I've been known to drop a bit of whole milk on top of a shot. Sometimes steamed (aka macchiato), sometimes right out of the fridge!
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Espresso Enthusiasts
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I've been known to drop a bit of whole milk on top of a shot. Sometimes steamed (aka macchiato), sometimes right out of the fridge!
Oh, yes, a heartfelt amen to that.
Hehehe, I'm guessing military field exercises/actual deployment is a bit more demanding than my leisure time in the Sierras.I suspect I'd agree with you about it being a must!
Absolutely.
When abroad, one of my first purchases is always a French Press - and depending on what is available locally - even a tin of LavAzza is a godsend, whereas Illy is a godsend hand delivered by angels.
A question...was a GOOD cup of coffee available while in the field?
Or...while in the field, was anything good!
Well, once upon a time, I was observing/supervising an election in Kosovo very shortly after their war with Serbia.
We were billeted in a police academy, and, while there, I ended up having to chat with some chaps from the French Foreign Legion (Kfor lent support to our efforts); anyway, they invited me for a coffee, which took place alongside some armoured vehicle, with some serious espresso - almost of the sludge variety but superb - poured from a thermos flask - which was produced from the vehicle - into a small plastic cup - sugar was also provided from the depths of the vehicle - for my delectation. Some of my watching colleagues stared slack-jawed. But I must say that the espresso was outstanding.
Depends on the country that serves it; my experience is that the coffee/espresso served by the Italians and French tended to be superlative, irrespective of the conditions or location.
As have I.
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The American military isn't exactly known for their coffee or espresso.
Red package on the right.
The American military isn't exactly known for their coffee or espresso.
Red package on the right.
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You know what, @SandboxGeneral - but, for some strange reason, I have absolutely no difficulty believing this.
As it's hot and I've been experiencing high blood pressure due to the weather and the dehydration, I've been enjoying freshly made hibiscus and mint tea. Together, that is. Refreshing and in my fourth day of consuming the stuff, I feel so much better.
Please take care in that nasty heat that you are having. I also hope that the fires are not effecting you.
Lots of fluids...and take it easy.
Oh, I love both of these, but I've never steeped them together....hmmmm!
Please take care in that nasty heat that you are having. I also hope that the fires are not effecting you.
Lots of fluids...and take it easy.
I tend to drink a lot of water but I must have forgotten for a few days. It resulted in almost a week of incredible headaches and a feeling of my head wanting to pop off my neck. I've experienced dehydration before, but not this bad. It felt like a very bad hangover.
Brew the mint separately, remove leaves and let it cool down to room temp. Bottle it in glass and put it in the fridge. You're going for concentrate here. The same with hibiscus, except I boil mine for about 30 minutes and it results in a very sour and very black liquid that dilutes nicely. Cool this down and place it in a bottle in the fridge as well. Feel free to have one or both mixed together, diluted of course.
Made another cup of French Press this morning and let it brew for 6 ½ minutes. It was noticeably stronger than yesterday's 5 minute brew and tasted better to me. Tomorrow, or the next time, I'll try 7 or 7 ½ minutes and see how that goes.
Hm. Interesting.
I think that you may find that this could be like one of those 'bell curves'; in the interests of disinterested research of course, I will admit to some slight curiosity as to where - or, rather, to be more precise, at what point on a timed scale - would the French Press start to offer coffee that is less than delightfully drinkable?
Anyway, for now, I think will stick with five to six minutes, as that seems to meet my needs.
However, two things: You may need to use a stronger coffee - or, perhaps, a darker roast - to achieve the desired taste; I doubt that this would take much more than five minutes to prepare a tasty brew.
And, secondly, I am curious - is this steeping session timed to the second?
I, too, just upped my press brew time from six minutes to seven minutes. Like you, I found a noticeable difference in the positive direction.
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I'm using a dark roast coffee (Intelligentsia El Diablo and Highwire Bauhaus) and I find that when I increase the brew time it produces richer, deeper tasting cup of coffee. I do believe that you are right that there is a point of diminishing returns in increasing brew time that, once reached, increasing the time will produce a brew that is just somewhat bitter and less complex. At this point, I find the seven minute brew time to produce the best cup of coffee with these dark roasts. I think the best brew time is relative to the bean and the roast...as it is in all production methods.
In my case, I do use a timer for the brewing and it's time to the second.
Who me? Compulsive? Timed to the second?
Hard to believe…
No, not with atomic precision. I get the brew started, walk into another room, usually my home office, and either tell Siri or Cortana to set a timer for X minutes. When the timer goes off I make my way back to the kitchen to pour my cup and then enjoy.
I don't treat my FP with the tolerances I, and others, do for espresso.
Ah, yes, I see.
So, from six to seven minutes does make an appreciable difference.
Hm. I must see how Ethiopia coffees respond to that.
Yes, I recall that you had mentioned El Diablo; and Highwire Bauhaus hails from where?
Both are clearly dark roasted coffees, so the flavour, doubtless, would be somewhat stronger.
Somehow, that does not surprise me in the slightest.
This is somewhat closer to my own approach to such matters, which tends to be a little more relaxed.
"Highwire" is the online vendor of the coffee. "Bauhaus" is the name of their dark roast blend. This is the website upon which you had commented on the interesting names they give their blends.
http://www.highwirecoffee.com/collections/coffee
BTW... Any coffee (e.g. Ethiopian), and any roast (light, medium, etc.) will be affected by the length of brew time. So, for example, a light or medium roast Ethiopian coffee will produce a different tasting cup depending upon the brew time. And as you pointed it out, there is probably an inverted U curve effect causing one brew time to produce a fine cup of coffee but pushing that brew time further (or backing it off too much) will diminish the excellent complexity of the cup.
Well, I must try a French Press coffee in the situation where my Ethiopian coffee is allowed to steep and infuse for the proverbial six to seven minutes.
Today, I opened another packet of coffee from the Ethiopian Coffee Company, an Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Aramo, and decided to make a mug of coffee using the Hario dripper; somewhat to my surprise, this is a stronger cup of coffee than was the blend - with a blend - that I made yesterday.
I had my first cup of Ethiopian coffee in Addis Ababa after coming from Kenya where the coffee was very good and was pleasantly surprised how good the Ethiopian coffee was.
Yes, they seem to have a wide variety of excellent - and some outstanding - coffees.
It is a country I must visit sometime.
The birthplace of coffee
That is one of the reasons I wish to visit the place - almost in the manner of a pilgrimage, to pay homage and due reverence to the birthplace of coffee.
Though, in truth, if I am ever to be sent there, it will most likely be for other - possibly equally compelling - reasons.
Ahhhh......
The order of competition espresso beans I purchased from my local roaster arrived today, a day sooner than expected which was nice for a change concerning the USPS.
I've made my first double with it and it tasted great! It is by far the best tasting espresso I have ever made for myself too. I can see how they earned second place in the national espresso competition with these beans/roast.
Just look at that huge amount of crema on top too!
The order of competition espresso beans I purchased from my local roaster arrived today, a day sooner than expected which was nice for a change concerning the USPS.
I've made my first double with it and it tasted great! It is by far the best tasting espresso I have ever made for myself too. I can see how they earned second place in the national espresso competition with these beans/roast.
Just look at that huge amount of crema on top too!
Ahhhh......
The order of competition espresso beans I purchased from my local roaster arrived today, a day sooner than expected which was nice for a change concerning the USPS.
I've made my first double with it and it tasted great! It is by far the best tasting espresso I have ever made for myself too. I can see how they earned second place in the national espresso competition with these beans/roast.
Just look at that huge amount of crema on top too!
View attachment 637405
Looks fantastic, and I am sure that it tasted even better. Enjoy.
The "best tasting espresso you have ever made" for yourself - that is a pretty serious accolade. Bravo.
Yes indeed, a serious accolade all due to the Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters and their fine roasted espresso beans. Truth be told, I let them, the grinder and the Gaggia do all the work... Lol.
Yes indeed, a serious accolade all due to the Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters and their fine roasted espresso beans. Truth be told, I let them, the grinder and the Gaggia do all the work... Lol.
Doesn't matter; you picked what are obviously superb beans - as they are clearly beans that are well suited for use when preparing espresso, and thus, you have found what you can reasonably regard as an excellent espresso coffee bean.
Enjoy it; if it tastes as good as it looks then you most certainly have a winner.
I'll be interested to learn if they taste equally well when prepared for French Press.
I'll certainly give that a try in the next few days. My plan is to use these beans for espresso, and continue using the order from Intelligentsia for the French Press. But its also okay to mix and match too as I desire.