Ask HN: How do you make/get your coffee whilst WFH?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26530646

by wombatmobile • 5 years ago

6 40 5 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

mondoshawan2• 5 years ago

1) Get up 2) Go to kitchen 3) Make coffee

wombatmobile4• 5 years ago

What device/s and ingredients do you use?

mondoshawan2• 5 years ago

1) Sleep Number Bed, 2) Breville espresso grinder and coffee maker 3) Lavazza coffee, whole milk, coffee cup, mouth and stomach. :D

chunkles2• 5 years ago

I've got a few methods. (1) Cold brew, requires prep the night before. (2) French press. (3) Espresso machine.

Which method I use depends on my mood that day and how much time I want to sink into making the coffee.

wombatmobile4• 5 years ago

What apparatus do you use for cold brew?

Jtsummers2• 5 years ago

Not GP, but I use my French press and let it sit overnight. Then pour it into a growler and keep it in the fridge. It’s simpler and tastes the same as my friends’ fancier setups to me.

chunkles2• 5 years ago

Typically just a large measuring cup with a lid. You don't need anything fancy to do cold brew though you can if you want to.

PaulHoule2• 5 years ago

I heat water in a kettle and pour it into a pour-over filter. I have also used a french press, Italian 'Moka' pot and other 'just add hot water' systems.

I have a spot where I'd like to plug in a drip coffee maker with a smart plug before going to bed. At sunrise - 5 min or so it would turn on the coffee maker and be ready when I wake up. The key though is the machine has to turn on as soon as the power turns on, which most coffee makers won't do.

(I use the outlet for other cooking devices during the day so the last thing I want is another timer to set)

Probably I should go to the salvation army and get an old one and hack the control circuit so it turns on when the power turns on ('push' the button with a 555?) but I haven't heard of anyone doing that as simple as it sounds.

wikibob2• 5 years ago

There’s a far simpler solution.

Most old fashion electric coffee makers just above the cheapest option have a clock and auto start timer.

Then get a 3 in 1 outlet extender so you can leave it plugged in and use the outlet.

Disclaimer: Mr Coffee style coffee makers don’t make great coffee. The water doesn’t get quite hot enough.

PaulHoule2• 5 years ago

I don't want the machine occupying that space during the day.

Also I probably have some kind of minor power glitch at least once every two weeks and it drives me nuts to have to reset all the "vcr clocks" 20 times a year or so. If it set the clock against WWV or GPS or WiFi I might be able to handle it, but it just makes me depressed to see blinking clocks, set them, and know I'll have to do it again in two weeks.

sandruso• 5 years ago

Cheap hand grinder + Aeropress + coffee guru app.

Aeropress is complicated at first, but it is worth trying. Acidic flavors works great with aeropress.

wombatmobile4• 5 years ago

I googled it and watched some videos. Looks complicated!

wikibob2• 5 years ago

For myself after extensive testing with fresh roasted and ground beans, controlled water, bloom time, etc, I decided that pour over makes both a superior tasting and much simpler cup.

Finnucane• 5 years ago

Kettle plus pour-over for me. This is what I did in the office too, but then it was a single-cup, now I make a half-pot for self and spouse. Why make things complicated before coffee is made?

elmerfud• 5 years ago

Freeze dried coffee. It quick, fast, and quite tasty.

mytailorisrich2• 5 years ago

Sage espresso machine with coffee beans from Costco.

I was lucky enough that I bought the coffee machine off Amazon last year right before lockdown (here in UK), since then the price has gone up £100-£150 when in stock.

sbuk• 5 years ago

Similar, but with a manual Gaggia machine. Tried several different coffee subscriptions, but ultimately settled on Lavazza Qualità Rossa.

_throwawayaway• 5 years ago

I use moka pot, love the design and simplicity. Currently have one from Ikea.

Minor49er• 5 years ago

I put some ice in a glass, put in about 1/4 cold brew, then top the rest off with water. It's refreshing and only costs $5 a week for the brew (LaCombe light roast is the best!)

mindcrime• 5 years ago

With the same Mr. Coffee drip coffee maker I've used for the past 15 years or so. I primarily use Lavazza Classico[1] or Lavazza Perfetto[2] coffee. The interesting thing about this coffee though, is that it's so non-bitter that it actually seems a little weird after so many years of drinking Starbucks coffee, and other really bitter brands. I find that I need to mix in just a little bit of something like the Starbucks brand Sumatra, to bring back just a touch of bitterness. If I don't, my cup of coffee feels like it's missing something.

[1] https://italybestcoffee.com/products/lavazza-classico-ground...

[2] https://italybestcoffee.com/products/lavazza-perfetto-ground...

ksaj• 5 years ago

I mix hand-ground premium beans with a commercial ground coffee that I already like. It makes it taste and feel expensive, but not really all that much more expensive. It's also half the exercise than grinding the whole thing every morning.

As for prep, I have a lot of different coffee making gizmos. Regular drip, French press, stove top espresso maker, Vietnamese coffee maker. I also have a cloth filter, but I don't use it so often that it would wear down quickly. It does make amazingly smooth brew, though. Each of them has their own pros and cons, but they all make good coffee which result in subtle variations in the final experience.

In the summer, I French Press a pot and put it in the fridge with milk and sugar already added (and far less sugar than commercial ice coffees). The press allows you to make super potent coffee, so you can add lots of ice and it won't ever taste too watery.

cdaringe• 5 years ago

At the start of the pandemic,

Moka pot. Loved it. A bit slow, not that delicious for making espresso. Not bad! Could be better.

A few months in,

Over priced fancy Italian espresso machine. Love it. Beans from local roasters, steamed creamy oat milk for a smooth, large volume, morning caffeinated beverage.

wombatmobile4• 5 years ago

Ah! Same. I was wondering if others hadn't been driven to buy some sort of espresso machine. I bought one for $70 from Kmart, and loved it. Then I got a fancy grinder second hand and it improved the espresso a lot. So then I upgraded to a second hand DeLonghi Icona after a while. It was only $50 because it leaked, but I fixed that with a screwdriver and pliers.

Now considering "fancy Italian".

alexmingoia• 5 years ago

I pour coffee beans into a manual bur grinder, then into a French press.

I buy medium-roast washed beans grown locally by organic farmers, from a local roaster who delivers them once a month.

approxim8ion• 5 years ago

I'm not picky. I have a drip coffee machine, but cheap instant coffee is fine too.

yokoprime• 5 years ago

V60 pour over set. Takes less space than a coffee maker and is cheap.

kevinherron• 5 years ago

V60 pour over, a nice conical burr grinder, and a Fellow Stagg EKG pour over kettle.

richardknop• 5 years ago

I buy it during my daily walk to groceries shop.

seattle_spring• 5 years ago

Chemex twice a day, 45g coffee to 720g water. This is for 2 people, not just myself.

ecesena• 5 years ago

Breville BES870XL Barista [1].

Hands down the best purchase of 2020. It feels a bit expensive, but I bought it via Amazon paying in installments. I configured it for 1x = espresso, 2x = larger like almost a small americano. My wife & I have been making 4-6 coffees/day for the past months, flawlessly.

Nest on the list: roast my own beans.

Edit: another relevant note, how did I choose it? I've asked 2 Italian+foody+nerd friends independently, nerd as it typically they compare 100 products before choosing. They both had this machine. The machine is French and they both are Italians... that's a lot of trust :)

[1] https://www.breville.com/us/en/products/espresso/bes870.html

mytailorisrich2• 5 years ago

That looks like exactly the Sage model I have. Clearly multiple branding going on, maybe per country (I'm in the UK).

Anyway, same situation as you: multiple cups for the wife and I daily since February 2020 without a glitch.

I set it for double espresso then I fill up the mug to get an americano. I don't use the quantity setting for the grinder, I do it manually in several small steps.

westcort• 5 years ago

I have an aeropress, but just make instant. After I was sick, I need 12 cups of coffee daily just to stay awake. I wonder if I will ever feel the same again.

ryanchants• 5 years ago

Whole beans local here in Chicago, normally Metropolis or Dark Matter.

Grind in burr grinder.

Heat water to 175 in an electric kettle.

Brew in Aeropress. Pour enough water to cover grounds, stir for 30 seconds. Trickle water in for 30 seconds to fill. Plunge and serve.

Jtsummers2• 5 years ago

Burr grinder to make grounds for either the moka pot or the French press. Sometimes cold brew from the French press.

runjake• 5 years ago

A normal coffee machine or an espresso from my Gaggia.

It just depends on how lazy I am that day. Most work days, it's just drip coffee. I try to limit myself to 1-2 cups a day.

rozenmd• 5 years ago

Rancilio Silvia V6, and I get fresh coffee beans via subscription (easy to find good beans here in Australia).

bradknowles• 5 years ago

Grady’s Cold Brew Pitcher Packs: https://www.amazon.com/Gradys-Cold-Brew-Iced-Coffee/dp/B016X...

I buy them by the 48-count box.

InitEnabler• 5 years ago

I use "Coffee, Instant, Type II"

punchclockhero• 5 years ago

I like Moka pot coffee, but cleaning it sucks, so I got myself an Ikea French press. Still keep a jar of instant just in case.

frompdx• 5 years ago

Bunn VP17. I bought it after I got tired of how long it took to make coffee with a chemex.

Ask HN: How do you make/get your coffee whilst WFH?

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