Coffee challenge, Freeze dried versus pod crap

[Gulf Comanche]

Old school percolator on the stove at home or boat, I like seeing the coffee perl into the glass bulb at the top. For 3 cups,1 large scoop Community medium roast 2 smaller scoops French Market chicory blend. Comes out almost black and pretty strong, gets the motor running.

 

[UrsusMaritimus]

We tried the K machine and were not big fans of it. At home we use a good Breville drip machine and grinder. That said, if one is intent on using a K machine, they make a reusable cup that you can fill yourself. Allows you to choose the beans and tailor the grind and amount of grounds to get a little better result.

On the topic of the SB Via packs, I have actually found them decent and carry them in my suitcase for mornings in hotels, because I want coffee before I see another human.

 

[Northern Spy]

Got a Delonghi super automatic at home and recently did the math against a K cup on daily use with 2 and occasionally 3 people.

Cost wise, the Keurig loses after 7 months using Lavazza or KickAss in the Delonghi, and K-cups priced out at Costco. Taste wise the Keurig loses on day 1. Environmentally, we dump the Delonghi pucks in the garden compost. K cups... yeah, best not to think about it really.

Had some decent Nespressos at various Air B&Bs in Europe (every one of them had a pixie), but selection and cost limits them where I live.

On the boat is a French press and an aero press. Depends on how many people are having a cup.

I will resort to Starbucks Via French or Italian roast if I am backpacking or motorcycle-camping. I don't think I could rationalize some of the super expensive freeze dried in the article. Waka was $46 delivered to the house for 35 cups. And we all know that a cup is not really a cup... Y'ouch!

 

[RickyD]

Ok, coffee snob here. I have about six different coffee makers. At home, a stainless steel french press double walled and vacuum insulated for my wife who wants to fill a carafe to take to work. Then I have a Nespresso and a semi-industrial espresso machine. For the Nespresso Vitroline I grind my own beans and reuse the aluminum pods using My-Cup covers and filters. I also reprogrammed the machine to run less water so the cup is stronger. When I get up in the morning at home, I run two pods in the Nespresso while I wait for the Espresso machine to heat up. Then I add a double shot or make a latte.

On the boat I have a glass french press for discriminating guests or a Mr. Coffee drip if I need 12 cups. For just me and my bride I have a Krups small espresso machine that makes great coffee especially when I feed it the right stuff. So I roast my own beans. I like a darker roast but not as far as French roast. My favorites are Guatemalan Antigua, Tanzanian Pea Berry, most Ethopians, and just this morning, Burundi coffee. Just so you know my first sailboat was named Java Jive, my first cruiser was JoJava. We have not changed the inherited name of Aquarius.

 

[Nomad Willy]

We were accustomed to going to Starbucks. We went to several other coffee spots and decided nobody makes coffee that beats Starbucks dark coffee. My favorite SB’s dark is Verona. Chris likes Pike Place.
We make pandemic coffee at home now w a Cuisinart coffee maker. I give it high marks. Seems stronger but I like it perhaps better.
Won’t be going to Starbucks for some time though.

Re someone’s comment above ....
“Then how do you keep your coffee hot in the cup?”
Here’s our MrCoffee cup warmer.

 

[Lollygag1]

Just made a batch of clod brew coffee in the big metal french press. Will be bringing this out with us this weekend.

 

[rsn48]

On my boat, especially when I have guests, I just purchase ground coffee beans for drip brewing. I have the glass container that holds a quart or more. I usually buy Starbucks Sumatra for this, but we have some good local bean places that were dried here, so I will purchase a bold ground coffee from them.

I rarely use ground coffee, being the snob I am but for the boat, I go through the coffee fairly quickly with guests so not a big deal. Saves me from having to bring another thing on board - coffee grinder.

And I just use the cone and paper filter. I through the grounds away easily with the paper filter and I just give the pot a small squish of water to "clean" it. I might seriously clean it after 3 weeks or so, but who's counting.

But the point of my thread is there are some newer freeze dried coffees that are getting reasonable reviews. An older good freeze dried coffee is the Starbuck sleeves, not bad for a freeze dried, and definitely better than a K pod. I was hoping some other daring souls had tried out some of the newer freeze dried stuff.

 

[boathealer]

I have found that there is good coffee available in k-cups, there's just not enough of it in a single pod. What I do is brew the smallest cup setting in order to get a strong brew. If I want a fuller (normal) cup, I use two pods on the small setting. Just costs more per cup and that's a ROI decision to be made.

Current 2-pod favorite is Kroger's house brand (Private Selection) Guatemalan dark. Really good.

I have found in the past that new introduction coffees are really full to get you hooked -- then they start reducing the amount in the pod over time....

 

[HeadMistress]

I have a Keurig and haven't bought K-cups in years 'cuz you're right--the coffee in 'em is bilge water. Instead I have a couple of re-fillable single cup pods that I fill with good coffee. They're not hard to find...and you can even put 'em in the dishwasher.... google "refillable Keurig coffee pods." You have to know whether your Keurig is a 1.0 or 2.0 'cuz only pods made for 2.0 (or both) will fit a 2.0. The good ones are a bit on the expensive side, but not really if you consider the prices of K-cups.


As for tea...not in a Keurig or any other drip coffee maker. 'Cuz the water MUST be boiling and the tea should steep for several minutes or even the best tea will be no better than--not even as good as- K-cup coffee.


--Peggie

 

[rsn48]

I don't mean to be rude but I just don't get the "fill the pods with coffee" thing. Again, meant in a humourous tone but I will pit the glass carafe with plastic coffee cone and paper filter using (to standardize this bit should you try it) Sumatra drip brewed ground coffee from Starbucks (I don't normally buy from them because where I live we have a great coffee brand I love). I know the coffee from this $18 unit will taste better than the pod coffee brew.

https://www.amazon.com/Melitta-640616-Pour-Over-Coffee-Carafe/dp/B000MIT2OK

Coffee beans and water need to be in contact longer than shorter (depending on the bean) and water poured over the grinds is going to be in contact with the beans longer than water flowing through a pod. The water in a coffee cone sits longer with the grinds thus producing a fuller taste.

I don't know how many times in life as I've tried to make something simpler, I've made it harder. I did think of purchasing reusable pods but its more work than the glass carafe and cone technique.

Contest, fastest and bestest:

Step one:
Fill K machine with water. - Fill kettle for gas stove with water.
time: roughly a tie

Step two:
Fill little pods with coffee, clean up - Throw in filter, add five heaping
tablespoons of grind.
Time: faster for the cone/carafe

Step three:
Insert pod press button, repeat for more - Add boiling water and wait while it drains.
Winner: carafe/cone if you want more than two cups of coffee.
: No electrical amps were harmed making cone/carafe coffee, amps burned
using K machine
Step four:
Drink coffee, tastes not bad - Drink coffee tastes great

Step five:
Clean little pods one by one - Throw paper filter/grinds into composting
bag
winner: faster to just throw away for carafe/cone. A third of a cup of water swished around to clean coffee carafe.

Over all winner & value:
The combo carafe/cone costs $19, K machine much more, filters cheap to buy, pods more expensive but over 10 years cheaper. Coffee taste better in carafe.
We have a winner.

https://images.app.goo.gl/kKh5NhPhJJrF6Rpx5

 

[AlaskaProf]

Big thumbs up on the French press.

Me too. Double wall stainless. Serves very well on the boat. Hmm; time to brew...

I have a Breville espresso machine at home which replaced a Keurig, which i gave away to someone i didn't like very much.

The resort we visit every winter has Nespressos and ive found them surprisingly good.

 

[MurrayM]

Bit of a tangent...

We don't drink milk anymore (why would anyone want to suck from the teat of another mammal, or even from the teats of our own species in adulthood?) so have moved to unsweetened coconut milk. Lasts much, much longer than milk and tastes great!

Anyways, getting to the coffee part; try putting Nescafe Ice Java (a kind of sugary coffee syrup) into coconut milk. It tastes awesome and goes well over ice on a hot day. The Ice Java is also very good drizzled over ice cream.

 

[bshillam]

Use a K on the boat right now. Bad cup of coffee, don't care for it. Thinking of switching to my home system which is a grinder and thermal Bunn. Once the coffee is brewed it's stored for consumption. Love the great taste of coffee and hot for a few hours too!

 

[HeadMistress]

Step two:
Fill little pods with coffee, clean up - Throw in filter, add five heaping
tablespoons of grind.

Step one: While Keurig is heating the water from its reservoir that you keep filled (mine holds 72 oz), fill pod with one coffee measure (2 tbsp "spoon), no clean up needed if you keep you coffee in an air tight cannister and hold the pod IN it while you fill it.

Step three:
Insert pod press button, repeat for more

Step two
Insert pod, press button. Use the insulated carafe with the larger carafe size pod if you want more than one cup...select number of cups desired. (I can't imagine running water through the same pod twice!)

Step three: Drink the coffee which is as good as the coffee that went into the pod (which is why the coffee in K-cups is so bad).

Step four: Knock the grinds out of the pod into the composter or down the disposal, put pod in the dishwasher. No paper filter needed so none to dispose of.

I've used a Melitta cone--both one cup and a thermos bottle full. In both systems, the coffee in the cup is only as good as the coffee that goes into the pod or the filter.

So having used both systems, I have to call it a "whatever floats your boat for YOU" tie!


--Peggie

 

[BandB]

Wifey B: Is coffee dying? Ok, I know that's heresy to many of you.

Among our family and friends. David, Beth, James and Anna on the patio every morning having early coffee and continue to drink all day. Ages 65, 63, 62, 59. Also family, Frank and Betty must start their day with coffee. Ages 66, 64. They could all talk percolator and beans and serious brew and stuff with all of you.

However, take the other 25 or 30 of us from ages 49 to 19 and there's not a single serious coffee drinker.

So maybe we're just strange? Well, we are, but perhaps not on this. Survey says:

Those 55+, 56% drink coffee every day and 15% most days but can live without it.

Those 35-44, 43% every day and 18% most days.

Those 18-34, 27% every day and 18% most days. 25% never and 14% rarely.

Those under 18, 17% every day, 9% most, 36% never, 20% rarely.

So did those of you who drink it do so always or increase coffee drinking as you aged?

Also, among those of us under 50 and mostly under 34, when our friends and family in these ages drink it's never plain coffee. It's fancies. Our most popular kpods are Starbucks Sumatra, Green Mountain Caramel Vanilla Cream, Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll, Green Mountain Hazlenut, Barista Prima Italian Roast, Green Mountain Island Coconut, Green Mountain Southern Pecan, Cafe Escapes Chai Latte, Original Donut Shop Coconut Mocha, Green Mountain Wild Mountain Blueberry. You get the idea and others like it plus Twinings Morning Tea and Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa and Celestial Seasonings Antioxidant Green Tea and Sleepytime Herbal Tea. Plus other brands of pods for K's.

So changing trends in people or will they change with age?

I'll toss one other variable as hubby and I never drank coffee, but we live in South Florida now and most of our friends are far more inclined to start the day off with a cold drink than a hot one. Just the old former NC'ers drinking coffee.

So, curious as to the observations of others.

 

[HeadMistress]

There isn't a brand on your list that I would buy. Despite being a geriatric southerner, I prefer to start my day 365 days of the year with a mug of hot strong black tea (which I would never even consider making in my Keurig!) and I confess that I'm a tea snob (thanks to a Brit that I dated between husbands)...never any of the US brands--to me they're the tea equivalent of K-Cups. And what's served in restaurants and hotels is essentially just colored water. As for coffee, I rarely drink it except after dinner, but it has to be GOOD coffee.

Hard to say whether younger people will "age" into coffee. Most of my friends of all ages will drink it after dinner with desert, but it has to be decaf for everyone over 50. The younger ones seem to be more into herbal teas than anything else...although iced tea is big with all generations in the south (the REAL south)...it comes off most northern restaurant menus between Labor Day and Memorial Day. In the south it's mostly sweet tea--something like Lipton loaded with sugar--real sugar. It used to be that wasn't sweet enough unless the spoon could stand upright in the glass, but while it's still sweet enough to rot your teeth, sugar content has gotten a lot lower.



--Peggie

 

[Ted]

I guess I class as 55++
I am drinking less coffee now than younger, not age related.
Maybe 1 or 2 cups a week.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Murray wrote;
“We don't drink milk anymore (why would anyone want to suck from the teat of another mammal, or even from the teats of our own species in adulthood?) so have moved to unsweetened coconut milk. Lasts much, much longer than milk and tastes great!“

Ditto but we use daily on cereal hemp, soy and coconut. I don’t use Moo but Chris does. My favorite is hemp. Always unsweetened and un-flavored.
And I never have images of teats while I’m eating.
We drink tea and coffee often (never all day) and enjoy both.

 

[rsn48]

Peggy, forgot to talk about tea. So I'm the coffee drinker of the family, my wife the tea drinker. On occasion I will have tea, she will never have coffee. My heathen son will only drink tea - traitor! There are three tea farms in North America, two in the states and one in Canada, on Vancouver Island to be exact. Of course they carry other tea beyound their home grown product.

My favourite tea is Lapsang Souchong and is a very bold tea. If you haven't had it, imagine drinking liquid camp fire smoke, that's exactly how it tastes. Winston Churchill drank it all the time, but with an ounce or two of scotch in it. I have done the scotch routine with it, but I also add a bit of honey as well.

I cook with tea as well. I have the Cadillac of beer can chicken equipment made by Weber, the priciest of the lot but also the best (don't put it in your dishwasher). Just jump to the 15 second mark of this video and you will see the gizmo.

What I do is paint the chicken with a steak rub (usually Montreal) in a no taste olive oil mix. Then in the cup I add Pike's Market Spiced Tea. Smells wonderful, tastes great too; has a natural sweetness that I can't figure out. I put the tea almost to the top of the cup, fill with water to just above the tea level.

When the BBQ chicken cooks (whole chicken), it bakes on the outside and steams in the inside. The steam delivers a very light gentle taste of orange flavour that is prevalent in the tea. On my Weber bbq, I cook at 350 for 65 minutes, never open the lid, take out, let sit for about a half hour. Ummm good!

 

[boatpoker]

We are unabashed coffee snobs. We drink only pure Kona (not the cheap blend sold in Canada), Pure Jamaican Blue mountain (again no blend) and this amazing Dark Kenya AA Extra Bold.

Our My Invento makes coffee from thick "tea" bags and can make espresso or full cups. Temperature and pressure are critical and this machine gets it right every time.

 

[O C Diver]

Wifey B: Is coffee dying? Ok, I know that's heresy to many of you.

Among our family and friends. David, Beth, James and Anna on the patio every morning having early coffee and continue to drink all day. Ages 65, 63, 62, 59. Also family, Frank and Betty must start their day with coffee. Ages 66, 64. They could all talk percolator and beans and serious brew and stuff with all of you.

However, take the other 25 or 30 of us from ages 49 to 19 and there's not a single serious coffee drinker.

So maybe we're just strange? Well, we are, but perhaps not on this. Survey says:

Those 55+, 56% drink coffee every day and 15% most days but can live without it.

Those 35-44, 43% every day and 18% most days.

Those 18-34, 27% every day and 18% most days. 25% never and 14% rarely.

Those under 18, 17% every day, 9% most, 36% never, 20% rarely.

So did those of you who drink it do so always or increase coffee drinking as you aged?

Also, among those of us under 50 and mostly under 34, when our friends and family in these ages drink it's never plain coffee. It's fancies. Our most popular kpods are Starbucks Sumatra, Green Mountain Caramel Vanilla Cream, Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll, Green Mountain Hazlenut, Barista Prima Italian Roast, Green Mountain Island Coconut, Green Mountain Southern Pecan, Cafe Escapes Chai Latte, Original Donut Shop Coconut Mocha, Green Mountain Wild Mountain Blueberry. You get the idea and others like it plus Twinings Morning Tea and Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa and Celestial Seasonings Antioxidant Green Tea and Sleepytime Herbal Tea. Plus other brands of pods for K's.

So changing trends in people or will they change with age?

I'll toss one other variable as hubby and I never drank coffee, but we live in South Florida now and most of our friends are far more inclined to start the day off with a cold drink than a hot one. Just the old former NC'ers drinking coffee.

So, curious as to the observations of others.

Go look in a Starbucks or other trendy coffeehouses. Plenty of sub 30 types drinking coffee. From my own observation, neither of my kids liked coffee until they were working 40+ hours a week. Both are now blind until the first morning Joe.

My unscientific observation: the harder people work and the more hours per week, the more important coffee is to them. The few lazy friends I have, seldom drink coffee, or get out of bed before 8 am.

Ted

 

[MurrayM]

Lapsang Souchong

Also seen it as 'fumed black tea'.

Have a hunch it isn't so environmentally friendly as the tea leaves are hung in smokehouses burning pine...probably from nearby forests.

 

[Airstream345]

I’m sorry, I can’t hear ya’ll over the steaming wand.



Dropped the K cups a year ago and covered our bases.

 

[Codger2]

I've used a Melitta cone--both one cup and a thermos bottle full. In both systems, the coffee in the cup is only as good as the coffee that goes into the pod or the filter.

So having used both systems, I have to call it a "whatever floats your boat for YOU" tie!

WOW! I had no idea what a bunch of "coffee snobs" TFers are! We are big Keurig fans on our boat. It's fast, super hot and with the right blend, damn good! For us the right blend is Caribou, spiked with Coffeemate powdered creamer.

 

[AlaskaProf]

I’m sorry, I can’t hear ya’ll over the steaming wand.

View attachment 103833

Dropped the K cups a year ago and covered our bases.

Looks like my Breville(?). A loving gift from the two women in my life.

 

[BandB]

Go look in a Starbucks or other trendy coffeehouses. Plenty of sub 30 types drinking coffee. From my own observation, neither of my kids liked coffee until they were working 40+ hours a week. Both are now blind until the first morning Joe.

My unscientific observation: the harder people work and the more hours per week, the more important coffee is to them. The few lazy friends I have, seldom drink coffee, or get out of bed before 8 am.

Ted

Wifey B: Yes, but the Starbucks group doesn't drink plain coffee. Fancy like on my list.

Oh my.....hubby and I must be lazy then and must have always been. When we're working we get out of bed earlier and when cruising.

I think there's some validity though to your hard work and caffeine connection and often the caffeine is coffee although a lot of young people go for energy drinks.

 

[BandB]

WOW! I had no idea what a bunch of "coffee snobs" TFers are! We are big Keurig fans on our boat. It's fast, super hot and with the right blend, damn good! For us the right blend is Caribou, spiked with Coffeemate powdered creamer.

Wifey B: Some of our friends like Caribou Kpods too.

 

[HeadMistress]

I cook with tea as well. I have the Cadillac of beer can chicken equipment made by Weber, the priciest of the lot but also the best (don't put it in your dishwasher). Just jump to the 15 second mark of this video and you will see the gizmo.

I do love "beer can" chicken, but I'm usually cooking for one, so I rarely put a whole chicken on the grill. So I came up with a variation that works with Cornish game hen. Nobody makes beer can chicken equipment small enough, so I had to come up with my own using a round cast aluminum grill topper and a 6 oz pineapple juice can (cut the label off before sitting the bird down onto it!) Pour off half the pineapple juice, replace with 2 tblsp teriyaki sauce (never thought of using tea). I do eat the skin, so I oil it and rub the bird with Weber "Kickin' Chicken" and cook at about 400 on indirect heat with the lid down for about 45 minutes. Split bird into 2 halves.

--Peggie

 

[rsn48]

Pike's Market Spice Tea has been around for decades now, you can probably get it in your area. It has a strong orange smell to it with cinnamon. Use the original tea. I have found some places market a tea that is suppose to be a copy of the Spice Tea, it isn't. And as you can guess it originated in Seattle only a couple of hundred yards from the original first Starbucks.

I will buy a lot of the Spice Tea and since I mostly use it for cooking, I keep it the freezer. Try some of the steak rubs on your chicken, I'm betting you'll like it.

 

[BruceK]

I’m sorry, I can’t hear ya’ll over the steaming wand.

View attachment 103833

Dropped the K cups a year ago and covered our bases.

That`s my Breville! Ours is black (can I say that?), you can get it in red(not sure about that either), silver finish seems safely apolitical. Good coffee, and it preciously tells you when it wants either of 2 kinds of cleaning. Very swish on a boat!
Aussie public company,started in 1930s, unfortunately manufacturing outside Australia,for now. Share price is sky high,no idea why. Maybe Americans buying the products?