The Ultimate Coffee Thread

[UniTyler]

Yea, coffee is an acquiered taste. I started out drinking those bottled Starbucks "Frappucinos" that you can buy at any mini-mart or grocery store. Then I tried some of my dad's black and loved it straight off, so maybe I was born with an acquiered taste?

I couldn't believe it yesterday - my Mom made my Dad and me a pot of that same coffee I had Saturday, so I got a mug full. Anyway, when I got home I was expecting to have a little more, but nooooo...right after I had left for school, my dad carted the whole pot off to work. Darnit.

[Checkernuts]

Anyone here tries the Nesspresso machines?

They make a damn good cup of espresso if you ask me, better than what you get at most coffee shops and for a alot less too. For idiots like me who dont want to take the time to make a proper cup of espresso or buy a real esprsso machine its a good way to go.

Personally I really appreciate a good cup of coffee sometimes, I'm not an everyday drinker but I do enjoy it from time to time.

[dudewithasock]

I'm not much on coffee - though do I love me some o' that sugary fake stuff, e.g. French Vanilla cappuccinos or icy cold Vanilla frappuccinos.

Although like Cathy, I love the smell of it; it sort of seeps in to my conscious after working 6 hours at a coffee shop brewing/serving it all day. But I've tasted it black and with cream, and I just don't like it.

Give me a tall glass of OJ in the morning, minimal pulp please.

*Edditz: Yeay fer naught speelin gud!

[forrestunifreak]

[QUOTE=yoopers]Eric,

I drink a lot of tea as well. Coffee in the morning, then green tea the rest of the day, plus a good cup of tea an night is an experience. I finally was able to try a cup of Rubios (sp?) tea the other night. It was flavored, vanilla or something, but was very, very good.
QUOTE]

Rubios red tea? I love that stuff. You should try red chai.

Hmm, there was a tea thread back somewere....

[johnfoss]

Originally Posted by Catboy

I personnally don't drink coffee, because I'm still young enough that I don't have to...

Me too, I hope. I'm wondering how far I can get through life without the requirement of caffeine in the morning.

But add me to the list of people who don't drink it but like the smell of coffee brewing in the morning. Reminds me of visits to my grandparents' house in Wisconsin during my childhood.

[maestro8]

Originally Posted by johnfoss

I'm wondering how far I can get through life without the requirement of caffeine in the morning.

Looks like your doing great so far, John. Most web geeks I know would bleed either Mountain Dew or Starbucks if you poked 'em.

I've been compiling a mental list of things that give me a good "morning buzz" without any substance intake, and when time permits, I indulge:

• A dunk in the ocean (north of the 36 deg. parallel)
• or, a really, really cold shower (think: water heater not working)
• A stroll in the snow
• A half-hour of cardio
• Twenty consecutive high-falls (martial arts: being thrown ass over teakettle)
• A 15+ foot fall while rock climbing (tied in to a rope, of course)
• A ten minute zip in a turbocharged car (pref. a WRX STI)
• Playing a 15 minute deathmatch (Quake III, UT, HL, etc.)
• or, any other activity where one runs from live fire (paintball, airsoft, etc.)

This morning, it was a 15 minute commute on my 20"er to work, followed by a couple glasses of ice water. Didn't work too well, though... I started yawning at 10:30...

[john_childs]

Originally Posted by yoopers

John,

As with other things, coffee is an acquired taste. I've been a coffeeaholic for a long time and used to drink it with cream and sugar while in college. We had many a late night...or rather early a morning...in the bowels of the engineering building in those days. So we used to bring our own coffee makers and coffee paraphernalia. Once when I complained about having to tote so much stuff, one of my study buddies recommend that I learn to drink it black. It took a few days but eventually I grew to like it and today will drink coffee almost no other way.

I agree that Starbucks is strong and can be somewhat bitter. But having acquired the taste, I love it. I think it's some of the better coffee I've tasted. I've always said that if a spoon will stand straight up unattended in a cup of coffee, it's strong enough.

Be the bean!
Bruce

I drink my regular coffee black. I'm OK with strong coffee. I'll drink espresso straight. The Starbucks drip coffee is just sometimes really bad. It has happened on more than one occasion it's not just a fluke.

I now try to avoid Starbucks when I want a coffee fix. There are better coffee places with better coffee. I get a laugh when I see news stories about Starbucks taste testers doing coffee tastings (where they sit around a big round table sampling different coffee and then spit it out). Starbucks wouldn't know good coffee if it smacked them upside the head.

I'm also not a regular coffee drinker. I can go weeks without having a cup of coffee. But when I have coffee I like it to be good.

[yoopers]

Originally Posted by john_childs

I drink my regular coffee black. I'm OK with strong coffee. I'll drink espresso straight. The Starbucks drip coffee is just sometimes really bad. It has happened on more than one occasion it's not just a fluke.

I now try to avoid Starbucks when I want a coffee fix. There are better coffee places with better coffee. I get a laugh when I see news stories about Starbucks taste testers doing coffee tastings (where they sit around a big round table sampling different coffee and then spit it out). Starbucks wouldn't know good coffee if it smacked them upside the head.

I'm also not a regular coffee drinker. I can go weeks without having a cup of coffee. But when I have coffee I like it to be good.

You'd think that Starbucks restaurants in the hometown of Corporate Starbucks would have the best coffee. We enjoyed our time in Seattle in 2002. I especially looked forward to visiting the Land of Starbucks, although we didn't go often as we were quite busy with UNICON. Our friends with whom we were staying in Buckley had purchased all the right home Starbucks equipment though so I did get a Starbucks fix in the mornings. When we finally headed for home, we left them a gift of much coffee and such on the bed as a thank you gift. Great times back then. We still talk about our trip today.

B

[tomblackwood]

There seems to be a bit of a trend here of people blasting Starbucks in one breath, then saying they don't drink (or don't drink much) coffee in the next breath. Most amusing is Catboy's "anything from Starbucks doesn't qualify as coffee" combined with "I personnally don't drink coffee". So now that we've heard from the experts...

I drink a lot of coffee, and while I agree with JC that there are definitely better coffee places than Starbucks, in my opinion they do pretty well. I don't agree with the bitterness comments, although if you substituted in "Tully's" for Starbucks, I'd jump on the bandwagon. They're another Seattle-based chain, much smaller, and I've found their coffee and especially their espresso to be over-the-top bitter.

[Matt.Weston]

I'm one of those horrible, horrible people that drinks "Coffee-based-substances" - more specifically, super strong very milky mocha, by the pint.

A terrible mix of about 18 teaspoons of Instant Mocha powder, 9 of sugar, made up into a syrup, then topped up to a level Pint with warm milk. (Warm, so that I can drink it in a few gulps)

When I realised what I was doing (Some days multiple pints) I figured "Hmm, if you are supposed to use 1 teaspon for one cup of coffee... that means... Oh, crap." I gave up coffee altogether. Very silly stuff, that caffeine. Now I only break out caffeine stuff when pulling all nighters, and then it's only pepsi or coke.

Maybe I'll go back to coffee some day. The Pint business was a gradual move from weak -> stronger -> stupid so I don't know.

And a warning: Never, Ever, EVER, eat coffee beans and then drink pepsi/coke... EVER!!!!

[john_childs]

My favorite coffee places are restaurants and little desert shops that have good cheesecake or chocolate cake. A good cup of regular black coffee and a slice of cheesecake and I'm a happy camper.

My favorite coffee shop is The Beanery. Specifically this one. Allann Brothers does coffee right. Sadly, The Beanery is only in Oregon.

[harper]

Originally Posted by wobblyjohn

YES!!!!! I am a hopeless coffee snob! All of my coffee is roasted out on the back deck by me, ground in a Mazzer grinder, and brewed within a week of roasting. Usually in one of the vacuum pots, but sometimes french press or espresso. There's nothing in the world like a top-notch Harrar or Yemen roasted light, and press brewed between 3 and 6 days after the roast. Guatamala ain't bad either, just too subtle for my own preferences.

It sounds like I might be the only homeroaster here.......

John is the only real coffee drinker other than Yoopers, JC, and UniBrier so far.

The only coffee I roast is for Ethiopian ceremonial coffee.

The best coffee I make daily in the evening:
Arabic coffee: For each cup use 1 teaspoon of Turkish ground French roast (or any dark, greasy equivalent), 1/2 teaspoon sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon ground cardomon. Fill the ibrik (Turkish coffee pot) with these ingredients and one porcelain demitasse cup of water per desired cup of coffee. Use only thinwall porcelain cups. The heat should be adjusted so it takes ten minutes to just roil. Stir five minutes into the heating process. Heat until it just roils (don't let it boil.) Preheat the demitasse cups with hot water. Pour the coffee quickly from the ibrik to avoid drips. Most of the grounds stay in the ibrik due to its shape. Don't drink the grounds.

In the morning I make a quadrupole espresso with burr ground espresso roast from some source that is preferably not Starbucks. I walk outside and drink that with Buster as we survey the neighborhood for squirrels and other vermin of interest to us both. My burr grinder is attached to my espresso maker. Cost per cup is about $0.30. The $250 Profi Estro espresso-maker/burr-grinder paid for itself in about 3 months.

The best coffee shop in Seattle hands down is the Bauhaus at 301 Pine Street. Lattes, mochas, frappuccinos, breves, and cappuccinos are not coffee, they are coffee flavored drinks. Flavored coffee (vanilla, orange, hazelnut, etc.) is a beverage invention of 12th century Satan worshippers.

[mscalisi]

I havn't spent too much time in Seattle, but I did quite enjoy Coffee Messiah

Originally Posted by harper

The best coffee shop in Seattle hands down is the Bauhaus at 301 Pine Street. Lattes, mochas, frappuccinos, breves, and cappuccinos are not coffee, they are coffee flavored drinks. Flavored coffee (vanilla, orange, hazelnut, etc.) is a beverage invention of 12th century Satan worshippers.

[yoopers]

Originally Posted by harper

The only coffee I roast is for Ethiopian ceremonial coffee.

The best coffee I make daily in the evening:
Arabic coffee: For each cup use 1 teaspoon of Turkish ground French roast (or any dark, greasy equivalent), 1/2 teaspoon sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon ground cardomon. Fill the ibrik (Turkish coffee pot) with these ingredients and one porcelain demitasse cup of water per desired cup of coffee. Use only thinwall porcelain cups. The heat should be adjusted so it takes ten minutes to just roil. Stir five minutes into the heating process. Heat until it just roils (don't let it boil.) Preheat the demitasse cups with hot water. Pour the coffee quickly from the ibrik to avoid drips. Most of the grounds stay in the ibrik due to its shape. Don't drink the grounds.

In the morning I make a quadrupole espresso with burr ground espresso roast from some source that is preferably not Starbucks. I walk outside and drink that with Buster as we survey the neighborhood for squirrels and other vermin of interest to us both. My burr grinder is attached to my espresso maker. Cost per cup is about $0.30. The $250 Profi Estro espresso-maker/burr-grinder paid for itself in about 3 months.

The best coffee shop in Seattle hands down is the Bauhaus at 301 Pine Street. Lattes, mochas, frappuccinos, breves, and cappuccinos are not coffee, they are coffee flavored drinks. Flavored coffee (vanilla, orange, hazelnut, etc.) is a beverage invention of 12th century Satan worshippers.

Greg,

This post deserves double reputation points but the system says that I need to wait before I can fill out the reputation point form for you again. You have my rep points in spirit.

Bruce

[wobblyjohn]

Harper -- How are you roasting your coffee? Just curious... Personally, I'm now using a turbo oven/stir crazy combo, for the one-pound-per-roast factor. 1/3 lb. at a time from the IRoast just wasn't keeping up.
I've heard nice things of Bauhaus.... Occasionally uttered along with Cafe D'Arte and Espresso Vivace!
If you're ever in Portland, Stumptown is an excellent shop, about seven blocks west of Serious Juggling. (#1 reason I bought my unicycle there, honestly!) Big Probat roasters right in the shop, and the baristas always get a pleased grin when I order a double ristretto!

I will admit to an occasional frappucino type drink on a hot day. Just so long as I can't taste the coffee. The big chain stuff isn't bitter, it's rancid! It's the same flavor nuts get after sitting around for a few years, but coffee gets that way a month or two after roasting.