Scaleable coffee solutions

November 17, 2022 8:50 AM

I have a mildly fussy coffee setup optimized for a single serving (aeropress, electric kettle, handheld burr grinder) - I'm the only coffee drinker in my household and have to limit myself to one cup a day, so this works fine. From this starting point, what's the easiest way for me to serve coffee to 2-3 guests without having to serially grind and plunge multiple batches? "Easiest" as in, minimizes the amount of new stuff I need to acquire and keep in my kitchen.
posted by btfreek to Home & Garden (20 answers total)

A french press seems like the easiest option, gels with your existing grinder/kettle setup.
posted by dismas at 8:53 AM on November 17, 2022 [12 favorites]

Drip cone that uses #4 filters OR a French press, plus get a bag of pre-ground coffee ahead of time.
posted by blnkfrnk at 8:53 AM on November 17, 2022 [5 favorites]

A French press would probably fit your needs.
posted by Captain_Science at 8:54 AM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

nthing French press. I have had this one for years and it works like a charm and is super easy to clean.
posted by General Malaise at 9:04 AM on November 17, 2022

I make a quart of cold brew concentrate with 1 cup grounds and fill the rest of the quart with water, sit overnight on counter, strain grounds out in morning, strain again through a paper filter if avoiding unfiltered coffee, store in fridge. Dilute if wanted, served cold over ice, or heat up and serve. Only equipment needed is a 4 cup glass container with a lid, a strainer, and optionally a paper filter for additional filtering.

This works perfectly for special occasions that I know about ahead of time such as Thanksgiving but not as well for more spontaneous serving 3 at once needs at which time I can just make double strength aeropress batches and serve 2-3 small portions.

On multiple occasions I just set out the aeropress and guests are delighted to use it themselves. More than one has gone on to purchase their own.
posted by RoadScholar at 9:22 AM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

Are these surprise guests? Grinding before they arrive and doing sequential cups at table with them doesn’t interrupt the conversation - really old tea and coffee sets came with a slops bowl for the grounds, even. The gentle clatter of the apparatus used to be thought attractive.

Or a four-cup French press, if you can keep yourself from using it by yourself.
posted by clew at 9:23 AM on November 17, 2022 [2 favorites]

I use the exact same setup as you for my personal coffee, and I keep a large French press around for the very rare occasions when I have company.
posted by Jawn at 9:33 AM on November 17, 2022

Electric burr grinder that can make at least 3 cups' worth, so you can use it for yourself. The aeropress shouldn't interrupt your hosting flow much but if it does, then another vote for a French press.
posted by cendawanita at 9:37 AM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

Melitta makes pot-sized pour-overs, in ranges from extremely cheap (no pot or basic glass carafe) to fancy and maybe repurposeable (insulated steel carafe you might use for other things when not making full pots of coffee). The cone itself is a bit large but can go in an upper cabinet or something out of the way.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:57 AM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

I bought a cheap, compact 4-cup Black and Decker coffee maker, which I keep in a storage closet until I need it. I pre-grind the coffee, fill the basket and reservoir, then press the button when guests come in. I set it up for overnight guests with cups, spoons, milk, etc. to make their own coffee in the morning. We have a French press and an Aeropress, but the coffee maker works best for guests, and the coffee is pretty good. Then it lives in the closet until next time.
posted by Elsie at 9:58 AM on November 17, 2022

French Press for sure, plus adjusting your grind size — more fine for Aeropress and more coarse for French press.
posted by emelenjr at 10:06 AM on November 17, 2022

Response by poster: Upon further thought I suspect cendawanita is onto something in that the grinder is my main bottleneck - I love my little manual grinder, but it's just a bit awkward to try and hold a conversation while engaging in a spot of manual labour in the middle of my kitchen. These are generally spontaneous guests of the "we just had dinner together, why don't you stop by for a cup of coffee" variety so pre-grinding isn't a viable option, at least for someone as disorganized as I am.
posted by btfreek at 10:17 AM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

I make 3 'servings' in an Aeropress every morning in one batch.

I use Cafe Bustelo (stronger coffee, finer grind), inverted method, and three of the aeropress scoops with water at 170F. Fill to about an inch below the top, stir to wet all the grounds, wait 2-3 minutes, then a little more hot water before flipping and pressing. Divide the extract equally into three cups and fill with hot water.
posted by JoeZydeco at 10:20 AM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

It’s lower-quality coffee than grinding fresh, but buying sealed ground coffee in small containers and just opening a bag when you have guests solves the grinding problem.
posted by LizardBreath at 10:42 AM on November 17, 2022

I would be delighted to be passed the grinder as my turn in the conversation came up, but a few packets of good ground coffee wrapped very airtight in the freezer would be really good too.
posted by clew at 12:10 PM on November 17, 2022

There are also some instant coffees these days that aren't terrible (though I suspect that anyone with a manual burr grinder and an Aeropress has a bar higher than "not terrible"). I've kept them on hand in secondary residences where I am not there often enough to keep fresh coffee and around and/or don't have a grinder and brewer available. Swift Cup is one I have found decent in the past, but there are several brands.
posted by primethyme at 2:13 PM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

I’d get a French press and a cheap blade grinder that can grind coarsely.

Sure, blade grinders are not as good as a burr grinders, but one should be perfectly adequate for parties.
posted by vitout at 3:57 PM on November 17, 2022

Yep big French press. Use Hoffmann’s method.

Ew no preground. No blade grinder especially with French press because it’ll be really muddy (unless you’re willing to sift it). Get the lowest-end Baratza burr grinder. The company is good about “repair not replace”, and you’re worth it.
posted by supercres at 8:03 PM on November 17, 2022

I used to have this exact same setup. When my mother came to visit she bought me a small electric burr grinder and a French press despite my protests that I couldn’t possibly fit another appliance in my tiny kitchen. My resistance lasted approximately two days and I’ve never ground another cup by hand again! Highly recommend.
posted by sparringnarwhal at 8:46 AM on November 19, 2022

Nth-ing a small electric burr grinder, which will also save you time for your own coffee and aid consistency in the grind.
posted by k3ninho at 5:12 AM on November 22, 2022