Coffee break!

[Dina]

Mmmm, I just love coffee, it's aroma, taste and effects. My favorite is Brazilian Starbucks ground for espresso, with heavy cream, powder cream, sugar and a hint of caramel sauce. Now, we have auto drip ground Hawaiian coffee in our cupboard and it's absolutely delicious too.

I was wondering what coffees everyone has in their cupboards, pantries, refrigerators, etc. Which is your favorite brand, flavor, etc.? Which do you prefer, i.e. cappucino, espresso, latte, auto drip, instant? Just come on in here and let's chit chat while sharing a cup of coffee.

 

[Banana Brain]

I have starbucks Breakfast blend (for morning) and Starbucks decaf House Blend (for later). I also have something big and cheap from Costco, but I forget what its called. I have my coffee all different ways, but lately I've been lazy so I've just been adding milk and sugar and thats all.

 

[pdswife]

We drink Yuban during the week with vanilla cream.
On Sundays if we are in town we go to Starbucks and I have a tall white mocha *some times with caramel* or sometimes I'm good and have a fat free white mocha with no whip... Paul has a short mocha or a tall drip with lots of cream and sugar.

I've been craving coffee in the afternoons lately and picked up
some Folgers Coffee Singles classic roast... NOW remembering that I hate iinstant coffee... these are not half bad. They are great to take backpacking too. Quick and easy.

 

[Banana Brain]

On Sundays if we are in town we go to Starbucks and I have a tall white mocha *some times with caramel*

One time I got a white mocha with caramel thinking it sounded like a yummy and unique combination, but I actually found it disgusting and didn't drink that much of it. I was with my friend and she didn't like it either. But to each their own. I do love toffee nut white mochas though. The Toffee Nut syrup at Starbucks is my favorite and I think its extremly underrated.

 

[pdswife]

That's ok banana.. I love them and will drink them for you!

 

[Dina]

Paul has a short mocha or a tall drip with lots of cream and sugar.

Sounds like my husband - caramel macchiato with lots of cream and sugar. I try to be good too sometimes but don't care for the low cal coffees.

 

[buckytom]

i hate regular coffee, to the point where i need therapy (see explanation *), but i love a good espresso or real irish coffee after a large meal.

* my brother, 16 years my senior, used to hold me down and breathe morning/coffee breath in my face when i was a kid. i've since despised the smell of coffee. abhorrance to morning breath is a given.

but a really good cuppa espresso, with a little dolce to offset the dark roasted flavor (not bitter. bitter is bad), and a snifter of amaretto, 'buca, or gran marnier to round it out, is a great ending to a feast.
maybe a 7 x 34 cigar, dipped in the snifter to go with the 'spresso on a warm breezy night.

the only other way i'll drink coffee is irish, which is about 50/50 coffee and whiskey, preferrably jameson's, with a little blended or lightly whipped heavy cream.
no sugar, or sweet whipped cream from a can, and especially no creme de menthe!!!!!

 

[skilletlicker]

My taste in coffee is pretty simple; black and drip brewed. What I enjoy is the variations of home roasting different beans. At the moment I have seven varieties from Central and South America, Africa, and Indonesia. If anyone is interested Sweet Maria's is a good informative source of green coffee beans.

 

[Ishbel]

I drink Colombian coffee as a regular coffee, with espresso or Blue Mountain Jamaican for after dinner. I used to make it in a drip coffee maker, but always use a cafetiere nowadays. Takeaway coffees that I buy from little coffee shops locally are usually Illy coffee.

Oh and I love Turkish or Greek coffees - little cups like espresso with the thick grounds that you mustn't disturb at the bottom of each cup. But with no sugar... my Greek friends think I'm odd not adding sugar.

 

[GB]

I have quit drinking coffee on a regular basis after being a loyal coffee drinker for many years. I will still have the occasional cup, usually on vacation or a weekend though. My wife on the other hand...well they say you are what you eat so she must be a coffee bean.

I take mine black. I like the taste of the coffee, not the taste of cream or sugar or anything else that people put in it. DW takes hers with cream and sugar (or sugar substitute more accurately).

I really love Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, but we usually just get Dunkin Donuts or a supermarket brand. i used to love Dunkins coffee, but they have gone way downhill. Actually I think it has been many years since their coffee was really anything special.

We use a drip coffee maker with an insulated thermos style carafe. It keeps the coffee hot and fresh for 4 hours, seriously. OK after 3 hours it does start to cool a little, but not much.

 

[vagriller]

My favorite coffee is Starbucks vanilla latte.

At home now I have Folgers and 8 O'clock hazelnut and a drip coffee maker. I've been trying different varieties of coffees lately. I used to get regular 8 O'clock coffee beans and ground them myself. It was good, but I found myself waiting till I got to work to get coffee because grinding the beans got a little old.

No matter the coffee I will always put Coffee Mate french vanilla creamer in it, sometimes I get caramel nut though.

 

[GB]

We have recently tried a new coffee that my wife really likes. I think it is called Millstone. We get it at BJ's. The first time we got it my wife was not crazy about it, but she is chalking that up to user error. She really likes it now.

 

[vagriller]

We have recently tried a new coffee that my wife really likes. I think it is called Millstone. We get it at BJ's. The first time we got it my wife was not crazy about it, but she is chalking that up to user error. She really likes it now.

Is it plain Millstone coffee? I have seen that in a bunch of stores.

 

[GB]

Yes it is, at least I am pretty sure that is the name.

 

[suzyQ3]

Drip coffee, black. I prefer Peet's or Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf but will drink Starbuck's French roast in a pinch. I don't like any of the overly sweet milkshake concoctions so popular now.

 

[Dina]

What's up with the Starbuck's coffees and our ordinary store bought auto drip coffees? I do notice a difference in better taste and less bitterness, Starbuck's taking the lead. I would like to find something similar but more affordable. I will look for Millstone.

 

[FryBoy]

I like my coffee strong, black, and hot. I prefer the darker roasts. I drink quite a bit in the morning, but rarely after lunch. I don't care for coffee with any meal other than breakfast. Occasionally I order espresso after dinner.

I usually buy Peet's, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Seattle's Best, or Starbucks, whichever is on sale at the supermarket. I buy ground coffee because I'm too lazy to clean the grinder. I don't find all that much difference between pre-ground and whole beans if the coffee is stored properly once the bag is opened (in a large baggie in the freezer).

I think I'm drinking Peet's French Roast this morning (the original bag is gone). There's also some unopened Seattle's Best and Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in the pantry, both French Roast.

As for "coffee" with whipped cream, caramel syrup, and other adulterants, those drinks make me feel ill -- they're milkshakes masquerading as coffee, with up to 750 calories, 119 grams of sugar, and 25 grams of fat each, according to Starbucks' website. That's not a drink, it's a meal, and not a particularly healthful one at that. It's OK as an occasional treat, but I know too many people who have one every day and then wonder why they gain weight.

 

[GB]

I don't find all that much difference between pre-ground and whole beans if the coffee is stored properly once the bag is opened (in a large baggie in the freezer).

Actually the freezer is not recommended for coffee storage (even by Starbucks employees). The professionals suggest coffee be kept in a cool dark area, but not the fridge or freezer as that contributes to condensation forming on the coffee itself which is not good.

That being said, for most of my coffee drinking time I used to keep it in the freezer and never had a problem.

 

[FryBoy]

Actually the freezer is not recommended for coffee storage (even by Starbucks employees). The professionals suggest coffee be kept in a cool dark area, but not the fridge or freezer as that contributes to condensation forming on the coffee itself which is not good.

That being said, for most of my coffee drinking time I used to keep it in the freezer and never had a problem.

I think the zip-lock baggie helps. I've never noticed any condensation in the coffee, which I presume would cause it to lump together. In any case, I suspect that oxidation and dehydration are bigger problems than moisture. Like you, I've never had a problem, and I'm convinced that the cold temperature better preserves the ground coffee.

 

[GB]

I may be wrong about the condensation part. That seemed a little strange to me as I was typing it even. The explanation came from Alton Brown, but I have since forgotten exactly what he said.

I did check his info with some other professionals though because as much as I enjoy AB and have learned a lot from him, his info sometimes is not always 100% accurate. The others confirmed that Alton was right in what he said.

But it basically just comes down to whatever you find works best for you. If you have never had a problem with it being in the freezer and the quality when you are drinking it is what you want then you are doing something right.