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Soaker
17
Oct 24, 2017
I have amassed all the expensive gizmos for coffee over the years but for the past 3 years have relied solely on my $30 Aeropress for great coffee each morning, free from hassle. Spend your money on a decent burr grinder and use any of the single cup methods (Aeropress, French press, pour over). Save the drip machines for dinner guests, etc. Water quality matters, good quality fresh beans matters, water temperature matters. What I have found doesn't matter much is steep time. I find it difficult to over-extract coffee using these methods because (my theory) the water cools as it sits so extraction slows down dramatically over time. I use the same grind setting for Aeropress as my espresso machine- about like granulated sugar. 2 scoops of coffee beans (not weighed but about 24 grams). >190F hot water from an electric kettle. I steep 5-10 minutes while taking the dogs outside for their morning business. Aeropress extraction fills a mug less than half so I fill the rest with remaining hot water for a full mug. The only bad cups for me have been from not steeping long enough or water not hot enough (under extracted).
Dr.McCoy
345
Oct 25, 2017
SoakerWhat beans do you use? Specifically interested in roast level + brand.
Soaker
17
Oct 25, 2017
Yeah, I'll take a Slayer too! I have a good espresso machine and it does get used almost daily. But for morning joe, it's Aeropress for me...
Soaker
17
Oct 25, 2017
Dr.McCoyI belong to one of Peet's monthly delivery programs. They roast "deep", which they say is different from "dark" due to the techniques they use. But let's just say they roast dark for comparison purposes. They roast and ship same day so I'm confident of their freshness. In between bags of Peet's, I'm exploring the local roasters in Portland where I live. Dapper & Wise and Coava Coffee are my favorites right now. Most of these craft roasters roast "city" to "full city" which to normal people is a medium roast. I would say to try to avoid any coffee where you can't determine the roast date. Don't bother buying any beans that have been roasted more than about 10 days.
Dr.McCoy
345
Oct 26, 2017
SoakerAh ha, okay so yeah I kinda guessed this. Your advice on time will not hold for the vast majority of coffees roasted lighter than about City+ due to the way the coffee extracts in darker roasted coffee. For one, more of the physical part of the darker roasted beans ends up in the final cup due to it's brittle and porous nature*. Two, more of the bean's oils, acids, and esters burn off the longer they are heated. This means that the flavor you're actually getting from those beans comes more from the roast as opposed to the bean's flavor (which is, I think, primarily a combination of organic acids and terpenes).
The majority of compounds left in darker roasts do not continue to extract after a certain point or tend to skew towards flavors like earthy, roasty, and nutty. This is in contrast to the citric, lactic and quinic acids more prevalent in lighter roasts that are both much 'punchier' and will continue to extract through a much larger time (and temperature) range.
*Not talking about French press like sediment just a higher TDS.
Soaker
17
Oct 26, 2017
Dr.McCoyThat's a great explanation of my experience then. My dark beans from Peet's can steep for quite a long time and still taste remarkably the same. In one of my other replies, I said the Sumatra changed a ton over a longer steep (more cedar, pencil shavings, cigar box). The Sumatra was not from Peet's but from a local roaster and I happen to have the card handy that said it was a light roast Raja Batak. I'll keep that in mind for my next local roaster purchase. Thanks!
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