Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with coffee

Help me optimize my Chemex production

arcticseal — Sat, 18 May 2013 13:40:36 -0800

My lust for a Chemex has finally been sated with my birthday this week. Please help me optimise my coffee production from this wonderful piece of apparatus. I'm already loving the output that I'm getting from it and the simplicity of hot water, filter and a carafe. My current production method uses beans, ancient Bodum blade grinder and a kettle. My coffee snob friend is recommending that I purchase a scale to measure out the beans to get the ratio of water and beans correct. I'd like to get a burr grinder, but am reluctant to dispose of a perfectly functional blade grinder while it's still working; does a burr grinder make that much of a difference?

What should I be doing to get the best possible brew?

Bonus points for good online roasters in Canada.
Super bonus points if someone can recommend their favourite travel mug. Mine is decrepit and I'd like to replace it with something like this as I'd prefer to drink out of ceramic rather than plastic but it only comes in a 12 oz. size and I'd prefer a 16 oz. size.

coffee

dfriedman — Sat, 18 May 2013 06:59:36 -0800

Is there any coffee similar to Starbucks' "ready brew" that is not Starbucks? Basically, I am looking for the dead-simple coffee experience that Starbucks offers without using Starbucks coffee: open a packet of finely ground coffee, dump it in a mug, add water, stick it in a microwave for four minutes, add some milk. Done. I don't want Keurig cups or any other kind of cup that needs a separate machine, etc. I don't care about fair trade, flavor (as long as its not burnt), or price. Thanks for any info you can provide!

Oh, and I'm in the US if it matters.

Chilean coffee does not exist. Or does it?

Anonymous — Wed, 08 May 2013 07:33:16 -0800

Is there a chilean coffee industry? My western European work colleague says she's heard of chilean coffee and that it's supposed to be very good, but as a chilean I've never heard of it, ever. As far as I know, Chile does not even have the appropriate climate to grow coffee. But as a non-coffee drinker, I always assumed whatever coffee people drink over there is imported from Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, etc, and never cared enough to check a label while I lived there.

We found a German blog in which mention is made, again of "very good chilean coffee" but we have otherwise done an extensive online search - she is a librarian and knows how to find stuff - and can't find any real evidence for or against it.

We'll be both satisfied if you can name a place or region in which it is grown, even better if you know of a factory in Chile that processes 100% chilean coffee, which is grown in the region of [insert region].

Otherwise, I'd love to hear the reasons why chilean coffee is impossible, so next time someone asks me about its existence (it's happened before) I can give a satisfying answer.

Thank you!

Eggy coffee, egad!

londongeezer — Wed, 01 May 2013 10:18:29 -0800

Putting an egg in your coffee: is this a thing? In Havana the other day I acquired the Us Two Cook Book, by Jennie B. Williams, published in Toronto in 1924. The recipe for "COFFEE" begins "For each cup of water allow one heaping dessert-spoonful of finely ground coffee; put coffee in mixing bowl; add one egg (or half egg)..." and continues "mix thoroughly, adding a little cold water. Turn the coffee into pot and add, measuring with a coffee-cup, the required water–cold. (...) Cook slowly, stirring from time to time. It should not come to a boil in less than ten minutes. Allow to boil from one to three minutes. Settle with a small quantity of cold water."

Well, I executed the above, to the best of my ability, and ended up with boiled-egg-infested coffee grounds and coffee to drink that didn't taste discernibly different from the boiled coffee I've made in the past without an egg.

Can anyone shed any light on coffee with an egg in it? If it is a thing, why is it a thing? Do you do it? Did I do it right?

CoffeFilter: What are your best tips to help quit drinking coffee?

Tevin — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 10:28:03 -0800

Did you kick your coffee-drinking habit? If so, how? You know how in Breaking Bad there are meth addicts who will take any kind of meth they can get their hands on, no matter how terrible it might be or what awful additives it might contain?

I'm like that with coffee. I will drink any kind, no matter what. If it's available I will drink it. Office coffee, church coffee, coffee I found on the sidewalk - it doesn't matter. It is brew and I must put it in me.

This has worked for much of my life but I am becoming less and less fond of myself in those few hours when I do not have a steady stream of java coursing through my veins.

In short: I become a complete and total asshole without coffee and I really don't like that.

I want to quit and I know I can. But I need your help!

I need to fill my bag with all your tricks so that when the cravings come (and boy I know they will come) I will have lots of new things to try to get me through the worst of it. Any advice is welcome!

Help us avoid TacoMcBurgerbucks!

too bad you're not me — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 12:34:48 -0800

Good eats in Washington-Dulles/VA/WV area? See specifics inside. We’re flying into Washington-Dulles on Thursday evening, and then driving to West Virginia on Friday morning. Here is the sort of general route. Is there any must-stop food on that route? It doesn't have to be right off the freeway, but it shouldn't be more than about 20 minutes out of the way.

Bonus points for cool coffee shops, great brunch, or veg-friendly places.

That’s it—hopefully this is an easy one!

Searching for an image: prices & business costs on a coffeeshop sign

feckless — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:21:51 -0800

Sometime in the last week or two I saw (on Twitter? On Tumblr?) an image of a chalkboard coffeeshop sign. In addition to the regular menu & prices, it had a breakdown of costs (ingredients, supplies, overhead) and broke out how much profit the store was making. At least that's how it is in my memory, which might be mistaken. Can you find me this image (and attribution, if possible)? It is not this image, though that is also a nifty coffee sign.

Writing spot in Lower Manhattan or upper Brooklyn

eustacescrubb — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 15:35:15 -0800

When I lived in Chicago, there was a great late-night coffee shop called New Wave Cafe in Logan Square that was perfect for after-work writing. I've been having a hard time finding a similar spot since moving to NYC. It doesn't need to be a coffee shop, but it does need to be well-lit enough that I can read, and calm enough that I won't be seen as preventing the establishment from doing business. Bonus points if the place has a neighborhood-y feel with a friendly staff. I live in Greenpoint, work in SoHo, and usually commute via bicycle over the Williamsburg Bridge. Any suggestions, Metafilter?

How should I prepare this amazing coffee?

FuckingAwesome — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 09:23:30 -0800

Hi there, On a recent trip to Oslo I bought a bag of these espresso coffee beans from a fantastic coffee shop. This is probably a stupid question, but is it possible to make non-espresso strength coffee with these? If so, how should I do it? Obviously I need to grind the beans first, and, if it helps, I have a cafetiere and aeropress. Thanks!

Best machine for making both coffee & specialty espresso drinks @ home

mola — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 18:02:40 -0800

We want to be able to brew regular coffee but also steam and froth milk and make espresso for drinks like lattes and mochas. Is there 1 machine that can do both?

Help me make my sister less of a bitch in the morning

i am a sock puppeteer — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 10:13:11 -0800

My sister is going to be staying with us for two months, to help my wife and I with our newborn. I adore my sister, but she is vile in the morning before her coffee. Unfortunately we do not live remotely close to a nice coffee house. We are tea drinkers, so we have none of the appropriate 'stuff'. How can I provide her with a good coffee experience at minimal cost? I know she usually orders a caramel mocha of some sort. Also possibly relevant, I offered to buy nice beans and a coffee press, she said she had tried those with little success, so she just buys hers. She never drinks unflavored coffee and reports that she can't taste a difference between most roasts. Is this a matter of buying the right syrups?

Caffeine withdrawal: Personal stories?

Kamelot123 — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 03:54:40 -0800

Two days ago, I decided to cut down on my caffeine intake drastically. I now feel super duper out of it and fatigued, plus I have headaches (I never get headaches!). I would like to hear personal anecdotes from others regarding their experiences with caffeine withdrawal, so I know for sure that what I am feeling is not just in my head. Two days ago, I decided to cut down on my caffeine intake drastically. Up to this point I had been having two or three (big) cups of starbucks coffee every day, with a latte thrown in here and there. I felt awesome until the nighttime, which is when I would start having a hard time falling asleep. I was also feeling quite tense and wound up.

Yesterday, I only had one Starbucks decaf - which has a little bit of caffeine in it, I know - and one cup of green tea (I asked for the lowest caffeine tea they had). Today, just one decaf. Basically I went from around 500-700 mgs of caffeine per day to 20-50-ish.

Wow, did I start feeling like poop all of a sudden! I am feeling majorly lethargic, with no energy to do the things that I usually love to do. My mind is having a hard time jumping to words while making conversation, whereas usually I am a fountain of verbosity. I am also rather irritable, and I am trying to make myself forget about said irritability by eating comfort foods.

At first I didn't connect the dots, but today thought 'hey, I haven't been having my usual coffee intake, let's have a look-see on mr. internet about coffee withdrawals!' Sure enough, going cold turkey - or pretty close to it in my case - does cause withdrawals plus pretty much all of the symptoms I am currently having: inability to concentrate, headaches, fatigue, flu-like symptoms (I am pretty sure that I'm not sick).

So - I am still a tad worried that this withdrawal is either something else or is all in my head because, hey - it's caffeine, not a hard drug for crissakes! So I'd like to hear some personal stories from people who have tried cutting down their coffee/caffeine intake, or were able to cut it out of their lives completely. Finally, for those who were able to stick to the program: Did your life improve as a result? (I need motivation!!)

How do I replicate Spanish cafe con leche at a US cafe?

yarly — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 08:56:46 -0800

How do I order a Spanish-style cafe con leche at a US espresso bar? I can't seem to get the proportions right. What I'm looking for is a high ratio of espresso to milk, but not too high. The milk should be hot, not frothy at all. Cappucicinos, cafe au laits, and lattes all have too much milk. Today I tried to describe what I wanted and they gave me a "short cappuccino," which was not enough milk, and the milk was foamed instead of flat. A specific name for this drink would be great, if it exists, but what I really want is the exact ordering instructions -- because I find that in most cafes, ordering anything slightly unusual (like an Americano) usually gets very inconsistent results.

Great Coffee Blogs

u17tw — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 06:28:19 -0800

Help me find some great coffee blogs. They could be practical how to type blogs, coffee shop reviews or straight up coffee porn. Bonus points for anything with a UK focus.

Looking for the perfect press

Minus215Cee — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 19:58:56 -0800

Hi, all. This should be fairly short, so here goes: While suffering through the Influenza of 2013, I ended up watching a ton of episodes of Danger Man on DVD, only to become entranced with this particular object, which I've made a screenshot of. Beautiful, right?

I know it's a combination french press/serving pot. My question are, are these still made, and if so, where can I acquire one?

My interests are twofold:

1. I work in a coffeehouse, and we're constantly having discussions about how to allow customers the ability to order personal pots of coffee without the attendant hazard of glass-walled presses, or the modern ick associated with even high-quality plastic presses; this looks like it's potentially made of metal, which would be helpful.

2. I...lust after this thing. Not on the same level as, say, general moral competency, or debt forgiveness, but it pops into my arena of awareness often enough for me to go "Where did those get to? Are they not manufactured anymore? Is my Search-engine Fu failing me? AARRGGG."

Any kind of helpful answer, even an answer that suggests or confirms that these kind of french presses are not in existence anymore, is appreciated.

Help me Froth my Almond Milk!

leotrotsky — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 12:27:24 -0800

In an effort to healthify, I've replaced milk in my coffee with almond milk (unsweetened vanilla). It is awesome and yummy. I've taken to using my aerolatte to whip it into a tasty froth before adding my coffee. Add a little cinnamon on top and magic happens. So this worked great until my last purchase of almond milk (pure almond from Silk). It Will Not Froth! MY QUESTIONS: 1. Why won't it froth? 2. Could the absence of Carrageenan be the cause? 3. Should I worry about the presence of Carrageenan in my nut milk?

Flat thermal mug?

biffa — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 12:08:42 -0800

Is it possible to buy an insulated mug/single serving thermos that is flat, eg, like a liquor flask? (Or at least flatter than the norm.) I sometimes have to get up early and take a long train ride. I would like to be able to take a single serving of my own coffee with me in an insulated mug (because the train only does instant). However, my insulated mugs are all cylindrical, which makes them a pain to stick in my laptop backpack. Is it possible to buy a flatter mug or flask that would be a neater fit? If so does anyone have specific recommendations? Would need to be available in the UK.

To brew or not to brew?

disillusioned — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 14:54:27 -0800

My dog ate nearly a pound of coffee beans. The vet gave him some drugs to get him to vomit them up. (He'll be fine.) The beans came up largely whole/intact, and they... bagged them up for us. If we were to rinse the beans, grind, and brew them, what's the worst that happens? This isn't something we're really considering. (Except I may dare my coffee-loving "will eat anything" friend...) Is this that functionally different from any of those guano/dung coffees that make their entire way through the GI tract? They have some bile on them but that's about it.

Apologies for one of the worst "is this safe to eats" AskMe has probably seen. Definitely not asking if we should so much as what could happen.

Best Method to Make 1 Decent Cup of Coffee

ratherbethedevil — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 10:26:36 -0800

I love coffee, and I have it every morning. But I live with only one other person, my girlfriend, and she doesn't drink coffee in the morning. And most mornings I drink 1 cup, at most 2. So it makes little sense for me to brew a pot. Suggestions? I currently use a pack of Starbucks Via, and mix it with heated water. It's decent, certainly not great, but it's convenient. But there's got to be a easier / cheaper method.

I've used a french press before, but the cleaning of the press after isn't fun. I've heard good things about using an aero press, but have no experience with it. I also have no experience with the Krup single serving machines.

I do love great coffee, but for every-day coffee I'd rather have decent coffee that's convenient than great coffee that's a chore to make. I'll wait for the weekend to make great coffee.

Anyone have a method they'd like to share?

Coffee 101: sociology and technology

The True Wheel — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 15:49:49 -0800

I don't drink coffee and most of my friends don't either, but I'd like to be able to offer a nice cup to occasional visitors who do drink coffee. What type of small-scale coffee maker would be a good choice: some kind of drip and filter method? French press? Should I buy a small amount of decent quality ground coffee and hope that it keeps well between coffee drinkers? (And what would be a safe, crowd-pleasing choice?) Or should I just forget offering potentially mediocre coffee and offer everyone tea and tisanes?

Boston coffee snobbery

bamassippi — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 21:22:32 -0800

Where can a coffee snob find fulfillment in Boston? Just arrived in Boston. After 2 years in Birmingham (though limited, excellent coffee) and 4 years in Seattle (mecca) I'm trying to get my bearings.

Right now I'm based in Brookline but will be moving to the South End or Cambridge in the next few weeks.

I have a car, so I can drive wherever.

Sometimes when people ask for "a coffee shop" they put more emphasis on the environment than the coffee, but in this case I'm more interested in the coffee than the environment. Though feel free to share a place with good coffee and a great environment.

Share your Aeropress strategy or favorite Aeropress trick!

dep — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 05:07:04 -0800

Share your Aeropress strategy or favorite Aeropress trick! Hello! I've been using my Aeropress more and more and I am totally in love with it. It really does brew an amazing cup. I'm learning that everyone has a different preference for how they use their aeropress, though, from the temperature of the water to the amount/brand/etc of the bean, to the type of grinder (burr, etc)... to other factors that I don't even know about. Here's my cup:
* Water at 175 deg. fahrenheit
* 1 and 1/2 scoops fresh coffee beans.

Burr grind (I have this hand grinder) the beans while heating the water. Serendipitously it takes just as long to heat the water as it does to grind the beans. Prep a small paper filter in to the chamber (you can re-use these filters, btw. just rinse them off). Dump the grounds in to the aeropress and then fill to just above the '2' circle. Stir for 10 seconds and set aside the stir. I then dunk the rubber end of the press in to the left-over water to lubricate. Then do a slow press to brew the grounds. If there is any foam, i use the stir to scrape the foam on to the top of the cup. Delicious!

As far as my bean preference, I tend to go for bulk item local beans here in Asheville, NC. Counter culture beans are really nice.

I've heard of people making iced drinks and more using the Aeropress but I've never heard of how or tried on my own.

Does your process differ from mine? Do you use a different water temperature? More or less beans? Why or why not? Any other tips or tricks? Thanks in advance!

A long shot for a long shot?

hasna — Tue, 25 Dec 2012 11:26:00 -0800

Can I use my espresso maker without a metal filter? I have one of those old-school DiLonghi Caffe Trieste coffee/espresso makers (actually my landlord's), and I wanted to make some espresso this morning. I've searched everywhere for the filter, but I guess the previous tenant lost or broke it. But I really, really want some espresso!

I have all the other parts, just not the little metal filter with holes. Is there any other substitute I can use? Tin foil with holes? a paper filter cut to size?

I realize this is a long shot (...hah), and I can't believe I'm wasting a question on it, but oh well. Is there a solution?

Black gold

deadwax — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 17:01:30 -0800

CoffeeFilter: Why does drinking coffee prevent me from getting headaches? Is there another substance that has the same headache-relieving properties, but without the stimulating effects of caffeine. I grew up getting headaches, on average about one a month. Sometimes bad migraines, often just nasty headaches. I started drinking coffee a few years ago and have had one headache like that since. The change is incredible. (Unless I don't have coffee, in which case I have the begginings of a headache by midday.)

I've done a bunch of googling on this and there are no clear answers as to why this works. Some people say caffeine is a vasoconstrictor, most say it is a vasodilator - both could have effects on headaches. Lots of sources say that caffeine helps other drugs work better and that is why it helps with headache, but I'm not taking any other drugs. Most places agree there is a link between caffeine and headache, no two seem to agree on what that is though. Any information would be appreciated.

Secondly, and this is the more important question, I don't always like the stimulating effect of caffeine - which I am very sensitive to. I always love not getting headaches though, so I keep drinking it. Is there anything else that would prevent headaches, but not have that stimulating effect?

No really, I need a microwaveable travel mug

exceptinsects — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 10:34:09 -0800

Yes, I know, another travel mug question. But I have different special requirements! And it HAS TO be microwaveable! I have found a number of previous questions, but none of them quite fit what I'm looking for.

ESSENTIAL TRAITS
1. It absolutely must be microwaveable, because I make toddy coffee and heat it in the microwave
2. It has to be no more than 6 inches tall so it will fit in the microwave
3. It must fit in a normal car cupholder
4. It must not leak onto your face or hands when you drink from it
5. It should be easily cleaned without a dishwasher

DESIRABLE TRAITS
1. It should be attractive, even "designy"
2. It is not made of plastic, if possible, or if it is plastic, it's plastic that doesn't taste bad

THINGS I DON'T REALLY CARE ABOUT
1. It doesn't have to be leakproof--I'm not going to be carrying it in a bag
2. It doesn't have to keep the coffee warm forever--I can reheat it, because it will be MICROWAVEABLE!
3. It doesn't have to be dishwasher-safe, because I don't have a dishwasher