Can I get a decent cup of coffee please?

Polkitup2

Okay I have had with my Mr. Coffee coffee maker. Every cup of coffee I make tastes likes it has been brewed through someones dirty socks. Many days the only reason I don't work from home is so that I can get a decent cup of coffee at the office. I'm not into those flavored coffees like hazelnut, irish creme , french vanilla or Kona. I want plain coffee. Any suggestions on a decent coffee maker and brand of coffee?

faster100

I use a kitchenaid coffee maker and use the folgers whole bean columbian and gring myself in a kitchenaid burr grinder.. perfect every time... run a couple pots of vinegar through that pot.. your tasteing bitterness from it being used alot..

george daniel

late 70's vintage percolator,,grind my beans each morning,,jamacian blue moutain,kona,sumatran,etc,costco,bj's and sams carries whole beans at a reasonable price. just my .02

Polkersince85

I switch between a Faberware percolator and a Cusinart drip using Maxwell House Columbian. Like they said, clean your machine, it may not be getting the water hot enough.

steveinaz

Being a BIG coffee drinker, I finally treated myself to a BUNN. I love it, in 2minutes you've 10 cups of outstanding coffee...I drink good 'ol Folgers classic blend...black of course.

Old preculators do make excellent coffee, we use one when we camp.

uncyogi

As others have already said, you have to remove the mineral deposits that build up in your pot. I flush mine every 2-3 months. Vinegar works ok but check out your grocer, there's a product made specifically for this purpose that is cheap and works even better.

As for the coffee, I'm not much for all the added flavors either. I like COFFEE flavor and the best way to get that (once your pot is clean) is not so much brand as it is type of bean. Most coffees are made from high yield, easy to grow and disease resistant (therefore CHEAP) 'Robusta' beans. Most brands also offer the other bean, 'Arabica'. This is the good stuff. Most brands, even many inexpensive store brands, have a "gourmet" or "premium" line made from Arabica, just check the label. As long as it says Arabica, you can't go wrong !

Not much compliments great tunes better than a great cuppa...exept maybe a great cuppa with a great shotta...

Beekyman

You gotta clean the deposit out of that coffee maker! White distilled vinegar or a specialty product will do the trick!
If you dont polish off an entire pot of coffee by yourself and only enjoy a cup or two like I do in the morning, give the TASSIMO coffe maker a spin.
It brews coffees,teas,and hot chocolate in single servings in less than 1 minute per cup! A little pricey but perfect for my lifestyle.

Mike682

I like Cuisinart coffee makers. The coffee is brewed nice and hot and has great flavor. When looking for a coffee maker, I was told to look at how many watts the coffee maker consumed, reason being that the higher wattage models will make hotter coffee. My Cuisinart runs at 1025 watts. One of things I noticed about Mr. Coffee and some other brands were that they were only running at 800-900 watts.

As other mentioned, it is very important to clean the coffee maker with a white vinegar/water solution every few months to get rid of deposits, especially if you use tap water. If you use filtered water, you can clean less often.

Mike

schwarcw

I'm with Steve and say the BUNN! Not cheap, but good.

Had your water checked?:(

Ron-P

Every cup of coffee I make tastes likes it has been brewed through someones dirty socks.

Micah still haunts us......

dholmes

Clean the coffee maker with with vinegar & use filtered h2o.

tonyb

Second on the BUNN,have mine for 10 yrs now,never a problem.OK so they are a 100 bucks but you can't beat it.Fast,2 minutes brew time.No frills,timer
clock auto shut off,none of that,just fast and good.Now for you espresso
lovers,can I recommend the Saeco Magic Deluxe.Fully automatic,press a button,bam,espresso,press a button bam regular coffee by the cup.No waste of coffee at all.Grinds beans brews,discards brewed beans automatically.You can have espresso beans in one hopper,ground coffee in the other.Frothing
wand,cup warmer on top,self cleaning.How many times you run out the door
to work and there is a half pot sitting there?Try it,you'll be hooked.

bobman1235

Jesus, how can some of you call yourselves coffee drinkers and then drink FOLGERS or MAXWELL HOUSE?! That stuff is coffee in the academic sense, but beyond that... christ.

George Grand

Amen to not drinking Folgers or Max House. That stuff is pretty rugged. Bitter and ****. Get yourself some Millstone Columbian beans. Stop dicking with all the high-priced Kona, Jamaican Blue Mountain, etc. The Millstone beans are only about $5lb. at the commissary, I know they're a little higher on the outside, but they're worth it. The other brands mentioned are much cheaper, and taste like it.

I would like to break the code on what's going on at Dunkin' Donuts. Studies indicate that they use the cheapest beans, having many more "quakers" per pound than other coffees. A "quaker" is a bean that didn't roast right (if at all) and lends a bad taste to the coffee. Millstone had 0-1 quakers per pound, and so did other premium coffees. DD had like 9-15 per pound. Why is it then, that as soon as I finish a small cup of DD coffee, all I want is another? I think they're maybe foo-fooing the cream up so that it makes friends with your mouth. Like in Europe.

heiney9

The key to a great cup of coffee is buying fresh beans and grinding yourself. Experiment and find a bean you like. The other key is purchasing a coffee maker that brews at the perfect temp and is consistent. Once the coffee is done you can get the best results by pouring unused portions in a thermal carafe. Coffee should sit no longer than 15 minutes on the warmer or it starts to loose it flavor and the road tar syndrome set in.

The mass market cans of coffee (Folgers, Maxwell House, etc.) are horrid. You don't have to get the fancy stuff, but the key is experimenting with different companies until you find the right balance of flavor, acidity and body you like. Coffee is very much like beer, in that each and every kind or company has it's own distinct flavor characteristics.

I would die if I couldn't have coffee in the morning, well maybe not but I'd be quite unhappy.

H9

mhardy6647

We buy bird-friendly, shade-grown coffee at Casa Hardy... :-P
Politics aside, it they are pretty nice-smelling beans.

faster100

already ground isnt that great... But even folgers in whole bean fresh ground is good to me.. I use a nice grinder and maker so its all pretty good.

As much coffee as i drink, the higher priced stuff gets pricey.. I get some good stuff now and then for a treat.. but day to day its whole bean columbian what ever brand i grab.. fresh ground.

Mike682

Agree 100% on the Folgers, Maxwell House, etc. I actually bought a coffee called Yuban (owned by maxwell house), which is not half bad. Kind of smooth with nice flavor. Grinding coffee fresh is the way to go, but sometimes I need to make a cup fast.

As for Dunkin Donuts, I heard the same thing about thier coffee being cheap. I really don't like DD coffee because it tastes very weak, but I do like thier cups. Now if Starbucks used DD's cups..

For all you Starbucks folks (or any company that uses those same cup/lid combos), are you sick of having that cup leaking at the lid where the lip on the cup (the fold that completes the cup) meets the lid? Do this: 1st, I take one of their napkins. Then take off the carboard sleeve around the cup. Now take the napkin and form it around the inside of the sleeve. Make sure the thick napkin part (the folded part) is facing up. Take the cup and insert it into the sleeve/napking combination. Adjust the cup and sleeve so that the napkin is snug under the lid. This will catch any cofee that leaks out. And as always, place the lid so that the opening is opposite the cup's lip.This is my original method. Enjoy:)

mantis

Wawa on the cheap and Star Bucks. I don't make coffee at home due to I'm the only one who drinks it.

Kenda coffee at Wawa is very good.

Dan

seo

My Favorite-

http://www.ecware.com/ecscripts/ecware.exe/dcp?id=021&itemid=96&lc=EN

Polkitup2

Well I found a 4 cup Cuisinart that fits my needs. Brewed the first pot and it still taste bad. I think I need to upgrade beans. I currently have folgers and maxwell house.

Mike682

Polkitup2 wrote:

Well I found a 4 cup Cuisinart that fits my needs. Brewed the first pot and it still taste bad. I think I need to upgrade beans. I currently have folgers and maxwell house.

Get yourself some better beans and retry

BlueMDPicker

Chicory, home ground and brewed in your choice of appliance, cut 50/50 with fresh sweet cream, is hard to beat for taste--unless it's the caffeine you're craving. A really great roasted flavor and a habit I acquired from working in the South long ago. Roasted, ground yams in the mix don't hurt a thing either.

heiney9

Polkitup2 wrote:

Well I found a 4 cup Cuisinart that fits my needs. Brewed the first pot and it still taste bad. I think I need to upgrade beans. I currently have folgers and maxwell house.

In addition to fresh beans I also use a Bodum French Press Pot. It's a little more work but the coffee is outstanding.

It's a glass carafe with a plunger part. You grind your beans on the course side and pour into the glass carafe. Boil water in a tea kettle until it whistles. Let kettle sit for about 1-2 minutes off the hot burner. Pour water from tea pot in glass carafe over the ground beans. Let stand/steep for 5-7 minutes. Use plunger part which has s fine mesh screen to push the floating grounds to the bottom. Pour in a coffee cup. SO much better than an electric coffee pot cup of coffee, especially if you use good beans to begin with.

H9

wallstreet

bobman1235 wrote:

Jesus, how can some of you call yourselves coffee drinkers and then drink FOLGERS or MAXWELL HOUSE?! That stuff is coffee in the academic sense, but beyond that... christ.

LOL! My thoughts exactly. Folgers, Maxwell, freakin rot gut. It's almost as bad as the insta mix **** they pass off as coffee at the office. You take a can of coffee concentrate, mix it with hot water, and viola! Insta coffee. Of course it takes, loads of cream and sugar to drink. I wish they'd charge for the crap so I wouldn't drink it, hehe. My wife is a flight attendant, so she's always bringing home Kona coffee from Hawaii and specialty coffee's from all over the world. That coffee kicks you into overdrive after a single cup.:D

LessisNevermore

heiney9 wrote:

In addition to fresh beans I also use a Bodum French Press Pot. It's a little more work but the coffee is outstanding.

It's a glass carafe with a plunger part. You grind your beans on the course side and pour into the glass carafe. Boil water in a tea kettle until it whistles. Let kettle sit for about 1-2 minutes off the hot burner. Pour water from tea pot in glass carafe over the ground beans. Let stand/steep for 5-7 minutes. Use plunger part which has s fine mesh screen to push the floating grounds to the bottom. Pour in a coffee cup. SO much better than an electric coffee pot cup of coffee, especially if you use good beans to begin with.

H9

This sounds like an episode of Good Eats! lol

No doubts on better flavor, haven't tried it myself yet, maybe someday.....I could never wait that long for my first cup of the day.:p

+1 on the BUNN. I would add, that a filtered water pitcher will be your coffeemaker's new best friend. (don't tell anyone, but it makes even Foldger's taste great!)

I will never again use tap water for coffee.

Filtered water also provides a nifty side effect, it doesn't clog up your new brew machine. I check regularly, but after 1 full year, I have yet to find anything in the built-in trap.

I do like some of the high-brow coffee, once in a while, but it's hit or miss. Some of the most expensive coffee I've had tasted the worst. I'd rather spend more on audio gear....

read-alot

Fresh roasted beans in the press when we have time. When we are in a hurry it's the grind and brew machine. I'm a self proclaimed coffee snob now.

George Grand

The grind and brew coffeemakers waste a lot of coffee. Take a look at the size of the holes in the "gate" thing that the ground coffee shoots through to get to the filter basket. Coffee chunks the size of small peanuts are going through there. Not good. You have to use almost twice as much coffeee when you do that, due to the coarseness of the grind. I bought one of those grinder/maker jobs and broke the code after the first pot. Now we never use the grind feature.

13 seconds in a conventional grinder makes a nice pot of coffee.

HBombToo

George Grand wrote:

Amen to not drinking Folgers or Max House. That stuff is pretty rugged. Bitter and ****. Get yourself some Millstone Columbian beans.

Just another point of view we have in common George. My favorite for a weekend brew is the Millstone Fog lifter and freshly gound and brewed through my Cusinart makes for a fine morning.

The Millstone brand is a 100% Arabica bean which IMHO is the most consistant in taste from bag to bag but also very smooth regardless of type.

1/8th Twin:p

steveinaz

I'll check out Millstone, I don't want no foo-foo crap though. I drink my coffee black.

faster100

yeah im with steve, i'll check it out next time i need some beans..