201 replies to this topic

[Jason Panella]

As someone once said, to paraphrase — you know you're a coffee enthusiast when you drink decaf just for the taste.

(And yes, there are plenty of decaf coffees that taste just as good as 'regular' types. Especially when the caffeine is extracted with the Swiss Water Process.)

[Rich Kennedy]

Rich, you're probably better informed on coffee than most folks, so don't sell yourself short. I happened to be thrust head-first into the coffee world a few years ago and — while I now work for a college — the coffee interest has stayed with me.

Yes, I understand. I've had the same experience with clothes, oriental rugs, and food (hence the concern over financing yet one more exploration into deepest, darkest connoisseurship). In fact my appreciation of coffee expanded because of a restaurant I worked at served the only cappucino in town, waaay before the barrista craze hit.

And regarding not having a lot of money to explore coffee, keep in mind that most places overcharge significantly on coffee. If you're paying more than $2 for a cup of brewed coffee, you're probably paying too much. And while it may seem like buying coffee in bulk is on either end of the price spectrum (super cheap Chock Full O' Nuts, super expensive for snobby elitist organic coffee), you can get some good, good stuff for a fair price. You just have to keep your eyes peeled. (Also, many good roasters offer whole beans in small amounts.)

I agree about price. My typical order is always, "The largest of your strongest!". And I rarely pay the full $2 for the privilege. But you are saying I can experiment with more elegant roasts this way? Do Caribou (which I prefer) and Starbucks do the single origin thing? Or would I have to seek out small independents? Sadly, my nose tells me that few places roast their own, at least in hip Royal Oak and Ferndale (where I live). I'm sure that Ann Arbor has more than a few places that roast their own, but that is quite a drive.

As to acidity/bitterness, I haven't really cared to examine just what sort of acidity that takes place in bad coffee at supermarkets. All I know is that overpowering sort of acid that makes my esophogus and stomach both attempt to expell the source. I don't know if it is incompetent brewing, too much robusto, or a combination of both. I don't know what is so hard about measuring grounds into a filter and filling a pot with water. Combine. For some reason though, few folks in grocery stores know how to keep from damaging decent coffee.

[Jason Panella]

I'm not as familiar with Caribou as I could be (they just started building them in our area), but I'm guessing that they do the single origin thing. Starbucks does it too, but they seem to prefer blends from what's brewed. But yes, you shouldn't be paying extra for single origin coffees or "elegant roasts."

Honestly, even the notoriously over-priced Jamaican Blue Mountain and pure Kona beans shouldn't cost more pound for pound than other beans.

[Jason Panella]

Here we go, folks — Beaver Falls Coffee & Tea, my favorite coffee shop on the planet, is debuting their online store today at 5 p.m.!

Check it out. It's bare-bones now, but the few coffees they have are amazing. All roasted by my close friend Russ (co-owner of the shop).

[Christian]

My wife has hatched the idea that we'll order bulk coffee beans from this place and roast them ouselves -- something we've never done.

Will an over and cookie sheet do for roasting? This was her suggestion. I fear she might be ... off base.

[M. Leary]

Roasting is an immensely pleasurable activity, but you need to buy some basic equipment to do it with any consistent success. This is actually a helpful intro.

These days you can get effective roasters rather cheaply, such as this, I have used a similar one and found it to work nicely. The best thing about roasting is that you get to control the flavor of your coffee based on catching the roast just at the point you like it. Please report back after your first roast.

[Christian]

Roasting is an immensely pleasurable activity, but you need to buy some basic equipment to do it with any consistent success. This is actually a helpful intro.

These days you can get effective roasters rather cheaply, such as this, I have used a similar one and found it to work nicely. The best thing about roasting is that you get to control the flavor of your coffee based on catching the roast just at the point you like it. Please report back after your first roast.

Thanks! I warned Sarah that we were looking at an $89 roaster investment. She clipped an online Q&A with a guy named Dax, and told me we should go the $24.99 popper route:

CM: What is required to do this?

DAX: You can roast green coffee beans (which by the way are about half the price of commercial roasted beans) in a frying pan although that is not the most desirable. There are two methods of roasting: with hot air or on a hot surface. I prefer the hot surface because I can roast it much darker than I can with hot air. The equipment I use is an old-fashioned style popcorn popper (the Whirley Pop popcorn popper is ideal), a high-temp candy thermometer, a simple food scale and a couple of pounds of green coffee beans (from $4 a pound).

CM: How much should it cost to get started roasting coffee at home?

b>DAX:the market that are fully automated. They range from $100 to $500, but that is not necessary to get started.

CM: Can you describe the roasting process?

DAX: I preheat the popper to 400 degrees F and then dump the green coffee beans into the roast chamber (popcorn popper). I begin to turn the crank immediately and continue at a steady pace (one revolution per second) until the roasting is complete. The roasting chamber cools as the green coffee beans absorb the heat. When it reaches 350 F, I turn the heat down to medium/medium-low. I continue to roast until the desired roast color is achieved. I roast in my kitchen on the stovetop or on my outdoor grill’s stove burner.

DAX: Is there a learning curve when it comes to roasting coffee?

CM: Yes. At first I watched the thermometer and the clock, but have learned to read the auditory and olfactory clues. The coffee beans crack and sound like popping corn when they cook. In fact they can actually crack twice. The first crack is when the moisture is released from the bean and the second is when the sugars react. When you get good you can actually listen to detect your roast preference. The beans will smoke and smell differently depending on where you are in the roasting process. The goal is to roast by sound and smell because when you open the roasting chamber to check the roast color you release the heat.

CM: Did you ruin any batches before you got it right?

DAX: No. But it took a few batches to perfect roasting to my personal taste because I like a very dark roast. At first
I was too cautious fearing I would burn it. A lighter roast is not a ruined batch at all, just not my personal preference.

[Christian]

So, film blogger Jeffrey Wells has something to say about the death of filmmaker John Hughes:

John Hughes was (or had been) a heavy cigarette smoker and coffee drinker. Actions more often than not have consequences.

I drink more coffee than I should and would like to cut back, but most recent press has indicated that heavy coffee consumption has health benefits. I'm not sure what Wells is getting at. Maybe it's the "coffee and cigarettes" in compound that spells trouble in his mind. I was brought up to think of both as going hand in hand.

[Jason Panella]

Well, tons of consumption of coffee can mess you up, something I can testify from experience. Caffeine is a drug, after all. I drink coffee solely for the flavor (thus, I like well-made decaf as much as I like caffeinated), but there have been times where I'm really digging a certain origin or roast and drink so much that, well...I honestly feel like I'm about to die.

[techne]

As to acidity/bitterness, I haven't really cared to examine just what sort of acidity that takes place in bad coffee at supermarkets. All I know is that overpowering sort of acid that makes my esophogus and stomach both attempt to expell the source. I don't know if it is incompetent brewing, too much robusto, or a combination of both. I don't know what is so hard about measuring grounds into a filter and filling a pot with water. Combine. For some reason though, few folks in grocery stores know how to keep from damaging decent coffee.

i think the acidity is due to the prevalence of columbian coffee in mass-market/ supermarket coffee blends - it's the world's #1 coffee only because it's so plenteous, which has nothing to do with flavour or bouquet. it's already winey and thin and acid-y, and doesn't play well with others. and it doesn't seem to handle the heat (read: darker roasts) very well.

then again, i prefer the 'earthier' coffees (indonesian, african) or nuttier (indian, south american). i tend to avoid the winey coffees...

Edited by techne, 11 August 2009 - 10:10 PM.

[Jason Panella]

i think the acidity is due to the prevalence of columbian coffee in mass-market/ supermarket coffee blends - it's the world's #1 coffee only because it's so plenteous, which has nothing to do with flavour or bouquet. it's already winey and thin and acid-y, and doesn't play well with others. and it doesn't seem to handle the heat (read: darker roasts) very well.

then again, i prefer the 'earthier' coffees (indonesian, african) or nuttier (indian, south american). i tend to avoid the winey coffees...

Yes yes yes yes yes!

Companies often snooker people into buying their coffee by advertising it as "Columbian...so you know it's good!" I mean, there are some decent Columbian estates, but the fact that it's Columbian has nothing to do with quality.

[Christian]

To state the obvious, perhaps, the connotation in the United States of "Columbian coffee" is a drawing of a man in a hat, picking coffee beans. Last name: Valdez.

I'm convinced that people buy Columbian coffee primarily because they feel like they have a personal connection to the roast. It doesn't make sense, and I have no evidence to support my theory. But I like my theory, and I'm sticking to it.

BTW, just bought another big ol' bag of Columbian from Costco. I like the stuff, although I always ask my wife to buy any roast but that one, simply because I've grown a little tired of it.

[Rich Kennedy]

Well, tons of consumption of coffee can mess you up, something I can testify from experience. Caffeine is a drug, after all. I drink coffee solely for the flavor (thus, I like well-made decaf as much as I like caffeinated), but there have been times where I'm really digging a certain origin or roast and drink so much that, well...I honestly feel like I'm about to die.

I drink coffee because I like it and I drink A LOT of it. Daily. Haven't had a problem in decades. Once, I would get headaches from much coffee and would have to dry out. No more. I think that it might be because I am careful and fussy about what I drink.

That said, our store is getting a Tim Horton's kiosk. They had samples today bacause of a Kroger Divisional Presidents walkthrough. I had a cup. Not quite hideous. Pretty standard fastfood/mass market stuff and I'm surprised. This company has been around forever. You can't drive anywhere in Ontario (quite nearby up here) without getting the idea it is the Canadian McDonald's. My Canadian friends here have always said that it isn't the baked goods, but the coffee.... No. Sorry, but it's not real good.

[Jason Panella]

That said, our store is getting a Tim Horton's kiosk. They had samples today bacause of a Kroger Divisional Presidents walkthrough. I had a cup. Not quite hideous. Pretty standard fastfood/mass market stuff and I'm surprised. This company has been around forever. You can't drive anywhere in Ontario (quite nearby up here) without getting the idea it is the Canadian McDonald's. My Canadian friends here have always said that it isn't the baked goods, but the coffee.... No. Sorry, but it's not real good.

My girlfriend and I were driving somewhere with my folks, and I offered to take the wheel for a while and give my dad a break. We stopped at a rest stop in New York and, instead of the ubiquitous Starbucks, there sat a Tim Horton's. I got a cup. It took 45 minutes for it to cool down enough to be drinkable.

I'd heard great things. All of them false.

[techne]

That said, our store is getting a Tim Horton's kiosk. They had samples today bacause of a Kroger Divisional Presidents walkthrough. I had a cup. Not quite hideous. Pretty standard fastfood/mass market stuff and I'm surprised. This company has been around forever. You can't drive anywhere in Ontario (quite nearby up here) without getting the idea it is the Canadian McDonald's. My Canadian friends here have always said that it isn't the baked goods, but the coffee.... No. Sorry, but it's not real good.

My girlfriend and I were driving somewhere with my folks, and I offered to take the wheel for a while and give my dad a break. We stopped at a rest stop in New York and, instead of the ubiquitous Starbucks, there sat a Tim Horton's. I got a cup. It took 45 minutes for it to cool down enough to be drinkable.

I'd heard great things. All of them false.

tim's is great coffee for people who don't actually like the taste of coffee...tim's is tim's precisely because of the baked goods.

(as a canadian i know i shouldn't disparage a canadian icon, but their coffee is crap)

[Rich Kennedy]

(as a canadian i know i shouldn't disparage a canadian icon, but their coffee is crap)

I appreciate your honesty. I've never heard such from a Canadian before on this topic. OTOH, Tim himself was in fact a great Canadian icon as a defenseman for the 'Leafs way back when. I understand that he died before his time, so to speak, while getting the company off the ground after his hockey career.

[Peter T Chattaway]

Rich Kennedy wrote:
: I appreciate your honesty. I've never heard such from a Canadian before on this topic.

Just for the record, I myself don't drink coffee, so I have no vested interest in the quality of Tim Horton's brew. I suppose, as a Canadian, I should be defending Tim Horton's just on principle, but what can I say? I rarely buy anything there except for the odd pack of Timbits.

[techne]

Rich Kennedy wrote:
: I appreciate your honesty. I've never heard such from a Canadian before on this topic.

Just for the record, I myself don't drink coffee, so I have no vested interest in the quality of Tim Horton's brew. I suppose, as a Canadian, I should be defending Tim Horton's just on principle, but what can I say? I rarely buy anything there except for the odd pack of Timbits.

mmmmm...timbits...

[Rich Kennedy]

Timbits? What, donutholes? Puck droppings?

[Peter T Chattaway]

Rich Kennedy wrote:
: Timbits? What, donutholes? Puck droppings?

Never heard of puck droppings. Robin's Donuts used to have Robin's Eggs, though.