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Stuhoo

Coffee Geek-ery

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Just now, Stuhoo said:

So not to get off-topic in the coffee thread, but does that mean you're now ahead of Josh in prediction standings for the season? Cause congrats if you are! A solid accomplishment for Hova.

Like I said last night, I can only see the left (current game) column on mobile and let's just say my library doesn't have a desktop. I live in the present.

Back to the coffee snobs snobbing away!

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Step-by-step way to have a great day:   1. Drink coffee.

I have to have my coffee in the morning.  If I don't get coffee...then everything seems...unreal...kind of backwards.

And coffee spelled backwards is eeffoc.

Mornings without coffee and I cannot give eeffoc.

Get it?  Nudge, nudge...

Freshly roasted, ground as one needs it, and not dark...medium roast.  Not citrusy.  Not berries.  Still looking for a decent and less expensive site online...

Thanks so much for the thread.  

I remember Runcible Spoon and Two-Bit Rush.  My first date with my wife was at the former.

 

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Not a fan of Starbucks here.  Their dark is much too much for me.  Thinking, and I may be wrong, that they use double the grounds per drink than I like. 

Go to a local coffee shop.  Talk to the barrista about what you like and let them fix you up.  If you like flavored coffees then try a chocolate-mint and cream latte.  Or, a medium roast small cup of mocha...might be the ticket.

Take your time savoring.  Check out some coffee drinkers sites about tasting and aromas for beginners.

And have some dark choclate with a cup of joe.

Maybe a little whiskey with an afternoon cup after chopping wood in the cold.

Or a white or dark Russian drink.

Or a mocha cheese cake.

I don't typically add any milk or sugar or anything.  Just medium roast black coffee.  But everybody's tastes are different.  Been to Italy...pass on espresso.  In Europe one has to ask for Americano.  In Latin America the Brazilian coffee-flavored beer is waaay too much...but the regular grind coffee can be wonderful.  Starbucks does make a decent Brazilian medium roast.

If some people have acid reflux challenges and avoid coffee, there are certain things that can be done easily to avoid the acid in the drink.  And it results in an excellent cup.  

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31 minutes ago, bigrod said:

Stu, what is your favorite blend from La Vela? I'm going to try it.

If you're getting the 2 lb bag, I strongly prefer the "select" to the "gold". The gold is a darker roast and seems to be much flatter/low acidity. However, if you favor milk drinks I'd probably go with the gold.

For the 12 oz bags the Ethiopian is low acid/good with milk. For espresso/black coffee I'd stick with the Central/South American origins.

My regular order is a 2lb of select blend and a 12 oz of something central/south American. Gets me into free shipping and between me, my two sons, and occasionally my wife we go through it in less than  a month so it never gets stale. About 120 cups/shots there for $27. That's 20 cents a cup for some incredible brew every single time.

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28 minutes ago, Chris007 said:

I feel like I'm missing out. I want to try a good cup of coffee. What would I order at a Soma or Starbucks to experience this snobbery 

 

DO NOT go to Starbucks if you want to see what the real deal is. They have button pushing machines. I'd save my $$ and get a cup from a Keuring instead. 

To do it right in Bloomington? You've got excellent choices. Soma is quite good. (For me) better yet ... Hopscotch Coffee on W Dodd! I liked Pourhouse on Kirkwood, but it went under during the pandemic   :(

  1. Get a double espresso.
  2. Do not add sugar dammit! (think of me saying this with Coach Knight's voice while sipping)
  3. Start immediately after it's pulled - it will cool fairly quickly.
  4. Sip it slowly, like good bourbon.

Ahhhh...

 

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2 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

 

DO NOT go to Starbucks if you want to see what the real deal is. They have button pushing machines. I'd save my $$ and get a cup from a Keuring instead. 

Soma is quite good. (For me) better yet ... Hopscotch Coffee on W Dodd! I liked Pourhouse on Kirkwood, but it went under during the pandemic   :(

  1. Get a double espresso.
  2. Do not add sugar dammit!
  3. Sip slowly.
  4. Start immediately after it's pulled - it will cool fairly quickly.
  5. Sip it like good bourbon.

Ahhhh...

 

OK thank you. I like Hopscotch too. I'm trying this soon.

Do I walk with my nose directly pointing at the sky while carrying my coffee? Do I need a stick in my behind for this snobbery? I'm just kidding I'm actually kind of excited

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Just now, Chris007 said:

OK thank you. I like Hopscotch too. I'm trying this soon.

Do I walk with my nose directly pointing at the sky while carrying my coffee? Do I need a stick in my behind for this snobbery? I'm just kidding I'm actually kind of excited

You do not "carry this coffee." You carefully escort it, as if it were a visiting dignitary.

The stick may be useful.

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49 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

Stumptown is fantastic. Kicking Horse too! So many good ones out there. I live a block away from a great roaster named Subculture. Expensive, but excellent.

Side note, years ago, back in the 90s, my wife and I lived in KC right around the corner from a Folgers factory -- Imagine walking out your door and being engulfed in the aroma of coffee -- it was like putting your nose into a coffee can, just walking down the street, and man it smelled good. Probably when I became a full on coffee addict lol

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52 minutes ago, Hovadipo said:

My coffee is a little light peering through the curtains in the bathroom as I sit in my library and scroll to see how far Josh was behind me in the most recent prediction league game. The best part of waking up, as they say.

 

1 minute ago, HoosierHoopster said:

Side note, years ago, back in the 90s, my wife and I lived in KC right around the corner from a Folgers factory -- Imagine walking out your door and being engulfed in the aroma of coffee -- it was like putting your nose into a coffee can, just walking down the street, and man it smelled good. Probably when I became a full on coffee addict lol

 

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2 minutes ago, HoosierHoopster said:

my wife and I lived in KC right around the corner from a Folgers factory -- Imagine walking out your door and being engulfed in the aroma of coffee

Ok, but imagine waking up and being 6 spots better than Josh in prediction league last night.

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1 minute ago, Hovadipo said:

Ok, but imagine waking up and being 6 spots better than Josh in prediction league last night.

 

You have to choose -- you get only one:

  • Finish ahead of Josh in final prediction standings
  • You suddenly wake up with hair as dreamy as Trey Galloway's

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2 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

 

You have to choose -- you get only one:

  • Finish ahead of Josh in final prediction standings
  • You suddenly wake up with hair as dreamy as Trey Galloway's

I'm married, so that hair does me good, what, once a month more than my current hair? Josh needs to go DOWN.

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52 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

If you're getting the 2 lb bag, I strongly prefer the "select" to the "gold". The gold is a darker roast and seems to be much flatter/low acidity. However, if you favor milk drinks I'd probably go with the gold.

For the 12 oz bags the Ethiopian is low acid/good with milk. For espresso/black coffee I'd stick with the Central/South American origins.

My regular order is a 2lb of select blend and a 12 oz of something central/south American. Gets me into free shipping and between me, my two sons, and occasionally my wife we go through it in less than  a month so it never gets stale. About 120 cups/shots there for $27. That's 20 cents a cup for some incredible brew every single time.

Do you store it in the fridge/freezer?

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11 minutes ago, bigrod said:

Do you store it in the fridge/freezer?

No -- I've read enough to conclude that it is not necessary. I've read that it won't really screw the beans up, but they should be fully defrosted before grinding. That's extra work, and I'm shooting for the best possible drink, all while minimizing cost and at the least clean up/prep work.

Once it's opened putting it in a ziplock bag does the job really well. Just trying to keep air out so that it doesn't de-gas and lose it's aromas too quickly.

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New year has brought nice write-ups on coffee’s health benefits in both Inc and the NYT. I usually hit 3.5-5 cups/day, which seems the health sweet spot.

But I drink it because I love it. Black, usually central/South American Intelligentsia beans through a Baratza Encore, OXO drip brewer. Before we had kids it was chemex, and I still occasionally make a pour over in the office. My go-to espresso drink is a cortado. We’ve got about all the gadget methods: drip, chemex, pour over, stovetop espresso, aeropress, nespresso*, the Baratza and a cheaper burr grinder for dedicated decaf, hand crank grinder. No @Stuhoo-style pro home espresso rig yet — maybe in the next house’s kitchen, or when the kids are older.

*If you’re looking for a single-cup brewer, I’d say go pour over, but the nespresso is a pretty versatile alternative. Avoid Keurig-style machines if at all possible. Nespresso will let you make a pretty good facsimile of any latte-style drink at a much lower cost if you have milk frother options, recyclable pods, their brewed-style drinks are good-not great. 

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12 minutes ago, lillurk said:

New year has brought nice write-ups on coffee’s health benefits in both Inc and the NYT. I usually hit 3.5-5 cups/day, which seems the health sweet spot.

But I drink it because I love it. Black, usually central/South American Intelligentsia beans through a Baratza Encore, OXO drip brewer. Before we had kids it was chemex, and I still occasionally make a pour over in the office. My go-to espresso drink is a cortado. We’ve got about all the gadget methods: drip, chemex, pour over, stovetop espresso, aeropress, nespresso*, the Baratza and a cheaper burr grinder for dedicated decaf, hand crank grinder. No @Stuhoo-style pro home espresso rig yet — maybe in the next house’s kitchen, or when the kids are older.

*If you’re looking for a single-cup brewer, I’d say go pour over, but the nespresso is a pretty versatile alternative. Avoid Keurig-style machines if at all possible. Nespresso will let you make a pretty good facsimile of any latte-style drink at a much lower cost if you have milk frother options, recyclable pods, their brewed-style drinks are good-not great. 

Great post -- if you're never drinking espresso/espresso drinks, I'm guessing any Baratza grinder will do a really nice job. My son got an open box Breville Smart Grinder on Offerup for $85, and it makes a great French press/moka pot. 

Not a fan of Nespresso - those pods are really expensive! I think your combination of a Baratza and drip brewer is way tastier at half the cost and still pretty easy to use.

I fiddled around with lots of equipment for different situations for awhile. Once I got one set of the good stuff it all became secondary. I'm thinking for $150-200 used anyone can find a good brewer/grinder combo. For $500-$700 used anyone can find a good full on espresso set-up.

After that, it's 20 cents a cup for magic. The Nespresso alternative is 60 cents a cup indefinitely for a significantly lesser result for non-milk drinks.

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