I personally use a lever espresso machine and a hand grinder, but I also love a V60 pour over or an aeropress on occasion. I like lighter roasts and pulling 3 to 1 water to bean shots, personally!
French press. It's easy to brew a decent cup of coffe, it doesn't take up space on the countertop, cleanup is easy and it's the kind of coffe I grew up drinking.
Which lever machine do you have? I used to use a La Pavoni but it started giving these metal flakes and I got weirded out that the copper was leeching out of the boiler. I also have a hand grinder because it will last way longer than an electric grinder motor.
I drink tea, but the one time in my life when I truly enjoyed coffee was in Costa Rica. they use a pour-over method with a simple wooden device with a cloth filter called a chorreador
maybe the coffee itself was just really good but I loved how natural and cozy the experience felt compared to the sterile plastic modernist efficiency of the coffee makers I was used to
That's why a lot of people love pour over! It's also why I love my lever machine and hand grinder, it's a very mechanical ritual in a very digital world.
I roast green coffee in a pan, takes maybe 30 min including prep and cleanup.
Then into the burr grinder and aeropress with a metal mesh.
It's a lot of fun and lasts 2-3 weeks before I make more. Also the coffee is cheaper.
Caffeine hasn’t been treating me well for a while and I miss coffee so much. But I’d throw a reusable cheesecloth bag into a big ol pitcher with a bunch of light roast into the fridge for a couple days and make some gooood strong coldbrew!
I have this really shitty drip pot that cost 34 dollars 8 years ago. The drip valve broke off when I dropped the filter cone a couple years ago so now you have to wait until it's good and done before you even think about taking coffee.
It maximizes my micro plastic consumption but it simply won't die.
I grind my beans with an electric burr grinder that I have never cleaned and now it's not outputting as much grinds as it should so I'll have to give in and take it apart soon.
I used to use this hand grinder daily for like 2-3 years. Its a really nice japanese one with ceramic burrs that I bought on impulse. I'm really glad I got the electric grinder as a gift.
Try this one from wally mart. Last one worked for two years before the heating element went out. Before I started using these I had a $25 mr coffee and when I took it apart it was identical and prob made by the same place in China. I also re use the filters once or twice scoop the old grounds out with a spoon. Main problem I'm having rn is 3X increase in coffee prices. Kroger used to have decent cheap house brand but they are trying to phase out their generic product lines. The new thing in grocery store biz model is replace generic house brand with a premium house brand. Kroger no label -> Kroger Private Selection, Meijer no label -> Frederik's by Meijer
I’ve got a Bambino mini espresso machine. I like my beans as dark as night, when they’re so roasted that they’re starting to get oily (my wife says this indicates the beans have spoiled but she is wrong). Four double shots into the mug effectively making an Americano.
~15 year old nespresso machine with the little pods. they make this Napoli one that I've been specifically addicted to for years. would love a real espresso machine but can't afford it really
Espresso certainly is never cheap, but manual machines like the Nomad or Flair Neo can be afforded by more people than the $1000+ machines some people get into.