Coffee Roasting and Coffee Makers

[Marauderer]

Over on "Your BBQ Resolutions carolts mentioned her cafegene coffee roaster and Jon asked her to share more thoughts with him as he was thinking of getting a Behmor and was interested in her thoughts.

This is another subject that I have a direct interest in. The last few years we have been travelling and have used a Kuerig machine. The loves it as she gets ball these foofoo kinds of coffee. Lately we have been talking about going back to a regular coffee machine but it is a bit difficult to get a lot of different blends.

I am interested in changing the way we do coffee and am interested what the collective hear does for their coffee habits.

[Jon Solberg]

All I can say is be careful! If you start home roasting there's no going back.

[Huskee]

This will be an intersting thread to follow. My wife and I through the years have gone full circle (and we're still dizzy & spinning) from regular coffee maker w/ regular coffee to fancy coffee to Keurig w/ fancy blends and back to coffee maker. We still have both and go back and forth with the flow of funds. I had thought about home roasting but there's a learning curve I'm not sure I want to get into just yet.

[HC in SC]

Me too - I have thrown in the towel and just use the Keurig with good coffee like Tully's, Green Mountain and Gevalia.

Our regular machine only comes out when we have a houseful of guests.

[Marauderer]

All I can say is be careful! If you start home roasting there's no going back.

Gee Jon, that is really a fatalistic view don't you think??

[Huskee]

If I could home roast as good as my home BBQ I'd be all in....

[Marauderer]

This will be an intersting thread to follow. My wife and I through the years have gone full circle (and we're still dizzy & spinning) from regular coffee maker w/ regular coffee to fancy coffee to Keurig w/ fancy blends and back to coffee maker. We still have both and go back and forth with the flow of funds. I had thought about home roasting but there's a learning curve I'm not sure I want to get into just yet.

I hope it is a good thread that I can learn a lot from. When we go camping we use a carafe Cuisinart or Bunn coffee maker and used them for years. Since going back to them it really exposes the shortcomings and costs of the Keurig. The Keurigs definitely have their place but I am starting to think that place is somewhere else besides my place.

[Marauderer]

If I could home roast as good as my home BBQ I'd be all in....

You just need to man up to it and you will be off and running.

You know you can make a drum roaster for your Yoder and roast your beans in it.

[richinlbrg]

Slightly off topic, but I used to but some coffee bean in Sambuca. Gave the Sambuca a beautiful golden color, and a nice flavor twist. Then when the bottle was finished, I'd put the beans on a cookie sheet, into the oven to dry them (I'm guessing 325ish, but I really don't remember) and then grind them for coffee. NICE

[MrSkimo]

I've been into home roasting coffee for much longer than I've been focused on BBQ. I actually have a dedicated cupboard/enclosure for my coffee paraphernalia - wife calls it my coffee altar 😀. For the past 7or 8 years we've primarily used French Presses (one of 5 - various sizes). I love the strong brew - it's not as quick as a drip, but great results. Boil water,steep for four minutes then press and drink. I have a dedicated grinder set up for that. A year ago I did buy a drip machine, a Technivorm MoccaMaster, as we had guests coming for an extended stay and I couldn't stomach having the Mr Coffee pulled out. It makes such good coffee that we use it at least half the time now. Regular cone filter, drip machine into a carafe. I have a Japanese hand crank ceramic grinder that I use when camping or on the road. I pair that up with an Aeropress, also great coffee, just very manual and a little tough to clean up. I also have a double boiler espresso machine and a dedicated grinder for it. We use it a lot on weekends when I have time to spend making and enjoying drinks. Most of the time I buy roasted whole beans from a local craft roaster, but I do have a half pound roaster that I use in spurts. I tend to get behind on my coffee supply when traveling a lot and have to buy it already roasted. There are excellent sources for green coffee beans now that are cheaper, and better, than you can buy at retail. I agree that if you get into it, it's hard to go back. But isn't that why we all indulge in these hobbies?! If only we could get specialty meat stores to ship to Alaska....

[smarkley]

Yup... we like a French Press and have a dedicated grinder. In our town there is a coffee roasting place where you can go get beans that have been roasted that day, and frequently within the hour. We get those sometimes... wow! What a difference.

I agree, once you try these better ways, there is no going back.

[Marauderer]

Very informative post MrSkimo. I knew that coffee had a strong following and the coffee preparation equipment industry was large but, I am learning it is much larger than I thought and very complex. It looks like in this next year we will be trying some new and different ways to have our coffee.

[Dewesq55]

I'm a big fan of French pressed coffee. That said, we use a basic drip machine with a basket that we can set up the night before. For beans, we really enjoy the Costa Rican beans they sell at BJ's. We grind them in a Cuisineart burr grinder.

[MrSkimo]

You know if you want to see how good home roast/specialty roast can be - order something from Terroir Coffee/George Howell. I get some coffee from them in my Christmas stocking each year and it is always fantastic. Order a small amount whole bean (if you have a grinder) and try it out. Quite expensive, but Fantastic!

If you only have a Keurig machine right now, you can try some quality coffee with a simple pour-over cone filter on a coffee cup. You just slowly add recently boiled water and let it steep/drip into your cup. The key, like with BBQ, is quality product. You definitely want coffee that has been roasted within a few days. It degenerates pretty quickly.

[Marauderer]

I have heard if you freeze your beans after roasting it preserves the flavor but, you still need use them in a timely manner.

[MrSkimo]

Mostly true... Freezing preserves both green and roasted coffee, but you don't want to store roasted coffee that you are using in the freezer. Taking it in and out of the freezer will cause condensation which can impede the quality. Its better to just keep enough roasted coffee out that you can use within a few days. Then take more out when you need it. My wife and I take a pound at a time out of the freezer. We go through that in about a week.

[Dr ROK]

I bought the wife a Brazen coffee machine after reading some reviews on Serious Eats. They are kinda pricey, but I must say it makes a damn fine cup of coffee. We are still experimenting with the bloom time, but I love this machine. The only thing I don't like about it is that it only makes 8 cups at a time .

http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2014/02/brazen-coffee-brewer-best-home-coffemaker-machine-temperature-control-preinfusion.html