Need a new way of making coffee... percolator, maybe?

(Anne Brodie) #16

I use the aeropress to make cold brew also. Although usually I use warm water but not up to boiling temps. Oh, and I use it with the upside-down method so I can steep as long as desired. What do you use for your cold brew? I have some of those on my interest list too, but it seems like the pour-over carafe is very similar.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #17

Cold brew means exactly what it says: the coffee flavour is extracted in cold/room temp water. It does not refer to extraction with hot water and then chilling it. Cold brewing can take from 12-24 hours depending on preference. Cold brewed coffee can be imbibed hot or cold. I heat mine in a Chemex carafe via water bath.

(Robert C) #18

Have you looked into Chemex?

All glass and multiple sizes.

It makes “regular” coffee - if you want the oily thick stuff you’d have to go with a French press I guess.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #19

Speaking of which. Chemex also has a fabric filter if you prefer that to paper. You can also make your own fabric filters with different density of weave if you want to experiment with letting more of the coffee oils through to the final result. It will never let as much through as a conventional French press, but way more than standard paper filters.

(Anne Brodie) #20

I didn’t communicate as well as I thought. I knew cold brew was brewed with cold water. I made up my own hybrid method that uses warm water instead of cold. It allows a compromise of time (less than cold brew) and smooth taste (more than hot brew).

When I use the aeropress upside down the water doesn’t run through immediately but rather sits there to make either the traditional cold brew or my hybrid version. The classic chemex carafe is a pour-over carafe like the one in the link I sent. Do you use that also to initially make your cold brew (before heating if you desire)?

(Brian) #21

So many great ideas! I didn’t realize a few of them existed. :slight_smile:

Thanks again for all of the thoughts.

In the here and now, momma wanted a percolator. But… there might be occasion in the near future to explore some of these other wonderful ideas. :wink:

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #22

Sorry, I meant no offense. A surprisingly lot of people think ‘cold brew’ simply means hot brewed then drinking it chilled or iced.

I originally used a Bodom 1 liter glass press. When I got my current job, I didn’t have time to make such a small batch each day. So I scaled up. I now use a 4 liter glass flower vase I purchased at Sally Anne for $8 for primary brewing. I use a 74 micron stainless filter to suspend the coffee in the vase. I brew for 24 hours, then decant into two 2-liter mason jars. This is a four day supply of morning coffee for me. I only use the Chemex carafe to heat the coffee in the morning. I use a water bath rather than microwave it. I read somewhere some time ago that microwaving coffee is undesirable. So I don’t.

(Todd Allen) #23

I like to put a little coffee in my cream.

I grind coffee beans fine to about the same consistency as the cacao powder with which I mix it. I put a heaping teaspoon into my cup along with salt and a tablespoon of whey protein concentrate. I stir in a little coconut milk or heavy whipping cream to make a paste. I beat in a raw egg yolk or two or three and add the rest of my cup of coconut milk or HWC while stirring. I put my cup in a pan of hot water to warm it.

(Brian) #24

Todd, I like a little coffee in my cream, too! LOL!!

:slight_smile:

(Anne Brodie) #25

Your method sounds like it would work better for me than the carafes, for the same reason you cite that they don’t hold enough. I am not familiar with Sally Anne but will definitely check that out.

#26

My mom ALWAYS used a Pyrex glass percolator, no plastic parts. I grew up with perc’d coffee; my uncle called it “Swedish” coffee because it was so strong! But that’s the coffee they grew up with!

#27

For hot coffee, I use either a glass French press or a glass pour over with paper filter.
For cold coffee, I like cold brew.

#28

Just bought myself one of these and been running on it for about a week. Luckily my wife is a Tea drinker so already had a tea kettle sitting on the counter… holy crap do they boil water fast! It would definitely be WAY more annoying without the kettle but I’ve noticed a night and day difference in coffee taste.

My drip is a Ninja Coffee Bar which actually makes a REALLY good cup of coffee, especially Iced and Espresso drinks but I also came to the reality that it gets REALLY hot and it’s all plastic. It’s labelled as BPA free, but since we know now that BPA free doesn’t mean you’re in the clear.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #29

Sally Anne = Salvation Army thrift store.

(Retta Stephenson) #30

Cold brew in glass mason jar; has fine mesh stainless steel filter. Makes excellent low acid coffee. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07772LL6V/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

#31

I prefer drip coffee, and several years ago, I got away from all plastics with a glass container and a metal ‘funnel’ (got both on Amazon). I grind my own coffee, boil water and pour over grounds. Great coffee–no plastic.

#32

I used to use an old fashioned steel percolator, it was pretty good.
My favorite way of brewing is a French press. It’s a little more involved but makes an excellent cup of coffee.

(Ken) #33

My vote is for a.French Press and grinding the beans right before making the coffee.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #34

Each to his own. We all eventually figure out what we like and how best to get it. When I was growing up in the 1950s my parents perked coffee every morning. The house filled with that wonderful aroma and as a child I thought anything that smells that good must taste divine. Until the day my mom let me actually drink some! I had never tasted anything so wretched in my young life. No wonder the common breakfast of that era was a cup of black coffee, a glazed donut and a cigarette.

That single sip of perked, black coffee put me off coffee 25-plus years. I could never have imagined that 60 years later I’d be drinking a liter of it every morning. Not perked, of course.

Whatever you drink and however you make it - enjoy it!

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(Hyperbole- best thing in the universe!) #35

I’ve always heard the reason Percolated coffee tastes so bad is because all the flavor is released from the coffee in the smell. So the less you smell of the coffee when brewing, the more good flavor you get when you drink it. Maybe why cold brew is so popular.