The BEST Cup of Coffee

[Ka Honu]

My apparently uneducated palate likes Tim Horton's.

Ain't nuthin' wrong with Timmy Ho's.

... Chock Full 'O Nuts ...

Remind me to tell you about my Chock Full O'Nuts experience in the big city back in the day.

So then what inexpensive/quality coffee should I try my first run with?

With all the fancy stuff out there and with SWMBO having been one of the "original" organic Kona coffee farmers (and knowing her stuff), our go-to is still the Central American French Roast from Costco. Jes' sayin'.

[hikerman]

So then what inexpensive/quality coffee should I try my first run with?

Sounds like Tee would say Dunkin Doughnuts or Chock Full O' Nuts

Mike I honestly have not ever bought either of those other than an occasional cup of DD. When I first started this I used my regular store bought, preground. I then went to a favorite, 8 o'clock beans. One to try If they have it out there is Stewart's. It's still family run, after nearly a hundred years and from Chicago. It's excellent but they also have a Red Eye that is so good!
I gravitated to a grinder and exotic beans. But I buy in bulk so my cost is about the same as Folger's etc. I buy from CoffeeBeanDirect. My go to for years has been Dark Sumatran Mandheling but i came across recently my newest favorite. Indian Monsooned Malabar!
The most important thing is to go where your taste-buds take you!

[DWard51]

Question about the filtron paper liners.   It appears this is a pre-filter option to help keep the grinds out of the felt filter, extending it's life and making cleanup easier.  They look like the standard commercial Bunn coffee filter liners for the pour over unit.  Or are they something else?

http://www.filtron.com/Filtron-parts_c_7.html

Hmmm..... I think I'm going to low tech a test batch of cold brew in a quart jar to give it a try.  Probably end up buying a Filtron (and I can hear the wife, "what did you buy now and where are you going to keep it?")

[hikerman]

Question about the filtron paper liners.   It appears this is a pre-filter option to help keep the grinds out of the felt filter, extending it's life and making cleanup easier.  They look like the standard commercial Bunn coffee filter liners for the pour over unit.  Or are they something else?

http://www.filtron.com/Filtron-parts_c_7.html

DW, I'm sorry but can't help you about paper filters. Never used them. What i can tell you tho. We take good care of our felt filters. We use the Filtron about every 7 or 8 days. The filter gets rinsed good, squeezed, boiled before being stored in refrigerator in the container it came in, with filtered water. We get about 8 to 10 cycles with each cloth filter. The grounds we put in the composter or around our shrubs as they keep the cats away! 

[teesquare]

Dward -
I just measured the filter and when flattened out - it measures just shy of 15" across.

The container ( analogous to a coffee "basket" in a traditional coffee maker )  measured 6.250" across x 5.875" deep.

Hope that helps. If you find that a particular filter works - please let us know.

[DWard51]

I need to measure the commercial BUNN pour over filters we have at work.  We buy them at Sam's Club and they are much larger than 6". Comes in boxes of 1,000 if I remember right (these are for the bigger BUNN machines like you see in restaurants).   

I also had a couple of bags of Gevalia that Kroger had marked down to $3 (not sure why it was reduced but I snagged several bags).  Ground up some of that and started a 1 quart test batch to compare before jumping in with both feet. Mixed ground 1:4 by volume with cold filtered water.  Been steeping in the fridge about 12 hours and I will let it go a full 24 before filtering.  I took it out to give a stir a little while ago and I was surprised to see crema on top.  Did not expect that in a cold extraction.  This is getting interesting!

[hikerman]

I'm thinking you are going to enjoy this DW!

[DWard51]

Test results 1:4 ratio coffee/water.  I was very underwelmed.

I did not expect the flat flavor I got.  The coffee was weak (thin looking) after 36 hours.  Perhaps the coffee to water ratio was off?  I have a aeropress and it makes good smooth coffee so I know what the difference in the reduced acid and other by products is at a lower temp for extraction.  The beans for this batch in the zero tech Filtron clone were freshly ground from a newly opened bag ("zero tech" way was a quart jar with grinds & water in it at a ratio of 1:4, after 36 hours, first filter in french press and then pour over regular filter to make the base).

Half a cup into it, I had to toss it.  Then made some Kenya AA via the Bunn MCU with the fresh grind drawer and the full flavor was back!!!  Ahhhh.... I can go to the office on this stuff!!!  I should have bought more when they had it this spring.

The filtron instructions are 12 ounces of coffee to 56 ounces of water which is about 1:4.67 so the 1:4 should have worked....   I will probably try these beans in the MCU this weekend to make sure it's not the beans (look and smell normal for the roast - Gevalia french roast whole bean). 

----EDIT----

You know, it just dawned on me I did not measure the coffee by weight.  I used volume ounces for both so I probably screwed up the ratio as the filtron instructions are 12 ounces coffee by weight to 56 ounces of water by volume. 

My bad.....Time for a do-over.....

Off to make another batch using weight of coffee this time (smaller batch 2 ounces coffee grounds to 8 ounces water).

[DWard51]

Yes!!! I'm at fault for the blah coffee base.  When I measured 2 ounces of dry beans, it ground up to about a full cup of ground with my Baratza grinder set to about 24.  The slurry produced with added to 8 ounces of water for the 1:4 ratio weight/volume is about 1/4 the volume of my first try.  No wonder it tasted like junk, it was!!!!  And I made it worse by trying to mix it with hot water 2:1 further watering down weak and tasteless coffee.  Once again "the devil is in the details" and ounces are not always "ounces" when it comes to a recipe.

Into the fridge for a full 24 hours.  And now I wait (again)......

[teesquare]

Hey DW...leave it out on the counter...by putting it in the fridge - you may be slowing down the extraction. I know we say "cold brewing"...but it really is "room temp. brewing". That may give you an even stronger concentrate.

[Smokin Don]

I know Pappy I said I was done! I first tried cold brew 2 yrs. ago and used 8 O'clock coffee. I was not that impressed. After this post I tried some of Starbucks cold pressed and it was great! I made some from coffee roasted by a friend locally and it was good but didn't need water added at all. I made 4 cups in my French press. Next I tried some Folgers Gourmet dark roast coffee and it is good. I just put my 3rd. batch on to set overnight. I guess I am a convert now. The press works fine I just get a few fines in it that I could filter out using a coffee filter but I don't mind it that way. Don

[DWard51]

Hey DW...leave it out on the counter...by putting it in the fridge - you may be slowing down the extraction. I know we say "cold brewing"...but it really is "room temp. brewing". That may give you an even stronger concentrate.

Ok, out of the fridge and onto the counter it is....  That will also remind me to filter it tomorrow night after 24 hours.

[hikerman]

Hey DW...leave it out on the counter...by putting it in the fridge - you may be slowing down the extraction. I know we say "cold brewing"...but it really is "room temp. brewing". That may give you an even stronger concentrate.

I must throw this out here. When there is room in our fridge for the filtron, it goes in. To me it makes a slightly crisper tasting syrup, if that makes sense. Most times tho, it's done on the counter.

[muebe]

Well the syrup I have made thus far in the OXO has been great. I made another batch last night to add to my current batch. Same ratio as the first. 3 1/2 cups measured of Chock Full O' Nuts ground coffee to 40 oz of filtered water. Then steeping for 12 hours on the counter. Nice concentration of syrup emerges.

The return rate is around 25oz to 30oz of syrup to the 40oz of water. The second extraction took 20 minutes. So one batch will get me 15 cups of coffee approx if my math is correct.

My coffee drinking habits will make me do at least 2 batches a week.

Then I am adding around 2oz syrup to 6oz hot water for my coffee with a splash of creamer. It makes a nice, strong, and flavorful cup.

Have yet to make an iced coffee with it. Might give it a go this weekend.

I am shocked at the great coffee I have been missing out on all these years. Better than any of the coffee I have made in the past!

[hikerman]

My first taste of this Filtron-made coffee as i've stated earlier over 25 years ago thru a chef buddy of mine. They had a couple commercial units in his restaurant.  I was Wowed! No bitterness, no bite, just pure unadulterated coffee taste. I had to have one. The commercial units were very big, too big for home, so my friend got me what was then a very new to the market home unit and I haven't looked back. I love coffee so I have several different coffee makers but none are electric!  I've got a French press, a stove top Bialetti Moka espresso maker, and a Greek/Arab briki. I use all of them occasionally,  but none compare to cold-brewed in taste and smoothness. The one thing I do miss from an electric coffee maker is the aroma of coffee being made but I do not miss that style of coffee at all. IMO electric makers burn the coffee beyond recognition.