Brewing

I use a one cup cone filter coffee maker for most of the reviews on this site.
That’s it, the red thing you see sitting atop my coffee cup. I found it at a thrift store, and purchased it on a whim. It’s nothing but a piece of plastic that holds a filter cone. It takes a size two filter but I use a size four, which works just fine. Swear to God, it makes the best tasting coffee.
I think I figured out why. It’s in the way I make and drink the coffee.
I grind the beans. I put them directly in the filter. I put the hot (but not boiling) purified water in. Three minutes or so later the cup of coffee is ready.
And… I drink it immediately.
The secret is that coffee tastes the best within the first 20 minutes of brewing. After that, the coffee begins to break down, as does the flavor. This is why this little 49¢ wonder makes the best coffee.
And it makes it that way consistently, which is why I use it for doing the reviews.
To read more about manual one cup cone drip coffee makers, you can read the full article here: Best Coffee Maker

Whole Bean Vs. Pre-ground

I review both types here. Freshly roasted beans that I grind right before brewing, and coffee that is ground before packaging. The two are really like apples and oranges, so I have decided for the sake of the reviews, I will not compare one to the other directly.
Reason being, freshly roasted and ground coffee is a completely different experience than the alternative. It would be unfair to compare it against packaged ground coffee. Pre-ground coffee cannot compete.
There are some who just don’t want to grind their own coffee. I can respect that. It’s personal choice. I not so long ago was one of those coffee drinkers, mainly because of convenience. I also used to use a standard coffee machine, etc.
So when someone sends me pre-ground coffee I review it in that spirit, for those who enjoy gourmet coffee but don’t enjoy grinding … and so I put it on an entirely different scale.
But, my coffee loving friends, one of these days you’re going to be spoiled by something amazingly fresh and flavorful, and you’ll find it hard to go back.

My Introduction to Coffee

I learned to like coffee because of a sexy girl.
We were teenagers and she was ultimately cool, or, at least that’s what I thought at the time. She did what she pleased, she slept where she wanted, she landed any job that came her way and she abandoned it the moment she was paid. We’re talking a total free spirit, here. Crazy as a loon as it turned out, but definitely a free spirit.
And she introduced me to coffee. Good coffee. Not the instant crystallized crap my mom drank, but strong fresh coffee that was like injecting caffeine directly into my brain.
And for that alone, I will always be greatful.
Thank you crazy 16 year old wild child girl from my distant past. You may be long gone, but my passion for the java bean is stronger than ever. You’ll pry my coffee cup out of my cold dead hand.
Coffee, I love you.