Why can't i make good coffee?

I used to work at Dunkin' too!! It was hectic at times, but I can make a damn good cup of joe now. To the o.p.: When I was first experimenting with making coffee, I figured out that the ground/water ratio is really important. Like others have said, just play around with it, and eventually you'll find what suits your particular palate. Personally, I think a good coffee depends on the preparation and what you add to it afterwards. The taste of the coffee can always be altered with a little cream or sugar. If it's too bitter, add a couple teaspoons of sugar. I know people that put ten teaspoons of sugar in a medium sized cup of coffee at most fast food places. Just figure out what tastes right for you. Sorry, about the rambling. It's 2:02 a.m., and I still have to make a posterboard, and write a three page paper for school. High school sucks, I don't care what anyone says.

 

This post bears the TRUTH!!!

 

Maybe I should take up residence at a dunkin' donuts or McDonald's. just long enough to lift a couple bags of beans... i really want to move to costa rica (me thinks) when i retire.... i can probably grab a great cup locally every morning when i walk my pet monkey

 

Everyone will have different opinions on coffee, until the end of time. People say i make horrible coffee, but maybe thats because its always black. Either way, coffee - i believe is just weird in general. My best advice would be , just stay away from it! haha

 

There are 3 keys to good coffee - good coffee beans, good water, and a clean coffeemaker. The rest is just personal taste.

I've moved around a lot (not far away, but with water from different sources). I found that Yuban works best for me in most places, it seems less dependant on the type/taste of water. The downside of Yuban is that it can be a bit difficult at first to get it the strength you like, but that's simple to adjust.

 

I bought a nice brush to clean out my coffee maker. A 12oz package of New ENgland Coffe Breakfast Blend to try out tomrrow. and a pyrex measuring cup to measure filtered water from my fridge.. I'll start from there if i can't get this tasting good, i'll get another coffee and give it a shot. strenghthening and weakening one F stop (like when you bracket pictures is the chance i'll give it.. results to follow soon...

 

ive actually never drank coffee before. i do enjoy a nice cup of tea though.

peace&love
ryv

 

one way to have great coffee.....grind your own beans

 

ITS RAINING!!!

hard back-slapping, thundering rain...I fuckin love it...
but I have no one over to drag into the rain to dance with me >_<
and im drinking coffee sitting on my window pane while the cold splatters my legs...

rain-kissed coffee is the best ^_^

 

IT'S NOT RAINING HERE....

It's cool though..
I'm sitting on the sofa, ate a box of 12.9 oz yogurt burst cheerios.
I'm tired.. probably the medication.
I made the new england coffee today. i need to reduce the amount.
I guess the more i use the more i'd use it up. so that's why they $uggest
i use 1 rounded per 6oz.

i tell them, i'll give them 5, at most.. i'll do that now. i'm going to
make 2 cups with 2*(5/6) well rounded tablespoons of new england coffee.
i'm not afraid to try 4 if it's too strong either!

 

I have a friend who's a recreational tea drinker (?) and he has only drank a cup of coffee once (when we were on E) and said he'll never touch it again!
This guy actually quit tea for two weeks over a random bet with a friend that he wouldn't lose a small empty plastic bag (baggy, as in weed bag); but he did lose it and packed the tea in!
I'm still wondering why.

 

Is it fair trade coffee???

 

There is only one way to make really good coffee. Buy the beans green. Roast them yourself; I like a full city roast. Wait about 24-36 hours for the CO2 to come out of the beans. Grind them, and put the coffee in a French Press. Make sure the water is very hot-about 180-200 degrees, and steep the coffee for about 3-4 minutes. Voila!
P.S.--get rid of the automatic coffee maker. They do not get the water nearly hot enough. And the paper filter filters out the oils of the bean, and thus the flavor.

 

yeah i just never have had a want to drink it. i suppose it could be a good thing.

peace&love
ryv

 

Those filters are bleached with chlorine too...not too healthy.

 

Yep. And the filters make even the best coffee taste like crap. People who don't roast their own coffee (and use a French Press or a Vacuum Brewer) are really missing out on what really good coffee is all about. http://www.sweetmarias.com/

 

thanks for the link.. what beans from there would be great for a simple morning cup that has a coffee ground fragrance, and a similar aftertaste... i guess i'm asking what would taste like mcdonald's when the make it the best they can make it.. because i find that extremely satisfying in the morning..

 

I 101% back this method up. I love to make coffee this way, it works better than anything else. I leave it black, though, and sometimes I don't pour it through the mesh.

 

your just not a coffee maker.
im impatient and dont wait for the kettle to boil so i make cold coffee..yuck!

 

you need to buy whole beans and a grinder. coffee goes stale a couple hours after being ground. folders is nasty, buy some fair trade beans or something, my favorite is columbian. also make sure you grind it to an automatic drip setting. grinding it for a perculator would make it too watery, an espresso grind would make it really strong and gross. i garuntee you'll taste the difference between the freshly ground beans and the vacuum packed folder's. fresh beans have a really smooth aftertaste.