Still a coffee rookie

[GP44]

I asked a few months ago about why some of my cup of coffee was bitter and I got some very good information about the sweetener that I used.
I let the coffee cool a little now before adding the Splenda and it works better that way.
I am learning slowly how to make a better cup of coffee.
My Son in Law told me that he likes the donut shop coffee from his Keurig.
I saw that Walmart has a donut shop coffee in their own brand and I bought a small package of ground coffee.
To me the W.M. donut shop medium roast is as different from the Maxwell House dark roast as day is to night.
Where the first sips of the Maxwell were harsh the donut shop was almost too mild and I wondered if it would even taste like coffee.
Another sip or two and it definitely tasted like coffee and has what I consider a great taste.
I guess it is the difference between drinking a really black cup of coffee or something a little milder and smoother.
Then I read a few tips on how to make a better cup of coffee like rinse the filter first before using it and drink from a ceramic cup instead of the styrofoam cups that I started out using.
Like I said I have a lot to learn but things are looking up.

 

[againstthegrain]

^^^What method of coffee making are you using?

 

[GP44]

^^^What method of coffee making are you using?

I’ve got a Hamilton Beach 12 cup drip type.
I put ground coffee in the basket and pour water in and hit the button and it does its thing.
I keep it set on bold. I don’t know but figure that is for a stronger cup of coffee.
It was cheap and I will probably never make over one or two cups at a time.

 

[againstthegrain]

Coffee is just like wine, there are a multitude of coffee flavor profiles, it just takes time and experimentation to find what one enjoys. Since all people's tastes will vary and the interest in coffee might vary from using it only for a laxative or as a way to ingest a stimulant, to some one like me that dabbles in it w only a superficial knowledge, to others that roast their own beans at home.

I’ve got a Hamilton Beach 12 cup drip type.
I put ground coffee in the basket and pour water in and hit the button and it does its thing.
I keep it set on bold. I don’t know but figure that is for a stronger cup of coffee.
It was cheap and I will probably never make over one or two cups at a time.

Better than Keurig that's for sure. The bold setting will lengthen the time the hot water is in contact w the ground coffee and perhaps lead to over extraction which can be unpleasant.

Coffee has very subtle flavors that vary by region and flavor is easily lost by over roasting and over extracting. To me coffee that is dark to very dark, Starbucks style, perhaps like the Maxwell House dark roast is not the most enjoyable coffee to drink.

 

[Jackie23]

Thanks @GP44, for the coffee tips...Hamilton Beach makes great coffee makers, mine is 12 years old.

 

[Jules]

GP44, do you make a full pot and then drink it off and on all day?

My coffee maker has a pot with a stainless steel interior. It keeps the coffee reasonably hot for a couple of hours, but it’s not still cooking it. It doesn’t really matter about the time, since my main consumption is first thing in the morning.

To me there’s nothing worse than drinking coffee that‘s been kept warm on a heater. That’s why coffee places (in theory) replace any pot that’s more than 20 minutes old.

 

[Pinky]

We use a 1-cup drip cone with paper filter. I usually only have one cup of coffee, first thing in the morning.

 

[Disgustedman]

12 cup stove percolator, steel mesh strainer for errant grounds. Powdered creamer and sweet & low sweetener.

I will reheat If not finished, or if I leave it to the next day. I'll add it to the pot.

 

[GP44]

I probably waste a lot of coffee because I only drink about a 16oz. styrofoam cup at a time. The coffee maker will keep remaining coffee hot for a while but one round of coffee does the trick for me.
I have it in the mornings some times and I take a big afternoon nap on other days and have it anywhere from 10:00 to 11:30 or so at night.
I don’t make a lot of extra and what is in the pot goes down the drain.
I just found a ceramic mug that holds the same amount as the styrofoam cups and it looked like the lid with the stir straws would fit it.
Should have known it wouldn’t snap on.
There’s an idea for somebody a ceramic mug with a snap on coffee lid.

 

[Ruthanne]

We use a 1-cup drip cone with paper filter. I usually only have one cup of coffee, first thing in the morning.

I too use paper cone filters. I know there are other types of filters but I'm happy with what I use.

 

[GP44]

Coffee is just like wine, there are a multitude of coffee flavor profiles, it just takes time and experimentation to find what one enjoys. Since all people's tastes will vary and the interest in coffee might vary from using it only for a laxative or as a way to ingest a stimulant, to some one like me that dabbles in it w only a superficial knowledge, to others that roast their own beans at home.



Better than Keurig that's for sure. The bold setting will lengthen the time the hot water is in contact w the ground coffee and perhaps lead to over extraction which can be unpleasant.

Coffee has very subtle flavors that vary by region and flavor is easily lost by over roasting and over extracting. To me coffee that is dark to very dark, Starbucks style, perhaps like the Maxwell House dark roast is not the most enjoyable coffee to drink.

There is a whole world of different things about coffee these days.
Probably would have been easier to find out what I like if I had got into serious coffee drinking about 50 years or more ago.
I really appreciate everything you said about coffee. Thanks!

 

[fuzzybuddy]

I remember my mom's old "percolator coffee pot". I'm like TV Fraiser's dad- I want a cup of black coffee, no sugar, milk, etc. I've never been to Starbuck's, where you need to speak French and Spanish to order a cup of coffee. I guess I'm a coffee heathen.

 

[Jules]

I probably waste a lot of coffee because I only drink about a 16oz. styrofoam cup at a time.

Definitely. Switch to the cone drip system that Pinky suggested. It’ll save you money and you’ll have better coffee.

I drink my coffee in a mug with a stainless steel interior.

 

[GP44]

I think that I will let the machine do my dripping for me.
I won’t get into grinding beans or anything.
Although I don’t mind learning some of the finer points about brewing a good cup of coffee so that I can get a decent taste I won’t go to enough work for it to be the best anyone ever tasted.