Coffee for people who don't like coffee • Hacker News Board

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#191

Post by herbst » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:16 AM UTC

iamthemonster wrote: post #125

It's quite interesting how coffee is treated in different cultures. In Australia, coffee would normally be consumed as a dark roast, but with texturised (that is aerated and steamed to create a microfoam). Dark roast coffee is less acidic, and when made into an espresso + texturised milk drink it becomes very sweet and smooth tasting. Light roasts used in espresso-based milky drinks are not so pleasant, and are more…

Australia also has some of the best coffee beans I've tried. Afaik most of the coffee they consume is imported from elsewhere.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#192

Post by herbst » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:17 AM UTC

owlninja wrote: post #107

I like coffee, but many years ago I realized I don't like drinking hot liquids. Anyone else like this? I live in North Texas where it's uncomfortably hot most of the year. It used to boggle my mind playing golf with my Grandpa who would grab a coffee at the turn just as temperatures were cracking 90F.

I do espresso and cold milk. Never liked warm warm coffee, even in cold swiss winters

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#193

Post by [deleted] » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:19 AM UTC

bschwindHN wrote: post #155

timewizard wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 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.

[deleted]

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#194

Post by klausa » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:21 AM UTC

athrun wrote: post #84

k310 wrote: post #2

The article discusses a drip system which I used to use under a different name, but went away. It has a cone with a filter mesh and a valve that remains closed as long as the cone and its integral base are sitting on a level surface, but which opens when you place it on a cup. It's now called "Clever Dripper" The main reason I got one is because it's so easy to empty the grinds after use, unlike a French Press, even…

The Clever dripper and the Hario Switch are the two main ones I think, but then there's a lot of niche ones. The overall category is called "immersion dripper". My main concern is the plastic, so I've got one from a smaller brand entirely made of ceramics. (it's much more expensive though).

The Switch has some plastic and rubber, but the parts that touch coffee/water are all metal and glass.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#195

Post by klausa » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:32 AM UTC

merek wrote: post #108

jarebear6expepj wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hand crank grinder and pour over or French press has never done me wrong. Also, black. Dairy and/or sugar change the chemistry substantially in my opinion. It’s a completely different taste profile on its own. I don’t manage temperature or quantity of beans but that could potentially change it further.

Same here with the hand grinder and French press. There are many factors I'm experimenting with. This is what I've found so far: - Finer grind is better. I know they say use coarse for the French press, but I find this gives too weak a flavor. Finer grind also means I spend a good 10 mins grinding each morning, which kind of sucks but it's part of my routine and feels like honest work for a worthy outcome. - Water te…

You either make enormous batches of coffee, really exaggerate how much time it takes you to grind coffee, or straight up need a new grinder.

It shouldn’t take you much more than a minute to hand-grind coffee for a shot of _espresso_ - if grinding for a French Press genuine takes you that long, something is seriously off.

_Especially_ if you drink medium-to-dark, less dense, more brittle coffees.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#196

Post by herbst » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:34 AM UTC

bluGill wrote: post #110

What is wrong with plain water? Why try to mess it up with flavor, just drink and go on. I hate coffee, soda, and tea. water has always work well so why change it.

Your question is provocative, but the answers are within the most utopic things I've read.

Sounds like we evolved to be over water basically. Ideocracy calling

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#197

Post by herbst » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:37 AM UTC

owebmaster wrote: post #97

zwaps wrote: post #92

I hate modern coffee. It tastes like sour water, or at best like tea. It tastes nothing like good coffee, the properties of which we already figured out long ago eg. in a good Italian espresso. And then these people dump all aggregates of milk in their 19ml of white roasted coffee, only to guarantee that they do not taste any coffee at all. Here is a hint: If you do not like coffee, you are allowed not to drink it! S…

> I hate modern coffee. :s/modern/US My coffee in Brazil is still as pure, strong and black as 20 years ago. And no sugar.

I was wondering about "modern" too. I am surrounded by good coffee in Switzerland, better quality just getting more common. Starbucks is soacially accepted to be bad quality. Nearly everyone I know has a coffee machine or espresso machine or at least a proper mocca thingy. Like owning a fridge or a washing machine

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#198

Post by owebmaster » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:54 AM UTC

Adambuilds wrote: post #115

bluGill wrote: post #110

What is wrong with plain water? Why try to mess it up with flavor, just drink and go on. I hate coffee, soda, and tea. water has always work well so why change it.

Our taste preferences evolve over time. Just like we’ve adapted our food to suit our personal tastes, why not do the same with drinks? I used to be a big fan of water too, but after trying different coffees, teas, and even flavored waters, I realized how much variety and experience they can bring. Coffee gives me that kick I need to get through the day, tea offers relaxation, and flavored water just feels refreshing.…

I hope you are drinking all of them without sugar, milk or anything else added

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#199

Post by incomingpain » Wed, May 14, 2025, 10:59 AM UTC

Lattes, they are essentially sugar milk that you only slightly dirty with an espresso.

Re: Coffee for people who don't like coffee

#200

Post by kasey_junk » Wed, May 14, 2025, 11:09 AM UTC

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?

It’s certainly possible people just don’t like light roasts, but _sour_ is a specific flavor profile which frequently has a specific cause, and that cause is more likely with lighter roasts. Which is why I mentioned it.