What coffee are you drinking just now?

[Herbsman.]

The fruity flavours in the various coffees I've been drinking have returned my enthusiasm for eating fruit. I've been eating loads of strawberries and cherries and grapes and apples and blueberries and stuff, just enjoying the taste for the sake of it. So thanks coffee, you are responsible for the nutritional value of my diet improving slightly and for making my day a bit better, at least in a sensory sense.

 

[Don Troooomp]

I've had two today, one my favourite commercial packet mocha, the other from a local cafe - The latter not being that great.

 

[Herbsman.]

....I only use 36g in a normal week

Good grief! I use 28g in one cup!

 

[gentlegreen]

"gongfu" style of brewing (short infusion) ?

 

[Herbsman.]

"gongfu" style of brewing (short infusion) ?

'espresso'... well Delonghi's bean-to-cup version of it.

I use less in my Aeropress... about 12-18g

 

[gentlegreen]

One 18g scoop for 3/4 mug works for me.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

One 18g scoop for 3/4 mug works for me.

An aeropress scoop? Two and half to three for me making up the 300ml thermal mug to take work. Topped up with hot milk. Deceptively strong, but makes arriving at work somewhat more bearable, especially when I have to deal with clients shortly afterwards.

 

[gentlegreen]

An aeropress scoop? Two and half to three for me making up the 300ml thermal mug to take work. Topped up with hot milk. Deceptively strong, but makes arriving at work somewhat more bearable, especially when I have to deal with clients shortly afterwards.

Are you getting your money's worth out of the beans ?

 

[Herbsman.]

Kenya Kiriga Estate AB Washed

In the cup we're on a trip to Blackcurrant City!! There's an edge of black tea and a hint of cherry sweets on the finish, but blackcurrant screams and shouts all the way.

Desperately waiting for the postman. Currently drinking some Asda Colombian beans as a stopgap. Can't really say much about them flavour-wise but at £2.75 I suppose they're decent value for money if just for the caffeine

 

[UnderOpenSky]

Are you getting your money's worth out of the beans ?

Oh hell yes. It's only Aldi stuff and does amazing things to my sense of well being when I arrive at work.

And a fraction of the cost of buying one on the way in.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I'm drinking this Lidl stuff. Previously I was on a/v tried all variants of the branded stuff that cost £6 .
This is £2.50 I think, and tastes better (I did actual taste tests , as every now and then the branded ones drop to £3).

 

[pogofish]

A friend who often brings bags of utterly god-awful coffee when visiting, left me a tin last time.

Its been sitting in the kitchen but as I'm running low on good coffee, I finally looked in it and it turns out to be honey processed Ethiopian Ygracheffe - and it is very nice indeed. Not nearly as earthy a taste as the usual stufff.

 

[Don Troooomp]

Just has a caramel thing from a local coffee shop - Very nice

 

[gentlegreen]

 

[Herbsman.]

Not nearly as earthy a taste as the usual stufff.

If it tastes earthy, it must be freshly ground.

 

[danny la rouge]

If it tastes earthy, it must be freshly ground.

Baddoom tish.

 

[gentlegreen]

I see Hasbean are raving about Finca La Fany ...

I have vague recollections that I struggled to finish it when I bought it as an alternative to Guatemala El Bosque ...

"This is brown sugar, milk chocolate and hazelnut. It's full and round with a delicate white grape on the finish. A chugging coffee through and through."

El Salvador Finca La Fany Washed Bourbon

I'll probably take a punt though ...

 

[kalidarkone]

Got this for my bday, haven't tried it yet but LOOK AT THE PACKET! I feel like I've been given a Wonka bar!

 

[gentlegreen]

 

[Herbsman.]

I see Hasbean are raving about Finca La Fany ...

£6.60 with discount code and 2nd class postage? Worth a try! Ordered.

 

[gentlegreen]

£6.60 with discount code and 2nd class postage? Worth a try! Ordered.

Oh yes - hadn't spotted that !
I'd only just realised it was a long weekend too

 

[Herbsman.]

Since Has bean updated their site's design, the wish list has disappeared. 'twas a useful feature

 

[Herbsman.]

Just got an email from Chris at Has Bean saying that there were issues with the functionality of the wish list and the site developers are working on adding it to the new site.

 

[ViolentPanda]

For some reason a 1kg bag of Taylors of Harrogate "Hot Lava Java" beans were included in an order (for Tropical Sun coconut water) last month (not charged, so...). Quite nice in a robust, smoky choccy sort of way, but not a patch on the "Old Brown Java" I occasionally buy from The Bean Shop.

 

[gentlegreen]

So the Finca El Fany ...

Quite acidic - but probably less so than a Colombian - so I'm going to try blending it

 

[gentlegreen]

I weighed my bean collection and found I had about 100g each of the previous beans and about 200g of the new - and 5:5:10 turns out to be very nice indeed
The only way I can go much lower now is to try some cheapo Aldi beans as a reference.
If they're as crap as I expect, will I have the nerve to patronise my colleagues by leaving them with a "help yourself" note in the staffroom ?

 

[UnderOpenSky]

I came away for 5 days and forgot my coffee making kit. No decent places to buy one in the morning either. Just made a simple French press of strong Javan from Aldi. It was like nector.

It's funny. I've got caffine pills with me, but they really don't replicate that feeling a serious cup of coffee brings.

 

[Chz]

I see Hasbean are raving about Finca La Fany ...

I have vague recollections that I struggled to finish it when I bought it as an alternative to Guatemala El Bosque ...

"This is brown sugar, milk chocolate and hazelnut. It's full and round with a delicate white grape on the finish. A chugging coffee through and through."

El Salvador Finca La Fany Washed Bourbon

I'll probably take a punt though ...

Trying it now. It's pretty nice, though surprisingly not too different to the Sumatran (Union's Gaja Mountain) that we just finished. But then the tasting notes on that were "grapefruit, treacle, and cocoa" so you'd expect them to not be wildly different.

That said, I've only had the one cup so far and I'll let y'all know what I think once we've drank the lot.

 

[Herbsman.]

So the Finca El Fany ...

Quite acidic - but probably less so than a Colombian - so I'm going to try blending it

I tried it and didn't find it particularly acidic... I got the brown sugar sweetness, chocolatey notes and what I guess is nuttiness at the end (can't eat nuts as I'm allergic, so don't know what they taste like to normal people) and a bit of soft acidity which I suppose explains the mention of white grape.
Sometimes I think I'm imagining all these flavours due to having read them before tasting the stuff, but other times (like the Kenyan one that tastes like orange sherbet) they're that prominent that it's hard to believe that artificial flavours haven't been added.

Anyways... I only came here to say Has Bean are doing 25% off in exchange for completing their survey.. .

 

[gentlegreen]

0.2857142857142857 in a normal week.
It's one generous mug when I'm at home.