Coffee/Espresso anyone?

[TwistedLefty]

I started my love for the Java at 11.
I'm 6'2" so i guess if it stunted my growth i woulda' been about 7'
The wife bought me a cheap combo drip/espresso machine a few weeks ago and I'm lovin' it!
i can already make a great Mocha Latte, cinnamon Hazelnut Latte, and a killer Caramel Macchiato that puts starbucks to shame!
any other sly "Baristas" out there?

[PowerOfCheese]

I'm far from a barista and too lasy to make a caramel macchiato or even cappuccino but I have a coffee press and really enjoy a double espresso on Sunday mornings.

I don't drink espresso before work. Makes me too hyper for a desk job.

Do you have a favorite bean?

[TwistedLefty]

Do you have a favorite bean?

not yet really, i'm trying to master my own grind now and have only tried a few roasts. any suggestions?

[PowerOfCheese]

No suggestions really. I get a pound of important Italian espresso beans once in a while when I'm near a particular specialty market by me. I just can't taste the difference between the fancy imported and the $8.99 a lb stuff I get at Acme.

[Timmay]

twistedlefty..that looked like an onion in there lol. 

I only drink coffee in the winter time.  I had bought a pound of coffee while I was in Haiti, I just broke it out last night after dinner.  Good stuff.  oh and i drink it Black....

[Brkeatr]

I like coffee but am not allowed to drink caffeine.....so I have to find decafe that tastes good and sometimes that's hard to do....

[Mike]

I dont make espresso but I do make coffee with some added stuff. Almost every morning I make a pot of black coffee and drink a cup or two of that to wake me up. Then when I am more awake I add some peanut butter and some caramel sauce and some chocolate syrup. It sounds gross but its great. When I go to the little coffee stands I always have a special order. I like vanilla coffee with caramel, starbucks always makes it just right.
 My wife goes to the espresso stands and knows all the fancy names for everything. It sounds like a foreign language to me, lol.
 

[wpruitt]

Gotta have my Joe

[GASlick]

I'm so simple.  Just black coffee for me.

[andrew]

I have coffee issues (when I'm not living in a hotel)

I roast my own beans and use a commerical grinder.    Everything is carefully timed, as ground coffee goes stale in 40 seconds.   Also, I give away unused beans after 10 days, which is when they begin to stale.  I roast for espresso, drip and press pot brewing.

I have friends and family begging for my coffee -  many who didn't expect to be able to tell the difference.

When we move into our house, the roasting shall begin again...

[ChallengeMe]

I roast my own coffee too, have been for the past year. I didn't know what good coffee till I started home roasting, you can taste the different flavor in it. This week I am drinking "Sumatra Lintong Grade One" with hints of herbal aromatics, tobacco, clove and pepper. I no longer want to order coffee when we go out to eat, or drink commercial coffee. With commercial coffee, when it gets cool you need to pour it out or warm it up. With home roast, that is when the flavor comes out.

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Now playing: Boz Scaggs - Harbor Lights
via FoxyTunes

[TwistedLefty]

God stuff Andrew & Challengeme,
 please share more about getting into home roasting!
i agree about the quick death (staleness) of coffee after opening or grinding and would suggest what i use to put it off a bit (good coffee ain't cheap)
i use the round canisters to store both my fresh beans and freshly ground.
i used to try and only grind enough for what i was using that day but I've found that if i vacuum seal it right away there is little to no noticeable difference if used within a few days.

http://www.foodsaver.com/Category.aspx?id=c&cid=89

[PowerOfCheese]

I've never roasted my own but from what you guys described it sounds awesome. It is now on my to do list.

[tomgallagher]

I'm a real low brow as far as coffee is concerned. I guess it goes back to all those years drinking Army coffee, hot, black and strong.

[cooncatbob]

Coffee guys have their own forums too.
http://coffeegeek.com/forums