Coffee Beans

[Major]

There have been several threads and comments on the standard of coffee, both on board and in the various lounges. Some days it's really good and other days it's just terrible.
I'm sure that many of us have a Jura, delonghi or other brand of espresso machine at home, or maybe just a grinder.
What is your favorite coffee bean ?...and why ?
I put this thread under "PLAYGROUND... for all non serious talk" but for some, coffee is extremely serious.

 

[tuppaware]

There have been several threads and comments on the standard of coffee, both on board and in the various lounges. Some days it's really good and other days it's just terrible.
I'm sure that many of us have a Jura, delonghi or other brand of espresso machine at home, or maybe just a grinder.
What is your favorite coffee bean ?...and why ?

I'm always one of the thought that a coffee is totally based on who makes it, rather then the base of beans. In saying that -

Di Bella Coffee - Coffee, Cafe, Espresso, roasting house, coffee beans, Brisbane, Australia
Dibella coffee gets my vote because they train whoever they sell their beans to. And they are Brisbane based.

 

[Flatwhite]

There have been several threads and comments on the standard of coffee, both on board and in the various lounges. Some days it's really good and other days it's just terrible.
I'm sure that many of us have a Jura, delonghi or other brand of espresso machine at home, or maybe just a grinder.
What is your favorite coffee bean ?...and why ?
I put this thread under "PLAYGROUND... for all non serious talk" but for some, coffee is extremely serious.

My favourate bean would be Colombia Las Delicias, a Cup of Excellence winner. It's rich, smooth and aromatic. Great to drink as a single origin expresso. Unfortunately it hasn't been available in Australia for the last couple of years.

 

[RB]

Bit of a different story in the SMH this morning
Milk prices reduced, but good quality coffee will suffer

 

[ejb]

Nescafe Blend 43......................I don't buy into the "coffee scene"

By drinking this instead of buying coffee everyday I save myself at least $2000 per year, which can be spent on wonderful wines

ejb

 

[Must...Fly!]

Bit of a different story in the SMH this morning
Milk prices reduced, but good quality coffee will suffer

Interesting.

But it isn't as simple as that. Each bottle and batch of milk is different with regards to how it froths. Some does really well, then the next bottle you use it is just like water (and this is top quality milk I refer to, not the supermarket branded stuff).

Not a lot you can do about it really, so if you have a not too frothy cup of coffee at a coffee shop, odds are you can look to the dairy rather than the barista! (Unless the barista isn't really a barista, and more like an overworked counter person...)

 

[serfty]

At home with a deLonghi Nespresso I get my long blacks for about 70¢ a pop.

At work I use a Plunger and good coffee - this costs me about 20¢ per cup.

You wont find me paying a barista $2-$5 for something I can do myself!

Cannot stand stand Nescafe 43 beans but I will tackle a Moccona if in a hurry.

 

[oz_mark]

Interesting.

But it isn't as simple as that. Each bottle and batch of milk is different with regards to how it froths. Some does really well, then the next bottle you use it is just like water (and this is top quality milk I refer to, not the supermarket branded stuff).

Not a lot you can do about it really, so if you have a not too frothy cup of coffee at a coffee shop, odds are you can look to the dairy rather than the barista! (Unless the barista isn't really a barista, and more like an overworked counter person...)

You can actually look to the cows as well. Frothiness in milk is mostly about proteins. with fat content affecting the stability of the foam. So you walk a bit of a line between being able to create the foam, and the stability of the foam.

...and all that can be affected by what type of grass the cows ate.


I know some places that use products like Pura Cafe to try and keep some consistency in it all.

 

[alieninperth]

Interesting.

Not a lot you can do about it really, so if you have a not too frothy cup of coffee at a coffee shop, odds are you can look to the dairy rather than the barista! (Unless the barista isn't really a barista, and more like an overworked counter person...)

This has a lot to do with timing. When I was taught how to steam milk, (I used to be a barista) I was always told to let the milk settle after you had steamed it. When steaming the milk is gets agitated and when done properly you get the smooth silky foam. The foam doesn't happen straight away, it needs to calm down a little bit first so that the foam can be formed from the aerated milk.

Unfortunately there seems to be a trend of people pulling the espresso shot and letting it sit while they steam the milk and the then pour the milk in straight away. Apart from the espresso loosing a lot of its aroma and some flavour from the disapated crema, your flat white or latte ends up like a very bad cap. If its done the other way around you will be able to have the kind of drink that you actually want, and it will taste good.

The 4 main things in getting good coffee
the barista - properly trained
the blend - I like mainly arabica with a little bit of robusta for the caffine kick
the grind - like a fine sand for espresso, not so fine for plunger
the machine - water temp and pressure at the right levels.

BTW I use a nespresso machine at home (I cant be bothered with the cleaning required for a proper machine) and a plunger at the office. The plunger is currently taking a blue mountain roast.

 

[Must...Fly!]

You can actually look to the cows as well. Frothiness in milk is mostly about proteins. with fat content affecting the stability of the foam. So you walk a bit of a line between being able to create the foam, and the stability of the foam.

By dairy, I also meant the cows and what they eat, etc

alieninperth thanks for the information, a good read! The freshness of the beans is also important, as is how they are stored.

 

[ejb]

At home with a deLonghi Nespresso I get my long blacks for about 70¢ a pop.

At work I use a Plunger and good coffee - this costs me about 20¢ per cup.

You wont find me paying a barista $2-$5 for something I can do myself!

Cannot stand stand Nescafe 43 beans but I will tackle a Moccona if in a hurry.

mrs ejb loves her Nespresso machine. At about 70c per coffee it is very good value.

The pods make it very neat and quick for the morning coffee.

ejb

 

[oz_mark]

Cannot stand stand Nescafe 43 beans but I will tackle a Moccona if in a hurry.

You should try going to a Kopitiam in Malaysia. The (equivalent to) Nescafe Blend 43 is often the top shelf, good stuff :shock:

 

[Flatwhite]

What's the nespresso coffee like? I like a nice cup of coffee and have a fairly decent machine at home. But, yes, alot of cleaning up for a couple of cups!

 

[Flatwhite]

You should try going to a Kopitiam in Malaysia. The (equivalent to) Nescafe Blend 43 is often the top shelf, good stuff :shock:

I'll be in Malaysia (KL) next week. Any recommendations on where to get good coffee?

 

[Major]

By dairy, I also meant the cows and what they eat, etc

alieninperth thanks for the information, a good read! The freshness of the beans is also important, as is how they are stored.

I keep mine in the fridge in summer and the cupboard in winter, but in an airtight container.

 

[BVT]

Illy beans at home for the plunger or stove top (mostly stove top).

Nespresso at work - serioulsy thinking of one for home too. Love the pods and the whole expereince of the Nespresso shops!

Bad joss to instant coffee drinkers!! How hard is it to make real coffee?

 

[apophis21]

I'm always one of the thought that a coffee is totally based on who makes it, rather then the base of beans. In saying that -

Di Bella Coffee - Coffee, Cafe, Espresso, roasting house, coffee beans, Brisbane, Australia[/URL]
Dibella coffee gets my vote because they train whoever they sell their beans to. And they are Brisbane based.

+1 for Di Bella they have great coffee the only ones i will drink without sugar

 

[Must...Fly!]

Illy beans at home for the plunger or stove top (mostly stove top).

Good man

I'm not sure how new it is but I've seen a ground blend "moka" from illy which is spcially ground for plungers and stove tops, apparently. Haven't seen it before a few weeks ago.

 

[Princess Fiona]

Nespresso at work - serioulsy thinking of one for home too. Love the pods and the whole expereince of the Nespresso shops!

Bad joss to instant coffee drinkers!! How hard is it to make real coffee?

We too have a nespresso machine at work, makes fab fool proof coffee and as an added bonus we take it in turns to order the pods and get re-imbursed cash mine goes on my Amex, every point counts
I too am thinking of getting one for home.

 

[Sprucegoose]

Good man

I'm not sure how new it is but I've seen a ground blend "moka" from illy which is spcially ground for plungers and stove tops, apparently. Haven't seen it before a few weeks ago.

Illy my fav,along with grinders........

Grounders still used at the pointy end of QF???