The perfect Cup of Joe.

[magneto]

Oooh, coffee geeks! I drink Yirgacheffe when I can get it, which is about never, so else drink Cafe du Monde N'Orleans chicory coffee...

In a Neapolitan stovetop pot; the kind you have to flip upside down to pour. Wholesome excitement for everyone.

 

[Burma Shave]

Salv, you should have...

...no trouble finding an ibrik in London, considering the wide range people from different nationalities who have settled there. The best bet in the U.S. is at a Middle Eastern or Central European foods shop -- the kind that carries a variety of foods for people homesick for their homeland. Should you find a shop, try to get an ibrik in copper, if possible, or at least one that has a copper bottom. They conduct heat much more efficiently than steel or enameled variants -- but that's true of almost any cookware.

As for the Luwak coffee (the Sumatran civet coffee), it's not worth the trouble. I had a couple of cups about 6 or 8 years ago, prepared by a man who only a year before had won second place in a national barista contest (so know-how wasn't the issue), and it tasted pretty much like any other Sumatran coffee. Actually, I prefer non-civet-digested coffee. Sumatran, Celebes (Sulawesi) and Java are my preferred coffees for most occasions. I definitely have a fondness for the Indonesian growth. Several years ago, Dave Barry wrote a column about Luwak coffee. Very funny stuff. He opined that it tasted very much like coffee that's been through the digestive tract of a small mammal. He was not a fan.

If you're going to spend entirely too much money for a pound of coffee, skip the Luwak and get a good Hawaiian Kona. Much better brew for less money. I've only had Kona a few times, and it's memorable -- I just can't afford it for regular consumption. Actually, I liked it so much that when I bought my first bass guitar, I got a Kona acoustic-electric because I appreciate even the name of the stuff!

 

[Katt in Hat]

I have a small collection of CHEMEX?Ç¬Æ filter coffee makers

:coffee: I've used this method for decades. Boiled water is slightly cooled to about 195-205°F and then poured into the paper cone. Ergo , clear, full-bodied coffee - free of undesirable fats, oils, sediment and most of all...bitterness.

I can't fathom the correct way to us to show you the pots. I have a picture in [I]My Pictures Folder[/I] but I can't seem to get it to this message board. If anyone can help me, and I did read the FAQ several times, I would appreciate it very much.

[IMG]http://www.chemexcoffeemaker.com/Copy_of_cm1-4mic.jpg

I used Mr. Salv's instructions which follow in a few posts et violà... the majik of editing.

 

[Lincsong]

Very Dark

I prefer the darker blends; Mocha Java, Sumatra, Kenya. Kona is a lighter blend but an excellant cup. I also like a dark Italian blend. To avoid bitterness in the coffee the water temperature should ideally be at 180- 190 degrees fahrenheit. The Luwak? ha ha Not at $300 a pound or from some weasel's anus.:cheers1:

 

[jake_fink]

Percolators

are for making mud, not coffee.


Seriously... never use a percolator. Or save your money and just drink mud.

 

[Fu Manchu]

Egg whites?

I'm curious - does anyone know about using egg whites (or egg shells) to "clarify" coffee? I remember reading about it in Steinbeck's "Travels with Charlie."

Anyone familiar with this?

Fu Manchu

 

[Salv]

...no trouble finding an ibrik in London, considering the wide range people from different nationalities who have settled there.

There are various Turkish communities scattered around London, with the largest based in Hackney in the east of the city. It should be easy enough to find an ibrik - there's a store in Soho in central London called The Algerian Coffee Store which has a huge range of coffees and coffee making paraphernalia.

...As for the Luwak coffee (the Sumatran civet coffee), it's not worth the trouble. I had a couple of cups about 6 or 8 years ago, prepared by a man who only a year before had won second place in a national barista contest (so know-how wasn't the issue), and it tasted pretty much like any other Sumatran coffee. Actually, I prefer non-civet-digested coffee. Sumatran, Celebes (Sulawesi) and Java are my preferred coffees for most occasions. I definitely have a fondness for the Indonesian growth. Several years ago, Dave Barry wrote a column about Luwak coffee. Very funny stuff. He opined that it tasted very much like coffee that's been through the digestive tract of a small mammal. He was not a fan.

If you're going to spend entirely too much money for a pound of coffee, skip the Luwak and get a good Hawaiian Kona. Much better brew for less money. I've only had Kona a few times, and it's memorable -- I just can't afford it for regular consumption. Actually, I liked it so much that when I bought my first bass guitar, I got a Kona acoustic-electric because I appreciate even the name of the stuff!

OK, sounds good - I'll avoid the Civet coffee and keep an eye out for some Kona. Thanks.

Seriously... never use a percolator. Or save your money and just drink mud.

I've had very bad coffee from a percolator - bitter, sludgy and undrinkable - but I do seem to have hit on a winning formula with my Bialetti Amerikana. It's every bit as good as the French press coffee I used to make, but with the added bonus of staying hot in the pot.

I can't fathom the correct way to us to show you the pots.[/QUOTE]

Find the URL of the picture - right click on it and look in Properties - then wrap the [IMG] tags around it by clicking on the "Insert Image" icon above the message input box and pasting in the URL. There's a picture in your link with a URL of http://www.chemexcoffeemaker.com/clip0001.gif which should give us :

 

[Katt in Hat]

Hip, Hip, HooRay!!! for Salv...Chiz, Chiz...

:cheers1: This member "Salv", answered 4 questions put by 3 of us in his ^above post^. I knew almost immediately that The Fedora Lounge was a very special place and I'm here only a week.

 

[Salv]

Aw shucks ...

To be honest I'm working a night shift and it's very quiet, so hanging out in the Lounge is a good way of passing my time. I have to make do with French press coffee though as we don't have access to the kitchen overnight. Actually I may go and brew a pot now.

 

[J.B.]

<Percolators> are for making mud, not coffee.


Seriously... never use a percolator. Or save your money and just drink mud.

Hm. Like oh-so-many things in life -- enjoyment is a very personal thing... For example, my favorite hat is a Dobbs straw porkpie. But when I put that baby on, my wife says I look "like I'm not quite all there" or "all that's missing is the monkey"?! So, being mindful of that distinction............

...During my last vacation to Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, I had an opportunity to talk at length to an actual Kona coffee farm owner -- Mr. Walter Kunitake of Country Samurai Coffee Company -- whose family literally runs their own operation from the caring and harvesting of their own trees' crop to pulping, washing, sun-drying, storing parchment, green beans, grading, densimetric tabling, sorting, roasting, packaging, and selling the coffee retail at their own little shop in town! They have done this for generations!

Anyway -- of every brewing method available in the world today -- no less an authority on coffee as Kunitake recommends -- get this -- The Percolator!!!!!

If you listen while Walter is expounding on the virtues of the maligned percolator languishing at the back of a forgotten kitchen shelf since the 50's -- you begin to see his concept of using the finest Kona coffee to extract over itself in the "bubbler" to bring out the strongest presentation...

Well, I dug my perc out of storage and, if you use quality coffee -- the results are much better than what I remembered. :coffee:

Vacuum brewing is still my favorite, though -- with French press a close second (only because it's so much trouble to throw a pot together if you're in a hurry.) Using a Bodum is about as ritualistic as making coffee in an ibrik.

Anyway, I guess it's all about whatever floats your boat?!

 

[airfrogusmc]

Then you have to have something to drink it from.

This last one is my favorite.

 

[LaMedicine]

Then you have to have something to drink it from.

What?!?! No Fedora Lounge mug?!?!
Cute mugs, though.

Personally, I don't drink coffee (unfortunately, more than one cup upsets my stomach), I stick to tea, so I can't jump into this discussion....:cry:

 

[Salv]

Then you have to have something to drink it from...snip

Fantastic mugs! Where did you get those? I've got a couple of repro diner mugs from Fish's Eddy in NY, but yours are incredible. I want some.

 

[airfrogusmc]

Good ones come up on e-bay once in a while. Four or five years ago you could find bargains and still can but the prices have certainly increased.

 

[macawber]

My method of making coffee is very simple and good. Grind enough coffee beans for how many cups you are making and to your taste, put this into a stainless steel pot for this purpose only, fill with just boiled water, leave for several minutes and pour through a fine sieve into coffee cup(s). This makes the best cup of coffee I have ever had and eliminates all that expensive gear that some say is needed to make a good cup of coffee. The coffee is also very hot. Now to find the best coffee beans.

 

[Katt in Hat]

Excellant point. Almost 7PM there?

^ "... eliminates all that expensive gear that some say is needed to make a good cup of coffee. The coffee is also very hot. Now to find the best coffee beans."

Rather than a sieve, I've found that a paper coffee filter and a funnel does the job at the cost of a slight drop in the temperature of the coffee. Cowboy coffee if temperature of the water is off the boil, (195-205?Ǭ?F, is about as good as it gets.:coffee:

 

[macawber]

Katt
Your way sounds good, but I drink my coffee black, so no need to fine filter the coffee. If I drank it with milk and sugar, I'd have to stir it, and that might muddy things up. This method suits black coffee drinkers. Yes about 7pm.

 

[matei]

Lots of interesting responses - thanks guys.

I'm very tempted to get an ibric and try Matei's method. Any recommendations for a good source in London Matei?

Hi Salv - sorry for the late response, I've been reformatting my computer...

We got our big ibric (or ibrik) from the "old country", but we recently picked up a smaller one (perfect for a quick cup) from Harrods of all places! It was upstairs in their kitchenware/coffee section, and it was between 5 and 7 pounds.

You might have luck in a shop that sells Turkish food... You can pick up the coffee itself there. I've seen them in quite a few locations (sadly in dodgy areas like Clapton) but I'm sure you can find them in other Turkish shops around London, as there appears to be a large Turkish population here.

M

 

[Baggers]

...A great treat for after dinner is Vietnamese Coffee.

Ah yes, what memories you've just resurrected. Back in the 1980s there was a little Vietnamese restaurant that I frequented at least once a week and their version consisted on a tall 8 oz. glass of ice with a little drip basket full of grounds resting on the top of it. This was brought to your table along with a small pot of hot water and an opened can of sweetened condensed milk. slowly pour the hot water into the top of the basket and let it filter through the grounds and into the glass, add condensed milk to taste, and voila, a tall glass of heaven.

Now I'm going to have to search out one of those baskets and some french roast and see if I can recreate the magic!

Cheers!

 

[Salv]

Hi Salv - sorry for the late response, I've been reformatting my computer...

We got our big ibric (or ibrik) from the "old country", but we recently picked up a smaller one (perfect for a quick cup) from Harrods of all places! It was upstairs in their kitchenware/coffee section, and it was between 5 and 7 pounds.

You might have luck in a shop that sells Turkish food... You can pick up the coffee itself there. I've seen them in quite a few locations (sadly in dodgy areas like Clapton) but I'm sure you can find them in other Turkish shops around London, as there appears to be a large Turkish population here.

M

Thanks matei - the small one sounds ideal and I go near Harrods often enough; my daughter loves Krispy Kreme donuts and they fry 'em fresh at Harrods. The ibric(k) will just be for me as I can't imagine my wife liking the coffee.