coffee

I take my morning brew a little too seriously, and I love yapping about it to anyone that will listen. Here you'll find my current set-up, my curated collection of coffee syrup recipes, and some general advice.


My Set-up

What I have stocking my little coffee bar, from beans to machines.

Current beans: Lost Sock in DC, both their decaf from Huila, Colombia and their Un Regalo de Dios from Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua.

Other bean go-tos: Conscious Cup back home, specifically their Brother's Espresso. I've been meaning to try their Station Street blend instead, though, since it's fair trade.

Coffee grinder: Baratza Encore ESP. I love this thing. I find the on/off switch a litle cheap for the price (and prone to falling off), but I typically just use the button on the front anyway. As a drinker of both drip coffee and espresso, I appreciate that it can do both while still having a pretty precise espresso range.

Coffee maker: ...the Mr. Coffee 5-Cup Coffee Maker. I got this when I went off to college and it has served me perfectly well since, so I feel absolutely no need to get a "better" one. The quality of your brew really just depends on your beans anyway.

Espresso machine: Rancilio Silvia, I believe v3. I inherited this beast from my parents after they stopped drinking espresso, and I love it to death. Having hot water more-or-less on demand is almost just as useful as being able to pull espresso.


Syrup Recipes

To be added: lavender, toasted brown sugar, gingerbread?

Simple Syrup

Every latte enthusiast and mixologist ought to know how to make a simple syrup, since it's the base for...basically all drink syrups. (Okay, maybe not all of them, but it does you pretty far.) It is literally just a one-to-one ratio of water and your sugar of choice (e.g., one cup of water + one cup of sugar), simmered until the sugar has fully incorporated into the water. Using a simple syrup as your base, you can kind of add whatever you want to make it your own. Some of my favorite recipes are below.

Banana Bread

This recipe originally comes from @amenderz7 on YouTube.

Mash the banana thoroughly before adding the rest of your ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Take off the heat, cool, and then strain and enjoy :]


General Coffee Advice

The most important thing is always going to be your coffee beans, and investing in fancy equipment is totally pointless if your beans suck. My biggest advice is to search for for local or otherwise small-batch roasters. You'll be paying more, but with that you'll be getting higher-quality beans that are roasted the same month (or even week!) you buy them. (This is, of course, also in service of my "support small businesses" agenda.)

As for actually picking your roast, that's going to be highly dependent on you as a person. Generally, lighter roasts are going to have a higher caffeine content than darker roasts, but the flavors vary widely irregardless of roast time. Personally, I like medium-to-light roasts for espresso because I think the concentration can make shots pulled from dark roasts too bitter, but for drip coffee I actually do tend to prefer dark-to-medium roasts. Again, you'll just have to experiment and see what you like best.

Storing coffee beans is where I think I have the absolute least amount of expertise. I was always taught to put the bag in the freezer, but now I typically leave my bags (sealed) on the counter and only use the freezer if I know I'm not likely to finish them within a month or two. I think some of the true afficiandos say you should buy an air-tight storage container, but for me I think it's unnecessary.

Another random tip is to spritz your beans with water just before grinding, as it reduces friction and helps prevent your coffee grounds from sticking to the inside of your grinder (which in turn means you have to clean the grinder less; very helpful, since that is easily the most obnoxious thing in the whole set-up to clean).