Capt Insano Emeritis
Legend
Whiskey or any kind of alcohol is not in my diet- for years now. I am one of those people that has moved away from it completely.
Coffee talk
- Thread starter troutpocket
- Start date
I'm on a medication that has all sorts of interesting effects on me, one being it seems to effect the way I taste things. Certain flavors I've always enjoyed now are often a bit too much for me. Bitter and tart in particular. I first noticed this change with black coffee and pickles. I've loved both, but now I often find the flavor of such things just too much. Not unpleasant exactly, but the bitterness of such things just seems to be intensified by about 50 now and it's not anywhere near as enjoyable as it used to be.
I also find myself enjoying sweeter flavors more than I have in the past.
So I've been experimenting with coffee all over again. Been adding heavy whipping cream and some sugar free sweetener. I am enjoying my cup of coffee again, but its a bit disappointing to not be as into drinking it black. Nothing wrong with cream or sweetener of course, but I just don't get to enjoy the various flavors of the coffee itself as much which I was really getting into.
I will be experimenting with roasting a bit darker than I have been, seeing if I can find that sweet spot for a roast that balances out really well with the cream and I feel darker roasts may be fun to play with here.
I also find myself enjoying sweeter flavors more than I have in the past.
So I've been experimenting with coffee all over again. Been adding heavy whipping cream and some sugar free sweetener. I am enjoying my cup of coffee again, but its a bit disappointing to not be as into drinking it black. Nothing wrong with cream or sweetener of course, but I just don't get to enjoy the various flavors of the coffee itself as much which I was really getting into.
I will be experimenting with roasting a bit darker than I have been, seeing if I can find that sweet spot for a roast that balances out really well with the cream and I feel darker roasts may be fun to play with here.
I like my first cup of coffee with milk or cream and sweetener as you describe. The coffee after my wife’s annual Christmas cookie exchange with the leftover creamer makes a great cup. My second cup is always black. It’s an old habit that is hard to break.
BriGuy
Life of the Party
I've always gravitated toward the dark roasts, but some are very bitter and oily. I've been experimenting with them in my espresso machine and found that some can be so oily that they choke the machine because they don't let the espresso flow through properly. So, I've been looking for a dark roast that isn't too oily or bitter, but still has a great, strong coffee taste--especially in a milk drink like a cappucino or latte.
In my experimenting, I found that I really like the Batdorf and Bronson French Roast. I'ts not as brutally dark and oily as other French roasts, but gives a nice, strong mellow flavor in a milk drink. Plus, it's roasted locally in Olympia, so you can get it really fresh.
Might be worth a try. It's my go to now.
That Batdorf is good.
I've been buying roast chicory from New Orleans. I mix it 1 chicory to 2 coffee. It's a little bitter but I like it's flavor with sugar and milk..and a plus for us seniors, it keeps ya regular...
@Nick Clayton have you experimented with cold brew? I’ve noticed a big reduction in bitterness and acidity compared to traditional brewing methods. I often don’t enjoy light roasts with bright flavors unless it’s cold brew.
Porter2
Legend
Well I don’t usually have Starbucks but I do enjoy an iced espresso or their varieties of cold brew coffee at times. The barista talked me into trying their new Oleata coffee, a cold brew with a certain Italian olive oil added in to give it a great enhanced wild textured coffee experience. Howard Schultz claimed it would change the coffee industry. From my one time experience the only one who will get anything out of this is the toilet paper mfgers and the water dept from all the flushing. That stuff messed up my internals.
Yikes. That doesn’t sound like my deal either. A few years ago I tried the fad of floating a chunk of butter in hot coffee. Friggin’ awful.Well I don’t usually have Starbucks but I do enjoy an iced espresso or their varieties of cold brew coffee at times. The barista talked me into trying their new Oleata coffee, a cold brew with a certain Italian olive oil added in to give it a great enhanced wild textured coffee experience. Howard Schultz claimed it would change the coffee industry. From my one time experience the only one who will get anything out of this is the toilet paper mfgers and the water dept from all the flushing. That stuff messed up my internals.
Other than a few times drinking pre bottled stuff, I haven't ever tried decent cold brew. It's on my list to try out this summer for sure. I plan to give the method you've posted a go at some point here soon
May turned hot in central WA. I’m already on the cold brew train. Enjoying a medium roast Honduras this week. I’ve still got like 8 lbs of various Ethiopian, Kenyan, and Burundi beans left from a buying spree last summer.
Fruit bomb! A good start to proper summer cold brew.
I liked that one, too.
BriGuy
Life of the Party
Got myself a Father's Day gift -- from my family of course! It's a Baratza Encore ESP grinder that has 20 settings for grinding fine espresso. Before I bought it, I was conviced the "secret" to dialing in a good espresso was a uniform, consistent grind. I wasn't wrong. This thing rocks!
It's basically an espresso-capable version of their regular Encore grinder. It's also pretty inexpensive (for an espresso grinder) and really lets you fine tune your grind.
If you want to step up your espresso game, get one of these, or another grinder made for espresso.
It's basically an espresso-capable version of their regular Encore grinder. It's also pretty inexpensive (for an espresso grinder) and really lets you fine tune your grind.
If you want to step up your espresso game, get one of these, or another grinder made for espresso.
That’s a freshly mixed batch of cold brew about to go into the fridge for 24 hours.
It’s made with some kind of Ethiopian dry process, looked like a pea berry maybe—quite small beans—that a fellow daycare dad got from Sweet Maria’s and can’t get to taste good to him out of his Behmor roaster. I gave it the old heat gun treatment and it smelled different during the roast and had a prolonged crack. I stopped the roast right after the crack seemed to finally be done and made a cup of aeropress this morning.
It smelled delicious on grinding in spite of my stuffy allergen laden sinuses and yielded a decent cup. Definitely a tad on the bitter baking chocolate side especially for an Ethiopian bean but also with a nice acidic finish that I appreciate.
I think it will make a fine cold brew. I just eyeballed my coffee measurement and ground it on 34 on the Baratza Encore.
Nice! My Baratza Encore is misbehaving - it doesn’t grind as fast as it used to and it leaves partially ground beans just above the upper burr. Baratza has been great in helping me troubleshoot the issue but I fear the burrs themselves are slightly worn (or something else?). They have what seems to be a good deal for rebuilding tired burr grinders.
For y’all that have this grinder, any issues?
BriGuy
Life of the Party
When I was looking at the Encore ESP, the product literature said they used the burr from their higher-end grinders. That means they are compatible. If you are looking to replace the burr, you may want to ask them about upgrade options. From what I understand, the higher end burr has sharper edges and cuts a bit more than it mashes.
Thanks, I was planning to upgrade the burrs. There’s maybe a few other options for fixing the grinder- meaning the burrs are still fine. Troubleshooting 101
There is a little plastic paddle wheel that spins and pushes ground coffee into the chamber above the container, and mine broke. They sent me the pieces I needed to replace it, I think free of charge or nominal fee, and some links to videos of how to do it. I replaced it but put it back together slightly wrong and had to re-do it. The hardest part was loosening a piece in the motor assembly that is press fit. It was a minor project each time, maybe a 60-90 minute thing for me.
You obviously have more skills at troubleshooting. Ine of the paddles on mine is partially broken. I find it difficult to believe that is the problem
I was having similar symptoms it sounds like. My grind time was getting slower and slower. Which could probably be caused by a few things.