The coffee lover thread

Day Dream Costa Mesa
Shares with Surf Shop ...ahem@herzalot

Local Espresso, local Ceramic, Local Carbs

 

Cool, thanks. I'll have to try out Daydream. Their pics... looks promising. Were they serving Cat&Cloud or Sightglass when you were there? And how was it? Cute cups.

Unless Sightglass has done an about-face...

Also, I believe you've pointed out Kit and Common Room Roaster, solid cafes. Have you tried Aussie Bean at the Orange Circle? That would be my rec for cafe in OC, owner super cool as well.

 

Have you tried storing in mason jars in the freezer? That should preserve them for months. Be sure to thaw at least a day before grinding...

 

Kona is the go-to in our family. Like the mellowness with good flavors. Have always presumed it was fake, as the real stuff is crazy-expensive.

 

That is a sad commentary on mankind.

 

Daydream quality is excellent...to me.. lately Onyx and April and some others roasters.

I have not been to Aussie Bean so I put it on the list... Mostly I partake mornings local or on the way to meetings ... but like the circle so will figure out how to get there

Definitely a whole wave of Aussie cafes lately another one on PCH around the corner called Vacancy coffee ... Newport surf / beach crowd... Ok

Lots of San Diego lately..just went James, Birdrock, Cova and Cooa Vida

 

Kona Ken's Coffee arrived yesterday.
Brewed a pot this morning... Damn! That's some good mellow, rich coffee.
Definitely a step above.... not sure it's worth the money but an awesome treat. Ok, I'm going to go sip, or gulp, some more now.


Maybe I can borrow @herzalot morning joe Mug for it.......

 

I buy some spensive coffee that ranks right up there....

 

That mug really is the bomb, whether you swing left or right.

 

Tired of K-Cup coffee so I ordered us a drip coffee maker that is simple enough for me to set a timer and have my coffee ready at 4:30am on weekdays and easy for my wife to make a single cup for herself. It has a frother that folds into the unit, although it doesn’t heat (not a big deal for me, not why I bought it). It can make iced coffee as well (wife loves plain iced lattes).

Now I need a grinder and then hopefully I get the urge for a nice espresso machine.

Ninja Specialty

 

Congrats!

In the coffee geek world, it's "grinder first". For excellent and cheapest in their class grinders...

http://www.oehandgrinders.com/OE-Manual-Coffee-Grinders_c_1.html

 

Haha, yes I have heard the coffee geeks talk about grinders at work. Our CTO has his old grinders in the kitchens of our two tech floors. He goes to Portola in Costa Mesa for his beans and even puts what kind is currently in the kitchens on a white board with a description of the flavor profiles.

We really just needed a new regular coffee maker and I found that Ninja for $85. Seems simple enough for my wife to use. I’m more interested in a nice espresso setup. Grinder is definitely next on my list, I’ve had to borrow them in the past like when you gave me some beans.

I don’t even drink coffee for the buzz factor, I really like the taste of it and don’t put anything in my coffee.

 

Checking your avatar looks like you enjoy all types of beans....

 

In that case, you might need 2 grinders, one for drip and one for espresso. OE got you covered for both. One grinder to rule them all is sorta like a unicorn. They do exist but rather pricey. I'm sure your CTO has recommendations that will cost an arm and a leg, or a monthly paycheck...

 

IKR? It isn't just that K-Cups are a pale shadow of real brew, but I swear I feel like I am creating a mountain of trash every time I buy a case!! I need an alternative... and if someone has a solution that you enjoy, post it up!! Christmas is around the corner and Santa needs to know what I want, STAT!

 

When I can't have espresso, I'll reach for the French press... They are cheap and available everywhere. I have a metal one, because I've broken a dozen of the glass variety over the years.

 

French press for the win! Add a dedicated water boiler and you can have coffee in just a few minutes.
No filters. No k cups. Compost and other uses for the grounds.
Great coffee too!

 

I like the pour over method using fresh grounds...add a little honey and half and half I was off of coffee for a while, only drinking it on occasion, but you know once you start up again it’s a slippery slope
My hubby wants an espresso machine for Christmas, any reasonably priced recommendations?

 

I like my coffee, camp.

 

Hipster! Pour overs can fetch like $5 per cup in San Francisco. $6 if it's raining.

 

I'd say it depends on what he likes to drink, and how much of it he drinks...

If he's a straight espresso guy, a "capsule" machine like a Nespresso would work wonders. The machines range up and down in price ($150-$500), but they all have basically the same pump inside. Some have more features, like milk frothing, etc... Is he a cappuccino or latte guy? The issue with capsule machines is the price per cup. For example, the Cafecito de Cuba from Nespresso is $1.25/shot. The good news is that the patent has run out on the original Nespresso pods. There are third party options now. I recently tried a sample pack from Peets (Amazon...) that was under 50 cents per shot and I have some Lavazza and La Llave on order to try. This is also the reason that Nespresso released a new pod style a couple years ago- The vertuo line. I have one of those boxed up in the garage. I found it better at full sized regular coffee than espresso.

If he's a "I want to work for it" guy, there are many options out there... I like Breville machines and there are models down to the $200 price range. Just about all of these have the milk frothing wand. But then you're into selecting beans, grinding, tamping, etc... Not as easy as sticking a pre-measured capsule into the hole and pressing a button. Buying beans, though, is a lot cheaper in the long run.

At the top of the pile are the super-automatics. These machines will grind your beans for each cup and can make coffee, espresso, etc... with the push of a button. They start closer to $1000 and go up quickly from there.

 

I agree with Steve on the Nespresso. The espresso from the capsules is pretty good, and there are a lot of types to choose from. I use it often and its acceptable. That's to say IMO as good as starbucks ( a low bar I know) but not even close to the espresso I'd get when in Italy.

An authentic espresso machine is a investment for sure.

 

@Danimal @Faust29
Welp, I bought him the Nespresso machine a few yrs ago and he didn’t like it. Now it sits in the cabinet untouched.
He wants to make it himself, a more authentic espresso experience. And he’s not a sweet and creamy guy, he likes a straight up espresso.
I’ll look into the Breville! Thank you gentelmen

 

I got a lexan French press for camping duties. Or you could dump the grounds in a pot of hot water, stir with a stick, and filter through a dirty bandanna... That's what I heard

 

Check this one out!

https://www.stanley-pmi.com/shop/adventure-all-in-one-boil-and-brew-french-press

 

I frequently get sale emails from Williams Sonoma for their coffee machines. Worth checking out especially with Black Friday stuff coming up

 

My Nespresso machine died earlier this year on the True Grit trip. My wife recently replaced it for me from William Sonoma, and the price ended up being better than what I could find on FleaBay. Two stackable coupons FTW!

 

I use French press during the weekdays and Pour over on weekends. On weekends when I have time I weigh the coffee for 50 grams with 120 oz. using the pour over and a gooseneck kettle. I am part of a subscription coffee club.

 

My apologies if this comes across as anything but info sharing...

IMO, for non-espresso prep, especially if you're willing to buy locally fresh roasted coffee, they'd be happy to grind it in their state-of-the-art grinder (just about every local roastery will have that exact same grinder). Just tell them how you plan to make coffee, pourover or press or..., and they'll know where to adjust the grind dial. Coffee geeks will say you must grind right before you brew and while that is ideal, it's not always possible (travel for instance) or if you want the best grind possible and rather not spend equivalent to a decent full suspension bike for one. Transfer the grind into smaller mason jars, should be good for at least a week or more...

For espresso, now we're talking... If you have about 20 mins or so, from start to cleanup... (less if you don't froth milk)

Again, grinder first... The best espresso grinder in its class is the OE Pharos (I had 2 of them, each adjusted for a different espresso machine):

http://www.oehandgrinders.com/PHAROS_c_22.html

If you want that same burr set in a motorized grinder, instead of cranking the handle yourself, the Compak K10 is $2K.
Those would be equivalent to almost every cafe's espresso grinder, but not quite state of the art. Just quickly... cafes serve medium/dark roasts (for lattes) and these grinders are great for that roast level and espresso blends. If you want to explore lightly roasted and/or single origins, then there are better grinders for that purpose. In short, the darker the roast, the easier it is; the lighter the roast, the more difficult (ie more $$$$).

As for the machine... They're just hot water delivery w/ a pump. Usually cost goes up as the espresso brew boiler gets larger (for temp stability) or more complicated electronics for various other things (temp, preinfusion...). Same goes for the steam boiler if it's a double-boiler machine; generally larger more $, all things equal. Then aesthetics (lots of chrome or chunky metals) and of course brand name. Most are made in Italy, by Fiat moonlighters, pretty to look at and generally very reliable with basic maintenance. Just don't look under the hood...

I'd recommend these 2 reputable vendors as a starting point:

https://www.chriscoffee.com/
https://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/

I'd be more than happy to lend out my Pharos as it's collecting dust for years as a backup and help you spend as much of your hard earned money as possible. It's fun to spend other people's money.

It's like bikes... if you're in it for the long haul, you're likely to regret having started w/ a "starter" bike and go thru many upgrades before settling on a bike. For a year or 2. You prob don't want to do that w/ espresso neither unfor as I have. And like bikes, there're tons of classifieds but decent and popular equipment often times not very discounted on the used market. Sometimes demos from above vendors are not much diff.

 

If not espresso, I like a pourover. A $3 Melitta cone and white paper filter. Easy cleanup and a clean cup, no sediments. But lacks the oil from a french press.