Teach me coffee

Liquid Hellz

I had the urge for some iced coffee so I bought a small single cup french press (seen here) to make some. I don't like the way you have to work with it inside the cup to produce the coffee so I am going to buy this a 34 oz french press. Now on to my questions.

Is this a suitable device for myself or should I get something smaller? Im the only one who will be using it so it will be made one cup (8oz) at a time.

How long do coffee beans last?

Should I get beans and grind them myself or just buy the coffee pre-ground?

How long does ground store bought coffee last in the bags(the gourmet stuff, one bag I looked at today said 7-10 day but that seems really short)?

How long does ground store bought canned coffee last(such as Folgers, on the side of the can it says good for 90 cups.. this has to last longer then 10 days)?

How much coffee should I be using for 8 oz of water?

I like my coffee to have some flavor usually.. should I but flavored beans/grounds or flavored sugars/creams? Which leads to a better overall quality/taste of coffee?

What else do I need to know? Thanks!

Seattle Thread

Liquid Hellz wrote: »

Is this a suitable device for myself or should I get something smaller? Im the only one who will be using it so it will be made one cup (8oz) at a time.

If you're only drinking a cup at a time, then you'd probably want something smaller. Coffee doesn't keep very well--not that it goes bad, it just doesn't taste the same after sitting for a half hour or so.

Of course, you can always just put less water & coffee in there. Even though the thing might say "makes 8 cups" doesn't mean you have to make 8 cups.

How long do coffee beans last?

All based on your consumption.

Should I get beans and grind them myself or just buy the coffee pre-ground?

Buying whole beans and grinding them yourself will lead to a fresher coffee overall, but it gets to be a bit of a pain in the ass after a while. Pre-ground coffee isn't going to be as fresh after a while, naturally, but you can get around that.

Personally, I'd buy from a coffeeshop (not Starbucks, damn you) and have them grind it for a french press for you. Then, get an airtight container to store it in and you're all set.

How long does ground store bought coffee last in the bags(the gourmet stuff, one bag I looked at today said 7-10 day but that seems really short)?

Sounds about right. I've never had a bag of coffee last longer than that, in relation to my consumption, so I couldn't say whether it rots. The airtight container will solve that issue, though.

How long does ground store bought canned coffee last(such as Folgers, on the side of the can it says good for 90 cups.. this has to last longer then 10 days)?

Much longer than 10 days. Commercial canned coffee is crap, though. Unless you are really, really unpicky or some kind of legendary white trash, you'll want to spring for a coffeeshop blend.

How much coffee should I be using for 8 oz of water?

This is entirely up to you. Try 1tbps to begin with, and adjust to taste as you go.

I like my coffee to have some flavor usually.. should I but flavored beans/grounds or flavored sugars/creams? Which leads to a better overall quality/taste of coffee?

I would never, ever buy flavored coffee. Not because I'm some kind of snob, but having a pure coffee base with a set of additional flavors means that you can make it the way you like. If you buy flavored coffee, you're stuck with that flavor even if it's too flavored/not flavored enough for your liking.

What else do I need to know? Thanks!

It's not rocket science. Coffee is water filtered through fruit that's been dried, roasted and ground. Just make a few cups and experiment.

Lintilla

Whole beans, sealed in an airtight container, left at room temperature are generally going to stay fresh the longest. Even then, it'll start to lose flavor to a discerning coffee drinker after 5-7 days.

My two person household goes through about one pound a week of fresh-roasted whole-bean coffee. We drink between 4-8 cups a day. Most places what sell coffee beans whole will let you buy 1/2 pound or 1/4 pound bags if a whole bag is too much to go through in a week. In my opinion, it's better to buy what you can consume while it's most fresh, and have to pick up more once a week, than to have a giant bag of stale stuff that you won't like to drink anymore.

Richard_Dastardly

Is it better to put ground coffee in the freezer or let it sit room temp? I do the freezer bit for my espresso just cuz it seems like the thing to do. Don't know if it's worthwhile, plus it clumps and gets kind of annoying.

Also, any particular reason you're using a freedom press? You can get a really nice coffee machine with a built in grinder. I forget the brand of mine, but it makes a damn good cup of coffee at the exact right temperature.

RUNN1NGMAN

Richard_Dastardly wrote: »

Is it better to put ground coffee in the freezer or let it sit room temp? I do the freezer bit for my espresso just cuz it seems like the thing to do. Don't know if it's worthwhile, plus it clumps and gets kind of annoying.

Also, any particular reason you're using a freedom press? You can get a really nice coffee machine with a built in grinder. I forget the brand of mine, but it makes a damn good cup of coffee at the exact right temperature.

Freezing is a horrible thing to do to coffee.

Liquid Hellz

Lintilla wrote: »

Whole beans, sealed in an airtight container, left at room temperature are generally going to stay fresh the longest. Even then, it'll start to lose flavor to a discerning coffee drinker after 5-7 days.

My two person household goes through about one pound a week of fresh-roasted whole-bean coffee. We drink between 4-8 cups a day. Most places what sell coffee beans whole will let you buy 1/2 pound or 1/4 pound bags if a whole bag is too much to go through in a week. In my opinion, it's better to buy what you can consume while it's most fresh, and have to pick up more once a week, than to have a giant bag of stale stuff that you won't like to drink anymore.

Yeah that what im worried about because at most I will be drinking 1-2 cups a day. Its probably going to be easiest for me to buy the canned stuff that lasts forever, or get some kind of vacuum sealing bag/canister for the good stuff. I also am lazy so I most likely will get sick of grinding my own beans.

Liquid Hellz

Richard_Dastardly wrote: »

Is it better to put ground coffee in the freezer or let it sit room temp? I do the freezer bit for my espresso just cuz it seems like the thing to do. Don't know if it's worthwhile, plus it clumps and gets kind of annoying.

Also, any particular reason you're using a freedom press? You can get a really nice coffee machine with a built in grinder. I forget the brand of mine, but it makes a damn good cup of coffee at the exact right temperature.

It was my understanding that the press makes a better coffee, easier to clean, is better for a single cup, makes the coffee faster, and I like the fact that it doesn't have to sit on the counter all the time. Am I correct in my thinking here?

Djeet

I wouldn't put ground coffee in the freezer unless it was still vacuum sealed. Nothing wrong with putting whole beans in the freezer; it can stay there months and still brew up nice.

If you're flavoring your coffee add [strike]Bailey's[/strike] [strike]Cointreau[/strike] [strike]Kahlua[/strike] [strike]Ouzo[/strike] Torani syrups instead of getting flavored beans. Man I could really go for a spiked coffee right now.

Grinding is not so bad. I'm pretty much asleep when I do it and since it's a dedicated coffee grinder I just wipe it out every once in awhile.

Seattle Thread

A press will give you a different consistency than a percolator or coffeemaker. It's richer overall, though the consistency is lost very quickly over your other options, due to the coffee itself settling. Still, there's a reason that 90% of the coffeeshops here use a press for their drip--why have spam when you can have steak?

supabeast

A press makes better coffee mostly because it’s easier to clean—just rinse with soapy water. A coffee maker builds up oils from the beans side, and the oil makes the coffee taste bitter, so it has to be rinsed out constantly and flushed with vinegar a few times a month (or more). The warmers in most coffee makers are too hot and come on too soon in the cycle, which scalds the fresh coffee and makes it taste like burnt food. But you don’t really need to bother with a press, either, a 1-cup #2 drip cone sits right on the cup, makes awesome coffee, and if you use unbleached filters it’s easy to get the mess right into the compost.

tech_hunter

Really just learn from our Lord and Savior Alton Brown about cofee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6V-1O2nqars&feature=PlayList&p=ABA4FBAA6514359F&index=0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEcMz4V7wuY&feature=PlayList&p=ABA4FBAA6514359F&index=1


While we are at it espresso too

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbqE3Npk13k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS6rveFmgTo

Pojaco

All hail Alton. But here's how I'm rollin':

Get THIS french press rather than the glass and metal one. It's still a Bodum, but when you hold it upside down to shake out water after rinsing you won't send the glass flying out of the metal ring. I broke three before I found the plastic holder version (which uses different glass too). I use about 4 tbsp of coarse ground for my 10-12 oz. coffee cup, pour boiling water over it, stir after about 30 seconds, and then let it steep 3.5 minutes more. Perfect every time.

Wherever you are (florida?), find yourself a local coffee roaster if possible and buy fresh as often as you can, grinding at home when you get the chance. And remember, french presses work better with a coarse grind as opposed to a fine grind. If you've got more money than me (very easy to do) than check out the Alton episodes and start dabbling in espresso, then you'll really be a coffee person.

msh1283

Do not buy pre-ground coffee.
Do not pre-grind your own coffee.
Grind and use immediately, using a burr grinder. Ground coffee starts getting stale in less than a minute.
Do not use coffee beans that are more than 10 days out of a roaster. They are stale.
If you can see a drop of oil on the beans, do not buy them. They are either stale or over roasted. This is called the tear, because the beans are crying.
Do not buy "dark roast", "French roast" or anything along those lines. They are synonyms for "We roasted all of the flavor out of our beans because we don't know how to roast properly".