Topic: Coffee

[333]

"Better coffee a millionair's money can't buy."

[nokrome]

I cant believe that somebody from Portland, Or. hasnt mentioned http://www.stumptowncoffee.com/ yet, hands down the best coffee ever imho. When you go into one of their shops  you can choose from about 15-20 varieties of whole beans, all hand roasted in town in super small batches
   sorry if im sounding kind of like an elitist about this but i used to be in the "ya whatever, coffees coffee" mind set, but i have seen the light.


   btw, starbucks is horrible, they are the mcdonalds of coffee......wait, i guess mcd's is selling "coffee" now too, whatever
    

[ev0lve]

Ah, well, if we're posting links...

Been all over a lot of this fine country. These guys make the best latte I've ever had - and consistently too. They have 3 locations all within walking distance 

$11/Pound Vita makes even your crappy espresso machine piss awesomeness.

http://www.espressovivace.com

[super pasty white guy]

Yeah, I'll second the vote for Vivace. Nectar of the gods.  The benchmark for my own espresso. I make the pilgrimage every time I'm in Seattle.  But back to the thread, cheap coffee...  well it's not that.

spwg

[bender01]

My wife is the manager at the busiest Starbucks on Hilton Head Is SC. Before that @ 6 years ago She was one of the best Chefs on this Island!!!. Neither of us cared about coffee but now we do. Once we found out she was pregnant we started to make plans. Her last employer said dont worry it will work out and well be here for you. 4 months preg a message on the answering machine said that its all over come get your stuff!!!!. We didnt have any medical benefits anyway and she went to Starbucks to apply as advice from good friends. They covered the WHOLE thing!!  She now makes more than I with great benefits. Ive not had most of the coffee mentioned, but im sure they dont bellittle you when you order a small coffee and they call out grande venti tall caff half calf.
 Not trying to rant but Starbucks has done this family very well.
  Some of her employees are retired high end professionals that are there for the benefits. 20 hours a week or more and full coverage.
    I love starbucks!

[Frankenkit]

I actually like Seattle's Tully's better.

[Laminar]

  btw, starbucks is horrible, they are the mcdonalds of coffee......wait, i guess mcd's is selling "coffee" now too, whatever

Be careful, McDonald's coffee has won more than a couple blind taste tests.

[ev0lve]

I actually like Seattle's Tully's better.

You, madam, are a philistine and hereby banned from seeking coffee within the Seattle city limits cause... I said so 

[nokrome]

My wife is the manager at the busiest Starbucks on Hilton Head Is SC. Before that @ 6 years ago She was one of the best Chefs on this Island!!!. Neither of us cared about coffee but now we do. Once we found out she was pregnant we started to make plans. Her last employer said dont worry it will work out and well be here for you. 4 months preg a message on the answering machine said that its all over come get your stuff!!!!. We didnt have any medical benefits anyway and she went to Starbucks to apply as advice from good friends. They covered the WHOLE thing!!  She now makes more than I with great benefits. Ive not had most of the coffee mentioned, but im sure they dont bellittle you when you order a small coffee and they call out grande venti tall caff half calf.
 Not trying to rant but Starbucks has done this family very well.
  Some of her employees are retired high end professionals that are there for the benefits. 20 hours a week or more and full coverage.
    I love starbucks!

i was talking strictly about the quality of their coffee, i know nothing of their company policies, sounds like they are  a very socially responsible  company, we could use more like it (minus the bad coffee)

[Duke McDukiedook]

I never did understand all the hooha about Harbucks.
The coffee tasted OK, a little better than Folgers to me.

I guess people somehow feel better about themselves paying 5 bucks for something that takes a minute to order in foreign languages. 

Anyone find any decent priced grinders?

[heffay]

My wife is the manager at the busiest Starbucks on Hilton Head Is SC. Before that @ 6 years ago She was one of the best Chefs on this Island!!!. Neither of us cared about coffee but now we do. Once we found out she was pregnant we started to make plans. Her last employer said dont worry it will work out and well be here for you. 4 months preg a message on the answering machine said that its all over come get your stuff!!!!. We didnt have any medical benefits anyway and she went to Starbucks to apply as advice from good friends. They covered the WHOLE thing!!  She now makes more than I with great benefits. Ive not had most of the coffee mentioned, but im sure they dont bellittle you when you order a small coffee and they call out grande venti tall caff half calf.
 Not trying to rant but Starbucks has done this family very well.
  Some of her employees are retired high end professionals that are there for the benefits. 20 hours a week or more and full coverage.
    I love starbucks!

most peoples' beef w/ Starbucks never entered the realm of how they treat their own employees.
and... I actually like their coffee... anything w/ caffeine, man!
but!  they are overpriced and run the little guys out of business... that is their business plan and how they are able to take such good care of their employees.
they, single-handedly, have redefined the retail coffee world w/ signature drinks, sizes, prices, and domination... and not really in a great way.

[RatBikeRandy]

Back to the topic of good and cheap coffee.  Eight o'Clock in either French, Dark Italian or Dark Roast (hard to find).  The local grocery store (Ingle's) runs it buy one-get one free about every six weeks.  I load up for about $2.50 per 12 ounce bag of whole beans.  Cuisinart grinder has been a great one and only around $20.00.  I'd put my coffee up against anybody's.

[74cb750]

Well, I never thought a thread I started would generate so much interest.

Used to be I could buy 8 O'clock at the A&p supermarket chain, but they've been
out of business for decades. 

Maybe I will start grinding my own, doesn't sound too difficult.
peace,
michel

[ev0lve]

A blade type grinder will not produce noticeable changes in taste vs a burr grinder unless you grind the bejeezus out of it or have superhuman tastebuds.

I actually tried this with my uncle's burr grinder and my Mr Coffee blade grinder. Couldn't discern a difference.

Seems to get good results as long as you grind it up on the spot instead of having it preground.

[Gordon]

A blade type grinder will not produce noticeable changes in taste vs a burr grinder unless you grind the bejeezus out of it or have superhuman tastebuds.

I have to agree.  I think maybe all the people who say that a blade grinder will burn your coffee are either just repeating something they heard somebody else say, or they're trying to do a turkish grind with it. 

[333]

Jerry Seinfeld referred to it as FourBucks, although that was a few years ago.  Inflation probably puts it at FiveBucks or SixBucks.

[Dave-and-his-550]

Peruvian Organic beans ground up + a dash of cinnamon makes for great coffee, sippin' some now. 

[azuredesign]

I'm partial to grinding my own beans as I think it tastes fresher and bolder compared to pre-ground coffee. I like to purchase beans that are oily looking, not dried out. While I like the Starbucks, I prefer the french roast that Trader Joe's sells. The taste is nice and full, but there's not too much caffeine.

[nokrome]

A blade type grinder will not produce noticeable changes in taste vs a burr grinder unless you grind the bejeezus out of it or have superhuman tastebuds.

I have to agree.  I think maybe all the people who say that a blade grinder will burn your coffee are either just repeating something they heard somebody else say, or they're trying to do a turkish grind with it.  

 the beef that people have with blade grinders is that they chop up the beans into inconsistently sized chunks

 however, you can change some of your coffees characteristics buy setting your burr grinder to a finer or courser grind, finer will give you a stronger, sharper taste and courser will give you a richer more mellow flavor

 so a blade type grinder isnt necessarily bad, in fact it will give you a nice well rounded cup of coffee......but thats just my opinion

[Gordon]

I'm partial to grinding my own beans as I think it tastes fresher and bolder compared to pre-ground coffee. I like to purchase beans that are oily looking, not dried out. While I like the Starbucks, I prefer the french roast that Trader Joe's sells. The taste is nice and full, but there's not too much caffeine.

The oily nature of the roasted beans has to do with the length and temperature of the roast.  Beans roasted to a higher temperature, like French roast, will be oily on the outside because most of the oil from the inside was coaxed out by the heat.  Lighter roasted beans keep the oil on the inside and will always look and feel dry.  Darker roasted beans will actually go off sooner than ligher roasts because the oil on the outside of the bean is exposed to air and goes rancid.  

[donny]

okay...who roasts their beans.?..
and where do you buy them?

[Gordon]

okay...who roasts their beans.?..
and where do you buy them?

I've never roasted at home, but have worked at a couple of different cafes where roasting was part of my job. 

I'm sure there are places on the web where you can buy individual consumer sized amounts of green beans, but you can also try talking to the manager or roaster at some local coffee shops that roast and sell their own.  We had no problem selling green beans to people at the shop I worked at in Austin.  We still made money off the sale, so there was no reason not to.   

[hoodellyhoo]

My favorite coffee shirt:

[volkswagendan]

the older dudes get, the more  time they spend on coffee.
 coffee beans, coffee grinders, roasting?!!, coffee cups, coffee craps,  coffee shops,
coffee spoons, coffee breaks, coffee, coffee, coffee.
you guys are all a bunch of coffee nerds....no, make that OLD coffee nerds.
i'm gonna go get myself a coffee coolata. with whipped cream on top.
thats what the cool young peeps get to show everyone that they're not old yet.

[Tretnine]

I know you said you are broke, but i highly recommend a French press.  It makes even crappy coffee taste good.  Easy to use, just boil water on the stove, pour into the container, stir, wait 2-3 minutes, press.   Yummy. 

seconded as I'm sitting here drinking my french press coffee. by the way, the french just call it a piston coffee pot.