Good Coffee

When I was a kid, I spent most of the time with my father in his job, he was a great Italian restauranteur and traveled all over making restaurants. He told me many times how important is to offer good coffee. It was a magnet for rich costumers.

Down in South America to find very good and cheap coffee beans was always easy, but people didn't like to grind the beans and go through whole process to get a nice cup of coffee. So the biggest part of the population adopted the instant coffee.

For me it was normal to grind the beans and operate those fancy Italian barista devices. Here in America, good coffee is not normal, and it's expensive too. At home I tried to adapt to the American style coffee for years, also went to places like Dunkin D and I found that besides the benefits of caffeine, American coffee made me go bathroom a lot, I mean #1 and #2.

No offense, but in Italy we call that "Sciacqua Pancia", something like "Stomach Flush".

Making coffee at home has been about the same, with the advantage of having my bathroom near while I wait for those bad side effects in not less that 10 minutes. So I see the problem is obviously the grinded coffee. No matter which one you buy, they mix it with some crap.

Now I went back to my good old way, I'm buying coffee beans. They are so expensive, the prices are abusive and I think that forces people to accept cheaper grinded coffee.

I got delicious Ethiopian beans, it has an nice aroma similar to chocolate and doesn't leave a bitter taste in your mouth, so you're not forced to add milk to it. This was a normal coffee for me, not gourmet, just regular coffee.

The problem is the price. 12oz for almost 12 bucks. Good affordable coffee is one of the rights that had been taken from us. One last thing I want to say, about one hour ago I took 2 cups of my delicious Ethiopian coffee, grinded by me and guess what..., I didn't go #1 or #2. See what I mean ?

My good friend Augustus knows what I mean. But I expect also many other great members suggestions.

a reply to: Trueman

My two favorite high-end restaurants have terrible coffee...and I love coffee after a great meal.
I've never understood how the food could be so good...but the coffee so bad.

Your father was a wise man. The izzo machine is what keeps me coming back to a small local coffee shop where I buy my beans. Nothing fancy or hip, old shop with long history but they put their soul into the shop. The espresso is excellent, on good days I have tasted almonds and chocolate. Their Cantuccini and Sicily almond cookies are awesome and a reason alone to go visit them.

I've once drank a starbucks "coffee", no fancy things inside. Tasted like dirty water. I like the arabica strain but that one was just overbrewd and bitter, no depth at all, no crema, almost more fluid than water, if that's even possible.

At home I use a De`Longhi coffee maker that can grind and process it all at once. It's better than drip brewd coffee for sure because it's pressurized but not even compareable to the Izzo, not even close.

originally posted by: IAMTAT
a reply to: Trueman

My two favorite high-end restaurants have terrible coffee...and I love coffee after a great meal.
I've never understood how the food could be so good...but the coffee so bad.

On the other hand, I once ate at a Shoney's...and the coffee was go GOOD, that I gave a compliment to the manager.

a reply to: Trueman

The acidity is what gets me with the cheap stuff. The bitterness I can tolerate, but acid on a morning stomach is a no go for me, whether it be bunk orange juice or coffee.

One thing I've found that helps me mitigate this with coffee is cold brew. I get more caffeine, less acid, and less bitterness. Sometimes the flavor profile is better, but that aspect is a bit tricky with cold brew. But the important thing is it's lower impact on my body in the morning.

I know a lot of people like their coffee hot though, so this isn't by any means a perfect solution. If you can get the cold brew method down, it can still be warmed up, but I know it's not the same is a fancy cup.

a reply to: Trueman

I love a good cup of coffee. I am addicted. I probably do 4 or 5 cups a day. I just can't function without it. I love the aroma and taste. I sometimes grind my own beans and usually buy the higher end coffee brands. However, I will definitely drink Dunkin or McDonald's if that is all that is available. A kuerig in a pinch.

Even bad coffee is good... but when you get a really nice cup that is brewed just right and goes down smooth, you know it. Hard to describe... but you just know it.

Some food does not go well with coffee, regardless the acidity, but some make it worse. The gerbsäure in the coffee reduces your ability to process iron. Especially for women that loose a lot of it once a month.

Rye products like rye bread or buns for breakfast aren't that compatible with coffee, just one example. In this case the coffee reduces the mineral intake and you could as well have eaten some white bread, because your stomach and intestines won't be able to make much use of the minerals.

a reply to: CriticalStinker

Eat a banana. It's also good for that, and it lets you have it hot. Plus, one banana makes for a tolerably decent breakfast and is loaded with potassium - something I'm always short of.

a reply to: ketsuko

I have a banana with my hot coffee every morning like a ritual. I drink my coffee black and I haven't had any acid-related problems.

a reply to: ketsuko

That's a good idea.

I can totally see a banana balancing everything out, and it's a good addition to the morning routine.

Most mornings that I'm in a rush I'll usually roll with a good bowl of granola and Greek yogurt... But a banana would be an easy and good addition to that.

Edit: in lieu of granola and yogurt, sometimes I'll make some real good oatmeal.

I'm not vegetarian or hipster by any stretch, I just find that the above give me a good low impact start to the day.

a reply to: CriticalStinker

The other thing I like about a banana is that you can eat it on the road fairly easily. I'm usually the one driving and eating a banana and then drinking my latte.

But I noticed that before I started the banana routine, I was having trouble with cramping in my toes and calves during workouts.

I sweat a lot so I run short of both sodium and potassium. So I snack on bananas and sunflower seeds on shell and that took care of both issues.

And no one accused you of being vegetarian or hipster for having a healthy start. Everyone knows I'm neither one, but I am fit and trying to keep myself healthy and athletic for competition now which is tough in your 40s.

a reply to: ketsuko

That's the problem my dear Ket, we shouldn't need to do tricks when the coffee is good.

a reply to: ketsuko

But I noticed that before I started the banana routine, I was having trouble with cramping in my toes and calves during workouts.

I know this won't help for the morning routine, but pickles and or pickle juice help a lot with cramping.

I'm an absolute weirdo, so I won't think twice to knock back some pickle juice if I'm in a bind (pun intended). Weirdly enough, I can do that in the morning with no problem, yet coffee or OJ have more of an impact.

Though, that was more helpful in my drinking days.

a reply to: Trueman

I'm fortunate to be in Europe so good coffee is easy and fairly affordable.

However, having lived in both the States and Canada, I can confirm that the commercial coffee shops are below par. I kept on giving Starbucks that benefit of the doubt, but they make a truly poor brew. Instead, in Vancouver I became quite attached to a coffee shop called Blenz. They had a great selection of organic beans, which they obviously brewed constantly, but also sold by the bag (whole or freshly ground) as well (can't remember the price).

I've read that the acidity of coffee and the level of caffeine can be influenced by many factors, from how roasted the beans are, to the grinding and brewing methods. It's a challenge finding the right balance.

I've also really enjoyed fresh coffee made with a French style plunger coffee maker. After reading some tips, the best brew is made adding water which is below boiling point. My mistake was pouring the water the moment it got to the boil... it somehow "burns" the coffee, same for leaf tea.

Finally, if I know I can't have a good coffee, I'd rather have a cup of tea... even from a teabag.

Oh, forgot to add. I too enjoy a banana with my coffee. I usually slice it up and let it sort of melt in the coffee (not espresso) and no sugar is needed either.

a reply to: Trueman

I too am a snob of the coffee and have gone through a few brands to find something decent or reasonably priced...cant always be spending 20$ a half pound for blue mountain. I discovered peets and its pretty good for a middle of the pack bean, however it is like 11-12$ a pound...but I noticed about once a month it is on sale for like 8$ so I buy 5-6 bags then and I'm set.

Coffee in America is a struggle and most coffee shops suck...doing it yourself is usually best.

originally posted by: RickyD
a reply to: Trueman

I discovered peets and its pretty good for a middle of the pack bean, however it is like 11-12$ a pound...but I noticed about once a month it is on sale for like 8$ so I buy 5-6 bags then and I'm set.

Coffee in America is a struggle and most coffee shops suck...doing it yourself is usually best.

Peets is the only coffee I drink these days.
IMO...Big Bang is their best.

a reply to: IAMTAT

I'm a blond roast fan and that leaves me with luminosa these days...they used to have a fantastic Columbian but I think the cost got too high and they dropped it or blended it into luminosa. The lighter the roast the more caffine!

a reply to: RickyD

I took a look at their website, prices are around 15 to 20 bucks a pound. Better be good

a reply to: Trueman

Like I said...I catch the monthly sale at Smiths and buy 5-6lbs at a time to keep it around cheaply. If I paid full price I'd go broke lol!

originally posted by: RickyD
a reply to: Trueman

Like I said...I catch the monthly sale at Smiths and buy 5-6lbs at a time to keep it around cheaply. If I paid full price I'd go broke lol!

The one I mention in this thread is this one :

www.allegrocoffee.com...

They have good prices too, if you want to look. I just noticed, they have a David Lynch Signature collection. I have no idea why the filmmaker is there.