John, I'm far from the best coffee brewer on the list, but I'm convinced that brewing great coffee doesn't have to be expensive. My coffee roaster was two bucks (WBI), my French Press less than twenty bucks, and my grinder was less than $100 (okay, not much less). Compare that to the fishing toys that my father-in-law on his fixed income enjoys, and coffee seems like a frugal pleasure. JKG <Snip> emphasize my <Snip> to <Snip> now <Snip> depression <Snip> extraction <Snip> now <Snip> times, not <Snip> fast, <Snip> alas, it <Snip> homeroast mailing listhttp://lists.sweetmarias.com/mailman/listinfo/homeroast |
I was tempted to post this in HTML so I could use blue print to emphasize my depression. I've been reading all of these quality steps necessary to brewing the perfect cup. I don't disagree with any! However, I am now retired on a small fixed income and have plunged into deep depression knowing that I'll not be able to buy the right grinder, the right extraction system, the proper filtration system etcetera ad nauseum. I'm just now learning to deal with not having color slides to gage my roast times, not having digital scales to correctly measure my bean load to my small, fast, inferior roaster. What I've been calling coffee was my last non-fattening joy! But alas, it turns out to be a rich man's vice. I'm so depressed! John - drinking distilled water and contemplating my failures homeroast mailing listhttp://lists.sweetmarias.com/mailman/listinfo/homeroast |
john writes: <Snip> John, Just dump that distilled water you are contemplating with in your coffee pot and enjoy your home roasted coffee. I too like distilled water at 66 cents a gallon from Walmart, then there is no flavor at all in the water to detract from the coffee flavors. The search for a good quality hand grinder is exactly what got me started in home roasting. I purchased a Zassenhaus from Tom and the roasting came later. Set aside 10 bucks a month and you can have one before Christmas. We went back home to Indiana a couple of weeks ago to visit relatives. My son-in-law roasts using the popcorn popper I gave him two years ago. He roasted a batch of beans, dumped them into a strainer when done and set them on the counter still cracking and smoking. Several hours later when they were cool, he put them in a plastic container and threw them in the cupboard. Next morning he dumped some in his whirleybalde not bothering to measure them. He used water he ran through his Brita and brewed in his generic whatever brand coffeemaker. When it was done, we sat down and drank one of the best darn cups of coffee I've had in a while. It was a Sumatra coffee I had sent him some time ago. It really doesn't cost much to enjoy the very finest coffee in the world. It may be even better less the attitude (I will place myself at the head of that line) that some seem to convey. Terry F homeroast mailing listhttp://lists.sweetmarias.com/mailman/listinfo/homeroast |
John, I already read your earlier *apology* for this post, but I just wanted to jump in for a second. Great coffee IS cheap. $5 a pound for beans, a $5 popper to roast, a $10 Melitta drip cone and some filters, a $5 tea kettle, and a $15 whirly blade WILL get you there. Where else can you get top notch in a hobby for a $50 investment? Shoot, you can blow that much on a few pizzas and some beer. We cannot let coffee go the route of the anal retentive infested world of high-end audio, where "magic dots", $2000 power cords, and otherways the weak minded sheep think they have to blow money to get good sound. It's nonsense. Just roast, grind, and brew. It's that simple. I build all my own audio gear, speakers, and even a turntable. I get better performance for 10% of the money I'd spend on commercial gear. Ditto for coffee. It's a great hobby, if you like coffee. :-) Chris http://www.execpc.com/~n9zeshomeroast wrote: <Snip> Get your own FREE, personal Netscape Webmail account today athttp://lists.sweetmarias.com/mailman/listinfo/homeroast">http://webmail.netscape.com/homeroast mailing listhttp://lists.sweetmarias.com/mailman/listinfo/homeroast |
"John" wrote: <Snip> Dear John - if you have some time, there's hope. I'm in no position right now to finance all the fancy stuff myself, although I have sinned and bought a few toys. (FreshRoast from SM, and a pretty decent electric grinder of a brand - ahem - that Tom sez he may be stocking soon.) The FreshRoast was simply a convenience issue - I could roast inside and control the chaff, and a bit of the smoke. There was nothing wrong with my $10 popcorn popper, other than we moved North and I didn't want to pop in the $#@!! freezing garage. But I probably could have managed roasting without the new appliance - just work out some kind of venting or turn off the smoke alarm/open the window. And get the chute pointed into the sink, for chaff control! As for a grinder - and I'm being deliberately cautious here, out of respect for Tom's business - but there is such a thing as the secondary market. Read alt.coffee - lots of scavengers trade war stories there. I got a cheap (good) pump espresso machine by similar means, and of course, Tom's coffee really only costs about twice what the nasty robusta laden dreck that comes pre-roast in the can does, at your local CheapMart (TM)! Plus, it's drinkable! I, as well, would have rather stepped up to more of what Tom offers by way of equipment...then again, I think I could be pretty happy just with my old popper, a well-built, battle scarred hand grinder, and a gold filter that's meant to brew one cup into the actual cup. (I'm the only coffee drinker in our home.) The cool stuff is - well, cool. But it's the coffee, first, that matters. Just like you can have a profound meal in a relatively impoverished home, where another person can buy all the gourmet staples and then wreck it all with heartless and artless cooking. That's my opinion. LisaB Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address athttp://lists.sweetmarias.com/mailman/listinfo/homeroast">http://mail.yahoo.comhomeroast mailing listhttp://lists.sweetmarias.com/mailman/listinfo/homeroast |