[bpape]

Eight O' Clock Coffee has some of the best 100% Colombian I have ever had. It's outstanding.

Have fun,
Jerry

+1 on the 8 o'clock.  If you want a little extra kick to it, mix in some from Cafe DuMonde.

Bryan

[turkey]

They also had a "Kona blend" that tasted absolutely nothing like Kona, but made a good afternoon cup of coffee.

"Kona" coffee has been one of the most misrepresented and scammed coffees for many years.  The amount sold worldwide has been estimated to be 2 to 3 times the 2 million pound annual production of Kona.
 
There have been companies convicted of selling assorted South American coffees in bags labeled "100% Kona".
 
Those labeled "Kona Blend" can have as little as 2% Kona, with 5% being the most common.  Unfortunately the best way to guarantee a real cup of Kona is at a plantation on the Kona coast of Hawaii.
 

I get mine from Smith Farms. http://www.smithfarms.com/

[ken]

I'm not sure what qualifies as "cheap" as the mass marketed brands routinely sell for $5-6 per can, which in just about all cases is for 12oz and not a lb. I would definitely check out Fairways coffee and again if you're in north Jersey and care to spend a little more there is a terrific little roaster in Maywood worth seeking out as well. 

http://www.moondoggiecoffee.com/index.html

[Quiet Earth]

  I also know that a lot of people have never had a really good cup of coffee

Wow, are you serious? There are more coffee shops and roasters around my house than Taco Bells and McDonald's. I think one of them could make a cup of coffee or sell beans that are good enough for you.

As for price, even 15 dollars for a pound of beans is cheaper than dropping into Starbucks for a cup of coffee. If they would make you a cup of regular coffee. I don't think they know what "cup of coffee" means.

Coffee is one of life's little inexpensive treats. I don't know how it became so complicated.

[ken]

I get mine from Smith Farms. http://www.smithfarms.com/

Wow!  That's an excellent price for Kona, especially for the green beans

[turkey]

  I also know that a lot of people have never had a really good cup of coffee

Wow, are you serious? There are more coffee shops and roasters around my house than Taco Bells and McDonald's. I think one of them could make a cup of coffee or sell beans that are good enough for you.

Yep. Many people have never had anything but Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts, etc.

As for price, even 15 dollars for a pound of beans is cheaper than dropping into Starbucks for a cup of coffee. If they would make you a cup of regular coffee. I don't think they know what "cup of coffee" means.

I have found that all too many coffee shops (and roasters too) try to compete with Charbucks. They're offering the same type of coffee to the same consumers.

There are plenty of people who buy ground coffee in a can. They don't know what good coffee is. In fact, I'm not sure that anyone who buys coffee already ground actually knows what good coffee is.

[turkey]

I get mine from Smith Farms. http://www.smithfarms.com/

Wow!  That's an excellent price for Kona, especially for the green beans

They are super nice people too. It's a pleasure dealing with them.

[mcullinan]

lol...

[ctviggen]

  I also know that a lot of people have never had a really good cup of coffee

Wow, are you serious? There are more coffee shops and roasters around my house than Taco Bells and McDonald's. I think one of them could make a cup of coffee or sell beans that are good enough for you.

Yep. Many people have never had anything but Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts, etc.

As for price, even 15 dollars for a pound of beans is cheaper than dropping into Starbucks for a cup of coffee. If they would make you a cup of regular coffee. I don't think they know what "cup of coffee" means.

I have found that all too many coffee shops (and roasters too) try to compete with Charbucks. They're offering the same type of coffee to the same consumers.

There are plenty of people who buy ground coffee in a can. They don't know what good coffee is. In fact, I'm not sure that anyone who buys coffee already ground actually knows what good coffee is.

Hate to say it, but I like Dunkin Donuts' coffee.  I don't like Starbucks' however. 

To be honest, I find these comments to be a little highbrow.  My parents bought and buy coffee in a can, but they can't afford anything else.  Even I have a hard time buying coffee from the local supermarket, as it's gotten so expensive.  I joined Costco solely to buy cheap coffee. 

[lcrim]

"To be honest, I find these comments to be a little highbrow." 

Thank God, I was beginning to think it was just me. 

To be sure, my view of "inexpensive but good coffee" has changed dramatically.   

[satfrat]

"To be honest, I find these comments to be a little highbrow." 

Thank God, I was beginning to think it was just me. 

To be sure, my view of "inexpensive but good coffee" has changed dramatically.

And that sums up my audio/good coffee comparison Larry. Everyone's opinion of what makes good coffee is as subjective to the tastebud as what constitutes good audio is to the ear,,,, with the cost of both being just as subjective. 
 
Cheers,
Robin

[Tyson]

The main thing with good coffee is that it's fresh.  And in a grocery store, you can't be sure if the coffee has been sitting there for a while or not.  I agree that investing in a good bur grinder and buying whole beans is a way to make ANY cup of coffee taste better (even the cheap stuff), so I'd recommend doing that as a first step. 

[turkey]

The main thing with good coffee is that it's fresh.  And in a grocery store, you can't be sure if the coffee has been sitting there for a while or not.  I agree that investing in a good bur grinder and buying whole beans is a way to make ANY cup of coffee taste better (even the cheap stuff), so I'd recommend doing that as a first step.

+1

[turkey]

I must admit that I don't understand why someone would be satisfied with lesser quality coffee. (Particularly the canned stuff that's mostly robusta.)

If I found coffee becoming expensive, I would drink less of it. I would not drink lower-quality coffee.

Too high-brow?

Does that apply to audio gear too? You all have Bose Wave Radios?

[turkey]

"To be honest, I find these comments to be a little highbrow." 

Thank God, I was beginning to think it was just me. 

To be sure, my view of "inexpensive but good coffee" has changed dramatically.

And that sums up my audio/good coffee comparison Larry. Everyone's opinion of what makes good coffee is as subjective to the tastebud as what constitutes good audio is to the ear,,,, with the cost of both being just as subjective. 
 

No. Coffee is almost completely subjective, although there is very good agreement on what is good and what's not amongst the professionals.

I'm going to disagree that audio equipment is subjective, anymore than a xerox machine is. (There's some subjectivity to speakers, but that's about it.) We can measure audio electronics and see what they're doing, and choose good and bad based on that.

Now, if you want to talk about music, or even recording techniques, then we can get subjective.

This is definitely the wrong place to discuss this, but you did bring it up.

[Christof]

The main thing with good coffee is that it's fresh.  And in a grocery store, you can't be sure if the coffee has been sitting there for a while or not.  I agree that investing in a good bur grinder and buying whole beans is a way to make ANY cup of coffee taste better (even the cheap stuff), so I'd recommend doing that as a first step.

+1

+2
If a nice burr grinder is too expensive just buy a manual hand crank burr grinder, you wont have to listen to the awful electric grinder noise first thing in the A.M. (because one would ruin beans by grinding them the night before  )
Secondly, I recommend this brewer for anyone on a budget, it's a thing of simplistic beauty...
clever coffee dripper from Sweet Marias


And finally, roast your own damn beans....it's much cheaper, easy to do and fun 

[Quiet Earth]

I think these are all good suggestions to try but if someone goes through a bunch of trouble to make a cup of coffee and still feels dissatisfied, I have to wonder if he actually enjoys coffee in the first place.  (Not sayin the OP doesn't like his cup o joe, I'm just sayin' in general.) Reminds me of the guy who has assembled the technically perfect stereo system but can't sit through an entire record. Maybe a different beverage is in order?

I drink my no name local coffee that I grind up the night before. . . . . and then put into a...... *gasp*........ drip coffee pot.    Son of a gun, I enjoy it that way. I drink it black, adding only a splash of water from the tap to calm it down. The wife likes cream and sugar. I know, I know, so uncivilized.

Back to the original question, I'm thinking I would look for a different way to make coffee if you are going through beans too quickly with that gadget.

[satfrat]

"To be honest, I find these comments to be a little highbrow." 

Thank God, I was beginning to think it was just me. 

To be sure, my view of "inexpensive but good coffee" has changed dramatically.

And that sums up my audio/good coffee comparison Larry. Everyone's opinion of what makes good coffee is as subjective to the tastebud as what constitutes good audio is to the ear,,,, with the cost of both being just as subjective. 
 

No. Coffee is almost completely subjective, although there is very good agreement on what is good and what's not amongst the professionals.

I'm going to disagree that audio equipment is subjective, anymore than a xerox machine is. (There's some subjectivity to speakers, but that's about it.) We can measure audio electronics and see what they're doing, and choose good and bad based on that.

Now, if you want to talk about music, or even recording techniques, then we can get subjective.

This is definitely the wrong place to discuss this, but you did bring it up.

ALL my comments are qeared towards Larry and his question as I see it (which I'm sure is different than Larry's seeing it). Go talk to yurself turkey, I ain't interested.
 
Cheers,
Robin

[pjanda1]

Coffee is not entirely subjective.  Stale is stale, and if it was roasted more than a week or two before you brew it, it is stale.  If it was ground more than 20 minutes before you brew it, it's stale. If it tastes like tree bark, it ain't good.  Depending on your age, if your great grandparents drank coffee, they did not drink stale coffee.  They roasted it themselves, likely in a cast iron skillet or pot.  And they ground it right before they brewed.  Honestly, that's probably 90% of the battle.  Find me a "professional" that likes stale coffee.  Yet that is nearly all one can buy at the grocery store and/or a painfully high number of "coffee" shops, even those that look fancy.

Much as we'd all like the think that hi-fi is all about faithfullness, it is at least as much about snobbery.  Now, often folks have only one or two things they are snobbish about.  You might, for example, enjoy a frozen pizza and a Bud Light while listening casually to a darn fancy audio system.  A few of us are also snobs about most everything from amps, to food and drink to shoes and/or boots.  No matter what, if you are traversing these parts, (the Culinary Circle of an Audio Forum!), you can't fault folks for being picky.

Paul
www.wildburroaudio.com

[Quiet Earth]

It's settled then. I like stale coffee.
I'm good with that.

I better go grind some up for the morning.