When I went away to college, there were three things that I needed: a television, a computer (three gigs of ram was top of the line back then) and a coffee pot. I had no problem getting the television or computer to work, but the coffee maker was a different story. I had coffee before, but I had never brewed it to myself. I didn’t understand where the water was supposed to go and tried pouring it directly in with the coffee grounds. More coffee spilled on the counter, then made it into my coffee mug that morning. Luckily, by the second day of classes, I figured out that the water went into the water chamber. Simple concept, but I was too cool to read the directions.

Anyways, check out this required reading on what coffee equipment to bring to college and make sure you practice before the first day of classes.

Coffee 101

On the first day of classes, the last thing you want to be doing is running around trying to brew a cup of coffee to keep you awake for your 8am class. The perfect solution for the student that wants something easy and convenient is the single serve coffee machine. My recommendation is the Keurig B70. It’s been a few too many years since I had to wake up for an early morning class, but this coffee maker is great for when I’m half asleep and in a rush to get somewhere.

Keurig Platinum B70 Single Serve Coffee Maker $169.95
The Good:
* Easy To Use
* Makes A Quick Cup Of Coffee
* Easy To Clean

The Bad:
* Price Per K-Cup
* Isn’t Tall Enough For Travel Mugs
* How Environmentally Friendly Is It?

Do your homework and read the complete Daily Shot Of Coffee review.

Coffee 202

Single serve coffee makers aren’t for everyone. They’re convenient but the price is on the higher end of things and when you have hundreds of dollars worth of books to buy, I could understand why you would want to spend a little less on a more traditional coffee maker like the Black & Decker (DCM18S) Brew ‘n Go Personal Coffeemaker.
Black & Decker DCM18S Brew ‘n Go Personal Coffeemaker with Travel Mug $19.99

This personal coffeemaker brews 15 ounces of coffee directly into a stainless-steel travel mug. The mug has a rubber handle for a safe grip and a lid to keep coffee hot. It’s tapered to a 2-1/2-inch-diameter bottom, so it fits most vehicle cup holders. The coffeemaker itself is designed for an on-the-go coffee drinker. It has a permanent filter–no messy disposable paper filters required–and shuts off automatically after brewing. The mug, filter, filter basket, and mug lid are dishwasher-safe, and the coffeemaker can also be used to heat water for tea, hot chocolate, and instant foods like oatmeal and soup.

If you’re looking for something that can brew more than one cup of coffee, you have to check out the Zojirushi Fresh Brew Thermal Coffee Maker. It produces some of the best tasting coffee that I’ve ever had, plus it has a thermal carafe so you could go to your 8am class, go back to the dorm and still have hot coffee waiting for you.

Zojirushi (EC-BD15BA) Fresh Brew Thermal Carafe Coffee Maker $79.99

The Good:
* Thermal carafe keeps coffee warm without burning it.
* Coffee brews hotter, bringing out more flavor.
* Easy to set the time and to program it.

The Bad:
* Tall, may not fit under some cabinets.
* Thermal carafe with no marking for cup measurement.
* Coffee filters didn’t fit in perfectly.

You can do your homework on this one too, check out the full Daily Shot Of Coffee review.

Coffee 303

Now this only for advanced coffee geeks. When you break out the French Press, it’s sure to impress any member of the opposite sex. Plus, it’s the ultimate way to make coffee anywhere – the dorm, the off campus apartment, etc.

Bodum Chambord Coffee Press $29.02

The Good:
* Excellent Coffee
* Price Is The Same As Most Drip Coffee Makers
* Did I Mention It Makes Incredible Coffee

The Bad:
* Fragile & Lack Of Padding In Shipment
* Not As Quick And Easy As A Drip Maker To Make And Clean

Required Reading: Full review of the Bodum French Press

Extra Credit

For extra credit, make sure you get a burr coffee grinder. Pre-ground coffee will get caffeine into your blood stream, but nothing compares to the taste of coffee made with freshly ground beans.

Breville BCG450XL Conical Burr Grinder $90.11

This conical burr grinder features adjustable settings for various grind options. Choose from ultra-fine for Turkish coffee or large and coarse for percolators. The settings offer consistently shaped grinds and even extraction, which is the key to producing flavorful coffee. In addition, the unit’s metal conical burrs preserve more natural bean flavor than blade drivers due to the slower grind nature. The grinder comes equipped with a removable bean hopper that holds 1/2 pound of coffee beans, and its stainless-steel/polymer base offers start and stop control, as well as an on/off switch. Other highlights include a variable timer with 10 to 30 seconds of grind time, anti-static technology, and a removable burr for convenient cleaning.

What coffee related advice do you have for college students?

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Photo by Infidelic.

Back To School Guide To Coffee is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

Toddy Cold Brew System
On sale at Amazon For $31.20. Normally $37.50.

The Good

• Easy to use and clean.
• Makes enough iced coffee for at least a week.
• Reduces the acid levels in the coffee.

The Bad

• Takes 12 hours to brew.
• Slightly mutes the taste.
• Hot coffee was disappointing.

If you’re looking to stay cool and keep caffeinated this summer, the Toddy Cold Brew System is worth checking out. I did find a couple of drawbacks, but overall I’d have no problem suggesting it to someone wanting to make cold coffee.

Brewing The Cold Coffee Concentrate

The positives start with the ease of use. There’s only four steps, five if you count drinking the iced coffee.

The first step is to selecting coffee beans, then putting them in the grinder on the coarse setting.

The next step is to insert the stopper (making sure to put it in from the bottom, not the top unless you want a real challenge to get the coffee concentrate out like I did the first time) and filter.

After that, there’s a two stage process of adding the ground coffee and water.

The final step is to let it brew for 12 hours before filtering out the coffee concentrate.

Overall, I think it was just as easy as using a normal drip brew coffee maker. Cleaning it was actually easier than cleaning my coffee maker.

There was a question about how much coffee beans are used, compared to more traditional methods. Grinding an entire bag of coffee for just one batch, did make me nervous, especially when I saw how little concentrate was left after filtering out the water. However, it was enough concentrate to make coffee for a week, which is about average for me and a pound of coffee.

The only major drawback was that it takes 12 hours to brew, so if you’re in a rush for iced coffee, I would just brew coffee in a more traditional way and add iced cubes.

The taste of the Toddy Cold Brew coffee was very smooth and more flavorful compared to regular coffee watered down with iced cubes. It had a smooth taste, with little of the acid that can cause heartburn and upset stomachs. However, the taste was slightly muted, which is understandable because it didn’t have the heat bringing out of the flavors.

As far as using it make hot coffee, I would have to pass on it. It makes great cold coffee, but the hot coffee version just tasted a little off no matter how much water or concentrate I added.

Have you tried the Toddy Cold Brew System? What did you think?

Click Here To Get Your Own Toddy Cold Brew System.

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Fine Print.

Toddy Cold Brew System Review is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

From what I have read, the Vietnamese drip filter is usually used to make Vietnamese Coffee. I Need Coffee has a good write up on this device. I use my Vietnamese drip filter to make a small cup of coffee, also using it to test out new coffees and for the occasional experiment.

The Vietnamese drip filter is not and expensive item to own. I got mine for four dollars (USD) at an Asian market in my area. It is well worth it, even if you only use it once in a while, I have some other things I want to try with it, combine some recent coffee ideas with it and create some new coffee drinks .

With a small Vietnamese drip filter, you are not making a lot of coffee at one time. It is for a personal basic and uncomplicated cup of coffee. When creating the images you see here, I was having one more relatively calm Sunday morning coffee session and trying out BuyWells Screaming Monkey Coffee.

“Preparing delicious Vietnamese coffee is quick, easy and doesn’t require much clean-up afterward. The coffee filter is stainless steel and there are three parts (filter, screw-on damper, and lid). Simply place the filter on top of a cup, so it looks like a hat. Add 2-3 teaspoons of coffee to the filter, then screw on the damper so it’s snug (not tight). Shake the filter a bit to settle the coffee. Fill up the cup about 1/3 with hot water then wait 20 seconds. Unscrew the damper 2 turns and fill the cup entirely with hot water. Place the lid on and wait a few minutes until the water has dripped though. Add a spoonful (or more) of sweetened condensed milk to the cup before or after you start the process. The final result is fabulous. Printed instructions come with the filter. The filter set is made in Taiwan of stainless steel, and quality is excellent–it will last for years. We offer Vietnamese coffee as well.”
-Vietnamese drip filter Product Description off of Amazon

Vietnamese Drip Filter (cà phê phin) is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

Behind the scenes, I’ve been working on a project called Shop Daily Shot Of Coffee. It’s a response to questions about where to purchase items reviewed on Daily Shot Of Coffee and what coffees and related coffee equipment I’d recommend.

Click here to check out the Daily Shot Of Coffee Store

For now you can find select coffees from Community Coffee and Marley Coffee. There’s also some of the most popular coffee makers and other coffee equipment that received positive reviews on the site. There’s also the amusing and somewhat hilarious Daily Shot Of Coffee mugs.  There’s plans to add more coffee and more coffee making equipment in the near future.

Each buy now link leads to partner stores like Amazon, Community Coffee, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Marley Coffee and Zazzle. They ensure that the order is sent out quickly and without any problems.

When you buy something, a portion of the price gets credited to the site like a commission. All the money raised, goes to pay not so fun things like hosting bills and other random expenses that are part of running a blog.

The site is a work in progress, so I’d love to hear what you think of it in the comments and how we could improve it.

Unveiling The Daily Shot Of Coffee Store is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

One of the mostly frequently asked question is what is the best way to make coffee. There’s no easy answer because everyone likes their coffee a certain way and everyone’s situation is slightly different. However, theses are the four devices that I could recommend to any coffee drinker that’s looking for better coffee. There’s are methods, but these are the ones that I can suggest from my own use.

Bodum Chambord French Press

The French Press is a simple, yet elegant way to make coffee. It produces coffee that can’t be beat by many other brewing methods. It’s a must have in every kitchen.

Pros:

• Excellent Coffee
• Price Is The Same As Most Drip Coffee Makers
• Did I Mention It Makes Incredible Coffee

Cons:

• Fragile & Lack Of Padding In Shipment
• Not As Quick And Easy As A Drip Maker To Make And Clean

Read the full review.

Moka Pot Stove Top Espresso Maker

The moka pot creates rich, delicious espresso. All you need is a stove top, water and espresso grounds and five minutes later you have your espresso. Maybe not a must have, but would make a great gift for any coffee fanatic.

Good:

• Makes amazing tasting Italian style espresso
• Simple to use
• Easy to clean

Bad

• Can take ten (plus) minutes long, but really I’m not going to complain too loudly about that. Good coffee is worth waiting for.
• Small learning curve

Read the full review of the Moka Pot.

Zojirushi Fresh Brew Thermal Coffee Maker

There’s a lot of good coffee makers, but this is a great coffee maker. It creates full flavored coffee and keeps it warm all morning long. If I had to choose one coffee maker, this would be it.

The Good:

• Thermal carafe keeps coffee warm without burning it.
• Coffee brews hotter, bringing out more flavor.
• Easy to set the time and to program it.

The Bad:

• Tall, may not fit under some cabinets.
• Thermal carafe with no marking for cup measurement.
• Coffee filters didn’t fit in perfectly.

Read the full review of the Zojirushi Coffee Maker.

Keurig Platinum B70

If you want ease and convenience, nothing beats a single serve coffee maker like this one. It’s perfect for those mornings when your in a rush or not awake enough to make coffee any other way.

The Good:

• Easy To Use
• Makes A Quick Cup Of Coffee
• Easy To Clean

The Bad:

• Price Per K-Cup
• Isn’t Tall Enough For Travel Mugs
• How Environmentally Friendly Is It?

Read the full review of the single serve coffee machine.

Do you know of any other must have’s for the coffee lover? And if you have any coffee related questions, please check out the contact form!

Daily Shot Of Coffee Recommends is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

Kalorik CM-25282 1000-Watt 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker, Aztec Copper
Buy it at Amazon for $70.51

The Good:

• Heats Water With 1000 Watts For Better Tasting Coffee
• Programmable
• Easy To Use/Set

The Bad:

• Pieces Can Be Difficult To Fit In
• Water Chamber Is Narrow
• No Thermal Carafe

After much review (read as a whole lot of coffee brewed), the results are in for the Kalorik Coffeemaker (CM-25282 1000-Watt 12-Cup Programmable Aztec Copper) and it’s more than just a pretty looking contraption. I like it for many reasons, including the fact that it makes a delicious tasting cup of coffee.

My favorite feature with this coffee maker is that it heats the coffee with 1000 watts, which seems to create a slightly more flavorful cup of coffee than an average machine. The only coffeemaker that I’ve tested and is stronger is the Zojirushi machine that I reviewed a few months ago and it creates similar tasting coffee.

Another positive about this coffeemaker is that it’s programmable and it’s easy to set. I know that coffee ground the night before doesn’t lead to the freshest cup of coffee, but getting the first hit of caffeine in the morning with little or no effort, is nice some mornings.

I’m usually pretty good with making messes with coffeemakers, but this one was mostly mess and drip free, except when there was one minor emergency where the grounds and coffee flowed all over the place. However, I’m 99% sure that’s because the beans were ground too fine in the batch. When the coffee is all gone, it’s one of the easiest coffeemakers that I’ve used to clean.

There were only a couple of minor things that would make me hesitate buying this coffeemaker.

The first is that there were two pieces that were difficult to put into the machine. The filter holder and the glass carafe were slightly tricky to fit into place until I got used to using it.

The second is the opening of the water chamber which curves around the body of the machine. The opening is on the narrow side and I recommend waking up some before trying to pour water into it.

In the “cons,” I also listed no thermal carafe. It would be nice if it came with a thermal carafe, but the glass one does get the job done.

I read a few complaints online about it being fragile and easy to break. It seems to be about as solid as most coffeemakers that I’ve used to brew coffee. I put it through some extremely thorough testing and had no problems. Of course, if any problems do develop, I’ll update the post.

There’s nothing too crazy about the Kalorik Coffeemaker but that doesn’t mean that it’s a bad coffeemaker. In fact, overall I like it for an every day coffeemaker and think the pros outweigh the cons.

Do you have any questions about this coffeemaker?

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Fine Print.

Kalorik Aztek Coffeemaker Review is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

Mypressi Twist
Buy @ Amazon for $149.99

The Good

• Makes high quality, great tasting espresso
• Can make espresso just about anywhere
• More affordable than many regular espresso machines

The Bad

• Bit of a learning curve
• N2O replacement cartridges
• Clean up

I’ve seen some pretty unique ways to make coffee. Some of them made some world class drinks, others…we’ll just say not so much. The mypressi TWIST, the handheld espresso maker was on the world class side of things, creating some of the best espresso that I’ve ever tasted.

The mypressi TWIST is fairly easy to use, but there is a bit of a learning curve. It’s not technically difficult to use, but it took some trial and error to get a the perfect shot, however after six or seven attempts, I was making espresso that was better than a lot of shots that I’ve had in actual coffee shops.

How To Use The mypressi TWIST

The first step is to heat up the water. Optimal temperature was just below boiling.

While the water was warming up, I added the power to the mypressi TWIST. I unscrewed the tip of the handle and inserted the N2O cartridge into it. I screwed it back on and so far, so good.

The next step was to add the ground coffee (or Easy Serving Espresso pod). That’s where it starts to get a little complicated. It requires that you use finely ground coffee, no exceptions and no questions asked. When I used coffee that was not ground finely enough, the water was able to rush through the grounds too quickly and produce bitter tasting espresso. A high quality burr grinder is on my wishlist, but if I were to use the mypressi TWIST on a regular basis, I would buy it sooner rather than later.

The next step is to tamp the coffee grounds down. This also took a little practice. Too light and the water rushed right throw it. Too hard and the water couldn’t get through the grounds and one time leaked out of the sides of the mypressi TWSIT.

After the grounds were added into the filter, I just screwed on the water container and poured in the water once it was hot enough.

I screwed on the cap, then all that was left was to pull the trigger. Twenty to thirty seconds later, I had excellent tasting espresso. Later on, I used my frother to make lattes and even made an Americano with it.

The price can’t be beat, the mypressi TWIST runs for just $149 to $169, while many of the full size espresso machines that I’ve been dreaming about run into the the thousands.

Plus, the mypressi TWIST is easy to carry around. I could’ve used it to make espresso while camping and I resisted the urge to bring it over to my friends and show it off like it was a magic trick.

Besides the learning curve, there was only two minor drawbacks that I could find.

You do need a steady supply of N2O cartridges. Each cartridge makes four to eight shots. The best price that I found online for them was $15.99 for a 24 pack, which breaks down to about 67 cents for each one, which isn’t bad at all. I was concerned about the single use aspect of the cartridges, until I found out that they were recyclable.

And there were several parts that needed to be cleaned. On a scale of 1-10, it was a five, so it wasn’t that difficult, but it did need to be taken apart and cleaned after every use.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I loved the mypressi TWIST and I wished that I could’ve kept it longer than the two week review period. It’s perfect for someone that wants quality espresso, without investing in an espresso machine. It’s also great for someone that is one the go. I’d have no problem recommending the machine to a friend.

If you want to try the mypressi TWIST for yourself, you can find it on sale at Amazon for $149.00.

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Fine Print.

Mypressi TWSIT Review is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

mypressi TWIST
On sale at Amazon for $139.99
Retails at $169.00

The mypressi TWIST is unlike any other espresso machine that I’ve ever seen. It doesn’t sit on a counter. Instead, it fits in your hand and allows you to make espresso anywhere that you have ground coffee beans and hot water.

The stylish, award-winning mypressi™ TWIST™ is a revolutionary hand-held espresso maker that will change how, and where, you enjoy delicious coffee and espresso-based beverages.

The sleek, state-of-the-art mypressi TWIST uses fresh ground coffee or standard ESE pods and requires no pumping, priming or compressing to make one perfect shot after another. Requiring no external power, the twist uses standard recyclable 8gm N2O cartridges, available online or at almost any quality kitchen goods retailer.

Roaste description.

Recently, Espressi Inc., the company behind the mypressi TWIST sent me one of the machines to review for two weeks. Of course, I had more than a few questions about it and will be giving it a thorough testing.

The most important was, how does the espresso shots taste?

How easy is it to use?

How long does it take to learn how to use and how long does it take to make a shot?

Do you have any questions about it?

Have you ever tried the mypressi TWIST? What did you think about it.

Mypressi TWIST Preview is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

Keurig Platinum B70
Buy For $169.95

The Good:

• Easy To Use
• Makes A Quick Cup Of Coffee
• Easy To Clean

The Bad:

• Price Per K-Cup
• Isn’t Tall Enough For Travel Mugs
• How Environmentally Friendly Is It?

For a long time I wanted a single serve coffee machine like the Keurig Platinum B70. It seemed like the perfect solution for those mornings when I’m in a rush to get out the door or am just so sleepy that I can’t even make coffee right. A few weeks ago, Keurig sent me their Platinum B70 for review. After many uses, including several way too early mornings, the B70 review process is complete.

The best feature of the Keurig Platinum B70 is the ease of use and the speed compared to a traditional coffee maker. All you have to do is add water, put the K-Cup in the basket, choose the cup size, hit brew and let it do it’s magic. From start to finish, it takes less than a minute, not counting the four minutes that it takes for the water to pre-heat the first time.

It’s also very easy to clean. Since I received it, I’ve only had to clean it once and that was just to clean up some splatter with a wet paper towel. It took about five seconds to clean, versus a traditional coffeemaker which does take more effort and time.

I really didn’t have high expectations for the taste of the coffee. I only expected something that was slightly better than instant coffee. However, the K-Cups were a lot more closer to the taste of coffee made with whole beans. It wasn’t exactly on that level, but it was a more complete taste than I expected.

As far as the taste variation between different sizes, between the regular sized coffee mug and a travel sized coffee mug there was only a minor taste difference between them. Even the largest size didn’t taste watered down.

There were some questions about noise from the machine. At the loudest point, when the water coffee was pouring in the mug, It wasn’t much louder than a coffeemaker brewing. I could go to the next room and not hear it at all.

The only real drawbacks that I saw were the price and how environmentally friendly is it?

The prices that I saw broke down to about 50 to 65 cents a cup. Still a lot cheaper than buying a cup of coffee every day, but buying bags of coffee would generally be a cheaper. I saw a pack of K-cups that was a little less than $14 for a 22 pack. For the same price you could get more coffee out of a regular bag of whole bean coffee.

As far as energy used, if you leave it on, it does continuously heat the water inside. I’m going to try to find out exactly how much energy that uses. Of course the solution for that is pretty easy, all I had to do was turn it off and when I wanted another cup of coffee, just turn it on and wait the four minutes for it to heat.

The K-cups can only be used once before they need to be thrown out. They’re not big, but they take up more space than a traditional coffee bag.

One minor design flaw is that it’s not tall enough for a travel mug. The easy solution is just to brew the coffee in a large mug, then pour it into the travel mug.

I read several reviews online that mentioned issues with the water pump failing or the whole machine just stop working after two or three weeks. I put a lot of miles on the machine since I first got it more than three weeks ago and I’ve had no problems with it myself.

Overall I love the Keurig Platinum B70, especially on the early mornings when I’m running behind and have to head into the office. The taste isn’t the same as with coffee made from freshly roasted whole beans, but it was far better than I thought it would be. I’d have no problem recommending this model to anyone thinking about getting a single serve coffeemaker.

Are you thinking about buying a Platinum B70? Did I answer all of your questions?

Do you have Keurig Brewer? Which one and what do you think about it?

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Fine Print.

Keurig Platinum B70 Review is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee

The coffee maker sitting on your kitchen, isn’t the only method to make drip coffee. There’s an even simpler method called the pour over. It takes everything out of the traditional coffee maker except the basket and the filter.

Melitta recently sent me two of their single cup brewers to test out, the Ready Set Joe with a coffee mug and the Ready Set Joe with a travel mug.

As far as making the coffee, it doesn’t get much simpler. You put the Ready Set Joe on top of your mug, put in the filter, add the coffee grounds and pour in hot water.

I recommend using about two tablespoons of finely coffee grounds per cup and the heat the water to just below boiling.

What I like about the Ready Set Joe is that it allows more control over the brewing process. It lets me use whatever temperature I like. It allows me to pour the water across the grounds slower than a traditional coffee maker. These two things can really change the final taste of the coffee. For me, I was able to make coffee that felt smoother and had a cleaner taste.

Another plus, is that I can take the Ready Set Joe just about anywhere. I’m taking it with me next time I travel somewhere, go camping or just head down to the office. It’s just a small plastic basket, so there’s no need for me to lug around full size coffee maker when I just want one cup of coffee.

Of course, that is the one drawback. This style only makes one cup of coffee at a time. There are other models that are larger and come with a carafe so that you can make more coffee.

Overall, this is a very simple, but effective way to make quality coffee without all of the hassle and cleanup of a full size coffee maker. If you haven’t tried manual pull over brewing, I suggest giving it a try.

The Ready Set Joe with a ceramic runs for $5.99. The travel mug version is just three dollars more.

Have you ever tried this method of brewing before? What did you think?

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Fine Print.

Ready Set Joe Single Cup Brewer Review is a post from: Daily Shot Of Coffee