Minimalist Coffee

[Koolau]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevink OK so if you TRULY want to be minimalist these new offerings from my old alma mater Starbucks are quite worthy of consideration: https://stories.starbucks.com/press/...nstant-coffee/ To be clear, these are NOT the same as their well-known Via Instant coffee packets. The coffee comes in a recyclable tin and is far cheaper per serving as well as much better in flavor. I personally recommend the light ("Veranda") roast which in typical Starbucks (or Charbucks) fashion is not light but in fact a medium or "full city" roast. Their medium roast is quite dark and roasty tasting, while their dark roasts are of course Kingsford Charcoal briquets in liquid form - i.e. ick. But the Veranda instant is simply a very good cup of coffee - certainly better than anything you can buy by the cup in their stores (a low bar I realize). My MIL who lives alone and used to brew good-quality preground coffee in a Clever dripper has switched to this coffee for her morning cup and is very happy. If nothing else, great to keep in mind for travel. Far superior to any other instant coffee out there with the exception of a couple of Nescafé products sold only in Europe.

Thanks! I'll have to try it. I couldn't get to the article. Is the Veranda available - in tins - at Starbucks stores?

Agreed that Charbucks can be a bit TOO dark though I like a very flavorful coffee. A couple of times, back in the day, I had to pour out about a 1/4 of a cup of my Venti and refill w/half and half. Not good for the ol' arteries, but it tamed the burnt flavor down to drinkable. YMMV

[ncbill]

Signed up for the monthly coffee plan at the new Panera around the corner.

First 3 months free, cup of hot/iced coffee/tea every 2 hours.

[Lsbcal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevink OK so if you TRULY want to be minimalist these new offerings from my old alma mater Starbucks are quite worthy of consideration: https://stories.starbucks.com/press/...nstant-coffee/ To be clear, these are NOT the same as their well-known Via Instant coffee packets. The coffee comes in a recyclable tin and is far cheaper per serving as well as much better in flavor. I personally recommend the light ("Veranda") roast which in typical Starbucks (or Charbucks) fashion is not light but in fact a medium or "full city" roast. Their medium roast is quite dark and roasty tasting, while their dark roasts are of course Kingsford Charcoal briquets in liquid form - i.e. ick. But the Veranda instant is simply a very good cup of coffee - certainly better than anything you can buy by the cup in their stores (a low bar I realize). My MIL who lives alone and used to brew good-quality preground coffee in a Clever dripper has switched to this coffee for her morning cup and is very happy. If nothing else, great to keep in mind for travel. Far superior to any other instant coffee out there with the exception of a couple of Nescafé products sold only in Europe.

Kind of pricey but how much do you need per cup measure?

[Janet H]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevink The first thing I recommend is to peruse and bookmark the website Sweet Marias (.com). They cater to home roasters but also have a carefully-curated ........

Thanks for the link - good resource.


I've had all sorts of coffee making devices over the years from electric drippers to french presses and pressure pots. When the last one leaked it's mornings output onto the counter and then incinerated a few years back, I got my folding silicon pourover dripper out of my camper as a fast replacement. I've been using it ever since. It's inelegant but dead simple. No. 4 filters are cheap and the clean up is easy.

This thing: https://www.amazon.com/GSI-Outdoors-...dp/B07NS7BNXR/

The grinder stays in the camper as it's pretty small for home use.

[kevink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Koolau Thanks! I'll have to try it. I couldn't get to the article. Is the Veranda available - in tins - at Starbucks stores? Agreed that Charbucks can be a bit TOO dark though I like a very flavorful coffee. A couple of times, back in the day, I had to pour out about a 1/4 of a cup of my Venti and refill w/half and half. Not good for the ol' arteries, but it tamed the burnt flavor down to drinkable. YMMV

I found these new instant coffees for $7.98 per tin at my local Walmart. Each tin makes up to 40 cups, so 20 cents a cup. And no, these coffees aren't sold at Starbucks stores, as far as I know. They'd just be cannibalizing Via instant sales not to mention letting the $5 a day (+) latte-swillers know they could stay home and save a couple hundred bucks a month. Bad for business!

[Koolau]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevink I found these new instant coffees for $7.98 per tin at my local Walmart. Each tin makes up to 40 cups, so 20 cents a cup. And no, these coffees aren't sold at Starbucks stores, as far as I know. They'd just be cannibalizing Via instant sales not to mention letting the $5 a day (+) latte-swillers know they could stay home and save a couple hundred bucks a month. Bad for business!

Thanks! I should have known it was something like that!

[Chuckanut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Koolau Oh yeah! Love coffee ice cream and it's so easy to make to taste. YMMV

Mix the ice cream with Cheerios. Crunch, cold, coffee and sweet. Very good.

[Gremlin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckanut Mix the ice cream with Cheerios. Crunch, cold, coffee and sweet. Very good.

Oh my gosh. That sounds amazing!

[Koolau]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckanut Mix the ice cream with Cheerios. Crunch, cold, coffee and sweet. Very good.

I'm outta Cheerios. I'll try grape nuts first.

[nash031]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kevink The first thing I recommend is to peruse and bookmark the website Sweet Marias (.com). I recommend either the Clever dripper or the Aeropress. The Clever is a full-immersion brewer that combines the excellent extraction of a French Press (aka plunger pot) with the grit-free clarity of drip, while avoiding the many problems of singe-cup pour-over drippers (forget about them!). Maximum yield from the Clever is 14 fl. oz - i.e. a very large mug+. Easy, simple, cheap. And while a good burr grinder is nice to have (Capresso Infinity is the least expensive one I recommend - Baratza otherwise) a plain old $20 blade grinder is just fine to get started with.

Wanted to thank everyone for this thread, but in particular KevinK here. My old automatic drip brewer crapped out on me last week, but as I'm leaving full-time out of home work here next Friday, I decided I could upgrade my home coffee station as I'll have time to make and enjoy a really good cup of coffee. (Maybe someday I'll roast my own beans, but we're not there yet).

Specifically, the recommendation about Sweet Maria's was good. I learned a lot reading their blog for about an hour...

I have a stovetop kettle, two french presses, and a rotating blade grinder already, but wanted to step my game up...

I bought myself a small 1L electric kettle with six temp settings and a temp hold off Amazon for $60. This was a gift for both me and my tea-drinking wife who often laments she doesn't "have time" to boil the kettle, or wants to do it while she's getting ready, but doesn't like to sprint from the bathroom to stop the whistling. She was skeptical, but tried it and after one use is convinced... convenience you don't NEED, but man... it's nice.

I bought a Capresso Infinity off of the recommendations here ($99 on Amazon). Very nice and an obvious difference-maker relative to my spinning blade.

And I went with the Clever Coffee dripper... I'm making the best cups of coffee at home in my life. As people have said, you get the flavor of the french press without the bitterness or acidity (or sometimes just straight grounds)... and there's not as much faffing about with the pour-over... cleanup is super simple. Overall, the process takes less time than my french press, and not much more difficult/time consuming than the auto drip machine.

The only drawback I can see so far is that if I want a second cup I'm using a second filter everyday, but the quality of the coffee is far superior to my automatic maker, and significantly better than the french press as well. FWIW, I tested with the rest of my Trader Joe's beans I had been using on the old setups... Can't wait to see how higher quality beans come out with this.

I was considering a Technivorm Moccamaster prior to this thread, but those are $315 (and not including a new grinder!), and I ended up with this setup for less than $200. Someday I'll probably get an Aeropress as well to make some other things, but for a simple, great cup of coffee in the morning, I am all set.

Thanks for the thread and recommendations!

[Ready]

I recently switched from a Keurig machine to a simple pour over drip coffee method. It’s the best cup of coffee I’ve ever had. I’m surprised to hear there are so many problems with pour over? What am I missing? My pour over couldn’t be any simpler to use. Boil water, grind coffee, insert filter, pour hot water over grounds directly into my thermal coffee mug. I get a fresh hot cup every time and have nothing to clean up afterward.

We tried two different French press makers before switching and I hated both of them. Too much fuss, and by the time the coffee was ready it was already luke warm.

[nash031]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ready I’m surprised to hear there are so many problems with pour over? What am I missing? My pour over couldn’t be any simpler to use.

If you get super geeky about it, you can't control the extraction time, so you can't really control the brew. It's based on whatever filter you're using. "Proper" pour-over technique also has you pour a little bit of water through the filter at a time, rather than all in one shot. My friend who is a pour-over guy stands over his cup for a few minutes while brewing... his wife doesn't mess with it, she just pours it all in at once and doesn't mind.

So it's only "fuss" if you care to do it the "proper" way or care about the extraction/brewing time regarding strength. But Kevin's point which I can confirm about the Clever Dripper is that it's easy cleanup like pour-over, simpler than pour-over, with the taste and body near to that of a french press.

[Mr._Graybeard]

Daughter likes to cold-brew coffee. Mix water and grounds and stick it in the fridge overnight. I was skeptical, but I have to say cold-brew lacks the acidity of most hot-brew coffee I've had (and enjoyed). You still can get a strong cup of coffee and can heat it up if you like. If sour/bitter coffee turns you off, try cold brew.

[GalaxyBoy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nash031 My friend who is a pour-over guy stands over his cup for a few minutes while brewing... his wife doesn't mess with it, she just pours it all in at once and doesn't mind.

Do I know you? . This describes my household.

I love doting over my Hario pourover and find it quite Zen.

[Ready]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nash031 If you get super geeky about it, you can't control the extraction time, so you can't really control the brew. It's based on whatever filter you're using. "Proper" pour-over technique also has you pour a little bit of water through the filter at a time, rather than all in one shot. My friend who is a pour-over guy stands over his cup for a few minutes while brewing... his wife doesn't mess with it, she just pours it all in at once and doesn't mind. So it's only "fuss" if you care to do it the "proper" way or care about the extraction/brewing time regarding strength. But Kevin's point which I can confirm about the Clever Dripper is that it's easy cleanup like pour-over, simpler than pour-over, with the taste and body near to that of a french press.

Interesting. I’ve only been doing it for a few weeks but every cup has been amazing. I grind the beans right before I need them. I pour a small amount into the cup and let it sit for around 30 seconds. Then I continue to slowly pour more water, never letting it get more than half way to the top of the filter. It only takes me a few minutes but it makes an amazing cup.

Of course I’m coming from a Keurig, so I think almost any pour over is going to taste better than a K-Cup.

[grasshopper]

I am not sure if its the situation or the pour-over. The only time I use my pour-over is when the electricity is out. In that case it is the best cup of joe I have ever had, that morning. Ciao

[NanoSour]

This post should probably be in "Blow that Dough", but I need to warn you, this addiction can add up quickly if you're not careful. My coffee journey started at $0/cup (crew dog swill in USAF) to my recent purchase of an $800 espresso machine and a $450 espresso quality grinder with everything in between. Fortunately, Mr Schwab paid for it via a transfer bonus. We buy fresh beans from a local roaster for $10/lb which is real cheap by today's standards and enjoy an Americano and 2 shots of espresso each and every day. One has to have their vices.

If I was going cheap, I'd have to suggest a French Press as a great beginning. Followed closely by the Bialetti Moka Pot. I hope whatever method he/she chose has worked out for the OP.