Coffee ... The Yin and The Yang Of It
This here is not gonna teach you about the particulars of making a nice cup of Coffee. It's just to give you the lay of the land. It's a scenic route. It'll help you plan your trip. Guaranteed.
But, first ... a little something relating to the price of Coffee in the news.
Recently in the news Coffee has been a thing. The geopolitical effects on price, that is. Seems the country of Columbia had refused to accept deportees from the US of A under the new Donald J. Trump Presidential program to deport migrants who had entered illegally. First to go, the bad hombres. With a threat of tariffs as the cudgel to change Columbia's mind the prospect of the rise of Coffee prices had been a concern. Briefly. Seems Columbia has changed its tune and is now accepting airplane loads of their nationals deported from the US of A.
As a complete aside ... wondering what Columbia and other countries are gonna do with those folks. Many of whom may be hardened criminals. Just saying.
Good news! The price of Coffee will stay level. At it's already whopping high. You want a pound of Jamaica Blue Mountain? Around 90 bucks. Okay, that is the high, high end. But $10 to $20 per pound for a good quality Coffee is the norm.
Everything price-wise is higher. Stock up on Eggs. We have a fancy fromagerie in town and $36 dollars for a pound of Cheese isn't all that rare.
Remembering a time when canned Coffee came in 1 pound cans. And, about a dollar per. As costs do, they rise; prices rise. To offset the sticker shock the can sizes became smaller; now the small sized cans contains 11.5 ounces. Kripes, a 10.3 ounce can of Maxwell House Coffee at $8.49 scales up to $13.47 per pound. So that's the going rate for Coffee as a general benchmark. And, mind you, that's a can of store Coffee. Geez!
Whew! Who said the only constant is change.
Now let's get to the topic of "Coffee".
Once, in the day, our idea of making Coffee was a plastic Melita filter funnel balanced precariously over a large antique enamel kettle. Put in some ground Coffee from a store boughten can — be sure to include a scoop of Bustelo for that extra sabor — then dump in the boiling water. Wait for it to drip through completely, and serve.
Now, things have evolved. We have at our disposal a few different methods. A Coffee sock. A couple of Moka pots. A classic Bodum French press. A few single serve drip Vietnamese gizmos. And, very recently, a Hario V60 pour over drip funnel.
The Coffee sock [Calador in Spanish] is a lot like "Cowboy Coffee". You boil water, add grounds to the pot, let stand a bit, then pour through the Coffee sock into a decanter.
We hear Cowboys use their hat. Actually, after the Coffee sits in the pot of water to extract, we usually just let the Coffee drip into a bowl, rinse out the brewing pot, then put the finished Coffee back in the pot. Make sure it's hot, then pour a cup; have the rest on the heat for a second helping, or to reheat later.Yes, I said "reheat". We know, that's like a mortal sin in the current Coffee zeitgeist. To each his own.
We also have a fancy design stainless Moka pot and a small classic Bialetti for a small Espresso to go into our favorite Café con Leche.And by Café con Leche we're talking about a good strong shot of Espresso with a load of steamed milk, sugar to taste. Not a $4+ "Latte" with foam on top, or a Cappuccino with the foam AND a dusting of Cinnamon. And, please, no pictures floating on top of my cuppa. Geez!
Then there's the French press ...
French press is great. As long as you drink it all after being brewed. Anything less, then you'll have to transfer into a pot to reheat; or, just leave it for later for an iced Coffee.
On occasion we'll use a fine grind and set up our Vietnamese phin drip filters. We prepare our drink iced as shown, sweetened in the classic way with sweetened condensed Milk. Strong and a real treat. [Photo from casa Cooky Cat.]
The latest is a Hario V60 drip funnel.
Ceramic, please. Better to hold the heat. Along with the V60 we went economic and use a Hario Drip Kettle Air.
It's just a small pitcher with a spout designed to give a slow, precise pour. We said economy. The other way to go is a specially designed kettle with a gooseneck spout for that precise slow pour over action.
Then, of course, there's the choice of stove top heating or dedicated electric kettle. If you are using such a kettle then you'll need a scale under the drip rig to measure a precise proper amount of water. The V60 Drip Kettle Air has markings to show the amount of water. Less than $16 bucks versus the $100+ [at least] for the kettle/scale setup. And, that's the entry price. You can spend way more.
Then there's the thing about the water to Coffee ratio. You can spend hours going over that subject alone. Not to mention water temperature. Then, there's how you pour for a pour over, and how fast. Geez! That's just the on paper side of the research. In the kitchen, where the rubber meets the road, then there's adjusting it all to your taste. Heck, they have competitions on Coffee making. And, no shortage of opinions.
As you might be getting by now there's a lot of variables to making Coffee. All the foregoing is already a whole bunch of words. But, believe it, that's just the tip of the iceberg. We'll get to that. Not to nail it all down, chapter and verse. But to give you a snoot full of all there's to Coffee in this year of 2025.
Also, you may surmise, that getting a hot enough cup of Coffee to your lips what with all the machinations in the brewing is a thing in itself. Our preparation method includes preheating the cup, and preheating the added Milk. With the pour over filter funnel we're also using a carafe that we can keep over a heat diffuser on the stove while we're going through the pouring motions. Careful, those glass carafes aren't supposed to go on direct heat. Only microwave. But we don't microwave. Bad vibes kind of thing.
By the way, we picked up a while ago the idea that Coffee should be poured into the Milk. [If you take Milk with your cuppa, that is. Or Half and Half, or Cream.] We'd discuss this more, but looking for an easy answer in an Internet search it's too much of a Rabbit hole. So we take it on faith. There seems to be some chemistry science basis to it. If you want to know more, go fetch.
So currently at casa Cooky Cat we're in the initial phase of dialing in the variables for the pour over method with the Hario V60 funnel. Coffee to water ratios. Water pour total amount, timing, and proportionings. And, the big one ... the grind.
The grind size and grinding method of the Coffee beans is a major thing. Differing grind size for each type prep method. And, be sure the grounds are uniform. That's where grinders come in. A mortar and pestle ... please! That would be a no; unless you live in a cave. We've been using an electric blade grinder. Works well enough. But grind consistency is not a big point with that random type spinning blade action.
There's a world of grinders, each type and each model with their various pros and cons. So many choices, so many price points. When you're into Espresso, the grinder choice is a big deal. Espresso prep has umpteen variables, and more than that ways with it.
Hand grinders. You'd think that it's a good economic trade off. You work more, but it costs less. There are inexpensive hand grinders [$50ish.] But, a top rated hand grinder will set you back $250! For reals. Electric-wise, seems the bottom "entry level" like the top rated Baratza Encore goes for $150. Or, $200 if you want the version with the upgraded grinding burrs for Espresso.
"Burrs." There are conical burrs and flat burrs. With design differences within each range, and critical reviews till the cows come home on the differences in the cup. There also seems to be no price limit. You can easily drop $500 for a "decent" unit.
"Entry level." That phrase rides through all the reviews of Coffee paraphernalia. It always strikes us the term "entry level" typically goes along with a steep enough price tag to make us want to throw up our hands and just toss some grounds into a percolator.
Speaking of percolators. Once in my checkered career resume I did time as a Can't Miss Top 10 Mad Ave Ad Bigger on a Coffee account. The Pan American Coffee Bureau in New York City gave an introduction to all things Coffee. The take away point I remember was how they were emphatic that the drip method was the best. I brought that up to my client counterpart brand manager. He pointed out that percolator sales were increasing. In other words, it would not be productive sales-wise to include drip method in our advertising. Much less promote it. This was in the mid-1960s. Then, guess what? Mr. Coffee came along. Changed the game. Drip Coffee in an appliance. Turns out that no one was against drip method Coffee as such. They just wanted it in an appliance. Gizmos sell.
We once gifted a Coffee sock to a dear one and they turned up their nose not wanting to change from their single serve pod brewing device. Gizmos. [Pretty soon the hand will only be useful for punching in text messages. And, of course, hand jobs.]
And, speaking of devices ... Espresso machines. One blanches at the mere thought of having to tackle that subject. Sure you can get an Espresso machine for around $100 bucks. But, when you research all the variables, seems a good entry level unit might be nudging toward $500 dollars. And, how much Espresso are you gonna drink for that price tag when you drop 5 bills and still feel like you're a piker for not springing for the $1,500 dollar unit which seems to be what the aficionados plunk down. And, that's "at least".
That'll get you started for Espresso. Then, of course, the grinder. And other stuff too. For Espresso, the unit what holds the grounds in the machine. It's called the portafilter and there are options there too. And, no end of considerations and discussions of opinions. And, once the grounds are in the portafilter they have to be 1. raked over for evenness, 2. tamped down first to level, 3. then pressed down to a torque wrench pressure precision. A good Barista can do it by feel. But, of course, there are the ones with a spring drive preset load pressure. Lots of gizmos to do all that.
And, by the way, time, temperature, and pressure are the alchemist's plaything when it comes to Espresso. Like was said ... variables.
If you've even got this far into this writing you have to get by now that Coffee drinking is a big thing. Ritual thing. After all, how good does a cup of Coffee have to be? Seems for many it's a quest.
But, it can be good. Really good. My best taste of the brew was when vacationing in Jamaica. Must've been Blue Mountain. If we ever get our Coffee ritual dialed in solid, maybe we'll spring for that $90 dollar bag of Blue Mountain Coffee. Second best cup of Coffee, room service at a hotel in Roma, Italy. Third best, from many of the Dominican and Puerto Rican restaurants in New York City and their incomparable Café con Leche. Fondly remembering a now gone favorite, La Taza de Oro ["The Golden Cup"] on 8th Avenue at 34th Street in New York City. In the day the Espresso station was right up near the front door with a dedicated server cranking those paper cups of Café con Leche non-stop. 75 cents per; maybe never more than a buck.
Just try to go to one of those au courant Coffee shops and order one of those. They don't get it. More often than not they'll give you that $4+ Latte.
Right up there also, Siddha Coffee. A rich sweet, milky brew laced with lots of Cardamom as served in the amrit ["The nectar that promises immortality"] at Siddha Yoga ashrams ... Nectarian. Divine.
Net, net ... maybe it's best to leave it with the wisdom that reminds us that you never put your hand in the same river twice.
No two cups of Coffee are ever alike. Even with the same Barista. I used to run errands for a non-profit school and my work partner and I would make our first stop a Café con Leche. He would often taste that day's cup and comment on whether the Barista was on their game that day. Hey, it's an alchemical thing. You bring your magic into it.
And, net, net, net net ... maybe after all is said and done, you end up just saying, "Don't give me all that jive, give me cup of Joe!".
PS If you're thinking that you didn't find out how to brew a cup of Coffee from all this ... well, you'd be right. This here article is just to tune you up to the kind of weather and terrain you'll be facing when you put your boots on and start marching toward that "grail cup" of Joe. Or, maybe it puts you off enough to not bother, and just plug in an auto brew machine. Or, something in between. Or, maybe in the low to middle range. Or the middle to top range. You get it. Kapische? Choices, huh?
PPS We didn't discuss the beans. We'll leave that as "has beans". The subject of Coffee beans can fill a library. Many different countries produce Coffee beans. Locales in each vary. You know, "terroir". Different producers. Then there's roasting. Light to dark, and in between. And the flavor profiles of each. Full bodied or light. Flavor notes of all kinds. [Do not become a Coffee snob, waxing poetic for all to witness all the deep flavor discriminations you can find in any one cup. Please!] Acidity. Finish. Sorry, on that subject we're finished. Go fetch. Last analysis, you'll just have to try them for yourself. You can stick with your final favorite, or Tango on sampling the world of Coffees. [By the way, did you know there's an Ethiopian Coffee — "Kopi Luwak" — the beans come out a Civit Cat's ass with its poop? No shit!]
PPPS Oxygen is the enemy of Coffee. Check out the subject of storage, and storage devices. Vacuum sealed seems to be the ticket.
BASTA!
