Possibly the most important tool in my shop.

[DieselSaves]

I was just sitting here pondering the single most used tool in my arsenal besides an F80 ratchet and wondering if any one else keeps a French press in their shop? I had a Bunn for years and really liked it until a pretty young waif sold me her car and started spending more time in my shop, bringing the joys of fancy coffee with her.
Now that winter is upon us and more time is spent in the shop, coffee and it's production moves up in importance to me. Am I alone in this? Is there room for a comparo of presses, espresso makers, etc.?

 

[jd_1138]

I never tried a French press but I need to.

We have a Folgers K-cup brewer. MIL got it for us for Christmas last year. It's like the $79 version of the Keurig. It only holds enough water for 2 cups of coffee. We get a 44 pack of colombian coffee at Wally World for $18. The coffee is meh but alright I guess -- beats McD's and BK.

I need to start cold brewing again. I had a system where you put coffee in with cold water into this canister and let it sit for like 12 hours. Then you remove the plug and the coffee filters through a disc filter into a caraffe. Then you have concentrated coffee in the carafe (keep in fridge). Add some hot water to some of the concentrated coffee. It was awesome and smooth coffee. I bought the system for like $5 on sale at Rite-Aid. Ronco. (makers of Showtime Rotisserie food spit and Pocket Fisherman) made the system I had.

Or you could add the coffee concentrate to milk, chocolate, ice, etc. for one of those fancy iced coffee things you get at Starbucks for $5.

 

[scaron]

not me, i am thirty years old and i still think coffee is disgusting. my dad told me i'd change my tune once i got to college, but, nope, never picked up the habit. there is a keurig at my office but i never go near the thing i do enjoy a few cigarettes first thing in the morning, though, LOL. my girl does drink a fair amount of coffee but just the sort that comes from gas stations.

 

[DieselSaves]

I do like cold brewed coffee. The pretty young waif, now Mrs., had one we used for years until it finally was broken. Made in USA. I'll find another some day.

 

[jd_1138]

I do like cold brewed coffee. The pretty young waif, now Mrs., had one we used for years until it finally was broken. Made in USA. I'll find another some day.

Yeah that's what happened to my Ronco Coffeetime system. The carafe broke. What kind of French Press do you have? And what kind of coffee do you buy? I'd like to buy quality coffee beans and grind them myself and cold brew them.

But sadly, I've just been K-cupping it. Back when I cold-brewed, I'd buy a bag of coffee at the store and use their in-store grinder to grind the beans.

 

[tarbellb]

You cant go wrong with the classic Bodum Chambord press. Proven design, good company.

 

[Kracin]

only time i used a french press was when i was in the military.

no room to use your own brewer, and the mess decks always had day old coffee on it because all the new stuff was unobtainable due to time contraints, and to add insult to injury, the kids who made it had no idea how to make coffee anyway. so i purchased a starbucks handheld press while i was in Dubai from the mall of the emirates (worlds largest mall?) and made my own every morning instead of dealing with old, poorly brewed coffee.

nowadays i have a tassimo unit that does everything, unfortunately the k-cup won over the t-disc system, even though the t-disc does your cup sizing automatically, reads what disc you put in, and makes cappuccinos, espressos, hot chocolate, etc. all to the right temperature, and all to the right proportions, no guessing and setting, 1 button system... no clue how the k-cups won... simple people i guess.

 

[arturo7]

I use a moka pot and a manual grinder that I spin with a drill.

The coffee in my garage is better than 90% of the coffee houses.

I ain't lyin

 

[Evan(CA)]

I'm currently using the Keurig Mini Single Serve Coffee Maker. Uses k-cups or regular ground coffee. Makes one cup at a time and takes less then 3 mins start to finish and clean up is a breeze. No more stale cold coffee sitting around all day. It makes all sorts of other drinks too, ice cofee, hot cocoa, tea etc.

 

[NHBandit]

Guess I'm low maintenance. I've been into instant Maxwell House for years and see no reason to switch. Wife has a Keurig machine and a whole assortment of gourmet ****...

 

[sdguy55]

I read all the time how people think keurig coffee is weak and blah blah blah and I just don't get it. I think it's way richer than any coffee I have had anywhere else. And most of the time when I go to Starbucks or similar I have to have a triple shot espresso cause any less and it tastes super bland to me.

Where as the keurig the dark coffee roasts are always FULL of taste I love it

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk

 

[plier_able]

I prefer the instant variety too - with milk. The real thing tastes too strong/bitter to me mostly.

Guess I'm low maintenance. I've been into instant Maxwell House for years and see no reason to switch. Wife has a Keurig machine and a whole assortment of gourmet ****...

 

[jkwilson]

Toddy cold brew system. Nothing else is close.

 

[shockwave]

It would have to be the torches with heating up bolts to loosen up safely to cleaning egr ports aswell

 

[DieselSaves]

I think I'm getting a handle on this picture thing. This pic is supposed to be of a KRB2006 with a custom, cabinet grade plywood top, completed with a garage sale espresso maker (Eyetalian made even). The rest of the box is full of cooking tools.

 

[ZRX61]

I drink maybe 3 cups of coffee a year...

 

[richfinn]

American coffee is just too bitter for my taste (I think it's roasted longer)

I prefer Italian style coffee particularly the "Illy" brand

 

[bobcatdan]

Taking up drinking coffee was the dumbest thing I could of done. I held out until I was 28 to start. Now it is ******* every 10 minutes and gut rot to all holy hell if I drink more than two cups.

 

[TreePointer]

American coffee is just too bitter for my taste (I think it's roasted longer)

I can understand why you say this if you are talking about Starbucks. No matter what variety of bean, they typically roast them too long to the point of being burned. It is often bitter. Unfortunately some other roasters have copied Starbucks bad practice. Bleeyuck!

For a very long time, American roasts had been lighter than European roasts (French roast, Italian roast). Also, many of my fellow Americans don't make good coffee because they don't use enough beans.

 

[Bobdog]

I like my Keurig. It's easy, no mess and if you try a few different flavors, you'll probably find one you like.

My brother is a coffee snob, has all sorts of French presses and vacuum brew systems. T o each his own, I guess. Although, I will admit I've been thinking about getting a French press for Sunday mornings.

 

[richfinn]

I can understand why you say this if you are talking about Starbucks. No matter what variety of bean, they typically roast them too long to the point of being burned. It is often bitter. Unfortunately some other roasters have copied Starbucks bad practice. Bleeyuck!

For a very long time, American roasts had been lighter than European roasts (French roast, Italian roast). Also, many of my fellow Americans don't make good coffee because they don't use enough beans.

Yeah, I avoid Starbucks if I want a black coffee and use Cafe Nero or Costa Coffee. I like the Starbucks Frappe things they sell during summer though.

I drank coffee in Italy and it's crazy they wait in line at the bar for espresso at 23.00pm like British people do for beer