Coffee

Nightfall

I'm trying to step up my coffee game. Where are you guys buying beans? I'm not looking for sour or fruity tasting light roasts. Let's talk coffee tips.

rooftop59

If you really want to step it up, get a roaster. I did that for a couple years before we had kids, and it's so amazing. The aroma and taste of freshly roasted beans cannot be beat…i only stopped because I broke the roaster in a move and once my first child was born time was no longer my friend.

Nightfall

Sounds expensive to do right

daddyjt

rooftop59 wrote: »

...once my first child was born time was no longer my friend.

No truer words have ever been spoken...

Jstas

https://www.konacoffee.com/

xschop

My favorite hassle-free grind.

Clipdat

I dig the beans here: https://blackgoldroasters.com/

Toolfan66

Jstas wrote: »

https://www.konacoffee.com/

Holy Cr-p!!! I love my coffee, not sure I like it that much.. Pricey, I would be into trying it at least once..

PSOVLSK

xschop wrote: »

My favorite hassle-free grind.

Very good and very cheap at Sam’s Club.

My favorite is a local to me place called 903 Roastery. https://903roastery.com/product-category/coffee-blends/

I’ve only had about 4-5 of their coffees, but I really like the 1773 and The Dark Side of the Moon.

treitz3

You already have my first suggestion. A Moccamaster and a grinder.

I go through way too much coffee to be picky about the coffee itself. I usually switch between Eight O'clock whole bean and Sam's Club Columbian coffee.

The only other tip and trick I have to offer you is highly recommended to keep those subtle notes flowing is this. Get yourself some Dezcal and Urnex coffee machine cleaning powder. Use it monthy or bi- monthly, depending on how much you brew.

The coffee will taste the same as it did the day you bought the Moccamaster....so smooth and 100% grit free and all/any "off" tastes will be gone. Much better than a vinegar soak.

My only other advice is to NEVER use your carafe to fill the coffee maker up. Always use a dedicated container, that way, you aren't reintroducing the oils that thwart what the Moccamaster is known for.....that being a great cup o'Joe.

Tom

PSOVLSK

treitz3 wrote: »

Sam's Club Columbian coffee.

Another good and inexpensive coffee.

Nightfall

treitz3 wrote: »

You already have my first suggestion. A Moccamaster and a grinder.

I go through way too much coffee to be picky about the coffee itself. I usually switch between Eight O'clock whole bean and Sam's Club Columbian coffee.

The only other tip and trick I have to offer you is highly recommended to keep those subtle notes flowing is this. Get yourself some Dezcal and Urnex coffee machine cleaning powder. Use it monthy or bi- monthly, depending on how much you brew.

The coffee will taste the same as it did the day you bought the Moccamaster....so smooth and 100% grit free and all/any "off" tastes will be gone. Much better than a vinegar soak.

My only other advice is to NEVER use your carafe to fill the coffee maker up. Always use a dedicated container, that way, you aren't reintroducing the oils that thwart what the Moccamaster is known for.....that being a great cup o'Joe.

Tom

Would you recommend the cleaner even if I'm running only filtered water through the machine with my ZeroWater?

Nightfall

Toolfan66 wrote: »

Jstas wrote: »

https://www.konacoffee.com/

Holy Cr-p!!! I love my coffee, not sure I like it that much.. Pricey, I would be into trying it at least once..

We could split one if you want after I get a storage container.

billbillw

I've been using the Sam's whole bean Columbian for years. I also drink a fair amount daily and the Sam's is hard to beat for the price (~$15 per 2.5lb bag) . I have the same grinder, but I have come to prefer using a Hario V60. I make about 30 oz of coffee a day and the pour over suits me better than any coffee maker. I pour over into a thermal carafe that is leftover from my 20y old Capresso MT500 which is packed away these days.

Jstas

Toolfan66 wrote: »

Jstas wrote: »

https://www.konacoffee.com/

Holy Cr-p!!! I love my coffee, not sure I like it that much.. Pricey, I would be into trying it at least once..

That's pretty much all I get anymore.

Whole bean stuff at the grocery store keeps coming in smaller and smaller packages.

The whole bean stuff I would get from Peet's is up to $12.49 a package that is down to 10.5 ounces.

At pretty much $1.20 an ounce, it's $20 a pound now.

The Kona, on the coffee club "subscription" is around $36-$38 which isn't that much more. The Starbucks whole bean stuff is about $1.70 an ounce here which is $27+ a pound.

Thing is, if you're buying a $5 coffee every day at even just a Dunkin' Donuts, you are spend 4 times the cost of a pound of Kona on coffee in a month. We get upset at the high price of Kona coffee but we'll happily pay out our nose for the swill from the usual suspects.

The Kona is 100% American too. American farmed, American sourced, American roasted...start to finish. It's "Buy American" to a T.

treitz3

Nightfall wrote: »

Would you recommend the cleaner even if I'm running only filtered water through the machine with my ZeroWater?

Absolutely. Filtered water helps but mineral /calcium buildup can still impart off flavors that mask the true taste and subtleties. Especially if it hasn't ever been cleaned. You can literally see the difference when you pour the coffee.....well, you may not. I can because I do 28 ounces of coffee at a time and then pour it from the carafe into a Yeti container with 1 cube of ice, a level spoonful of Truvia and either French Vanilla or Macadamia nut (from International Delight) creamers, depending on what strikes my fancy at the time.

I just cleaned my Moccamaster yesterday and the difference between this weekend and now is night and day. It now tastes the way it did the day I brewed my first pot out of her around 4 or 5 years ago. So freakin' smooth....back to the best cup o'Joe I have ever had. Drinkin' some as I type.

Tom

Nightfall

treitz3 wrote: »

Nightfall wrote: »

Would you recommend the cleaner even if I'm running only filtered water through the machine with my ZeroWater?

Absolutely. Filtered water helps but mineral /calcium buildup can still impart off flavors that mask the true taste and subtleties. Especially if it hasn't ever been cleaned. You can literally see the difference when you pour the coffee.....well, you may not. I can because I do 28 ounces of coffee at a time and then pour it from the carafe into a Yeti container with 1 cube of ice, a level spoonful of Truvia and either French Vanilla or Macadamia nut (from International Delight) creamers, depending on what strikes my fancy at the time.

Tom

I think this filter that I run takes everything out of the water it's not like a Brita.

This means that ZeroWater filters calcium, magnesium, iron, sodium chloride and sulphides from the water. The result is soft water.

I don't know if that makes it worse or better for coffee

Nightfall

For now I just grabbed this from the local coffee shop. I'm ready to be uplifted like crisp mountain air.

PSOVLSK

Tom,
Are you talking about this?:
Pasted the wrong product, now I can’t get the correct one to copy and paste.

Let’s try this. Not a link, but a description:
Urnex Dezcal Coffee and Espresso Machine Descaler Activated Scale Remover - 900g Bottle - Fast Effective Descaling Of Boilers and Heating Elements Faucets Spray Heads Milk Systems

zingo

We love Sisters Coffee at my house; not cheap, but our favorite.

https://sisterscoffee.com/

Toolfan66

Jstas wrote: »

Toolfan66 wrote: »

Jstas wrote: »

https://www.konacoffee.com/

Holy Cr-p!!! I love my coffee, not sure I like it that much.. Pricey, I would be into trying it at least once..

That's pretty much all I get anymore.

Whole bean stuff at the grocery store keeps coming in smaller and smaller packages.

The whole bean stuff I would get from Peet's is up to $12.49 a package that is down to 10.5 ounces.

At pretty much $1.20 an ounce, it's $20 a pound now.

The Kona, on the coffee club "subscription" is around $36-$38 which isn't that much more. The Starbucks whole bean stuff is about $1.70 an ounce here which is $27+ a pound.

Thing is, if you're buying a $5 coffee every day at even just a Dunkin' Donuts, you are spend 4 times the cost of a pound of Kona on coffee in a month. We get upset at the high price of Kona coffee but we'll happily pay out our nose for the swill from the usual suspects.

The Kona is 100% American too. American farmed, American sourced, American roasted...start to finish. It's "Buy American" to a T.

Funny you mention that, I was thinking about how much the wife and I spend during the month when we run around town, and stop and grab a drink from the “usual suspects”, you are 100% correct, we would/do spend more.
I myself every morning, fill my yeti up to take to work from my coffee pot at home.

maxward

Sisters is worth a visit if you’re passing through Central Oregon. If I’m running low of my own roasts, I’ll try to find something from Sisters or Trader Joe’s Ethiopian organic.

Nightfall

Toolfan66 wrote: »

Funny you mention that, I was thinking about how much the wife and I spend during the month when we run around town, and stop and grab a drink from the “usual suspects”, you are 100% correct, we would/do spend more.
I myself every morning, fill my yeti up to take to work from my coffee pot at home.

I just received a 20oz Yeti today actually, going to do home coffee more often instead of coffee shop. I just need to dial in my grind and setup first.

Nightfall

Appreciate the all the links, got them bookmarked and I'll try everyone's besides the Sam's Club one.

Nightfall

Got a new mug for the collection in the mail today from 1993 in box never used .

msg

I used to enjoy it a lot, but gave the stuff up for yerba mate. No jitters, relaxed, quiet focus, and almost complete alleviation of caffeine crash in the afternoon.

I don't get the euphoric jolt to sing the Lego movie "everything is awesome!" song anymore, but that's okay. People would stare when I'd do that, anyway.

I liked:
Black Rifle - Just Black
Devil Mountain (strong caff)
Death Wish (strong)
Lavazza (strong)
There was one from Aldi, but I can't remember what it was called.
All darks, though. Never seemed to enjoy the light or mediums.

Mostly made Americanos. Sometimes I'd add Oatley oat milk (has to be Oatley; others suck; weak, no flavor, not as rich). Didn't use sweeteners.

I used an Aeropress and a temp control kettle for heating the water. Enjoyed the ritual. Hated the side effects.

treitz3

@Nightfall - I would still recommend it. Here's why. As your coffee is brewing, it is also letting off steam, which goes right back up those tubes that feed your coffee cup. Those fumes are filled with oils and organic particles from the coffee itself and infiltrate their way into the black portion of your Moccamaster, after the water rises to the top, into the tube that flows over to the coffee cup. Over time, these oils and organic particles affect the way the MM performs.

As for your Zero water and what it does, I am not familiar with it, so I cannot comment on whether it's a good thing or not. I would imagine that it would be but I would be surprised if it filtered out all of the minerals that can affect the copper tube heating element.

PSOVLSK wrote: »

Tom,
Are you talking about this?:
Pasted the wrong product, now I can’t get the correct one to copy and paste.

Let’s try this. Not a link, but a description:
Urnex Dezcal Coffee and Espresso Machine Descaler Activated Scale Remover - 900g Bottle - Fast Effective Descaling Of Boilers and Heating Elements Faucets Spray Heads Milk Systems

That's it! Mine came in and most of the label reads in German or another language I can't translate but mine is a 900g bottle that (in English) states Urnex Dezcal.



The other thing I use is Urnex Coffee machine cleaning powder.



So, the first one descales and removes mineral buildup. The second one flushes out the unit of all residual oils, both of which can greatly affect the end result of taste.

Tom

Kex

I only drink espresso, but that can be made into an “Americano” just by adding additional water — it’s heresy to just brew longer, as that adds bitterness from the espresso grounds.

The hardest part with espresso is the very fine grind. Nearly all store coffee that says it’s an espresso grind is not. Illy is the big exception, and also one of the best store bought coffees known to mankind. It’s also vacuum sealed, which seems to really help.

I was using an espresso machine from Gaggia and tried many grinds. Most home grinders cannot grind properly for espresso (the Baratza Encore can). In the end, I found it too messy and time consuming, so I started ordering from Peets.com. They roast the same day as they ship when ordered online and the price is very reasonable. They also specifically told me that their “espresso” grind in stores, is NOT espresso grind! Crazy, right?! 😂

I still preferred Illy overall, so I ended up getting a singled dose machine from Illy and use single dose espresso now. No mess. No fuss. Very easy to prepare.

Kex

For descaling, I have used the Urnex descaler mentioned, but citric acid is also an excellent descaler. It can also be used to keep your dishwasher clean and shiny on the inside (if it’s stainless) just by filling the soap dispenser with citric acid powder and running a normal wash.

Citric acid is also very cheap and can be ordered from amazon.com. For descaling, I add 2 tbsp of powder to 1 quart of water. Stir until dissolved. Add to the empty water tank. Run half the mixture through the machine. Wait 20-30 minutes. Run the rest through the machine. Rinse out the water tank and then rinse the machine with fresh water 2-3 times.

audioluvr

I really like Folgers French Roast blend.

Nightfall

audioluvr wrote: »

I really like Folgers French Roast blend.

Preground for maximum freshness.