tjm,
I provided a good French Press link above.
Also...please understand coffee which it sounds like you do, but many don't. So many people say people that make "bad coffee" because they make it "bitter and too strong". There is some acidity to all coffee...people that say that don't like strong coffee because its "bitter"... well they don't like coffee at all. They like the light brown water they've been served at the local greasy spoon all their lives...and that aint coffee. REAL coffee has aroma, flavor, some bite or bitterness, and something to counter/mingle with and compliment that bite. Coffee flavor comes in stages.
Think of making coffee sort of like making whiskey. You run hot water over the grounds. The water extracts solids and oils in levels. Using too little coffee actually makes for bitter coffee because you start extracting the bad solids and oils with too high a water to grounds ratio...same thing with percolating. Just like the "bad alcohol" that comes at the front end and the back end of the distilling process. Well in coffee the early tastes are good and what you want from the coffee. The late tastes are bad. And along with good coffee selection, the proper grind (depends on what method you're using to make it) and water to coffee ratio is crucial combined with the proper heat of the water (190-200 degrees F, NOT boiling) in how you extract the finest coffee flavor from the beans/grounds. Coffee, even the lighter roasts...IF they are made right are extremely robust compared to the average american's morning cup. You have to like coffee to drink coffee. If you like tasteless brown water...well you can find that anywhere.
Last edited by .280Rem; 04/18/06.
