Why is a good cup of coffee so hard to find?

[Bob Marino]

Finally got to take a short vacation on Martha's Vineyard - took the 6:AM ferry over last Sunday and was dying for a good cup of coffee. Ok, I didn't have any expectations about a decent cup while on the ferry - and I was not disappointed , but went to a very popular place  - Black Dog Cafe and the coffee was like tea - as weak as can get. Even heard the couple in back of us returned theirs. BTW, the Black Dog Cafe is waaaaaaaaaaaaay overrated - resting on their old and well deserved reputation as a informal place with great food. Now they seem to have concentrated on their clothing stores instead of the restaurant. I went to a couple of other nearby coffee shops and wasn't impressed.
Rarely, back home, is it much different - the diners all seem to carry "the Greek diner brand" - Vasalaros, which guarantees a bland cup of Joe. Dunkin Doughnoughts is undrinkable, but now they have a darker roast. McDonald's and the rest of the fast food places isn't my cup of tea (pun intended). Starbucks tends to be overroasted, but I like it strong.
Ok, maybe it's not fair to through in the huge franchises here, but smaller places serving that weak swill? Do the owners ever taste/drink enjoy that tasteless brew they are serving? If I were the owner, and in years gone by I was one, I would insist on a top notch blend; or probably 2 blends and serve it fresh.
Anyhow, time to get the family up - go to church and later a brunch in the fishing village of Menemsha (where they filmed the "Jaws" - where the town meeting was and all the boats with all the shark hunters sailed off from) - but first I'll finish my second cup of Starbucks French Roast brewed here in the room - it probably will be the last cup of coffee that tastes like coffee I'll get today.

Bob

 

[chrisrosenb]

What is coffee? I have never had it.
Enjoy your vacation Bob. At least you have something to do where you are at today.
We are in the Amish Country in northern Indiana & everything is closed to day.
We will make our way to Indy today for the State Fair tomorrow.

 

[Bob Marino]

Chris,

Sometimes, having not much to do is a good thing!

Bob

 

[bonesbr549]

I hear what you are sayin!   I love my cup-o-joe in the morning(ok any time).   I find it hard to find good stuff when traveling but I do like the starbucks because its strong.   I have to say that I thought I'd had good coffee (my regular brew) until my brother as a gift sent me some Lion's head Kona.  Oh man was I in heaven.  Best type of stuff I've ever had.  To dang expensive to drink everyday but on special ocasions and on a nice sunday morning a couple spoons of the good stuff (not a kona blend) in the KRUPS and a sit on the deck and the world goes away for a short while.  

 

[Bob Marino]

Never heard of the brand Lion's Head, but know Kona is $$$$. Ok, we both like strong coffee, how does or what does the Kona taste like?

  Bob

 

[ccmviking]

Bob,

    I'm with you on this, and coffee is very important to me.  We try very hard to not support any chains over our local establishments, but if you need a cup of regualar coffee outside the home, Starbucks is currently tops on my list.  I hardly ever buy a cup of coffee from them, but I do use their "Sumatra" (my current favorite) beans in my coffee system.  At home I only drink what's called an "americano" at Starbucks.  It's just pressure brewed espresso with hot water added to it.  Much different flavor than just brewed coffee.

  Have you tried the Starbucks Via yet?  It's their instant coffe packs and can be mixed in hot or cold.  I bought some but never tried it so I can't say for sure but everyone loves it that I know.  Maybe you can carry a couple of those around in the glove box. 
 

Finally got to take a short vacation on Martha's Vineyard - took the 6:AM ferry over last Sunday and was dying for a good cup of coffee. Ok, I didn't have any expectations about a decent cup while on the ferry - and I was not disappointed , but went to a very popular place  - Black Dog Cafe and the coffee was like tea - as weak as can get. Even heard the couple in back of us returned theirs. BTW, the Black Dog Cafe is waaaaaaaaaaaaay overrated - resting on their old and well deserved reputation as a informal place with great food. Now they seem to have concentrated on their clothing stores instead of the restaurant. I went to a couple of other nearby coffee shops and wasn't impressed.
Rarely, back home, is it much different - the diners all seem to carry "the Greek diner brand" - Vasalaros, which guarantees a bland cup of Joe. Dunkin Doughnoughts is undrinkable, but now they have a darker roast. McDonald's and the rest of the fast food places isn't my cup of tea (pun intended). Starbucks tends to be overroasted, but I like it strong.
Ok, maybe it's not fair to through in the huge franchises here, but smaller places serving that weak swill? Do the owners ever taste/drink enjoy that tasteless brew they are serving? If I were the owner, and in years gone by I was one, I would insist on a top notch blend; or probably 2 blends and serve it fresh.
Anyhow, time to get the family up - go to church and later a brunch in the fishing village of Menemsha (where they filmed the "Jaws" - where the town meeting was and all the boats with all the shark hunters sailed off from) - but first I'll finish my second cup of Starbucks French Roast brewed here in the room - it probably will be the last cup of coffee that tastes like coffee I'll get today.

Bob

 

[MarkF]

I take my Aeropress and ground coffee on vacation and don't worry with tracking down coffee.  All I need is a microwave, 2 cups and 2 minutes.  I'm not allowed in public until I'm medicated [scared].  

 

[EcoFurniture]

I take my Aeropress and ground coffee on vacation and don't worry with tracking down coffee.  All I need is a microwave, 2 cups and 2 minutes.  I'm not allowed in public until I'm medicated [scared].  

Airopress, hands down! That is what I use while on the road and at home. Together with some grinds from www.levelground.com it creates the best coffee ever. Even their decaf is amazing!

Bob, enjoy your time off!

 

[tbellemare]

Several years ago, I was the recipient of two really nice gifts - a fully automatic espresso machine and an automatic roaster. WOW, what a difference.

I have bought inexpensive, green, Central American beans through Sweet Marias and roasted them myself. If you roast the beans right, you can get various different flavors out of them. Personally, I like the taste of the coffee so I typically don't go past what is called a "city" roast. If you like the taste of the roasting, you'll go until they get greasy and sort of taste burnt. I've found that a lot of fancy pantsy coffee houses roast their coffee too long. A lot of the pre-roasted beans you can buy are also burnt.

If you really love coffee, it's worth a try roasting your own beans.

Tom

 

[Deansocial]

coffee  euggghhhh hate the stuff, even the smell yuk yuk yuk. Good cuppa tea on the other hand tho. I dunno what tea is like in the US but if its anythink like anywhere else ive tried it other than the UK then it will suck,

 

[bonesbr549]

Never heard of the brand Lion's Head, but know Kona is $$$$. Ok, we both like strong coffee, how does or what does the Kona taste like?

  Bob

Hey Bob, I made one mistake it's Lion's (there is a picture of a lions head on the bag sorry)  Well, to describe it the best I could do would be think of liquid velvet!  Another comparison, I'd make is (if your a drinking man) compare a 8 dollar bottle of scotch to Johny Walker Blue.  It's extremely smooth not bitter, with a bold bite on the back end.  I prefer the peaberry size beans which is best but due to the fact that so few beans make that cut, it's expensive.  My brother who got me started on it, does regular work for a guy that travels to the island often and always is giving him bags of the stuff so he sent me 4 bags and I felt like a doper only getting the bag out for special ocasions hidding in the back of the cabinet so no one would find it.  I buy the whole bean and grind myself.  When I go into coffee shops that have "KONA" on the menu I always ask is it true KONA or a Kona blend (which means as little as 5%) actual Kona coffee.    There are other brands of Kona that I've heard are great as well, I've just never tried them.  I've found it here in Philly at only one spot down on the market.  I'm going to order some direct from them here's a link try a bag, or maybe for christmas santa will send you some.  He needs lots of good cofee to make it around the globe in a night. 

This is the one I like best -->  http://www.lioncoffee.net/100-kona-peaberry.html

This is a close second -->  http://www.lioncoffee.net/kona-24-karat-100-kona.html

 

[bonesbr549]

coffee  euggghhhh hate the stuff, even the smell yuk yuk yuk. Good cuppa tea on the other hand tho. I dunno what tea is like in the US but if its anythink like anywhere else ive tried it other than the UK then it will suck,

Hey I'm sipping on a good iced tea right now with lemon!  (sorry I know you dudes like it hot).  I'm just an old souther boy and when its almost a hundred out, man a good ice tea is the ticket. ( I still start the day with at least 3 cups of good cofee first) Have a good evening. 

 

[PaulMarcel]

Well, I definitely like tea and go through much more of it than coffee.  I can say that generally finding good tea out here is impossible.  When my Canadian relatives visit, they bring me boxes of teas; Canada still likes to import a lot from the UK.  For awhile, World Market sold imported bulk teas, but that went away as there just wasn't any money in it out here.  As I type this, I'm enjoying a cup of Red Rose.  Yeah, not high end, but it beats anything I can get at the local stores.

As for coffee, I like dark roasts and love Starbucks.  There are few local coffee houses out here that have a decent cup of coffee; I like to support a local place, too, but not if the product isn't any good.

I'll agree with Peter that home roasting is great.  In my case, I did it for years before home roasting machines came into vogue.  I did it in a Whirlybird popcorn maker on a BBQ out burner.  While great consistency between batches was difficult to achieve, the nuances of each roasting was something to look forward to.

One thing I don't understand about the home roasting machines, though, is that when I roasted, the beans finished developing their flavor overnight.  Fresh out of the popcorn kettle, they had next to zero flavor.  The overnight off-gassing as the roast settled produced the best coffee.  Do you guys who roast with a machine do so today for tomorrow's coffee?  I see machines that roast-grind-brew all at once and I wonder how they taste; maybe the machine does some step that eliminates the need to let home roast sit overnight to complete off-gassing.  Actually, 1 cup of green beans placed in a gallon ziplock bag would burst the bag overnight from gas after roasting/cooling.  Pretty significant.

Oh, Starbucks Via... I went to Per? for a month-long vacation recently and brought some Via.  After I gave out some samples, I had to guard my stash!  I really like it; if you like a cup of coffee during the day but not a whole pot, definitely give it a go.  I prefer the espresso roast, but the medium roast is fine, too.  It's nothing like the other instant coffee crap available in the US (some imported stuff, though, is pretty good).

 

[vkumar]

Bob,

I agree with you. Good coffee is hard to find. When travelling the best bet seems to be Peets Coffee, Starbucks, even McDonalds special brews.  Here in the west coast we have non-chain coffee shops in many places and they are quite good. In the East coast Starbucks seems to be the only acceptable choice. I also agree that the Via instant coffee can be a good choice when travelling.

I generally make my own coffee at home and am constantly seeking new coffee beans.  Currently I use Landmark brand coffee ( a Bay area small company) that sells through Smart N Final.  I use either a French Press or a special south Indian gravity drip coffee maker (only once through). For a really good coffee and somewhat pricey this place is really good. Cole.

Deansocial I agree with you regarding tea in the  UK vs USA.  But there are places outside the UK where tea is really good--India which is where the Brits got ther tea fix from initially ;D

Vijay

 

[Deansocial]

yeah i know the tea is from india, but i never been there.  in fact i drink assam which is north east indian tea, but its not just the leaves but the way in which it is brewed

 

[tbellemare]

Do you guys who roast with a machine do so today for tomorrow's coffee?

Yes.

After roasting, I lay out the beans on a piece of newspaper, 1 bean deep, for a few hours and let them off gas. I also make sure to get any bracts out that might not have been separated in the machine. They taste bitter.

I've never seen a machine that roasts, grinds, brews. I have one that grinds and makes espresso. It grinds the right amount, makes a puck, brews, and even dumps the spent puck into a bin. You can vary the amount of water to make cafe americano also. It was one of those things I would never have considered buying but got as a gift. It's extravagant but cool.

Tom

 

[Rob-GB]

Finding a good coffee while travelling is always tricky, much depends on local tastes.
To this end we have a pair of cafetiers on board our motorhome and a supply of whatever ground coffee is in "flavour"at that time during the trip. ;D
Many of the "chain" coffee outlets seem to serve what tastes like a watered down ashtray (aroma,my taste buds and imagination working here [wink])

From experience the best coffee I have tasted was in Crete, (Elleniko, sketo kai diplo), which is 'Greek, no sugar and double measure', served with a glass of water to replenish the palate. [laughing]
That being said we have found some excellent coffee (and food) in both French and Spanish "motorway service stations" I put that in quotes because all UK ones are sadly rubbish by comparison.

Rob.

 

[vkumar]

yeah i know the tea is from india, but i never been there.  in fact i drink assam which is north east indian tea, but its not just the leaves but the way in which it is brewed

I used to live in India and believe me the tea there is as good if not better than the UK. Besides Assam (there are probably 50 varieties of Assam), there are Darjeeling (again multitude varieties), Nilgiri etc.  Tea leaves are processed in many different manners at the factory as well as you mentioned the art  of brewing.

 

[Deansocial]

tea was orginally from china but then the british went to india and found tea plants there that tasted better, I would expect the country from which it is obtained would make the best tasting

 

[Bob Marino]

Just got back from going to brunch and woweeeeeeeeeee, coffee was horrible...as was the service. At table they filled our water glasses and there was so much iron, I told my my not to take her iron pill ;D. Looking forward to dinner; we drink wine, not coffee, so heaven is comin' later tonight .
Tom, I never even considered getting a roaster....maybe something to consider.
Jonathan, I've seen that brand around and my bd is next Sunday, soooooooooooo I will get some. I agree with you - Kona blends are nothing to write home about.
I see out west coasters -Vijay and Chris like their coffee too. Never heard of VIA or aeropress or Coles - but I will check them out.
I like the idea of a French Press , but you need to drink it all right then and there. Actually, I need to look into aa quality coffee machine - not something off the wall exotic, but a good, everyday machine.

Bob