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 M¢30  Funded By Mahalo ? |  November 11, 2009 07:03 PM

What's your favorite way to drink coffee? Do you make it yourself or does someone else make it for you?

Black? Cream? Sugar? Flavorings? Cold? Hot? Favorite brands? Regular? Decaf? Homemade? Starbucks? McDonalds? Morning coffee drinker? Afternoon coffee drinker? Evening coffee drinker? Alone or with friends? Strong? Weak? Etc.
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Interesting: ewpldf M$0.05

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November 11, 2009 08:39 PM
I am a coffee nut and have all kinds of brewing systems, including a professional grade espresso machine and grinder. My favorites vary according to my mood, but here a few of my top choices:

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For regular coffee, throw away your electric drip machine and use one of these:

Bodum insulated double wall french press
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41FXOAXUVrL._SL500_AA280_.jpg

or

Bodume Kona Coffee Maker with a Gold filter
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31WtTbl2BWL._SL500_AA280_.jpg
Both result in intensely flavorful coffee. The French press will give you a bit more sediment and mouth feel, but the double walled glass will keep it warm for quite a while. The Kona style maker won't keep it warm, but it does a great job of filtering out the sediment while still preserving the essential oils that impart much of the rich flavor. Both of these systems have beaten every electric drip system I've tried for regular American style coffee

For both of these brewing methods I use a course grind from a quality burr grinder (cheap whirley blade grinders make for horrible coffee), and only use beans that have been roasted within the last two weeks. I either roast the beans myself at home, or buy them from a high quality local roaster that labels the bags with the actual roast date to ensure that everything is fresh. Coffee has a hint of natural sweetness and minimal bitterness if freshly roasted, but after about 10 days it gets increasingly bitter and unpleasant.

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When I'm in the mood for a Ultra-intense mega-caffeinated brew, I make Turkish coffee. I grind it super fine (almost like baby powder), heat it on the stove in a traditional pot with a couple of dried cardamom buds and some sugar. It provides supremely bold flavor and an energy boost that can wake the dead.
http://www.spiritbuilding.com/BLOG/images/ibrik.jpg

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When I'm looking for intense flavor, no sediment whatsoever and some natural sweetness, I brew espresso using a high-end Italian espresso machine and grinder. Lately I've been using a medium dark roasted single origin Yemen Mocca for this, as I like what the espresso method does to the flavor. I'll sometimes had some pure cocoa or cardamom, a bit of Agave syrup for sweetness and and steamed milk. The result is always a strong, rich espresso or espresso drink without a trace of bitterness and with an amazing velvety mouthfeel and intense rich flavor.

= = = = =

For a treat on a hot afternoon, I'll make iced mocha lattes. First, I freeze a tray of ice cubes made from fresh brewed espresso. Once they are frozen, I fill a glass with a mixture of them and regular ice. I then add whole milk to the glass, and a shot of Kahlua. On top of this I add a couple of shots of fresh espresso and a squirt of quality chocolate syrup and stir it all together. Adding the ingredients in this order minimizes the melting of the ice. By using frozen espresso with regular ice, the drink will not get watered down when the ice melts. The result is a rich drink that is perfect as a poolside refresher on a hot day.

= = = =

http://photos.igougo.com/images/p152171-Eritrea-Amazing_Eritrea_Coffee.jpg
While I nearly always prefer what I make at home over restaurants and coffee houses, I have found one place that offers an amazing coffee experience that is not to be missed. There is a local Eritrean restaurant (similar to Ethiopian) that performs a traditional coffee ceremony upon request. You must order it when you order your food as it takes a while to set up. She hand roasts an individual batch of Eritrean Harar beans while you eat, and then brings them out and wafts the aroma around the room for you to enjoy. Once they cool, she grinds them and brews coffee in a traditional gourd-shaped clay pot. She serves the coffee in small demitasse cups with a spoonful of sugar (sugar is traditional, but optional). As she serves it, she brings out a small charcoal brazier and drops bits of a sticky sap covered tree bark on the coal to serve as a traditional incense. The result in an amazingly rich and somewhat sweet brew without sediment that is complemented by the heavenly smell of the incense. There is usually enough for everyone to have 2-3 cups, and by the time you finish you are buzzing with caffeine and sugar to the point where it feels like your eyes are glowing.

= = = = =

If you are looking for a good source of freshly roasted high quality beans, here is my favorite seller:
http://www.keancoffee.com/OurCoffees.aspx

I tend to brew everything strong, as I like to use extra coffee and shorter brewing times to maximize richness while preventing bitter over extraction. My favorite beans tend to come from Yemen, Indonesia, Guatemala but flavor varies so much with each harvest that this often changes for me.

I tend to drink it in the mornings or early afternoons, either alone or with a friend. Although the Swiss Water Process yields reasonably decent decaff coffee, most decaffeinated coffee doesn't taste as good as the real thing. For this reason, I usually don't drink it at night as I'd rather go without than choose between mediocre flavor or a sleepless night.
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Tags: espresso, coffee, favorite

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November 11, 2009 10:39 PM
Very cool!!

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November 11, 2009 10:40 PM
Wow! And I thought I was a coffee addict!!!!

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November 13, 2009 12:02 AM
Wow. Very educational and informative on this answer and the one below. Thanks. :) You are a coffee nut. :)

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Other Answers (5)

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November 11, 2009 07:04 PM
Iced from Starbucks. So good.

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November 11, 2009 10:37 PM
What flavor do you like?

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November 11, 2009 10:41 PM
Mocha :)

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November 11, 2009 11:15 PM
Gotta love that chocolate!!! :)

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November 11, 2009 07:31 PM
Brew water, porcelain filter with paper for one serving.

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November 11, 2009 10:36 PM
I've never heard of a porcelain filter. How does that work?

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aw aw
 
November 11, 2009 07:59 PM
I drink a lot of coffee though out the day. That being said the way I drink it depends on my mood.

Mostly though I like plain coffee 1 sugar light with half and half, not milk. Thats for a 12oz mug.

As far as flavors go Hazelnut is my favorite.

Recently I bought a Keurig and got a sample pack and became convinced there is no flavor of coffee I do not like. At least not any that I have tried already.

http://ssabourin.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/coffee-keurig-maker1.jpg

Tags: coffee, keurig

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November 11, 2009 10:37 PM
Sweet!

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November 11, 2009 08:36 PM
Double "D" certainly makes one of the best cups! A little "Hazelnut" tops off the day... :)

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November 11, 2009 10:39 PM
I have to agree. Love the Dunkin!

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November 11, 2009 11:08 PM
Espresso, dark fine ground quality beans brewed with filtered water, suspending a thin layer of steamed cream. Ahhhhhhhhhhh

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November 11, 2009 11:16 PM
Wow. I wish I could drink Espresso. A bit too much caffeine for me, but it certainly does taste good!

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November 12, 2009 08:17 PM - New Source
Actually, if you can handle a normal sized mug of regular coffee you are ingesting considerably more caffeine than you would get from a single shot of espresso.
http://www.energyfiend.com/caffeine-content/espresso
http://dfbills.com/portfolio/cappuccino/coffee_vs_espresso.html
http://www.cspinet.org/new/cafchart.htm

Espresso has more caffeine per volume, but a "shot" of espresso is about 1/8th the size of an American style mug of coffee so you still end up with less caffeine. If you like espresso and want to limit your caffeine intake, simply order/prepare drinks that contain a single shot. If you want a larger volume of liquid to drink, get one made with a single caffeinated shot of espresso and use additional decaf espresso shots to make up the rest of the volume. Decaf won't taste quite as nice, but when mixed with a single caffeinated shot and milk, it is extremely unlikely that you'll notice the difference unless they are using an atrociously horrible decaf.

(See, I told you I was a coffee nut :) -EWPLDF

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