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Fuzzy Pipe Wrench posted:So for a really quite broke college student that rarely drinks coffee would it be worth the time/money to pick up a french press . . . and green beans to roast? If you like the taste of coffee at all, a french press or "clever coffee dripper" is a worthwhile investment. (I really really like the CCD: dead simple to use, easy to clean, each mug of coffee made fresh. French presses are great too, esp. if there are multiple coffee drinkers, but slightly harder to clean, and if you want to keep coffee hot you need a thermos.) Comic is right about the grinder, it will make a noticeable difference. A cheap "whirly" one (used, even) is just fine to start out unless you're doing espresso. Just don't grind too fine, esp. for a french press. Home roasting can be fun and even cost-effective, but if you drink coffee rarely, it might be a bit much starting out. Cheap roasting methods can be a crapshoot (and a bit smoky), and if you haven't had much properly-roasted coffee before, how will you know if you did it right? Considr checking Chowhound/Yelp etc. for a highly-regarded cafe in your area and see if they will sell you some beans. Again I agree with Comic, buy smaller amounts if you can, it doesn't keep forever. If you really like the results and start drinking more coffee, you might decide to give roasting a try.
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Sep 19, 2011 06:13
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Fuzzy Pipe Wrench posted:Thanks for the help guys! I think I'll start out with a cheap grinder (any suggestions for the cheapest I can get, to start, that'll be worth using? I'm ok with hand operated if need be. Also a french press to make it in because that way I get to keep more of the oils compared to the paper filters used with the clever coffee dripper. As for beans I'm going to probably order some online to start since none of the local popular shops seem to do their own roasting around here. Although this aeropress is catching my interest too. Anyone have any personal experience with one? A decent "whirly" grinder should be no more than $15-30 new, less than that used. Krups, Braun, and Bodum are a few of the many that will work just fine. Check Amazon to get a sense of the models/pricing out there. Unlike conical burr grinders--the next step up in terms of quality--precision engineering isn't required for a whirly. French press is a great choice, but for completeness let me mention that gold-plated permanent filters work great in the clever coffee dripper. Permanent filters don't strip out any of those precious "oils" you're worried about. My experience has been that coffee can taste great using either paper filters or more "chunky" methods like permanent filters/french press; it's more a question of personal preference as to whether you like sediment in your coffee. As to beans, are there really no decent alternatives around Tampa? (See, e.g., here and here.) I have nothing against good mail-order beans, but if you're really on a budget, saving on shipping costs might be nice. It doesn't really matter whether your local cafe roasts their own--what matters is that they've found a reliable roaster to work with. If they can sell you beans from a good local roaster, that's absolutely fine (and I have noticed that many of the trendier cafes nowadays sell whole beans, even if they don't roast it themselves).
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Sep 20, 2011 03:58
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GrAviTy84 posted:no such thing for coffee, really, just buy the 70bux baratza maestro refurb, it's worth it in the long run. I cannot argue since I have that very grinder (well, a Solis actually). But for someone on a tight budget a whirly is worlds better than buying pre-ground, and far cheaper. Fuzzy, best of luck in Tallahassee! Mail order really is a good way to go if you can't find something local that seems promising.
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Sep 20, 2011 04:14
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betterinsodapop posted:...and my Baratza Virtuoso seems to be busted for no apparent reason. I tried cleaning, unclogging, disassembling and reassembling the burrs, and nothing gets it to work properly. It grinds, but it just grinds EXTREMELY coarsely (ie: totally unusable) on all settings. It's really frustrating as hell. I JUST got my home roasting operation together, and now don't have a grinder. Gah. Did it stop working right after you disassembled/reassembled the burrs, by any chance? I've taken apart/cleaned my Maestro any number of times, but on one occasion I somehow put the thing back together wrong, and it did exactly what you're saying. I thought I broke it, but I just had to futz around with the parts to get it back to its proper operation. Wish I could remember exactly what it took to get it working, but I think I had to manually rotate one of the inner ring parts to the correct position before putting the upper burr ring and hopper back on. Hope this is the case for you too, and you don't have to shell out cash for a repair. Edit: there might even be a line marked in magic marker showing you where the rings are supposed to line up; I've seen that on another Maestro. The Virtuoso may be different. Cuttlefish Party fucked around with this message at 19:43 on Sep 29, 2011 |
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Sep 29, 2011 19:37
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