Thoughts on coffee
 

Have generational tastes changed?
Is medium roast mild? That's what my gevalia traditional roast is marked as.
I started drinking coffee in the 90's when the big thing was arabica (e.g. good Columbian) vs robusta (cafeteria coffee). Starbucks was just spreading out with its dark roast/french roast, and Trader Joe's had a wide selection of affordable single source arabica coffees ranging from acidic Columbian and Costa Rican to low acid Sumatran, Kona too. Most all were medium roast. I don't remember ever seeing a light roast. Do you?

I've been drinking Aldi's or Nescafe decaf with milk for the past ten or fifteen years and have not kept up with trends. Is dark roast (Starbucks type) the new normal for the people who turn up their noses at Folgers and Chock Full O Nuts? I think the coffee flavor is gone from dark roasts leaving just toast/char, but I don't have a very well developed palate.

What do you like? Have your tastes changed?

Gevalia traditional roast is one of two I brew from K-cups and drink. It's labeled "mild light roast". I'm not big on dark roasts, which pretty much rules out Starbucks as they burn all their coffee, IMO.

The other coffee I like, also in K-cups, is Kauai "Island Sunrise Mild Roast" , which is a premium Arabica Coffee from Hawaii.
-Keith

I agree on the Starbucks. I have been buying fresh roasted whole bean coffees for 40 yrs. I tried Gevalia and found it lacking, probably because it was pre ground and had gotten stale. I buy mostly varietals such as Tanzanian peaberry, Ethiopian harrar, etc. A few blends also. I am a fan of dark roasts. Espresso roasts, if done right, are my favorites. And I have NEVER followed trends. I like what I like.

I’m a Starbucks Caffe Verona guy. Black. The Keurig is one of the best inventions ever.

Like many, my coffee preferences have evolved, but the same can be said for food, wine, beer and liquor.

I should clarify. I buy Gevalia for two reasons. First its cheap. Second its drinkable. It isn't what I would call great coffee and its about as good as Amazon brand.

-Keith

Wh

Good coffee is grown on shady hillsides or in a field that receives only part sun. The beans grow much slower and absorb much more flavor from the cherry flesh that surrounds the bean. Cheap coffee is grown in full sun in fields; it grows much faster, but does not absorb as much flavor from the bean.

Most dark roast coffee is inferior beans because charring coffee to the point of dark roast eliminates the natural flavors and replaces it with charred notes. It makes sense to do this to inferior, less expensive beans, less flavorful beans.

Light roast coffee allows the natural flavors to shine and is mostly done on high quality beans for obvious reasons.

One more advantage to light roast = more caffeine. Caffeine is eliminated through the roasting process so dark coffee has less caffeine.

Although I had had it before and liked it, I bought the Gevalia trad roast because it was the only medium roast on the store shelf at the time, and luckily was priced below the big brands around it. It is ground pretty fine and loses its flavor soon after being opened. When that happens I switch it over from making it with the press pot to my little stove-top aluminum espresso pot to concentrate the flavor.

Back in my school days the coffee-head grad students would use the lab's reverse osmosis water for coffee. This was long before R.O. water got cheap. I didn't think we had bad tasting tap water and couldn't taste a difference.

Cheap is good for some things. Personally, I don't go cheap on a few things. Coffee is at the top of that list. I can't justify spending $30+/lb for Jamaica Blue Mountain or the civet coffee (never could remember the proper name for that) but I will spend $12 - 15/lb for high quality, small farm, fair traded beans from different parts of the world. And Ray, let me second the thought about Keurig! I use my own coffee in my machine with RO water. Superior taste due to my tap being heavily chlorinated, and no calcium buildup in the machine.

---------- Post added at 04:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:30 PM ----------

This depends on the source and the roaster. I learned from a roaster there is a fine line between dark and burnt. Properly roasted coffee has to come to a certain temperature to evaporate certain oils that can leave a sour taste to the coffee. A good roaster will watch his roast, checking it often for color, and stop the process before any charring can occur. That's the difference between mass producers and small batch (2 to 3 lbs) roasting. As I said, I pay more for this, but I'm paying for the expertise of the roaster. Caffeine is not a big consideration as it has little effect on me. I can, and sometimes do, drink a cup shortly before bed with no problem.

Yes! I got them to buy one at work, and have one at home. I supply the RO for everyone using the one at work, which is a bit of a pain.
-Keith

---------- Post added at 05:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:26 PM ----------

IMO, cheap beans would seem to be the Starbucks model.I'm a light roast drinker, but don't have enough coffee savvy to know how to buy good light roast coffee. Recommendations for mind-blowing light roast would be much appreciated.

-Keith