Coffee

[bgytr]

Gotta have good water.  I don't drink coffee anymore due to heart issues, but used to make it with distilled water.  Makes a difference, at least that was my preference.

 

[Ishmael]

Gotta have good water.  I don't drink coffee anymore due to heart issues, but used to make it with distilled water.  Makes a difference, at least that was my preference.

All the water we drink on board goes through a Brita filter before consumption, including (especially) with tea. We're not coffee people. Makes a huge difference to the taste.

 

[El Borracho]

I roll out of bed directly to filling the kettle and lighting the stove. At the same time if possible. Instant coffee... Nestlè Classico if available... splash of milk... stir... down the hatch.

A fellow addict shocked my senses by just using hot water from the tap. Apparently the few minutes saved was that important. 

Sure, I have taste, but that can wait for Second Breakfast. Then I’m with the best of you in finding or making the best possible cup.

 

[dylan winter]

man am I ever a heathen

in the winter when bird watching I chain drink instant coffee and eat toast - mainly to keep me warm

the Origo is  to stb of the companionway hatch. I can stand there drinking hot coffee (the only place you can stand up on the boat is when the hatch is open ) while the heat from the stove comes past keeping me warm - best birdwatching place I have ever discovered

when it is really cold I put a dash of cheap scotch into the instant coffee to keep me going

after six or seven at night I switch to tea





when jill is aboard or we are at home we use a french press and freshly ground coffee

D

 

[Kris Cringle]

Last season at 6:08 am, I re-learned something.

With the water boiling, I opened the coffee and it's aroma filled the cabin. That's what's often missing in my coffee, freshness not only of the ground bean but of the roast itself.

This bean, while it was ground the afternoon before at my house,  was a superb - fresh -roast,;dark and hearty (my preference - bold taste). It had a powerful aroma which is important.  



So forget the means, I think it's all about the beans. Those that grind their own on the boat can be closer to the good cup, but it's still about the roasted beans, first. 

I keep a one cup drip cone filter onboard. It's simple and fast and works (I have to put a tooth pick in the hole to regulate the brew rate).

Having said that, my favorite way to brew is a Mocha pot.  The Bialetti is perfect on a boat; low center of gravity, easy clean, no extra parts and all SS.

I like strong coffee and this method gives you more of that(2-3 times strong than drip - it's no an espresso maker). 

 

[eliboat]

WTF?

Pushing it through the filter VS letting it drip through will give you a heart attack?

Cite?

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/pressed-coffee-going-mainstream-drink-201604299530

 

[bgytr]

Man I love a good coffee (especially since I gave it up a few years ago..)

This thread is giving me cravings.  I've had a half a cup here and there but every time I do it makes my heart beat outta whack.  When my wife and I went for a week cruise this past summer, we had no coffee onboard.  She wanted to try going without it, she used to drink a massive mug every day, musta been 20 to 25 ounces, and she'd be bouncing off the walls (which was almost a necessity for her job as elementary school principal in Baltimore).  On the 2nd day of our cruise, she slept about 15 hours.  On the 3rd day she had a massive headache to the point where she couldn't function well.  It took another week for the headaches to die off.  Makes me wonder if the stuff might be a bit unhealthy...

 

[Slick470]

Been looking for the ideal for both home, camping, and on the boat for a while too. Just use the Keurig at the office but I'm the only one at home that drinks coffee and typically one cup in the morning only. With that kind of usage, simple is key for me. 

I've tried and like the aeropress. I also came across this kickstarter a while back https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/146423791/rite-press-the-no-mess-french-press and ended up with one of their 1/2 liter ones. They ended up with financial and manufacturing problems, so I apparently was one of the lucky ones that received product. It is less messy than a normal french press, but still pretty messy. Generally it's pretty well thought out and works pretty good. It has a built in thermometer and hourglass to help you get the temp and steep time just right. They sell a plastic version on Amazon too. I might eventually get one for the boat. 

Through the backpacking crowd I've come across these, https://www.kujucoffee.com/ . They are a type of filtered pour over that seem to get good reviews, but I haven't tried them yet. 

 

[toddster]

I think my collection of coffee gadgets includes everything mentioned here and maybe a couple more, that I have packed around the world.  There was a time in the 90's when if you left the PNW for a work project in flyover country, you experienced shocking withdrawal from decent coffee and beer, unless you packed the proper equipment and supplies.  But... gradually I have lost interest in corporate deadlines, lost taste for expensive coffee stuffed with fat and sugar, and high blood pressure.  I've gone over to a collection of mostly herbal teas that don't take so much fuss to prepare and clean up.  

However, for a long winter or night passage on the boat, I'll still make a pot of ordinary coffee with the stainless percolator and pour it into a thermos to keep for the whole watch. Well... of course I still hand-grind the beans. Wouldn't want to actually become completely barbaric.  

 

[crankcall]

There was a cruising coffee thread last year that yeilded a lot of good info. 

I've come to the conclusion if the boat is underway , whatever coffee you hand me is the best coffee ever. I may not get it all down but I'll thank you just the same. Tied up with shore power I'm using a Nespresso mini, wife gets what she wants ( dont underestimate this) and I get what I want. We've tried it all , I just want basic easy coffee. 

I have all the fancy pants gizmos at home, I'm on the boat to simplify my life.

 

[Ishmael]

There have been quite a few coffee threads on here over the years.



Here's crankcall's thread from last year.

 

[Max Rockatansky]

The Aeropress is the simplest, least-trash, easiest-cleanup, I know of. I have a perforated metal sieve for it.  When I press the water through, I am left with a ‘puck’ of pressed coffee grinds which dispose tidily. Quick rinse of the gadget and done. Small stowage footprint, too. 

 

[Oceanconcepts]

Last season at 6:08 am, I re-learned something.

With the water boiling, I opened the coffee and it's aroma filled the cabin. That's what's often missing in my coffee, freshness not only of the ground bean but of the roast itself.

This bean, while it was ground the afternoon before at my house,  was a superb - fresh -roast,;dark and hearty (my preference - bold taste). It had a powerful aroma which is important.  

View attachment 337847

So forget the means, I think it's all about the beans. Those that grind their own on the boat can be closer to the good cup, but it's still about the roasted beans, first. 

I keep a one cup drip cone filter onboard. It's simple and fast and works (I have to put a tooth pick in the hole to regulate the brew rate).

Having said that, my favorite way to brew is a Mocha pot.  The Bialetti is perfect on a boat; low center of gravity, easy clean, no extra parts and all SS.

I like strong coffee and this method gives you more of that(2-3 times strong than drip - it's no an espresso maker). 

View attachment 337848

Very fond of the Mocha pot for some 50+ years, since early university days. The sound, the steam, it's an event. The aluminum ones can melt if you forget them on the burner, though. Yours looks ideal. 

You manage to make photos of the most mundane things into works of art- I see those pictures and think- "that's where I want to be right now..." 

 

[Ishmael]

Very fond of the Mocha pot for some 50+ years, since early university days. The sound, the steam, it's an event. The aluminum ones can melt if you forget them on the burner, though. Yours looks ideal. 

You manage to make photos of the most mundane things into works of art- I see those pictures and think- "that's where I want to be right now..." 

Tom is a very good photographer. I enjoy his work.

 

[airacer]

Tired of cleaning the French press. Grabbed an oil funnel and put a coffee filter in it with some grounds. Warm up the water in a tea kettle. Direct drip into the Yeti. Fast & easy coffee while ripping under spinnaker or at the dock. Nothing to spill or break. Easy clean up. 

 

[Ishmael]

Tired of cleaning the French press. Grabbed an oil funnel and put a coffee filter in it with some grounds. Warm up the water in a tea kettle. Direct drip into the Yeti. Fast & easy coffee while ripping under spinnaker or at the dock. Nothing to spill or break. Easy clean up. 

You don't mind the oily taste?

 

[Jim in Halifax]

We're 35 posts in and no one has mentioned the lowly coffee percolator...fresh, coarsely-ground beans (that's why cruising boats have inverters), cold water, an open flame, and timing - seven minutes on the hob after it starts percolating - voila, my perfect boat coffee is ready. There's something about the smell of a coffee perc in the galley, at anchor in the morning...

 

[Slim]

Here's a lot of cawfee tawk.

 

[Ishmael]

I grew up (as much as I was going to) with campfire coffee. A handful of coffee grounds dropped into a pot of boiling water, then left until it was cool enough to drink. It was awful.

 

[Elegua]

I grew up (as much as I was going to) with campfire coffee. A handful of coffee grounds dropped into a pot of boiling water, then left until it was cool enough to drink. It was awful.

Supposedly this is the right way. Never tried it.