Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 10/02/2007 - 04:52.
Brett you've pointed out several things I try to tell my wife and other "Starbucks" fans. You haven't had good coffee unless it is fresh and brewed properly. My old man still swears McDonalds makes the best coffee ever (wonder if it has anything to do with his free senior discount cup??)...Anyways, there are several key components to a fine cup of coffee.
# 1 Coffee. The most important thing is the coffee itself. Is it fresh? Do you have any idea where your coffee comes from? I know the coffee I get was roasted 2 days prior to my receiving it(your blog reminded me to renew my Sweet Maria subscription). I only use whole bean. I either buy from the local coffee shop who brews each Sunday and Thursday or from Sweet Maria. I would never use preground coffee. Ground coffee loses most of its flavor after the first 15-20 minutes after grinding. I could get all political here about the major coffee retailers but let's just say I prefer to deal with coffee retailers that offer Fair Trade Coffee and organic varieties.
#2 Brewing it. http://www.sweetmarias.com/brewinstr.frenchpress.html French Pressing is the method I like best. I usually heat my water to around 190-200. I use a simple oven thermometer and it works fine. I still own a drip brewer (the wife thinks French pressing it is too much work) but never use it. Well that's not entirely true because I did take it camping. But drip brewers never really get the water hot enough to extract all the flavor of the coffee and once the coffee is brewed it just burns it and thickens it to a sludge like paste. Yuck.
#3 Cleaning your coffee maker. No matter what kind of brewing method you use make sure to CLEAN your coffee maker after each use. I know this sounds a bit anal but old crusty coffee and burnt coffee paste do no add to the flavor of a fine cup of joe. I use a stainless steel screen on the French press and for the most part the French Press is mainly glass and plastic. It can easily be taken apart and cleaned in a couple of minutes. I use an
8 cup Bodine but I've seen cheap knock offs at Meijers that cost around 12 bucks.
#4 Water - Water is crucial. If you are using well water that smells hard and nasty or city water that is chemically then that is what your coffee will taste like. I use either filtered water or spring water. The water where I live is actually really good so occasionally it goes straight from the tap to the kettle. (again another quirk of the wife... she'll only use the filtered water in her coffee but still puts it in the drip maker...)
#5 The grind. Grinding your coffee correctly for the type of brewing that you are going to do is more important than you think. Most people purchase the cheap airplane propeller type grinder. You know the one that chops and whirls your beans into a blended mess of particles. This works for the Drip brewer but not as well for the French press. I'd suggest something like the Burr Grinder which can guarantee an even grind. If you decide to go out and buy whole bean coffee and put it through a drip brewer at least make sure to grind it correctly. In a drip brewer you'd want a fine grind. The proper grind for French Press is coarse. This prevents too many fine particles of coffee ending up in your cup.
#6 Drink it while it's hot. Find a nice place to relax and start your day. I always remind myself as I take my first couple of sips in the morning that things could be worse....
Excellent Coffee at a Reasonable Price
Brett you've pointed out several things I try to tell my wife and other "Starbucks" fans. You haven't had good coffee unless it is fresh and brewed properly. My old man still swears McDonalds makes the best coffee ever (wonder if it has anything to do with his free senior discount cup??)...Anyways, there are several key components to a fine cup of coffee.
# 1 Coffee. The most important thing is the coffee itself. Is it fresh? Do you have any idea where your coffee comes from? I know the coffee I get was roasted 2 days prior to my receiving it(your blog reminded me to renew my Sweet Maria subscription). I only use whole bean. I either buy from the local coffee shop who brews each Sunday and Thursday or from Sweet Maria. I would never use preground coffee. Ground coffee loses most of its flavor after the first 15-20 minutes after grinding. I could get all political here about the major coffee retailers but let's just say I prefer to deal with coffee retailers that offer Fair Trade Coffee and organic varieties.
#2 Brewing it. http://www.sweetmarias.com/brewinstr.frenchpress.html French Pressing is the method I like best. I usually heat my water to around 190-200. I use a simple oven thermometer and it works fine. I still own a drip brewer (the wife thinks French pressing it is too much work) but never use it. Well that's not entirely true because I did take it camping. But drip brewers never really get the water hot enough to extract all the flavor of the coffee and once the coffee is brewed it just burns it and thickens it to a sludge like paste. Yuck.
#3 Cleaning your coffee maker. No matter what kind of brewing method you use make sure to CLEAN your coffee maker after each use. I know this sounds a bit anal but old crusty coffee and burnt coffee paste do no add to the flavor of a fine cup of joe. I use a stainless steel screen on the French press and for the most part the French Press is mainly glass and plastic. It can easily be taken apart and cleaned in a couple of minutes. I use an
8 cup Bodine but I've seen cheap knock offs at Meijers that cost around 12 bucks.
#4 Water - Water is crucial. If you are using well water that smells hard and nasty or city water that is chemically then that is what your coffee will taste like. I use either filtered water or spring water. The water where I live is actually really good so occasionally it goes straight from the tap to the kettle. (again another quirk of the wife... she'll only use the filtered water in her coffee but still puts it in the drip maker...)
#5 The grind. Grinding your coffee correctly for the type of brewing that you are going to do is more important than you think. Most people purchase the cheap airplane propeller type grinder. You know the one that chops and whirls your beans into a blended mess of particles. This works for the Drip brewer but not as well for the French press. I'd suggest something like the Burr Grinder which can guarantee an even grind. If you decide to go out and buy whole bean coffee and put it through a drip brewer at least make sure to grind it correctly. In a drip brewer you'd want a fine grind. The proper grind for French Press is coarse. This prevents too many fine particles of coffee ending up in your cup.
#6 Drink it while it's hot. Find a nice place to relax and start your day. I always remind myself as I take my first couple of sips in the morning that things could be worse....
Brian M
Mt Clemens, MI
mills1973@hotmail.com