the worst coffee-like-beverage in the history of liquid.
I'm a coffee geek! Depending on my mood I pull out my Bialetti Brika, my Bodum French Press, my Krups auto drip with burr grinder or my Nespresso Latissima Plus for espresso or cappuccino. No matter which one I use, except the Nespresso for obvious reasons, I always use a burr grinder! Freshly ground good quality coffee beans make the difference!
We don't even know what it is. It comes in a non-descript package that simply says "Coffee, Instant" It's always been suspect to me and I've only drank it in the most dire of circumstances LOL. It does make a decent moccacino though when you mix it with a Starbucks instant coffee and a shot of baileys though.
I use the instant Maxwell House International Cafe tins from Target. No way am I paying $5 a cup at Starbucks. Im developing more a liking to black tea however, with cream. And no I'm not British. When I make coffee I ALWAYS use milk instead of water. Tastes gross with water to me.
Looks like the guys have Taster's Choice now, hope it's better. The only branded things we had, as far as I can remember, were the coffee and occasionally m&m's or Tobasco. Everything else had creative names like "Cookie Bar, Chocolate Covered" or "Beverage Base Powder, Orange".
We bought yesterday the Nesspreso machine and it is definitely an improvement over the Taster's Choice+cold milk we used to drink before. Maybe it's not the perfect,purist grade, fresh ground espresso but it's a step up from the instant "coffee". Maybe in another ten years when the kids will grow I'll take the time in the morning for the whole espresso ritual.
I, for one, would love to see the studies (and methodology thereof) that prove the "coffee degrades 18 seconds after grinding" bit. How was degradation measured? Why 18 seconds? Is this universal across all different bean origins and roasts?
In my experience of roasting, grinding and storing beans, there is a detectable difference in fresh-from-the-roaster cups of joe versus having the beans rest for 3-5 days. Some beans benefit for the rest (mellower or fuller flavor), while others, at least to my tastebuds, are best consumed within the next 2-3 days. I liken freshly roasted coffee beans to homemade bread. HM bread is great right out of the oven— aroma, taste, texture—and not quite as good 2-3 days later. Or a week later. Or two weeks. Can one taste the difference in the coffee prior the 18 second countdown to degradation begins? Not my palette, that's for sure. But there is something to be gained by using fresh coffee in place of coffee thats been sitting in a can for months.
Actually the 18 second remark is attributed to Tom Owens a professional coffee taster. The fact that ground coffee degrades rapidly can be found in many sources. Have you noticed at any good coffee shop the Barista grinds your coffee at the time they make the coffee. The coffee is brewing within seconds after being ground. Here is just one reference http://blog.liferemix.net/your-coffee-sucks-cheap-coffee
I agree that fresh ground coffee is the best. My grandma used to give me a manual coffee grinder to grind fresh coffee for them when I was a kid. I still have that grinder in my kitchen, maybe someday I'll return to use it. I remember the smell of the coffee when I open it. My grandpa use to roast coffee at home. I was a kid and didn't drink coffee but the smell, ohh it was bliss.
I would love to grind my own beans and make coffee the old fashioned way. But I don't know where to start.
Me neither - where does one start? I have a believe in that it must taste better than regular pre-ground coffee on a normal machine?
Purely out of curiosity, do you happen to know if anyone has done studies on professional coffee tasters, as they have on other professional tasters? For example, more than one study has shown that a professional wine taster is noticeably more inclined to like and praise a wine s/he is told is expensive over a wine presented as a cheap table wine, even when the labels are inaccurately applied.
Keurig Mini with the Keurig refillable K-Cup. I buy a large can of whatever is on sale and mix Folgers French Vanilla into it. Tried the various K- Cups, but my way costs less. Since I'm not a "coffee lover", I find my Frankenblend acceptable.
Sweet Maria's. It's where I buy most of my green coffee beans to home roast. But they have soooooooooooo much more than that! They sell grinders, makers, beans, books, etc. And they also have just a TON of info for those who want to get started but don't know where or how.
