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OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?

DigiTrad:
A PROPER CUP OF COFFEE
I'D RATHER MAKE COFFEE THAN LOVE
MAKIN' COFFEE

Stanron	27 Oct 12 - 07:45 PM
Stanron	27 Oct 12 - 07:54 PM
gnu	27 Oct 12 - 08:21 PM
Bobert	27 Oct 12 - 08:36 PM
gnu	27 Oct 12 - 08:51 PM
Bobert	27 Oct 12 - 08:53 PM
Little Hawk	27 Oct 12 - 08:57 PM
Steve Shaw	27 Oct 12 - 08:59 PM
GUEST,Stim	27 Oct 12 - 09:11 PM
Ebbie	27 Oct 12 - 09:37 PM
Jeri	27 Oct 12 - 10:38 PM
ChanteyLass	28 Oct 12 - 01:39 AM
GUEST,Eliza	28 Oct 12 - 04:52 AM
Stanron	28 Oct 12 - 12:10 PM
SPB-Cooperator	28 Oct 12 - 12:15 PM
SPB-Cooperator	28 Oct 12 - 12:39 PM
Ebbie	28 Oct 12 - 03:02 PM
Q (Frank Staplin)	28 Oct 12 - 08:01 PM
GUEST	28 Oct 12 - 08:07 PM
Bill D	28 Oct 12 - 08:53 PM
Musket	29 Oct 12 - 07:17 AM
billybob	29 Oct 12 - 07:44 AM
Stanron	29 Oct 12 - 08:10 AM
GUEST,Eliza	29 Oct 12 - 08:23 AM
Bill D	29 Oct 12 - 09:14 AM
billybob	29 Oct 12 - 09:33 AM
Bill D	29 Oct 12 - 10:04 AM
Musket	29 Oct 12 - 10:57 AM
Stanron	29 Oct 12 - 11:15 AM
Mr Red	29 Oct 12 - 11:46 AM
GUEST,leeneia	29 Oct 12 - 12:05 PM
GUEST,Stim	29 Oct 12 - 02:19 PM
Bee-dubya-ell	29 Oct 12 - 03:00 PM
deepdoc1	29 Oct 12 - 03:17 PM
The Sandman	29 Oct 12 - 03:45 PM
billybob	29 Oct 12 - 07:13 PM
Dorothy Parshall	29 Oct 12 - 08:51 PM
Bee-dubya-ell	29 Oct 12 - 10:19 PM
Bert	30 Oct 12 - 01:39 AM
CET	30 Oct 12 - 07:15 PM
Stanron	30 Oct 12 - 07:41 PM
kendall	30 Oct 12 - 08:42 PM
GUEST,Stim	30 Oct 12 - 09:16 PM
Don(Wyziwyg)T	31 Oct 12 - 10:51 AM
GUEST,Eliza	31 Oct 12 - 01:11 PM
ClaireBear	31 Oct 12 - 02:15 PM
Bert	31 Oct 12 - 04:51 PM
LilyFestre	31 Oct 12 - 05:00 PM
Bat Goddess	31 Oct 12 - 07:51 PM
Stanron	31 Oct 12 - 09:54 PM
Charmion	01 Nov 12 - 11:05 AM
Stanron	01 Nov 12 - 02:08 PM
Charmion	02 Nov 12 - 10:08 AM
GUEST,Stim	02 Nov 12 - 11:01 AM
DMcG	02 Nov 12 - 11:20 AM
DMcG	02 Nov 12 - 11:31 AM
MartinRyan	02 Nov 12 - 12:39 PM
Stanron	02 Nov 12 - 02:32 PM
Charmion	02 Nov 12 - 02:52 PM
GUEST,Charmion's brother Andrew	02 Nov 12 - 03:55 PM
Steve Shaw	02 Nov 12 - 04:00 PM
Stanron	02 Nov 12 - 04:58 PM
GUEST,Stim	02 Nov 12 - 05:03 PM
WalkaboutsVerse	03 Nov 12 - 02:24 PM
Steve Shaw	04 Nov 12 - 12:17 PM
Stanron	04 Nov 12 - 02:36 PM
GUEST,Stim	04 Nov 12 - 03:03 PM
Stanron	04 Nov 12 - 03:22 PM
Steve Shaw	04 Nov 12 - 04:34 PM
GUEST,Stim	05 Nov 12 - 12:38 AM
Bat Goddess	05 Nov 12 - 07:51 AM
Stanron	07 Nov 12 - 12:20 PM
Charmion	07 Nov 12 - 12:30 PM
Steve Shaw	07 Nov 12 - 01:55 PM

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Subject: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 07:45 PM

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make mthe perfect cup of c
From: Stanron
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 07:54 PM

Edit blues.
This was supposed to read

How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?

Tea spoonful of instant + milk and sugar?
Ground beans, wait 10 seconds after boiling and add water,?
Coin in machine and who cares anyway?

What is your formula?
I really would like to know.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make mthe perfect cup of coffee?
From: gnu
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 08:21 PM

Two bags of King Cole Orange Pekoe tea swished in 4 cups of water and brought to a boil.... YES.... HONESTLY!---- brought to a boil! And then let set for THIRTY minutes... buddy, that there tea will put hair on yer arse.

Ahhhh.... coffee? I dunno. Sorry about that.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make mthe perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bobert
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 08:36 PM

I am a coffee snob...

1/2 pound of El Salvadorian, 1/2 Columbian... Ground Turkish...

3 tablespoons = 6 cups...

Enjoy...

B~

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make mthe perfect cup of coffee?
From: gnu
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 08:51 PM

You sleep with that mouth?

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make mthe perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bobert
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 08:53 PM

It sleeps, too...

B~

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Little Hawk
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 08:57 PM

Ask Ricardo Montalban.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 08:59 PM

Buy an espresso machine and a coffee grinder. Make sure your machine has a milk frother for those times you fancy a cappuccino. Buy a stainless steel milk jug for frothing. Try Sainsbury's espresso beans for starters.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make mthe perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Stim
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 09:11 PM

Once, it was a coarse ground Huehuetenango, City plus roasted, to accentuate the regional flavor characteristics, and squeezed in a French Press, 2 tablespoons to the cup, with a water temperature of about 195°F(but never more than 205°F), never more than 10 minutes old.

Now it's pretty much always Nescafe Instant--

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Ebbie
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 09:37 PM

I like my coffee.

I generally buy Espresso whole beans- I like them dark and strong.

I grind a small potful for my small drip machine.

As soon as it has finished, I pour a mugful then turn off the machine (This way it never gets old tasting.)
When I pour the second (and last) mugful, I rinse out the empty pot and fill it with water for tomorrow. That gets rid of all chlorine odor.

I like my coffee.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Jeri
Date: 27 Oct 12 - 10:38 PM

Half Peet's French Roast, and (because the taste is "rounder"), half House Blend - one heaping teaspoon of each. Tap water (although it does taste better if I use water with reduced iron content, it's not a load better). Hit the switch on my 4 cup (2 mug) Melita coffee maker. I got it for something like $3 at a yard sale 10 or so years ago, and it doesn't cook coffee, even if I don't drink it right away.

In Korea, I lived for a whole year on Kona coffe made by pouring hot water through the coffee held in a styrofoam cup with holes poked in it. The next time I was in Korea (for another year), I'd upgraded to one of those plastic things that held the filter with the coffee you pour hot water through.

Instant coffee is better than it was, but not as good as the real stuff. It also has (according to what I can find on the web) has about 1/3 the caffeine. The way I make coffee, it may be closer to 1/4 the caffeine.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 01:39 AM

I don't have a favorite kind of bean. I like to try different varieties. I grind them myself and make the coffee in my French press. Directions are here. http://www.espressoplanet.com/espresso-coffee-machine/how_to_use_french_press.html

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Eliza
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 04:52 AM

Open jar of Nescafe Gold Blend. Put one teaspoonful in mug. Add boiling water and then milk. Voila! I hate that 'posh' strong bitter stuff (real coffee) they give you in Starbucks etc. In fact, better still, put one TEABAG in mug and make yourself a nice cup of tea.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 12:10 PM

I've got tea sorted. One handful of Gunpowder green tea in a pot. Just boiled (not boiling) water and brew for three minutes. Strain tea off the leaves. Half fill mug with tea, add a spoonful of fruit sugar, a drop or two of lemon flavouring and top up with sparkling water. Amazing, even after it's gone cold.

It's coffee I can't get right. It's always freshly ground, just boiled water and made in a cafetiere. Always tastes like mud. Why?

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 12:15 PM

I put a teaspoon of instant coffee in a glass liqueur coffee mug, add some coffee syrup - I had amaretto flavour today, add hot water, top up with cream from a tin of squirty cream and pour a drop more syrup on the cream

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: SPB-Cooperator
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 12:39 PM

otherwise.....
It should be made in a proper copper coffee pot

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Ebbie
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 03:02 PM

Wow. Is it true - as it seems - that the UKers use a lot more INSTANT coffee than we in the States do? I know only one person who uses it- and he admits he doesn't like GOOD coffee. :)

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 08:01 PM

?Kona coffee in Korea? Expensive even in Hawai'i.

We generally grind Guatemalan beans and make enough for the day. No dairy, no sugar. Almond biscoti on the side.
But my favorite cup is made about 3-4am, when I usually come awake. I have a single cup machine in my bedroom, and I brew a cup with the same Guatemalan beans. Almond biscoti on the side. My snerk joins me for a bite.
After this little repast, I go back to bed and sleep well.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 08:07 PM

OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?

with tea instead of coffee

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bill D
Date: 28 Oct 12 - 08:53 PM

Like Q it's Guatemalan when I can get it...otherwise good beans from Trader Joe's (right now Bolivian fair trade)

I don't do extremely fancy stuff... but I do use filtered water from the fridge. I just have a little 4-cup maker.

If I ever did make a 'perfect' cup, I'd be spoiled and fret about why I couldn't do it twice.

Now, I can make VERY good tea!

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Musket
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 07:17 AM

Buy a De Longhi bean to cup machine. I had a Krupps before but it kept breaking and once the warranty ran out, it failed for good. The new one is 2 years old, never missed a trick.

Set it strong. Use Sainsbury espresso beans, they are as good as Illi but half the price. Steam some milk (I have got the microwave so it just boils it without rising up, a few tears before bedtime getting that right at first) and get a long espresso in it.

I normally need a bit of sugar but the turning of the milk gives just about enough sweetness.

Repeat prescription at intervals throughout the day.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: billybob
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 07:44 AM

Billy makes it for me :-)
wendy x

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 08:10 AM

Oh Boy. I just googled 'De Longhi bean to cup machine'.

£849.99.

I can't be doing with cheap rubbish.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Eliza
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 08:23 AM

Ebbie, everyone I know uses instant coffee. Our supermarkets have shelf upon shelf of instant coffee brands, but hardly any ground coffee or beans. Quite posh people may use grounds in a cafetiere, but my friends and I aren't posh! 'Real' coffee is bitter and too strong IMO. Here in UK people drink about equal amounts of tea and coffee, but it's teabags (not loose tea any more) and instant coffee.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bill D
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 09:14 AM

Teabags & instant coffee.... *sigh* I'm glad I live in the silly colonies where we haven't all been educated in modern things.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: billybob
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 09:33 AM

I dont like instant coffee, Billy buys coffee beans from Sainsburys and makes my coffee in a perculator( I do make greek coffee in a copper coffee maker when I fancy one) and I only drink Earl Grey tea, black no milk or sugar, Billy although American, never drinks coffee and likes Yorkshire tea the stronger the better!
Wendy

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bill D
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 10:04 AM

I've had "Yorkshire" tea....(I wonder how many in Yorkshire are employed harvesting tea...) in bags, of course. Some visiting friends from the UK made us a gift. It was tolerable...but...like almost all bag teas, it is made with less-than-prime cuttings.

I can buy locally, or order online, really fine teas.... and I have all the filters, teapots...etc. to do it right. (In the UK, you have various types from Fortnum & Mason ...in tins... which is quite good. I 'think' I can still find it in local specialty shops here.)

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Musket
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 10:57 AM

You ought to try googling De Longhi bean to cup machine instead then. £320.00. I paid a wee bit more mind, about £400. If yours is showing over £800, you must have a more expensive computer than me.

Just think, if you could afford a computer, you could be a sanctimonious prat and share the fact with the rest of the world... The thread is not about how to make coffee on a budget. My Mum used to manage that. Camp chicory essence. It was bloody crap mind.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 11:15 AM

I remember Camp coffee.In those long thin square bottles. Cant remember how it tasted though. Can't be that much worse than my current mud.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Mr Red
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 11:46 AM

Camp wasn't coffee - it was chicory.
I used to stir it into cold milk - much better than making it with hot water.
I prefer Kenco Instant, boiling water poured over. I now have a Breville one cup hot water dispenser (can't call it a kettle). Much faster and the same effect. It definitely tastes different.
Much to the annoyance of a lass I lived with. She said "Coffee boiled is coffee spoiled" - we disagreed on other things as well.

Decaff as we speak.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 12:05 PM

My husband is in favor of coffee made in a French Press (that thing where you steep the coffee in boiling water and then press the plunger down.) However, the second time one shattered on me, I barred the French press from my kitchen.

We mix regular and decaf from Aldi's and cook it in the percolator 5 mins. As soon as the 5 mins is done, take the pot off the heat, pour it into a thermos and drop an ice cube or two into it to stop the brewing process. Otherwise, tiny steam bubbles in the coffee will continuue to act on it, making it bitter.

I 'cream' mine with non-fat dry milk powder, which neutralizes the acids which can cause reflux for me.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Stim
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 02:19 PM

The best coffee is made from beans that have just been roasted, as was once true at the Original Peet's...as to espresso/steamer/grinder, I have a Faema, and put it up against anything else (even the classic Gaggia hand pumped thing). I still drink instant anymore, though. You don't really want to hear the story.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 03:00 PM

The perfect cup of coffee is one which magically appears on your bedside table while you were in the bathroom taking your morning pee. If it happens to be made with dark roasted Kona peaberry, so much the better.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: deepdoc1
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 03:17 PM

Always loved a good cuppa. I also like a variety of beans, and frequently go to one or other of the small batch roasters here in Frederick for fresh beans. I have found that beans that are still shiney with essential oils are hands down the most flavorful. When they turn dry and dull, they are ok, but not great. One rounded scoop per two cups and one for the pot makes it strong enough that a bit of half and half would not go amiss. After brewing, the coffee goes into a preheated glass thermos and my day is off to a tasty start.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: The Sandman
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 03:45 PM

nstant coffe is only fit for Norfolk Dumplings

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: billybob
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 07:13 PM

If you use tea bags how on earth do you read the tea leaves?

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Dorothy Parshall
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 08:51 PM

Green tea, organic gunpowder loose leaves, made with not yet boiling distilled water. About a qt a day.

Coffee: Never had a cup in my life but I tried to keep a jar of instant around for others. The last time I made a coffee for someone, he poured it on the ground. Our home is a coffee-free zone

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 29 Oct 12 - 10:19 PM

Our home is a coffee-free zone too. Coffees should be free. We can't stand to see them confined in those cans and bags. So we do our best to set them free. We release them into their natural environment (the compost pile) after first giving them a nice hot bath.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bert
Date: 30 Oct 12 - 01:39 AM

Freshly ground Sumatra Mandheling; put the ground coffee in a warmed earthenware jug (You choose the amount, I don't know how strong you like it). Pour on freshly boiling water, cover and let it stand until the grounds settle.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: CET
Date: 30 Oct 12 - 07:15 PM

I'm no expert, Stanron, but will that stop me sharing my opinion? Will it, hell!

If your coffee consistently tastes like mud, one possibility is that you are using an inferior blend of coffee. You might try experimenting until you find a blend that works for you.

It could be, however, that your coffee beans aren't entirely fresh. Perhaps they have been sitting around too long, and not in a dry, airtight container. Coffee beans should not be kept in the fridge or freezer, either.

Perhaps the problem is the grind. A French press requires a coarse grind. Finely ground coffee, which is what you would need for a Melitta filter coffee maker, would not work well in a French press.

Don't be skimpy with the coffee. You need two generous coffee measures per cup in my humble, but nevertheless correct, opinion.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 30 Oct 12 - 07:41 PM

Well it was opinions I asked for CET. I get a different blend of beans each time, use as coarse a grind as possible but there's no way of knowing how old the beans are. Also they are kept in an airtight container but in the fridge. I'll try changing that. Cheers.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: kendall
Date: 30 Oct 12 - 08:42 PM

Get a Keurig coffee maker and buy Newmans own coffee. It comes in little paper cups. Best on the planet.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Stim
Date: 30 Oct 12 - 09:16 PM

Ah, but it is possible to know how old the beans are, in a way, at least, because packaged beans have freshness dates, and if the beans are loose, you can ask the seller when they were roasted(if they don't know, find another seller).

Also, it is possible to find places that roast their own beans, and, surprisingly, they often cost no more than the packaged sorts. (especially since, in the US at least, packaged coffee tends to come in cans or vac bags are 12-14oz., when the fresh roasted tends come by the pound)

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Don(Wyziwyg)T
Date: 31 Oct 12 - 10:51 AM

We are an Irish Ancestry family and tea drinkers to a man. Only my daughter drinks coffee. I always had suspicions about that milkman.

Don T.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Eliza
Date: 31 Oct 12 - 01:11 PM

Good Soldier Schweik, I'm not a true Norfolk Dumpling as I wasn't born here. But I'd be very proud to be called one, and I'm just the right shape!

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: ClaireBear
Date: 31 Oct 12 - 02:15 PM

In a proper copper coffee pot!

When I make coffee, I start with one part ground Turkish coffee (the 20% cardamom grade) mixed with one part ground espresso.

Two heaping tablespoons of that go into my 3-cup copper ibric, which is half full of water that has already started warming over medium heat, together with one levelish tablespoon of raw sugar. No stirring! I then brew it Turkish style, bringing it to a boil, taking it off heat just as it's about to foam over, then boiling again for a total of three times -- sometimes four. I then add about a teaspoon of rosewater, spoon off the foam into two pre-warmed cups, and then carefully pour in the coffee. Ahhh!

Usually, though, I drink tea.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bert
Date: 31 Oct 12 - 04:51 PM

Ah yes ClaireBear - Turkish coffee with cardamom. I remember the day we introduced our teenagers to that. They, and their friends, used up every grain of coffee in the house and were bouncing off the walls all day long.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: LilyFestre
Date: 31 Oct 12 - 05:00 PM

Fresh ground Columbian coffee beans, 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice. Brew. Add half and half. Mmmmmmmmm.

Michelle

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 31 Oct 12 - 07:51 PM

Probably won't get two people to agree on how to make coffee, let alone what kind of coffee to use.

I used to grind mocha Java and brew concentrate with a cold water method. And after Tom and I got together we still ground whole beans and Tom brewed in a Mr. Coffee-style coffee maker. (While holding the world's record on the number of espresso makers we owned -- including a big 3-handled Gaggia that came out of the Hotel Vendome in Boston via the Turk's Head Coffee House.)

Now we've found a brand of French roast we like and buy ground and brew in a Procter-Silex Mr. Coffee-style maker. I usually drink tea, but have learned to make coffee a la Tom since he broke his ankle. He also can't see well enough to see where the water is in the pot we use to measure. I like coffee when we have a weekend and Wednesday full breakfast.

Michelle, the pumpkin pie spice sounds brilliant!

Linn

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 31 Oct 12 - 09:54 PM

Sometimes I think we live in different universes. What is pumpkin pie spice?

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Charmion
Date: 01 Nov 12 - 11:05 AM

Pumpkin pie spice may contain some or all of the following: cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice and dried ginger, all ground fine. Cinnamon is usually the dominant note.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 01 Nov 12 - 02:08 PM

Thanks Charmion. I got something today called Mixed Spice. It has the spices you named plus ground coriander. Maybe I put too much in but I took one sip and threw the lot away. I've read a recipe for Turkish coffee using a cardamom pod. I'll try that tomorrow.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Charmion
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 10:08 AM

A small pinch per cup is the correct dose. Very small.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Stim
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 11:01 AM

Just to clarify things for Stanron-a season or two ago, Starbucks began pushing a seasonal item called a "Pumpkin Spice Latte" which actually was quite tasty--it caught on, big time, and this year, Pumpkin Spice coffee, tea, and such things are everywhere the rage. Ironically, Starbucks ran out of whatever they needed to make the stuff early in the season(they have got it now), leaving all the "me too" products to pick up the slack.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: DMcG
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 11:20 AM

It may just be where I go, but with one or two exceptions, none of the coffee shops I know offer a choice of coffee. They will certainly offer a choice of style - americano, latte, espresso, cappuccino and so on - but they do not offer a choice of bean, which seems to be what everyone here is talking about. The coffee shops I went to in my youth did offer different beans, but not style.

There was a news report recently where Costa (I think) have decided not to open a branch in a town which had some 400 independent coffee shops. After the interview with one of them the report asked what coffee they would recommend and got cappuccino as the answer. Very disappointing that the bean appeared not to matter ...

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: DMcG
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 11:31 AM

Is it true - as it seems - that the UKers use a lot more INSTANT coffee than we in the States do?

It is certainly true that in the UK we drink a lot of instant coffee. I drink both instant and real, but regard them as distinct drinks. A good instant brand may be nothing like real coffee, but can be a pleasant drink in its own right. Cheap instant, on the other hand, is often foul from both perspectives.

As for real, depending on whim and the number of thirsty people I use an Italian style espresso (bought and instructed upon by my Italian daughter-in-law), one of several sizes of cafetiere, or a cona-style machine capable of steamed milk enhancements ... but its usually too much faff and I go for the instant!

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: MartinRyan
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 12:39 PM

Filter (paper) in the morning, made fairly strong. Nespresso capsule (Indian) for the rest of the day, as espresso. Tried doing the grind/Gaggia machine approach but could never get it consistent. Very happy with the capsules both for taste and consistency. Only problem so far is the need for much more frequent descaling than the manufacturers think!

Regards

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 02:32 PM

Thanks again Charmion. I tried a cup today with a cardamom pod in and then a cup with a pinch of the spice mix. Neither went down the sink but neither were noticeably better than my usual brew. Hi ho, I'll try again tomorrow.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Charmion
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 02:52 PM

Stanron, is there any place you go to have coffee where you find it delicious? If so, ask the staff how they make it. If not, ask yourself if your sense of taste might be a bit off.

I find that my sense of taste is highly variable. At times of the year when my sinuses are inflamed, such as now, everything tastes sort of bland and uninteresting. The other day, for example, we had cold roast chicken with cranberry sauce for supper, and the cranberry tasted of nothing much in particular except acid and sugar. To me, that is; to my husband, it was the same old familiar very-cranberry-tasting cranberry sauce I always make.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Charmion's brother Andrew
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 03:55 PM

I got to spend the better part of a year in Beirut. "Qawa arabiiya," i.e. the sort brewed in a small pot on an open flame, is still a favourite. Espresso will do as a substitute. I have taken to café au lait as a means to spin it out (I tend to want to slug espresso back) and to take in milk. North American coffee seems to be, as Germans accuse, just dirty water. My last boss in the regular army was a coffee snob (John Sawicki, where are you?) but he taught me to blend Kenyan and Arabica beans in the grinder (5:3 small scoops for 60 oz Braun filter pot). It comes out so that both our guests and I can drink it (but I would still rather espresso).

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 04:00 PM

'Twas Totnes in Devon that drove away Costa.

All my life I've hated instant coffee. I thought I hated coffee because of that. Then, in Venice last October, a place where a good cup of tea cannot be had (they tend to give you a cup of water that was boiling ten minutes ago and a tea bag with string attached in a nasty little wrapper), I found out that fresh coffee was, in fact, very nice, that it was just that I'd never had it. We got someone to buy us an espresso machine (with milk frother) and a coffee grinder last Christmas. We now consume cappuccinos with gay abandon and I enjoy a large espresso or two on frequent occasions. No sugar, no mucking about with sprinkly chocolate on top. We use semi-skimmed milk. I'm thinking of trying unsweetened soya milk tomorrow.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 04:58 PM

For reasons that are way off topic I don't do milk or anything else bovine. I use oat milk on my cereal and used to buy Alpro soya yoghurt until they added loads of sugar and vanilla flavouring. Yuk, yuk and yuk again.
I can't remember the last time I bought a cup of coffee. I usually take one look at the price and go and have a beer. I buy beans from various supermarkets and usually try different brands. There have been loads of suggestions here and I will work my way through those that are physically possible. Cheers.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Stim
Date: 02 Nov 12 - 05:03 PM

Charmion's Brother Andrew: Kenyan beans are Arabica beans. Also, you can get about any kind of coffee you want in North America these days, including what you call Qawa arabiiya. Since the advent of Starbucks, even McDonald's now offers Barista coffee, which will do in a pinch.

Stanron--those who care for such things have been known to add ground cardamom to the ground coffee before brewing. I was once at a dinner where the host(a rather haughty fellow from one of the coffee countries) served an amazing espresso to about twelve of us at the same time. When asked, "How do you make this?", he indicated that he'd merely tossed some cardomom into expresso ground, and thrown that into a large Moka Express pot.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Nov 12 - 02:24 PM

Mix sugar and coffee granules with soya, then pour the hot water in.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 04 Nov 12 - 12:17 PM

The unsweetened soya milk instead of semi-skimmed normal milk experiment was a disaster. Never again. The soya imparted a completely alien taste to the cappuccino.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 04 Nov 12 - 02:36 PM

Maybe there's some thing wrong with my sense of taste. I recently discovered a drink which I suppose could be called Maryog. A heaped teaspoon of Marmite, Half a mugful of hot water and top it up with yoghurt of your choice. I've just made a mugful to check and it still tastes better to me than most coffee I make. There's no caffeine in it so it's best as a nighttime drink.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Stim
Date: 04 Nov 12 - 03:03 PM

I know we've had our differences in the past, Steve Shaw, but you have my utmost respect for experimenting with the soya milk and capuccino. It was an act of great personal courage;-)

As for you, Stanron, perhaps you are not, at heart, a coffee drinker. There are, after all, other ways to pass one's time on Earth. We do not all need to march to the same drummer...

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 04 Nov 12 - 03:22 PM

Mmmmm.. I want to like coffee. The idea that large sections of the human race have access to a pleasure that is blocked to me is mildly irksome.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 04 Nov 12 - 04:34 PM

Huh? What differences? Just take things as they come! I have a bit of an aversion to sweetening hot drinks (I'll make an exception for a large mug of hot chocolate, as long as it's consumed outdoors on a cold night with a big bag of roast chestnuts to hand), but the unsweetened soya milk was a bridge too far. 'Twas Alpro Light, the fresh stuff, not long-life, that I used, which I use on me cereal and make porridge with and which I even enjoy as a cold drink every now and then. But something horrible happened when I tried it instead of milk in me cappuccino, I tell you. Something very dry, acrid and manky. I see you can have soya in your coffee in Café Noir shops. No thanks. If I couldn't stomach milk for some reason I'd stick to king-size espressos I reckon. Stanron, read my story. I hated coffee for 60 years. At least, I thought I did, until Venetian coffee made me see the light. Whatever you try it has to be freshly-ground from fresh beans. Buy ye not powder in any shape or form. Insist.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: GUEST,Stim
Date: 05 Nov 12 - 12:38 AM

I think that that is quite the wrong approach, Stanron. Expanding on what Mr. Shaw has said, one cannot decide to drink coffee. One must be called to it, generally by the aroma, either of the freshly ground or roasted beans, or by the freshly brewed coffee itself.

I came to coffee on a sunny Friday afternoon, many years ago, in Berkeley, California. I stumbled into an espresso bar across from the campus, and immediately was overcome by the aroma of roasted beans and steam. It was many years before Starbucks (which was inspired by the Peet's, mentioned earlier in this thread), and a menu hung above the coffee machines, which featured the notation"Espresso: If you don't know what it is, you won't like it."

Of course, I ordered an "Espresso", and have never looked back.(Though, for personal reasons, as mentioned above, I currently favor a peculiar Latino freeze dried product.)

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 05 Nov 12 - 07:51 AM

If I buy coffee to drink when I'm out (or, in the case of the recent power outage in the wake of Sandy), I go to McDonald's for the buck-for-any-size Newman's own.

I drink my coffee (and my tea, for that matter) with extract of neither cow nor cane. (Except very, very occasionally, if, perhaps I've got a wonky tum.) Tom prefers cream, but no sweetener.

I have sometimes used instant coffee to flavor cakes or other baked goods, but I certainly wouldn't drink it, although I recognize that some brands taste better than others. Instant espresso is a much better substitute for brewed coffee. And I keep coffee BAGS around for "emergencies" -- they're like tea bags, but for coffee. I stock both regular and decaf (from which I normally run screaming, but is nice if I'm in the mood for a coffee drink (alcoholic with whipped cream on top) and it's after, say, 2 p.m.

I usually freeze the day's leftover coffee, if there is any (we usually only drink a cup or two with breakfast), in ice cube trays and keep the cubes in a Zip-loc bag until used. After Tom broke his ankle, I started doing the shopping and discovered how expensive coffee is. I can't stand waste (the used grounds are composted) and we're on a low fixed income and a tight budget. Tom won't drink coffee with the cubes added, but I don't mind and I prefer my coffee on the tepid side anyway.

Linn

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Stanron
Date: 07 Nov 12 - 12:20 PM

I thought I'd bring this back from the dead to report a modest success. One cardamon seed and one heaped desert spoonful of beans per cup into the grinder for a coarse grind. Adding a sweetener at this stage seems to leave a cleaner grinder. The pinch of mixed spice is OK as long as it is a very small pinch.

Cheers.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Charmion
Date: 07 Nov 12 - 12:30 PM

May you drink it in good health.

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Subject: RE: OK How do you make the perfect cup of coffee?
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 07 Nov 12 - 01:55 PM

Even though it doesn't sound much like coffee.

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