Cappuccino anyone.....

[Jim Bennett]

I am going to give up my coffee grinder after 30 years of buying whole beans.......

Wow, you seemed to have lots of good sense, and are making all kinds of the right decisions for yourself.......until you posted this. ;D

Kidding aside, there are lots of good manual grinders out there. The one single most important thing for a great cup of coffee is for the beans to be freshly ground.

For a few years I have used a Porlex Hand Mill while camping. Yes it takes a bit of work, but it stows nice, and does a great job of providing an even grind.

https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/porlex-tall-hand-mill

That is, until this spring, when I went looking for a solution that would more proficiently produce good ground beans off the grid. There are no decent 12V options to be had, and on a coffee forum a couple of the best manual grinder were suggested.

Enter the Orphan Express Lido 3 into my life. This grinder is absolutely fantastic. It provides a very even grind, and its biggest and best feature, is that it does so with ease, grinding is WAY more effortless than the Porlex. The build quality is top notch. I did a side-by-side comparison of the two, and grinding just over 40 gm in each (max for the Porlex, not for the OE), the Porlex took well over 300 cranks, while the Lido 3 took under 100, AND each revolution required less effort. Heck, when we first got the thing and tried it out at home, we just kept using it for a while, despite having a great electric grinder. It was that much of a pleasure to use.

http://www.oehandgrinders.com/OE-LIDO-3-Manual-Coffee-Grinder-_p_70.html

Sure, the Lido 3 is a bit bigger, heavier, and more expensive, but without any reservation whatsoever, I would say it is well worth the price. It is that nice to use. Case in point, when we flew up to Alaska in June, we took our coffee making stuff with us, our Aeropress, some beans, and decided on the Porlex grinder due to its size and weight, and the fact it does grind nicely. While it worked fine for us, we decided that it would be well worth the extra weight to bring the OE Lido 3, as we were making about 20 cups a day for everyone, for 5 days of the trip. When camping, we are often making coffee for lots of other people, so efficient grinding is nice, even if I do get them to do it.

It is kinda ironic that my coffee making equipment while camping is a $30 coffee maker, and a $195 grinder. (all in USD).

 

[BCnomad]

It is kinda ironic that my coffee making equipment while camping is a $30 coffee maker, and a $195 grinder. (all in USD).

Nice find Jim for the grinder.

 

[Jim Bennett]

Nice find Jim for the grinder.

No problem, Bruce. I am more than happy to share the finds that work great for me, usually well built, with good function. I am not going to mention the many more things I tried, but was less than happy with.

 

[Zardoz-ESC]

Oh wow, what great information you guys posted. Thank you so much!!!

... yardsale: Also giving up my beloved french press (thinking of how those grinds were going down my sink and also how long it would take me to clean it and wanting to reduce water usage) LOVE reading those great reports on solar!!!
.

Whoa now, let's not get carried away! The ONLY french press we use is in our trailer. It's from REI, plastic, and makes delicious coffee. Why get rid of yours?

 

[EDarby]

Ha! Yeah, I hear ya. Always was kind of a coffee snob. But am trying to simplify.
That said, the Orphan Express looks pretty sweet. As does the Sweet Maria. Am going to put the grinder purchase on hold for now, just because of $ (though saving a bunch on not getting the inverter!)
Will see how things turn out $-wise. And keeping these grinders in my notes! Thanks!!!

Wow, you seemed to have lots of good sense, and are making all kinds of the right decisions for yourself.......until you posted this. ;D

 

[StarvingHyena]

I would like to nominate Jim for an honary PhD on his disertation on hand held coffee grinders!

All in favor say "Aye!"

 

[Jim Bennett]

I would like to nominate Jim for an honary PhD on his disertation on hand held coffee grinders!

All in favor say "Aye!"

LOL
Okay, I promise to make you some coffees next time we camp together, Tom.

 

[Ron in BC]

I would like to nominate Jim for an honary PhD on his disertation on hand held coffee grinders!

All in favor say "Aye!"

Aye, and I think a suitable award would be a jar of Maxwell House instant coffee. ;D

Ron

 

[Jim Bennett]

Aye, and I think a suitable award would be a jar of Maxwell House instant coffee. ;D

Ron

You sir, will get no coffee.

 

[EDarby]

I do know the french press is great [wasn't sure how to write the plural of french press : french presses, french pressi ???]--just thought it would make clean up easier in the trailer with the little paper cone filters.

HowEVER, my first stop after pick up in Chilliwack is near Seattle. Ah do believe it's home of REI's flagship store -- will check it out. Far be it from me to ever have anything written in stone.

Whoa now, let's not get carried away! The ONLY french press we use is in our trailer. It's from REI, plastic, and makes delicious coffee. Why get rid of yours?

 

[yardsale]

Brain cramp. DON'T use French press in trailer due to the messy clean up required. Use a collapsable cone for a #4 filter which drains into the French Press container. Equally good coffee with much simpler cleanup. We grind our coffee in the store when we are on the road although I suppose you could use something like this. Hario Skerton Ceramic Coffee Grinder | Williams-Sonoma
Way cheaper than other grinders mentioned. Doubt you can alter the grind however.

 

[Ron in BC]

You sir, will get no coffee.

Well, OK by me because you probably wouldn't load it up with lots of milk and sugar to make it to my kind of delicious coffee. ;D

Ron

 

[dfandrews]

Well, OK by me because you probably wouldn't load it up with lots of milk and sugar to make it to my kind of delicious coffee. ;D

Ron

Yikes!
I now must reiterate what I've been saying for 50 years:
If it ain't worth drinkin' black, it ain't worth drinkin.!

I know, I know, Ron. YMMV

 

[Jim Bennett]

I do know the french press is great [wasn't sure how to write the plural of french press : french presses, french pressi ???]--just thought it would make clean up easier in the trailer with the little paper cone filters.

The AeroPress makes for quick clean up, just a quick rinse, and if you use the stainless steel filter instead of paper like I do, a quick wipe of it. I have used a French Press quite a bit and it does make decent coffee, though lots more fines floating in it, and if you don't decant it soon after pressing, it will become a bit more bitter.

Well, OK by me because you probably wouldn't load it up with lots of milk and sugar to make it to my kind of delicious coffee. ;D

Ron

That is not coffee, that is a coffee flavoured sweet drink. Since I was a teen and first drinking coffee, I have only drank it black, with the exception of cappuccino or a mocha. But, for my morning coffees, nothing beats that sweet, sweet aroma, and delicious taste of fresh ground, fresh brewed black, black coffee. Liqueur in my coffee, no thanks, but I will take a glass on the side.

We ground some coffee ahead for a 5 day canoe trip last September for convenience sake, and it was not too bad. I made a couple cups with it upon our return, then made a couple cups with fresh ground. Oh my god, the flavour profile was WAY broader and livelier, a huge taste difference. My wife put the rest of that ground stuff into the compost.

Seriously, by far the most important component to brewing a good cup of coffee, no matter what method you use extract it, is using fresh ground beans. Another very important aspect of this, is to get the grind right for the type of extraction you use. Coarse for Cowboy, Medium for French Press, Medium Fine for AeroPress, and Fine for Drip.

 

[tractors1]

Hilarious detail about coffee making for an ex-Navy guy. I'm just glad I don't make it with deionized water any more - tastes a bit off without the usual minerals.

 

[cpaharley2008]

While in the service the mess hall coffee was ofter referred to as the way of cleansing your body the same way latrine duty was for the latrines. You could put a spoon in it and the spoon stood up. Ahh, the good old days......

 

[rbryan4]

Build Sheet Questions

While in the service the mess hall coffee was ofter referred to as the way of cleansing your body the same way latrine duty was for the latrines. You could put a spoon in it and the spoon stood up. Ahh, the good old days......

That has certainly changed Jim. In the course of my work I sometimes have access to the DFAC on a military base. Since breakfast is cheap, I eat there when I do have access. The coffee is usually the color of Iced Tea. Luckily there is usually a coffee shop or convenience store nearby and I get my coffee there.

In fact, as we speak, I ate breakfast this morning in the DFAC on MacDill AFB. The coffee I'm drinking is certainly not from there.

 

[Charlie & Lucy]

We purchased the AeroPress (in March or April) after reading the threads on coffee making. I think it will work great for us. I've been using it on weekends to make my coffee. Love it. Easy peasy and it tastes really good. No fines floating! I purchased extra little round filters, small enough! I am not at the stage where I roast and grind my own beans tho. Little steps....
Lucy

 

[kstock11]

We've been using the Aeropress for a couple years now. We replaced the paper filters with the mesh SS filter. I couldn't believe the difference in taste. Where I used to need to add coffee creamer to "flavored" coffees, now, the extra taste (of the oils) comes through and the flavor of "black" coffee has been fantastic. A little money up front, but then when us "coffee snobs" are willing to pay hundreds to add better coffee grinders, it is worth the investment!

 

[Ruthe]

I am a tea drinker, but Terry insists on roasting his own beans along the way. When we don't have electricity he prowls the campgrounds for electric outlets -- sometimes sets up a table outside the restrooms and runs an extension cord to the outlet inside and roasts.