I knocked my Baratza off counter and broke the adjustment ring and hopper, new parts from Baratza were under $20. It’s nice that it’s easy to get parts and they are reasonably priced.Originally Posted by $teve
I knocked my Baratza off counter and broke the adjustment ring and hopper, new parts from Baratza were under $20. It’s nice that it’s easy to get parts and they are reasonably priced.
Whether you think you can or you can't, you're probably right.
I am a bona fide coffee snob. This is what I have learned from dumping money into my morning beverage of choice.
Quality, fresh beans (2-3 days post roast) and a quality burr grinder are far, far more important than the coffee maker (with the exception being espresso machines). The second most important aspect is keeping the coffee maker clean and free of old grounds and calcium scale. Stale grounds in the reservoir are the fastest way to make your coffee taste like ass.
For the last 7 years I have used the most basic black and decker coffee machine. It has no settings, just an on off switch. It’s also surprisingly prop-65 free (the new version unfortunately is not, but that just may be the reusable filter). It cost me $15 on Amazon and makes 12-30 oz of coffee.
For best results, pre-extract your grounds by pouring just enough boiling-near boiling water over them to wet them (205 F), then just use the coffee maker as usual.
I will probably cry when this coffee maker dies, then switch to pour over carafe.
Edit: On water choice:
Minerals in water affect how you taste things. Using distilled or RO water can help keep the coffee maker cleaner for longer, but doesn’t have much positive affect on taste unless your local water is crap. Good mineral water will have the best taste, but you will need to clean more frequently.
Last edited by Coyote41; 03-24-2019 at 03:57 PM.
My parents are on well water, I'm on city.
I will brew coffee at their house, and have noticed how much different the taste is (in a good way), is this why?
EDIT: I also notice that I have more of that french press "foam" brewing at their house.
Last edited by Jay585; 03-24-2019 at 04:28 PM.
"Well you know, it's a toolbox. You put the tools in for the job." Sam
I heat my water with one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Proctor-Silex...dp/B00023XCWS/
Tap water here sucks. I don't drink it.
Single serving French press each morning.
I'm particular about choosing the beans, but haven't gone down the road of grinding. Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Vienna Roast is a favorite; I usually buy a couple bags when I'm on the West coast. In between, I do the Lavazza Gran Selezione Dark Roast. It's available at Kroger. Also by the case at Amazon.
Time and temperature are everything. I put ~1/2 inch of cold/room temp water in the press with the grounds before adding the boiling water. All boiling, and it releases burned flavors. I discovered by accident that leaving it to brew for 20-40 minutes before pressing releases a whole range of rich, chocolaty, roasty yumminess that you can't get out of the beans using a shorter brew time. The results of the extended brew time are why I just can't care about Keurig or drip coffee makers: It's impossible for something that brews that quickly to get the flavor out of the beans that makes me a coffee person.
TLDR: Don't get it too hot and let it brew long enough to actually get all the flavors out of the beans.
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Not another dime.
I had a friend who grew up on well water. Was in her mid-20s before they figured out that the special taste in their water was actually lead...
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Not another dime.
Where did the lead come from, was it naturally occurring?
My parents had a water well test done before they purchased the property, so it's good.
"Well you know, it's a toolbox. You put the tools in for the job." Sam
I was using a succession of grinder pots and quality beans for the last 20 years, and I finally gave up. I was recently dating a wild half Cuban half Jewish lady from Miami for a month or two, and her coffee always blew me totally away.
A cheap but very hot drip maker (a Black and Decker in this case) and preground Cafe Bustelo expresso coffee totally outranks anything I was making. Plus, it’s cheap - Aldi sells the 10 oz vacuum bricks for $2.88.
I like fancy pants coffee as much as the next guy, and I walked the walk for years. Enough. I’ll look at getting one of the Bonavita makers linked above when this one craps, probably in a year or so.
Ken
BBI: ...”you better not forget the safe word because shit's about to get weird”...
revchuck38: ...”mo' ammo is mo' betta' unless you're swimming or on fire.”
I don't know if they ever tracked down the source. It was in Missouri; I seem to remember something about there being lead mines in the state...
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Not another dime.
I’m excited for the Technivorm if for no other reason - hand made in The Netherlands and all parts are replaceable/serviceable. If there is one thing I am rapidly growing tired of, it’s fixing or replacing broken appliances. By all accounts the Technivorm should last most of the rest of my adult life.
You bought Konis for your coffee!
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Not another dime.
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