New guy needs help with beans

[jmeyers278]

Hey everyone! I'm a long time coffee nut but am new to at home espresso. I purchased a Barista Touch and am absolutely in love with it. I've had it about a month and have some questions.

I have bought many different types of beans and am amazed at the difference in how they brew. Coffee beans I have purchased from Starbucks, Lucky's (a local Trader Joe'sesque type store), the local grocery etc. ,have all been about the same. I have to grind them on the lowest setting and tamp them hard to get them from overflowing my espresso cup in the 20 second brew. All of this coffee tastes decent but isn't amazing.

The coffee I have purchased from local coffee shops have been completely different. Drop Bear from Kookaburra and Reanimator's Foundation blend are amazingly different and wonderful. I have to grind them at level 10 instead of level 1, which is a huge difference. I also have to barely tamp them to get the machine to muster up a single shot over the same 20 seconds the other coffee netted an entire cup.

So my newbie question is,

WHY! Why is this other coffee so much better and richer and more flavorful and how do I buy more of it without spending $18-$20 a pound?

 

[211bma]

I might suggest a coffee of the month club like mistobox, angel's cup, or drift away. You can customize the frequency of your deliveries and in most cases you can customize what type of coffees they send. I think that in most cases you will find it better than ALL of the places you listed that you are currently obtaining coffees.

 

[211bma]

And to answer your other question (why it is better) it takes Starbucks, and most grocery coffees too long to reach you and coffee gets stale somewhat quickly. I roast my own and prefer that it not be more than 9 or 10 days out of the roast but most say a bit longer but most grocery store coffee (and Starbucks) the coffee is usually over 30 days out.

Have Fun exploring the world of craft coffee!

 

[jmeyers278]

SO far it has been really great! The difference in brewing and taste of the drop bear and reanimator is mind blowing. The Reanimator foundation blend has created the best tasting coffee I have ever had (and I drink coffee from a lot of different places!) I just can't believe how different beans can be.

 

[Musicphan]

I would say the significant difference is freshness. I roast all of my coffees to order and roast at least once a week... worse case scenario you may get coffee 3-4 days off roast. With the big national brands you may be buy coffee 6 months old or worse... you just never know. The quality from a small specialty roaster is probably better than the big guys as well.

 

[jmeyers278]

Thanks so much! I didn't realize that beans lost so much in just several weeks!

 

[JoeConiglioArmenia]

Yup, freshness is key.

Some bigger more conscious larger guys nitro flush and try to focus on freshness but its hard with huge operations sometimes.

 

[derek.peris]

Hey everyone! I'm a long time coffee nut but am new to at home espresso. I purchased a Barista Touch and am absolutely in love with it. I've had it about a month and have some questions.

I have bought many different types of beans and am amazed at the difference in how they brew. Coffee beans I have purchased from Starbucks, Lucky's (a local Trader Joe'sesque type store), the local grocery etc. ,have all been about the same. I have to grind them on the lowest setting and tamp them hard to get them from overflowing my espresso cup in the 20 second brew. All of this coffee tastes decent but isn't amazing.

The coffee I have purchased from local coffee shops have been completely different. Drop Bear from Kookaburra and Reanimator's Foundation blend are amazingly different and wonderful. I have to grind them at level 10 instead of level 1, which is a huge difference. I also have to barely tamp them to get the machine to muster up a single shot over the same 20 seconds the other coffee netted an entire cup.

So my newbie question is,

WHY! Why is this other coffee so much better and richer and more flavorful and how do I buy more of it without spending $18-$20 a pound?

We micro roast in NW Washington. Not sure we're you are. We only roast Organic. Fresh is Best! We are small batch, family owned, lite overhead so we pass savings on to our customers.

 

[coffeefanatic232]

For quality coffee you really can't beat something sourced locally. Of course, often that comes with a higher price tag. Someone else mentioned a subscription box which is a decent (though expensive) way to experiment with different types of beans.

 

[BescaRoasting]

Gotta have fresh. The beans give off gas for several days after being roasted. During this time the coffee is at its peak of freshness. Sourcing your beans from a local roaster is really the only way to get good coffee short of roasting yourself.