Should I upgrade from my Keurig?

[shovenose]

Hi everybody!

A long time tea drinker, I got gifted a Keurig (Platinum version) about a year ago... I have bought and tried just about every K cup imaginable. Some are better than others. I do have hundreds of them now though.

Moving on, I recently have really become a coffee drinker, and thus bought some whole bean coffee, picked up a cheap Mr. Coffee grinder ($20 at Target) and after being disappointed with the My K Cup included with the machine purchased the Ekobrew reusable K cup from Amazon. That works much better.

I really like the freshness of the coffee, and it's much cheaper to buy whole bean (or even pre ground) and use the Ekobrew K cups than to buy the straight up K cups. I do have plenty of K Cups, so I am not going to get rid of my Keurig. Plus, it's useful for tea as well.

I also have a Starbucks Verismo 580 but I pretty much never use that. I think it was a waste of money but I have so many pods for it I'm not going to bother returning it. And it does make a decent latte except their Milk pods taste like ass...

Now, the real question: would it make sense for me to buy a cheap coffee maker like this one:

(had a link to Amazon here but it didn't like it since I don't have a lot of posts)Mr. Coffee BVMC-SJX33GT


Will it make a better cup of coffee than the Ekobrew in the Keurig? Will it take more or less time? Will it use the coffee beans more or less efficiently? Will it be louder or quieter? And what if I want one cup or two cups, not 12? I am the only coffee drinker in the house hold and I am barely ever home since I have a full time job so if I had to make 12 cups of coffee every time 10 or 11 would go to waste.

I am attempted to convert my mother to a coffee drinker but she would only drink decaf so it wouldn't help the situtation.

Also, since this would be in my room not in the kitchen it needs to be clean. I can't have coffee everywhere. That said, I'd much love to have better, more cost effective, fresher coffee than what I can buy in K cups. Any input would be appreciated. Sorry for the long post!

 

[CanadianBrian]

Hello Shovenose and welcome.
The Keurig is actually very good as far as the temperature of the brewer is concerned. The brewer heats the water to 190 degrees which is very close to optimal. The other cheap brewers only get up to an average of 160-175 degrees which is to low a temperature to get all the acid, oils and flavor out of the coffee. I would suggest getting a better grinder and keep up with the freshly ground coffee. Are you getting fresh roasted coffee from a local roaster or are you buying your beans whole through the local supermarket. If you are not using a local roaster I would suggest you try one out.

 

[shovenose]

Hi Brian, thanks for the fast response! I'm happy to know the Keurig does a good job after all.

Regarding the coffee beans and the grind...

I have the following coffees around here right now (not including Verismo pods or K cups)...
-Kicking Horse Kick Ass Dark (Amazon, whole bean)
-Kicking Horse Decaf (Amazon, whole bean)
-Peerless Hazelnut Medium Roast (Amazon, ground)
-Jeremiah's Pick Kona Blend Light Roast (local grocery store, whole bean)
-Jeremiah's Pick Columbia Supremo (local grocery store, whole bean)
-two bags of beans from Umpqua bank that my friend gave me - these are not so good maybe it's not good coffee or maybe it's too old, don't know...
-Hasn't arrived yet: Starbucks Willow Blend, whole bean, ordered from starbucksstore.com this one excites me my friend said it was superb. And I don't have any other light roast. The Jeremiah's Pick claims it's light but I don't think it really is.

The "local" coffee shop around here would be the Fairfax Coffee Roastery. I've gone there for mochas a couple times they do a good job. Should I pick up some beans next time I need more coffee? It'll be a while before I buy more coffee because honestly I've got a lot now, even if it isn't the greatest, I'm not going to throw it out. Except maybe those Umpqua beans!

What grinder would the recommend? I'd like to save money of course but I also want one that does a good job, is easy to use, and will last a while. If it looks nice that is icing on the cake. The quieter the better, too

I do have a question about my current grinder though: I would prefer to have a small amount of each whole bean coffee I get, available, so I don't have to grind each time. Not for a long time, just a day or two. Do you have a recommendation for how to do this?

I have a tendency to grind what I'll want in the morning the night before because I get up earliest in the household and the grinder is too loud. This way, I could have anything I want For now, I just leave it in the grinder. But then if I want something else or I need to make some decaf I don't know what to do with what's left in the grinder.

Sorry for all the random questions but I want to have the best coffee I can within reason Thanks,
shove

 

[CanadianBrian]

Sounds like you have quite a few coffee beans to get through. You ideally want to use those beans within 2 to max. 3 weeks from when they are roasted unless they are for an espresso machine that needs the coffee to mature for a week or 2 longer. You cannot get this from a supermarket, as most of these will be months old already before you even get them home. You could also order through the internet from roasters who roast and provide beans within a few days of roasting.

You ideally want to grind the coffee just before you brew it because it begins to stale and degrade as soon as you grind it with an increase in the surface area and new areas for the to the oxygen and sunlight to get at the beans. I understand that you don't want to wake people up so grinding a small amount the night before could be forgiven by most purists, but never enough for a few days.
You need a burr grinder, (not sure if this is what you currently have) because a blade grinder does not grind in a uniform size and damages/bashes the beans rather than cutting them. Someone else might be able to recommend a good home grinder, or check with advanced searches button on top right of page.

 

[janry]

I agree, grinding just before brewing makes a big difference. My last grinder was pretty loud and I was known to close the kitchen door and even hold the grinder close to my body to try to drown out the noise. My new grinder is much quieter (Breville Smart Grinder) and if I close the kitchen door, I don't disturb my wife. Lord knows, she needs her beauty sleep.

And speaking of grinders, my coffee improved greatly when I upgraded from my $50 Krups grinder to the Breville. The uniformity in grind size does make a significant difference. It retails new for close to $200 but I got a factory reconditioned one for $109 and so far, so good.

I'd like to suggest you find a coffee shop that brews one cup at a time using a pour over method. Try a coffee of theirs they also sell bags of. Buy a bag of what you try in their shop and brew it at home. See how it compares. That should tell you if your Keurig is giving you as good as you could expect by another brew method.

Good luck.

 

[shovenose]

I'd like to suggest you find a coffee shop that brews one cup at a time using a pour over method.

Starbucks can do this if I am not in a hurry and they aren't busy, right?

 

[janry]

Starbucks can do this if I am not in a hurry and they aren't busy, right?

I don't know. I think some of their locations have some kind of single serving brewing system though I don't know if it is a pour over system. Just make sure you can get the same beans they are using so your comparison to what you do at home will be apples to apples.

 

[shovenose]

I don't know. I think some of their locations have some kind of single serving brewing system though I don't know if it is a pour over system. Just make sure you can get the same beans they are using so your comparison to what you do at home will be apples to apples.

Well they have the Clover thing that makes great coffee, but not at the location I go. not quite what I was thinking of lol. I will ask them next time. Best option would be for my to go the fairfax coffee roastery and ask them to do it. They are local so maybe they can. I will find out Your suggest makes pefect sense those so I can compare apples to apples. Or should I say coffee beans to coffee beans?

Thanks!

On a different note, would this be a good entry level espresso machine?
Delongi Eco310Bk
Thanks again!

 

[PinkRose]

Hello "shovenose"

It sounds like you should stay with the Keurig machine, particularly because you're keeping it in your room and it involves very little cleanup.

A hand crank/manual burr grinder would make less noise than an electric one would. Being able to adjust the grind is important. Here's one that may do the trick:Amazon.com: Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill Skerton: Kitchen & Dining

Then, you'll just need to find a coffee that you'll be happy with, and you'll be all set for a while. When you're ready to take your coffee making operation into the kitchen, you'll probably want a different setup.

 

[shovenose]

I read the reviews on that manual grinder and the reviews are not so good. Whoops

I'm just happy to know that the Keurig does a decent job. My main problem is that anything that comes out of it tastes like plastic which means I have to put in cream and sugar to fix that. I don't mind, but if I sip the coffee to try how it came out before adding anything it's just burnt and plasticky.

This happens whether I use any K cup, I use pre ground coffee, or I grind my own.


My Verismo 580 does not have this problem however it's slow, noisy, not hot enough, and I have to use Starbucks pods can't get them anywhere else, so I don't have many options. But those pods are better than most K cups, and they don't taste like plastic.

 

[christopher1974]

I am only content to are aware that the actual Keurig may a good employment. My own main problem is actually that will anything that comes from it preferences such as plastic-type which suggests I can put in place cream as well as mister to solve that will. When i never brain, but if i glass the actual coffee to attempt exactly how this coffee maker turned out previous to incorporating anything it is only burned as well as plasticky.

seems that Mr.coffee BVMC-SJX33GT is very popular, my cousin has one too. Compared with some 12 cup coffee maker from Cuisinart, or keurig, it is much more cost-effective. The bad side is, it is just a normal coffee maker, do not expect too great flavor

 

[mholguin]

Nothing against Starbucks but if you want great tasting coffee I would go local! I feel local roasters take more pride in roasting and the craft of a great tasting coffee and plus you are helping support a local business.

 

[shovenose]

I am only content to are aware that the actual Keurig may a good employment. My own main problem is actually that will anything that comes from it preferences such as plastic-type which suggests I can put in place cream as well as mister to solve that will. When i never brain, but if i glass the actual coffee to attempt exactly how it turned out previous to incorporating anything it is only burned as well as plasticky.

What? You lost me bro.