Any opinions on my next coffee investment? I've decided it's finally time to sell the keurig and upgrade to some real coffee in my life.

French press eot


Or gravity, if you really want to geek out

_______________________________________________________
Bacon: The duct tape of the kitchen.

Aeropress >>>>> French press IMHO

Much cleaner cup of coffee.

A WISE move... (although I would probably tell you not to get rid of the Keurig - there will be some mornings or times where "something" is better than "nothing" when you are limited on time)

As the poster said above - the Aero will give you a much "cleaner" tasting cup of coffee, but that's not what everyone wants.

IMHO, a "large" french press will give you substantially more options and if used correctly will also give you a clean cup. IF you are going to buy a large press, you are going to want to buy some kind of carafe to keep your extra cups warm (you don't want to leave it in the press).

I have an aero press, a French press, a keurig and and a drip maker. I use the aeropress 90% of the time. I use the French press when I am making a larger batch of coffee. My wife still uses the keurig some but she has gotten hooked on the aeropress as well lately.

The aeropress makes an amazing cup of coffee, with minimal effort and little clean up. Combine it with a grinder right next to it on the counter and you have great coffee in minutes every day.

First step towards good coffee is not necessarily how you brew. Rather fresh beans (stored well) and a solid grinder. Hario Skertron is a cheap hand grinder that pairs well with the Aeropress. A Baratza is what I use at home for my medium to coarser grinds. We pick up fresh roasted beans from Catalina here in Houston or order from Stump Town and Intelligentsia.

That said, my personal opinions regarding brew methods:

Chemex> Syphon> Aeropress> French Press> Drip

Chemex is my go-to every morning. Very forgiving with any type of coffee.

Syphon is when I have time/company over. Margin for error is small. However, if done correctly. Yields the flavor characteristics that you read on the package of coffee.

Aeropress stays at the office for quick coffee. Clean, quick, and makes a great cup. If you go this route, I suggest reading up on the inverted technique.

French press hasn't really been touched since college. Harsh, gritty, and bitter.

Drip was only for when my Dad would visit. He would pound coffee faster than I could brew it!

splurg and get a variable temperature kettle.

If you drink a lot of coffee and you are using one of these options you are going to want an electric kettle.

Great thread....I guess I have been living under a rock....never heard of Chemex Coffee Makers.

They sound great, especially for mornings when you are not in a huge hurry.

I guess they work well with just about any grind of coffee?

quote:

---

I guess they work well with just about any grind of coffee?

---

No.

Probably the most important hardware of your coffee set up is you grinder.

A bad grinder can ruin what could have been a great cup of coffee.

If you aren't grinding your beans fresh, you might as well stick to your k cups.

quote:

---

Great thread....I guess I have been living under a rock....never heard of Chemex Coffee Makers.

They sound great, especially for mornings when you are not in a huge hurry.

I guess they work well with just about any grind of coffee?

---

Duncan is correct. Grind and fresh beans are step one. Dosing water to grind ratio is step two. Then you get into your brew methods.

For the Chemex, we usually shoot for a medium-coarse grind. Grind simply determines how long the water flows through the ground bed extracting "coffee". We shoot for a 3:30-4:00 minute extraction. So we grind to allow our dose of coffee/water to meet our extraction window.

quote:

---

splurg and get a variable temperature kettle.

---

Bonavita makes a great electric kettle. We personally still use a Bonavita stove top with a electric kitchen thermometer. However, approx. 30 sec. off rolling boil in Houston will achieve 200 deg. F. 195-205 deg. F is the typical brew temperature range depending on your specific coffee.

I would also suggest a kitchen scale. We weigh both grounds and extraction.

quote:

---

195-205 deg. F is the typical brew temperature range depending on your specific coffee.

---

This is what makes the chemex and the single cup "pour over" coffee's so good. The right temperature, combined with the right grind, combined with the right volume/flow rate of water.

If you take a chemex full of foldgers and dump a bunch boiling hot water through it, you are going to end up with a horrible cup of coffee.

Thanks for the great suggestions. I already have a great electric kettle. And I have been using pre-ground coffee in the past, which is know is frowned upon.

What kind of grinder should I get? I have been looking at a hario hand mill.

[This message has been edited by aggswagg13 (edited 2/11/2013 11:35a).]

hand mills are a terrible PITA.

I found myself avoiding the aeropress simply because the grinding was so time consuming to get the grounds as fine as I wanted them.

This is probably frowned upon, but I buy Spec's Italian roast, have them grind it to "espresso" and then store in a friis coffee vault canister.

That allows me to use the aeropress every morning at work... and the cup is still great.

http://www.amazon.com/Friis-16-Ounce-Coffee-Vault-Stainless/dp/B001V9VDP0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1360604887&sr=8-1&keywords=friis

[This message has been edited by Vernada (edited 2/11/2013 11:48a).]

I have a Hario hand grinder, and it's great for making espresso and drip coffee grinds, but can be uneven when doing coarser French press style grinds because the ceramic grinder becomes a bit loose at that setting. There's a guy who sells an aftermarket stabilizer, which is basically a large washer that makes the grinder stable at any setting, but you'll have to do the modification yourself- he has videos detailing it thoroughly. The other issue is that, once you make the modification, you can't change the grind setting without having to readjust everything, which is more of a pain than it sounds. So if you get the hand grinder and want to only do coarse grinds, get the mod and it'll be set for life. If you're gonna vary up your grinds, put some thought into it

Hario Mod Kit that Anomaly is referencing.

The Baratza line gets my vote. The Vario is the ultimate do-it-all type grinder. However, I would recommend any in their lineup. Check Baratza's website for refurbished units. They update weekly.

I second the Chemix - best drip coffee you can make.

I use a krups grinder:

http://www.amazon.com/GVX1-14-Grinder-Selection-Stainless-Conical/dp/B0001I9R8C

It has very mixed reviews, but I guess I lucked out. I have had excellent results (for the price). I picked it up at costco.

[This message has been edited by Husky Boy Jr. (edited 2/11/2013 3:29p).]

Husky,

Can you get a coarse grind from that grinder?

The grind produced by this grinder isn't going to be as fine or as coarse as something much more expensive, however I think it is just fine. You will be able to get a grind coarse enough for a french press on the most coarse setting. The finest setting also works for espresso. You get what you pay for here, but my experience is that it is a perfectly acceptable product - it is also small and isnt bulky on the courtertop. I wanted to buy the least expensive adjustable burr grinder that I would be happy with - and this has met those expectations.

best home grinder I have used


is sadly the worst designed grinder I have used.

http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-Line-Series-Coffee-Black/dp/B003AM7KIK

This thread got me really interested in a Chemex Coffee Maker. Nobody else at home drinks coffee and I work six days a week so I have never kept a coffee maker at home for just Sundays. I only drink one (two max) cups a day. My shopping list should look like this?

1.Chemex (smallest one)

2. Grinder - get what you pay for....I wish there is a model that is cheap but still good enough.

3. Electric Cordless Kettle - The kind that boils water in 4 minutes and automatically turns off when water boils and back on again if it cools too much.

That is my setup Allen.

Don't forget you also need Chemex filters. It requires a specific type. You will also need a bottle brush to clean out your Chemex. That should cover it.

I have a regular tea kettle, is an electric kettle necessary for brewing with a Chemex?

I want whatever heats to boiling the fastest and easiest. I'm sure anything that boils would work. I noticed on reviews of the Chemex there was one person who claimed to have a problem because by the time the water dripped through the coffee, it was only lukewarm. Other reviewers said they had no problem like that.

I pour my water through at 200 degrees and I warm my chemex a bit on the stove top.

as I mentioned earlier, the right temp is as important as the right beans, the right grind and the right equipment.

You'll want to rinse the filters prior to brewing to remove any paper taste. I do it with hot water and let it sit to pre-heat the carafe. Empty right before you're going to brew and you won't have any heat loss issues.

I use a goosekneck kettle to help control the pour. But anything that can boil water will work.

This is a whole new world to me, just for a cup of coffee.

http://prima-coffee.com/blog/a-beginners-guide-to-pour-over-coffee-brewing

I kept a single serve cone filter at the office for my use.

I once thought about buying an espresso machine for my wife for xmas. I knew that she was happy with the espresso from the Krups and DeLonghi machines that were in her lab, using mail ordered preground Peete's.

So I went on the internet and started reading about coffee, espresso, and how to make it better. A few hours later, after I had convinced myself that I would not be doing it justice without our own roaster, burr grinders, replumbing the house for steam, and hiring a barista from Italy, I gave up and bought her a book unrelated to coffee.

We now use a plastic cone with Mellita filters and mail order grounds from Peete's.

I use a chemex. For Christmas I got this kettle. Works great.

http://m.macys.com/shop/registry/wedding/product/cuisinart-cpk-17-electric-kettle-1.7l-perfectemp?ID=462242&CategoryID=42825#fn=sp%3D1%26spc%3D75%26ruleId%3D51%26slotId%3D6

Gets the water to your desired temp, then turns off, then automatically goes back on when water drops below desired temp.

Okay yeah I think I will stick with the old-fashioned kettle you stick on the stove and let it heat up.

From what I have read as long as the water is at 195-200 degrees, the coffee should be fine?

I currently use a french press, but the Chemex looks like it would be great as well. I like drip coffee but I hate the electric machines with tons of parts, and the space they take up. I have a tiny kitchen right now so I try to make sure the appliances and gadgets I have work for my needs.

Seems the Chemex solves all my problems with drip coffee makers. The things I learn on Texags!

I like good coffee. I buy expensive beans and have a good grinder. I have a French press, used to use it often but don't much anymore. Chemex looks cool, but my main issue is that I drink A LOT of coffee. It's normal for me to drink a whole 12 cup carafe on each weekend morning. That's why I went back to the drip, I want good Joe but I also need volume. I just grind very fine since I know my drip brews pretty quick.

So is there any other method I could use that would be better but would also brew a good amount?

They do make French Presses of varying sizes, including a 12-cup one. You just brew it and transfer to a thermos-type holder so that the coffee doesn't get stale sitting in the french press while you're drinking it cup-by-cup.

quote:

---

So I went on the internet and started reading about coffee, espresso, and how to make it better. A few hours later, after I had convinced myself that I would not be doing it justice without our own roaster, burr grinders, replumbing the house for steam, and hiring a barista from Italy, I gave up and bought her a book unrelated to coffee.

---

You are not alone in this sentiment.

[This message has been edited by HTownAg98 (edited 2/17/2013 8:38a).]