Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Coffee for people who don't like coffee

ostwilkens.se

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

151–160 of 272 posts

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#151

Post by rectang »

kasey_junk wrote: post #147
browningstreet wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Third wave coffee roasters, like Revolution or Counter Culture, always taste distinctly sour. I can't drink those at all. I personally prefer medium to dark roasts.. even when I'm drinking them black. I wish I could find the word that describes the lighter roast taste that I don't like (to me, it's the IPA of coffee) because I have yet to be able to walk into a coffee roaster and ask them, "Is your coffee ?" so I kno…

Sour coffee frequently means the grind is too coarse for the bean or the coffee is not brewed long enough. Both of those are more common problems when working with lighter roasts. You might experiment with the same bean and different grind settings to see if that helps with the taste you don’t like. Though age of the beans messes with this too which is maddening. Generally speaking though lighter roasts are more fidd…

This doesn’t ring true to me. My understanding (and experience) is that coffee beans have abundant flavor components which get burnt away by the roasting process. Brewing issues like grind and proportion of beans/water are a separate class of problems. Is it not possible in your mind that someone just doesn’t like the sharp flavors which are left uncharred in light roasts?

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#152

Post by timewizard »

bschwindHN wrote: post #145
timewizard wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always recommend an Americano (or a Long Black). It's an Espresso shot with hot water added. It drinks like a coffee but much of the bitterness is removed and the underlying flavor of the coffee is revealed. With a good quality coffee I rarely feel the need to add milk or sugar.

Everyone has their own opinions, but to me an Americano is the worst form of black coffee. Espresso blends are typically on the darker side (more bitter), and often include Robusta beans in their blends to produce more crema. Robusta doesn't have a particularly great flavor on its own, some (including me) liken the taste to burnt rubber. I think the clearest way to show someone how different "black coffee" can taste…

> Espresso blends

Oh god, no. Just use regular coffee beans.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#153

Post by tkgally »

podunkPDX wrote: post #126

A few years back I discovered that the Ethiopian run minimart up the street sells unroasted coffee beans, $6/lb. I bought a pound and followed the proprietor’s advice, roasting small quantities in a cast iron pan on medium high and agitating/stirring until it looked right. This was too labor intensive to be sustainable (40m for about 100g), but the end result was breathtaking. Immediately bought a roaster from Sweet…

I started roasting my own coffee a few months ago. I use a light pan with a screen cover I found online and roast the beans by shaking the pan over a high flame for seven or eight minutes. I judge the degree of the roast from the sound, the smoke, and the smell. It took a few batches before I got the hang of it, but now it works great.

Home coffee roasting is, as one might expect, a deep rabbit hole that one can spend a lot of money on. But if you're only roasting for yourself, a simple setup like mine should be fine.

I live in Japan, and there are coffee wholesalers that carry raw beans from all over the world. I'm currently trying beans from Nicaragua, Cuba, Ethiopia, and Indonesia. When I use those up I'll try four other origins.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#154

Post by chii »

rectang wrote: post #151
kasey_junk wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sour coffee frequently means the grind is too coarse for the bean or the coffee is not brewed long enough. Both of those are more common problems when working with lighter roasts. You might experiment with the same bean and different grind settings to see if that helps with the taste you don’t like. Though age of the beans messes with this too which is maddening. Generally speaking though lighter roasts are more fidd…

This doesn’t ring true to me. My understanding (and experience) is that coffee beans have abundant flavor components which get burnt away by the roasting process. Brewing issues like grind and proportion of beans/water are a separate class of problems. Is it not possible in your mind that someone just doesn’t like the sharp flavors which are left uncharred in light roasts?

> someone just doesn’t like the sharp flavors which are left uncharred in light roasts?

that is always a possibility.

It why you want to have a pro brew up the best cup that is possible from those light roast beans, and test out the flavour.

If you're a self taught brewer, you might find that you've made mistakes, and also mistakenly took those mistakes as the flavour of the bean, thus incorrectly dislike it.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#155

Post by bschwindHN »

timewizard wrote: post #152
bschwindHN wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everyone has their own opinions, but to me an Americano is the worst form of black coffee. Espresso blends are typically on the darker side (more bitter), and often include Robusta beans in their blends to produce more crema. Robusta doesn't have a particularly great flavor on its own, some (including me) liken the taste to burnt rubber. I think the clearest way to show someone how different "black coffee" can taste…

> Espresso blends Oh god, no. Just use regular coffee beans.

I guess the difficulty there is finding a shop which uses good beans for their espresso drinks. I'm assuming this theoretical person we're talking to won't be convinced to invest in a full espresso setup, so they have less control over the beans used.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#156

Post by chii »

el_benhameen wrote: post #102
rectang wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Something not roasted to a charred crisp (looking at you, Starbucks). Not everyone is going to like less-roasted beans. Less roasted beans have strong, distinct flavors which might be characterized as "green" or "floral" or "woodsy", and it's true that a lot of the individuality of the bean varieties is obscured by darker roasts. But I for one usually prefer the standard roasts of the mainstream vendors over the li…

I’m one of those people. I thought I liked lighter roasts, but the third wave light-light super floral stuff tastes like lemon water to me (including stuff from nice roasters and nice shops). I can understand why people like it! But I’m habituated to the brown caramely middle of the road flavor profile and I’ve stopped trying to change. Starbucks’ lighter roasts are fine with me, much as it pains me to admit my lowbr…

> lowbrow taste.

liking the "brown" chocolatey/caramelly flavour isn't lowbrow - you found a flavour you enjoy and it is valid.

The idea that only those people who enjoy the light floral type are "true" coffee enjoyers (and everything else low brow - including sugar laden lattes) needs to stop.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#157

Post by [deleted] »

pton_xd wrote: post #10
nkrisc wrote: post #7

1. Good beans. Something not roasted to a charred crisp (looking at you, Starbucks). Eat a coffee bean by itself. If it tastes bad on its own, it’ll probably taste bad in the brew too. I enjoy munching a few beans while I make my coffee. 1.5 Buy your beans whole and grind them. It really makes a difference. 2. Clean water. If your water tastes bad, so will the coffee. I just use filtered water from the fridge. 3. No…

> Eat a coffee bean by itself. If it tastes bad on its own, it’ll probably taste bad in the brew too. I enjoy munching a few beans while I make my coffee. This just doesn't make sense to me. There are a great number of beans and vegetables that taste bitter or unpleasant "raw" but are very delicious with a bit of heat and time.

[deleted]

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#158

Post by KingMob »

werdnapk wrote: post #70
dgunay wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's pretty much how a french press works, if anyone wants to try it. Loads of cheap french presses available everywhere. It's very portable too if you need to make coffee and have nothing but water, heat, and ground coffee.

An aeropress is really an amazing piece of coffee making gear. I used to use one when I was on a budget and found it to be the best method of making coffee for little investment. There are a few tips and tricks worth looking up, but once you have things sorted out, it brews great coffee.

The Aeropress is great, but makes too little coffee. One day I'll have to try the XL version.
Post reply on HN