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

[chrisrosenb]

We just checked into our room in Indy. On the end table is some fine Colombian SUPREMO Blend coffee.
I am not going to do a taste test, but it has to be good because it is certified by the Rainforest Alliance.

 

[jonny round boy]

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,

Dean,

I'm exactly the same - I hate the smell of coffee, makes me gip. [eek]

 

[woodguy7]

Sorry, me too.  Give me a good mug of Tetley any day.  Builders tea  [big grin]

Woodguy.

 

[jonny round boy]

Sorry, me too.  Give me a good mug of Tetley any day.  Builders tea  [big grin]

Woodguy.

Good that us Brits stick together on this issue!

 

[vkumar]

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

Bob I use a small french press at work. It is great for just one cup of coffee.  Clean up  is a simple  matter of rinsing with water.  Here is the one I use Bodum 3 cup

My favorites at Coles are:
Max's Blend
Celebes
Mexican
Peru
Sumatra.

And Via is available at Starbucks and also Costco.

Happy drinking.

Vijay

 

[Bob Marino]

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

Bob I use a small french press at work. It is great for just one cup of coffee.  Clean up  is a simple  matter of rinsing with water.  Here is the one I use Bodum 3 cup

My favorites at Coles are:
Max's Blend
Celebes
Mexican
Peru
Sumatra.

And Via is available at Starbucks and also Costco.

Happy drinking.

Vijay

Thanks. And you let the boiling water steep for how long?
As an aside, I think I need to look for a good everyday coffee maker for us, there's got to be lots better out there besides my old drip.

Bob

 

[tbellemare]

Bob:

You don't want your water quite boiling. It should be between abut 190 and 205 degrees.

Tom

 

[lumbajac]

Eight o'clock 100% Columbian (dark brown bag) whole bean.  Grind your own.  One grinder full ground fine for typical 10 cup autodrip coffee maker.

Probably the best and most reliable simple, just good 'ol cup of black coffee one can make.

Always get compliments on my coffee... even from my sister-in-law who works for Starbucks and is a coffee fanatic.  People are always surprised its just simple eight o'clock brand coffee.  Have had many converts switch to eight o'clock after a cup of my brew.

100% columbian and grind your own whole bean are the key.  Oh yeah, keep bag tightly sealed in refrigerator.

Don't knock it 'til you try it!

Corey
U.P. of Michigan

 

[Bob Marino]

Bob:

You don't want your water quite boiling. It should be between abut 190 and 205 degrees.

Tom

Right, Tom. I used the word 'boiling" incorrectly.

Bob

 

[vkumar]

Thanks. And you let the boiling water steep for how long
As an aside, I think I need to look for a good everyday coffee maker for us, there's got to be lots better out there besides my old drip

Bob

You let the  water steep for 4 minutes in te French Press.  As has been pointed out, the water is supposed to be less than boiling temperature, but in practice I find this not of much importance.  Make sure you grind your own roasted beans, grind to a very coarse consistency (about Maxwell House grind). Also use good quality filtered water (such as Brita).

Regarding your quest for a good drip coffee maker, I would still recommend the french press. These are available in all sizes the 3 cup (actually 1 American cup) one that I earlier recommended or the 12 cup (actually about 4 American cups).. The latter will be good for a larger group. The actual time to make a batch is about 6 minutes, including about 30 seconds of grinding, 4  minutes of brewing, and 1 minuet fo cleanup and rinsing. 

Best

Vijay

 

[Neill]

Bob,

I have found that the best coffee is where you find the best of everything else.  You don't get great coffee at a restaurant with otherwise lousy food.

When we lived in NJ. we would go to the Harvest Moon Inn.  Because it was rather expensive, we only went there on special occasions.  Nothing better than one of their outstanding desserts with a cup of coffee.

Here in Colorado we love an Italian restaurant called Venice.  Fabulous food and service.  Again, a great dessert accompanied by their coffee is the bees knees.

Neill

 

[nickao]

My Nana made the best coffee. I don't know what with or how she made it , but it always tasted the greatest and I have never found anything that compared.

It could be the memories of my Nana that help make it that much better in my head.

 

[cje]

I had the best coffee ever in Evergreen CO: http://www.caffedilucca.com/.

 

[Bob Marino]

Bob,

I have found that the best coffee is where you find the best of everything else.  You don't get great coffee at a restaurant with otherwise lousy food.

When we lived in NJ. we would go to the Harvest Moon Inn.  Because it was rather expensive, we only went there on special occasions.  Nothing better than one of their outstanding desserts with a cup of coffee.

Here in Colorado we love an Italian restaurant called Venice.  Fabulous food and service.  Again, a great dessert accompanied by their coffee is the bees knees.

Neill

Neill,

You could be right about that, BUT I don't think it's asking too much that the regular  places - diners, chain restaurants and small, local places should brew and sell good coffee. It really isn't that hard, and people  (many at least) will go out of their way to get a good cup.
Anyhow, I don't drink coffee at night - not even in the finest places; as I'd sleep less than I do now [scared]! And there is just something  about having the best coffee first hing in the morning.

  Bob

 

[jmbfestool]

Sorry, me too.  Give me a good mug of Tetley any day.  Builders tea  [big grin]

Woodguy.

Good that us Brits stick together on this issue!

Count me in wiv the Brits!  I love my Tea.  Coffee is mingin!

JMB

 

[Neill]

Bob,

You are right of course.  There is something about a good cup of coffee first thing in the morning.  Coffee has never really bothered me when I drink it in the evening although I generally don't do it unless we're out for dinner or otherwise being social.

I was pointing out those two places because the coffee was ALWAYS good and ALWAYS tasted the same.  Other places may be good but also may be inconsistent from one visit to the next.  I like consistency.

Neill

 

[Bob Marino]

Bob,

You are right of course.  There is something about a good cup of coffee first thing in the morning.  Coffee has never really bothered me when I drink it in the evening although I generally don't do it unless we're out for dinner or otherwise being social.

I was pointing out those two places because the coffee was ALWAYS good and ALWAYS tasted the same.  Other places may be good but also may be inconsistent from one visit to the next.  I like consistency.

Neill

We had 8 nights of fine dining on the Vineyard - each with a nice bottle of vino; the best place was the Lambertsville Inn..and it was  a BYO - which made it even nicer. Two days of breakfast out -  and both places the coffee was horrible. Best we had there was just brewing our own cup of Stabucks in our room.

Bob

 

[Bob Marino]

Sorry, me too.  Give me a good mug of Tetley any day.  Builders tea  [big grin]

Woodguy.

Good that us Brits stick together on this issue!

Count me in wiv the Brits!  I love my Tea.  Coffee is mingin!

JMB

Hey JMB,

Yep, you guys sure do stick together on this one. Don't know  what "mingin" is but I wouldn't want to drink it [laughing].

Bob

 

[Guy Ashley]

Hey Bob

Follow this link for the definition of "minging"

http://onlineslangdictionary.com/definition+of/minging

If you ever had the opportunity to work as a "chippy" on a British site you would increase your colloquial vocabulary and perhaps an appreciation that most of us grafters speak more like Vinnie Jones (Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrells) (Ooops sorry Woodguy, appreciating regional variations and local accents of course) than the assumption that we all speak like Hugh Grant!

We of course do realise that you old colonials don't like tea, after all you did dump a lot of His Majesty's in Boston harbour and to coin another phrase "it all kicked off big time"!! ;D ;D ;D

Guy

 

[woodguy7]

Love Lock stock & two smoking barrels & Snatch.  Has many Americans seen it ?  Wouldn't think it would be your thing, could be wrong though.  Sorry to jump off topic  [smile]