America runs on bad coffee

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keno
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#1: Post by keno »

No surprises here I guess, but it is interesting that preground coffee and convenience continue to take a larger and larger share of the market despite the "growth" of specialty coffee.

It's true: Americans like to drink bad coffee

Mark08859
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#2: Post by Mark08859 »

Amen. Products such as Keurig brewers have made generic coffee exceptionally easy and virtually foolproof to make. Taste almost becomes secondary at that point. To be honest, everyone that I know who owns a Keurig type product does seem to like it quite a bit.

It also doesn't help that a lot of "artisianal" shops make a so-so latte, espresso, etc. The article correctly notes pricing. Even I stopped buying drinks from a downtown NY coffee shop when the latte (12 oz) started pushing the $5 mark. Now, it's just the espresso I make at home.

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keno (original poster)
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#3: Post by keno (original poster) »

Mark08859 wrote:It also doesn't help that a lot of "artisianal" shops make a so-so latte, espresso, etc. The article correctly notes pricing. Even I stopped buying drinks from a downtown NY coffee shop when the latte (12 oz) started pushing the $5 mark. Now, it's just the espresso I make at home.
+1 to that Mark! Unless I know the cafe or they come highly recommended I do my best to avoid having to drink coffee outside of my home. We at HB are the ultimate coffee snobs!

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kaldi61
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#4: Post by kaldi61 »

Amen to that.

If I am not mistaken, I believe there was a time when Vac pots were the standard means for coffee brewing in America. Like in many other arenas, quality gave way to convenience.

Most coffee in America reminds me of a story my father told me many years ago, from something he read about the whaling station at South Georgia Island. They did not have coffee, but had plenty of 'ships biscuits' also known as hardtack- rock hard biscuits that stored quite well. They would burn them and scrape the char into water. In the morning they would call it coffee or cocoa, and at night they would call it tea.
-Nelson

LMWDP #506 "It's not just for breakfast anymore."

Bkultra
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#5: Post by Bkultra »

kaldi61 wrote: If I am not mistaken, I believe there was a time when Vac pots were the standard means for coffee brewing in America. Like in many other arenas, quality gave way to convenience.
This is correct, their popularity declined in the 60s due to the perculator.

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bluesman
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#6: Post by bluesman »

kaldi61 wrote:I believe there was a time when Vac pots were the standard means for coffee brewing in America.
I grew up with them - in fact, our old one was one of my favorite toys when I was a little kid in the late '40s and early '50s. I suspect that many of you don't realize what they looked like back then -



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sweaner
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#7: Post by sweaner »

A Keurig or a pod machine actually makes much better coffee than can be gotten at most restaurants. Easily in the top 40% of coffee. So, not "bad" but certainly not great.

A Keurig was my gateway drug.
Scott
LMWDP #248

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kaldi61
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#8: Post by kaldi61 »

No need to apologize. The K-cup system is a sharp invention, even though you are spot-on about it being in the 40th %ile for coffee quality. Rate limiting step there is the aging pre-ground cups made with mass-market bean blends. Is it better than no coffee at all? Probably.

Re: Restaurant coffee, a few years ago my wife and I were eating at 11 Madison Park in NYC. It was actually the day after they received the James Beard award for best restaurant in America. At the end of the meal, which was incredible, they took my wife and I on a tour through the kitchen. On our way to the back we passed through a prep area and I saw they were preparing coffee in a vac pot. This was after I had already had my coffee, which was delicious, but they didn't do it table-side, because it wasn't a show to them. It was just how they thought coffee should be made.
-Nelson

LMWDP #506 "It's not just for breakfast anymore."

BuckleyT
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#9: Post by BuckleyT »

No surprise here, indeed.
The world runs on bad food, that is, processed convenience food.
The trend is as obvious in provincial Thailand as it is in Paris Michelin-rated restaurants.
Why should coffee, or milk, for that matter, be any different?

B