America runs on bad coffee
- keno
- Posts: 1409
- Joined: 18 years ago
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
It's true: Americans like to drink bad coffee
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- Posts: 323
- Joined: 18 years ago
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.
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.
- keno (original poster)
- Posts: 1409
- Joined: 18 years ago
+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!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.
- kaldi61
- Posts: 266
- Joined: 9 years ago
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.
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."
LMWDP #506 "It's not just for breakfast anymore."
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- Posts: 72
- Joined: 10 years ago
This is correct, their popularity declined in the 60s due to the perculator.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.
- bluesman
- Posts: 1594
- Joined: 10 years ago
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 -kaldi61 wrote:I believe there was a time when Vac pots were the standard means for coffee brewing in America.
- sweaner
- Posts: 3013
- Joined: 16 years ago
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.
A Keurig was my gateway drug.
Scott
LMWDP #248
LMWDP #248
- kaldi61
- Posts: 266
- Joined: 9 years ago
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.
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."
LMWDP #506 "It's not just for breakfast anymore."
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- Posts: 201
- Joined: 10 years ago
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
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