Coffee

[MikePA]

Thanks for the info. I will keep this in mind when I buy my next coffee maker.

Now, what's the best coffee maker?

 

[MChalkley]

Mike - <font color=blue>Now, what's the best coffee maker?</font color=blue>

Boy, this oughta be good... /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Personally, I like black ones. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[MikePA]

<font color=blue>Personally, I like black ones.</font color=blue>

So do I, never have to clean them!

That DeLonghi John has looks mighty tempting!

 

[Egon]

Seems I remember reading somewhere that the paper filters are able to filter out some undesirable ingrediant that the mesh one's can't.

Egon

 

[Boondox]

Actually, the shape has to do with the degree of extraction -- an inexpensive way to boost the total dissolved solids. Cones are good, i.e., you get more of what makes it coffee out of the grounds. As for the brewer, anything that can run hot water thru the grounds works just fine. Personally, I like one that's easy to keep clean.

Pete

 

[Boondox]

See my comment about people with taste. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif Coffee drinking is one of those things that many get all caught up in...sort of like Ford vs Chevy. Bottom line is whatever works for you is fine. We're talking beans here, folks. With over 200 Arabica beans to choose from, I pretty much drink the same thing every day, but always in the same mug and always less than six hours out of the roaster. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

Caffeine's the thing.

Pete

 

[Anonymous Poster]

<font color=blue>...With over 200 Arabica beans to choose from...</font color=blue>

Ok Pete... where does Eight O'Clock Bean fit in then... {what country does this bean originate from?}

What is equivalent in the Green Mountain Coffee line to Eight O'Clock...?

 

[Boondox]

Hard to tell, John. Unless you go for a specific bean (Colombian Supremo, Kenyan AA) you're rarely sure of what you're getting. Most blends are proprietary, and the roasters rarely give away their formulation. Tell me your favorite 8 o'clock coffee; I'll order some and figure out what it's made of. It's fun to do blind taste tests in the breakroom. Pretty hard to tell one gourmet product from another given the same composition...unless it's not fresh. Stale coffee is only good for compost. /w3tcompact/icons/tongue.gif


Pete

 

[MChalkley]

Pete - <font color=blue>It's fun to do blind taste tests in the breakroom.</font color=blue>

Now, I'll bet that is fun! Next time I'm in Vermont, I'll try to drop in around breaktime. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

BTW, when you said in an earlier post that you always have coffee fresh from the roaster, you meant at work, right? As in, not a home roaster? Just curious. At first, I thought "Wow, I didn't know he had a home roaster." Then it dawned on me that you're the only person I know who doesn't need one to have coffee fresh out of the roaster...

 

[MikePA]

Here's the coffee maker I just ordered. The Capresso Elegance Grande Plus

I also ordered a burr grinder to replace the blade grinder I was using.

 

[woodmills1]

andy, when i grew up in newton NJ, middletown NY was where we went to drink since NJ was 21 ans NY was 18. used to go to carsons corner, I think it is an HVAC place now.

 

[Boondox]

Mark -- We're always roasting up something interesting! The mainline roasters do 200 - 800# at a time, so most of the experimenting is done on the little 20# batch roaster in the coffee lab. Since that also happens to be where potential new suppliers send their samples, we get some pretty wild stuff. One of the new products coming on line in the very near future is our organic Fair Trade High Andes Blend; it's a very good cup!

Pete

 

[TresCrows]

Mike, where do you buy your coffee units? Those look exceptionally nice and my no.1 unit is on the blink /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif . Now that face is for real if I do not get my coffee.
I got my left hand caught in a shop door while I was trying to scoot one of my dogs clear. It cut tendons and removed part of a finger --whamo--- the operation to repair cost lot's of money and left me with a headache. I could not take asprin due to hemoraging. The doctor ordered coffee! of course, the headache may well have been induced by caffiene withdrawal but nonetheless I felt much better.
J

 

[MikePA]

I bought the coffee maker and the grinder right from the Green Mountain Coffee also sells Capresso equipment, but I couldn't find the black coffee maker on their site.

Take care of yourself!

 

[AndyR]

I went to Minisink Valley HS, right up the road from there. Remember Dino's in Middletown? That whole area has sure changed a lot - glad I moved out.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Email reply from Eight O'Clock...

Dear Mr. Miller,

Thank you for taking the time to contact Eight O'Clock Coffee. We feel it
is important to hear from our customers, and it is always our goal to
receive complimentary letters such as the one you sent us.

At Eight O'Clock, we take pride in the coffees that we sell. Over the years
Eight O'Clock Coffee has remained one of the top blends of coffee in
America. This honor is due to the high quality coffees we use. Eight
O'Clock Coffees are made from high quality 100% Arabica beans. The best
coffee in the world comes from the COFFEA ARABICA tree.

Again, thank you for taking the time to share your kind words and for
remaining a loyal Eight O'Clock Coffee customer. If you have any concerns
or questions in the future, please contact us again.

Sincerely,

Nadia Nelson
Consumer Relations
Eight O'Clock Coffee
__________________________________________________

Pete,

I buy the "normal" red bag "Eight O'Clock Bean Coffee" for your lab tests... /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

Pete... You are something else...! Thanks... /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[TresCrows]

MikePA, thanks for the info, oh no--the hand thing was a long time ago--1995----not anything recent, thanks though just the same.
J

 

[Boondox]

Okay, John, you asked for the lowdown. The stuff in the red bag looks like a blend of 3, possibly 4 beans, all low-grown Latin American Arabica beans. Nothing special, but a heck of a lot better than Folgers, etc. The sample I analyzed had a pretty high oxygen content and very low CO2, indicating it was fairly flat when packaged and going stale in the bad. No reason they shouldn't be able to package it faster (fresher), but Eight O'Clock is owned by Sara Lee. Big guys like them generally pay more attention to the bottom line than freshness.

Verdict: Good (not great) beans roasted and packaged in a mass-production operation. If you like this stuff you ought to try the Dunkin Donuts blend; they use pretty much the same beans but are handled better. Cost less, too. And it doesn't get much more Proletarian than donuts. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Pete

 

[RobS]

<font color=blue>Nothing special, but a heck of a lot better than Folgers, etc. </font color=blue>

Well I was starting to feel pretty good about my new-found habit but maybe I'm still a coffee-weenie. All we've got at work is Folgers or Maxwell House. I'm favoring the Folgers as it seems a bit stronger but where is my next logical step into the coffee ranks? Should I swing by my local Dunkin Donuts? Am I ready for Starbucks? Dare I jump right into an espresso?

Give me some guidance all you coffee experts /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Boondox]

A lot of folks used to the canned or instant stuff are disappointed by "real" coffee. Instant uses Robusta beans: less flavor but a LOT more caffeine. Much of the mass-produced canned stuff uses at least some Robusta for the same reason. Just like some folks like Bud and others only microbrews, canned coffee is fine if you like it.

Instead of advice (since coffee preference, like beer or ice cream, is extremely subjective) how about you send me a shipping address privately and I'll send you a variety of samples? Or wait till Empire State Farm Days and I'll bring a few cases. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Pete