How do you like your coffee?

[WWGD]

@morrobay 's contributions to PF photo contests also beautiful IMO.

Thai honey generally superior in taste and texture compared to commercial blends sold in USA. My late wife brewed 'Thai coffee' in her restaurant from a fine powder adding local honey and a flower extract that I do not know the English name; similar to French rosewater.

She would prepare a large jug of iced Thai coffee to tide me over working night shifts at the air traffic control center; one of the few sweet coffees I enjoy. The melting ice infused with 'rosewater' slowly diluted the strong brew over the course of a 16 hour shift.

I guess the iced coffee from the Viet places tastes similarly good. I like some of the commercial brands too, in cartons. Thing is, as with iced drinks, it is easy to overdo it and drink a large amount and end up overly buzzed. With hot drinks, you must slow down and nurse them, which dilutes the effect of caffeine.

 

[DiracPool]

Did it help get you through your Cognitive Science appointment? Just remembering it from a few years back --hey , maybe _my coffee_ is doing its job for me ;).

Hi WWGD,

Not sure what Cognitive Science appointment you're talking about, I've had a lot of them in the last few years. But thanks for asking. And Yes, it absolutely helps to get coffeed up basically before ANY appointment in my experience.

I forgot to add the priority of coffee management:

1) The coffee - pick the best coffee (no brainer)
2) The water - really, the coffee is only as good as the purified water you use in brewing it. Again, seems like a no brainer but you'd be surprised.

3 and 4 - This is a tricky one but, again, you only want to use whole beans and NOT pre-ground. I've heard that even if you grind your own beans they lose their potency as soon as 90 seconds after being ground. So I have my water hot before I even grind the beans.

As far as the burr grinder versus a blade grinder debate, it's last on the list as far as I'm concerned but many coffee officianados swear by the burr grinder. OK. I have both but I almost always use the blade grinder because it's faster and less work/maintenance. But, you know, when you're obsessed with something the extra work to get that 1 or 2 percent extra out of your effort can be worth it.

 

[WWGD]

Hi WWGD,

Not sure what Cognitive Science appointment you're talking about, I've had a lot of them in the last few years. But thanks for asking. And Yes, it absolutely helps to get coffeed up basically before ANY appointment in my experience.

I forgot to add the priority of coffee management:

1) The coffee - pick the best coffee (no brainer)
2) The water - really, the coffee is only as good as the purified water you use in brewing it. Again, seems like a no brainer but you'd be surprised.

3 and 4 - This is a tricky one but, again, you only want to use whole beans and NOT pre-ground. I've heard that even if you grind your own beans they lose their potency as soon as 90 seconds after being ground. So I have my water hot before I even grind the beans.

As far as the burr grinder versus a blade grinder debate, it's last on the list as far as I'm concerned but many coffee officianados swear by the burr grinder. OK. I have both but I almost always use the blade grinder because it's faster and less work/maintenance. But, you know, when you're obsessed with something the extra work to get that 1 or 2 percent extra out of your effort can be worth it.

Just human beans dealing with coffee ones.

 

[DiracPool]

I guess the iced coffee from the Viet places tastes similarly good. I like some of the commercial brands too, in cartons. Thing is, as with iced drinks, it is easy to overdo it and drink a large amount and end up overly buzzed. With hot drinks, you must slow down and nurse them, which dilutes the effect of caffeine.

Wow, That's funny because you're absolutely correct. Here's a true story. I forget the exact year, but it was circa 1993. Both my mom and I were living in Honolulu, Hi. and we would meet up at various restaurants occasionally for dinner or lunch. We heard about this one popular Vietnamese restaurant downtown so I drove to my mom's place to pick her up and we went there for lunch.

We both ordered entrees and decided to have the "recommended" iced Vietnamese coffee. By the end of the meal, we we both so wired that niether of us felt that we were OK to drive. This was even after having a beer or two two come down.

Then end result is that we ended up walking back to my apartment which was about three miles away to chill down from the intense buzz. I picked up the car the next day.

 

[symbolipoint]

Just human beans dealing with coffee ones.

Once a couple of times I counted how many beans (coffee, roasted) in 1 tablespoon. I found between 50 and 54 beans. This might not be very reliable because average bean size probably depends on the particular coffee.

When I roast or brew coffee for real, I just use volume measures and visual judgement.

 

[Keith_McClary]

There's an awful lot of coffeemakers in my kitchen:

I mostly use the cone (I have a dark brown one that doesn't show the stains).
You can like your coffee with Coffee Tunes for Your Coffee Break.

 

[Petebobs]

Oh, you have no idea what coffee means to me. It has already become a tradition for me. Especially when studying, I can’t do without a cup of espresso in the morning. It went so far that I even signed up for monthly coffee delivery.

 

[nuuskur]

Dear diary, it's late 2023, still don't like coffee.

 

[symbolipoint]

"How do you like your coffee?"

Update here. Strong and concentrated; high quality beans which I roast myself; either brew as pour-over, or AeroPress. No creamer and no sweetener.

 

[symbolipoint]

Dear diary, it's late 2023, still don't like coffee.

This is understandable and can depend on experience. A brewed high-quality light-roasted coffee may change your mind, maybe.

 

[WWGD]

Dear diary, it's late 2023, still don't like coffee.

Just curious if you use caffeine in other forms.

 

[DennisN]

Just curious if you use caffeine in other forms.

I don't know about @nuuskur , but I do:

 

[symbolipoint]

Regarding posts #131 and 132,
Much of the appeal of coffee is that it's a nice-tasting liquid as a way to take in some of the stimulants, those being helpful when studying, thinking, other mental things (including just relaxing). The stimulants are not the only parts of interest.

 

[JT Smith]

Decaffeinated coffee is proof that the drug isn't the only reason people drink coffee.

 

[WWGD]

Decaffeinated coffee is proof that the drug isn't the only reason people drink coffee.

I frankly can't stand decaf.

 

[symbolipoint]

I frankly can't stand decaf.

Any reasons? What are the sources or supplies ?

 

[WWGD]

Any reasons? What are the sources or supplies ?

Didn't mean to offends. Just haven't yet found any that doesn't to me have a disnticitively non-coffee flavor. (It turns me into a double-negative machine. )
It's too easy for me to tell off the bat that it isn't caffeinated.

 

[symbolipoint]

Didn't mean to offends. Just haven't yet found any that doesn't to me have a disnticitively non-coffee flavor. (It turns me into a double-negative machine. )
It's too easy for me to tell off the bat that it isn't caffeinated.

I asked because just plainly curious.

I do NOT drink decaffeinated coffee, but not sure why. If I want to find out why, I will need to really try some and for me, that must mean, buy green beans, roast myself, and then use some for a brew, and then evaluate how's the result. I am guessing that decaff. would have reduced flavor; only a guess.

 

[nuuskur]

Just curious if you use caffeine in other forms.

I am a tea enjoyer. I just can't stand the taste of coffee.

 

[JT Smith]

Didn't mean to offends. Just haven't yet found any that doesn't to me have a disnticitively non-coffee flavor. (It turns me into a double-negative machine. )
It's too easy for me to tell off the bat that it isn't caffeinated.

You just haven't had a good decaf. They are harder to find but decaf exists that is as good as the caffeinated version of the same beans. Just tasting you might not be able to tell the difference between the two.

 

[WWGD]

I admit, though, having given in to flavored coffees, particularly Caramel-flavored ones, as I like Caramel. It's in part a cost-saving decision, as I get at once my coffee and dessert. Cost, practicality won against purity.

 

[JT Smith]

Generally speaking flavored coffees are made from lesser grades of beans. Same with very darkly roasted coffee. Why use expensive specialty beans if you're just going to burn them or cover them over with added flavors? It would be like over-cooking a Wagu steak and/or covering it in ketchup.

Not that there's anything wrong with either of those choices. Lots of people just drink instant coffee or put ketchup on their steak. It's just a choice.

I had a roommate for a while who was a coffee nerd. He had so much equipment and really knew coffee inside and out. He spent a lot of money on the beans. He would drink coffee throughout the day but would switch to decaf at some point in the afternoon so it wouldn't affect his sleep. Sometimes he'd give me a cup and challenge me to say whether it was regular or decaf and I could almost never tell, at least not until I had consumed a good portion of the cup and noticed the affect the caffeine, or absence of it.

So I know there is good decaf out there.

 

[Haborix]

I tend to favor the darker roasts because their flavor profile is much more to my tastes. I'm always disappointed by the citrusy bleh that "nice" coffee shops always seem to be selling.

 

[DennisN]

They are harder to find but decaf exists that is as good as the caffeinated version of the same beans.

I am interested in trying it. Do you have any more information, i.e. brand?

 

[vela]

I had a roommate for a while who was a coffee nerd. He had so much equipment and really knew coffee inside and out. He spent a lot of money on the beans.

Was he this guy?

 

[Haborix]

What a hassle! Would have to only do that on special occasions.

 

[JT Smith]

There are different degrees of proficiency, obsession, compulsion, and insanity. It's not all or none. You can't do something really well without making some people think you're nuts. But there are people who take it to an unnecessarily extreme level just to be there.

 

[JT Smith]

I am interested in trying it. Do you have any more information, i.e. brand?

I don't drink decaf and it's been a while since I had any. So I can't remember specifics and it would be out of date in any case. A quick web search brought up a few threads. This one looks promising for some decent information. Or maybe not. I don't know.

https://www.home-barista.com/coffees/decaf-coffee-recommendations-t83716.html

 

[DennisN]

Was he this guy?

Insane.
Every science lab I've ever attended was far easier than that.
Folks, we are witnessing the birth of a new science here, coffeeology.

 

[JT Smith]

It isn't new. And it doesn't look like science to me either. Maybe there is some science in there of it but my guess is that it's mostly alchemy, myth, and superstition. And coffee sure doesn't have a lock on that. You can find that sort of thing in many hobbies/disciplines.