Measuring out My Life in K-Cups
March 5, 2015 5:51 AM Subscribe
A Brewing Problem:
“I don't have one. They're kind of expensive to use,” John Sylvan told me frankly, of Keurig K-Cups, the single-serve brewing pods that have fundamentally changed the coffee experience in recent years. “Plus it’s not like drip coffee is tough to make.” Which would seem like a pretty banal sentiment, were Sylvan not the inventor of the K-Cup.
The article says that the life cycle analysis points to instant coffee as being the most environmentally friendly -- I wonder how many people would be willing to give up convenience (K-cups) or taste (small batch pour-over) for the instant option.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:06 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Dip Flash at 6:06 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
I think the biggest problem would be making people forget the instant coffee of the '80's and '90's. The taste has gotten a lot better, but good luck convincing people of that.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:09 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by dinty_moore at 6:09 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I wonder how many people would be willing to give up convenience (K-cups) or taste (small batch pour-over) for the instant option.
On an extensive survey of all erikos, the answer was "I will cut you."
So, I have to go with no on that.
posted by eriko at 6:12 AM on March 5, 2015 [45 favorites]
On an extensive survey of all erikos, the answer was "I will cut you."
So, I have to go with no on that.
posted by eriko at 6:12 AM on March 5, 2015 [45 favorites]
After hearing one of the other branch managers talk about how much her staff loved their Keurig, I asked the people at my branch if they wanted me to buy one.
One person was, like, 'well, I like to drink good coffee, so I probably wouldn't use it.' Another said 'I think it's nice to make a whole pot, and then if somebody else wants some coffee, they can have some.' Another said 'I mean, it's really easy to use, but it's already pretty easy to make coffee' (and then I pointed to my hand-grinder/teapot/Chemex setup, and I was like 'well, it doesn't have to be'). Another said 'Aren't those things kind of, uh, not good for the environment?' The clear consensus was that they didn't want it.
The people I work with are pretty great.
posted by box at 6:13 AM on March 5, 2015 [51 favorites]
One person was, like, 'well, I like to drink good coffee, so I probably wouldn't use it.' Another said 'I think it's nice to make a whole pot, and then if somebody else wants some coffee, they can have some.' Another said 'I mean, it's really easy to use, but it's already pretty easy to make coffee' (and then I pointed to my hand-grinder/teapot/Chemex setup, and I was like 'well, it doesn't have to be'). Another said 'Aren't those things kind of, uh, not good for the environment?' The clear consensus was that they didn't want it.
The people I work with are pretty great.
posted by box at 6:13 AM on March 5, 2015 [51 favorites]
A good office will not support that K-cup shit.
posted by pracowity at 6:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [8 favorites]
posted by pracowity at 6:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [8 favorites]
The article says that the life cycle analysis points to instant coffee as being the most environmentally friendly -- I wonder how many people would be willing to give up convenience (K-cups) or taste (small batch pour-over) for the instant option.
Do they still sell instant? I haven't anyone buy it or drink it in probably twenty-five years. I'll have to check next time I'm in the supermarket to see if it's still there.
posted by octothorpe at 6:21 AM on March 5, 2015
Do they still sell instant? I haven't anyone buy it or drink it in probably twenty-five years. I'll have to check next time I'm in the supermarket to see if it's still there.
posted by octothorpe at 6:21 AM on March 5, 2015
Yes they still sell instant Octo, I have it every time I'm at my parents house. It still tastes like instant coffee.
posted by doctor_negative at 6:23 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by doctor_negative at 6:23 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Yes, they definitely still sell instant coffee. I mean... of course they do. And for the record, Trader Joe's makes an instant that's better than 70% of the brewed coffee I get in restaurants.
posted by obfuscation at 6:24 AM on March 5, 2015 [8 favorites]
posted by obfuscation at 6:24 AM on March 5, 2015 [8 favorites]
We have a Keurig machine in the office that nobody uses and I feel like that's a pretty common phenomenon.
So many weird BS inventions of the last 100 years have been focused on taking a small extra irritation and eliminating it at the cost of quality; just stop it! If I can make myself fresh coffee each morning while driving two kids to two different preschools by 8AM before work, I feel like most people can probably make their own coffee.
posted by selfnoise at 6:24 AM on March 5, 2015 [10 favorites]
So many weird BS inventions of the last 100 years have been focused on taking a small extra irritation and eliminating it at the cost of quality; just stop it! If I can make myself fresh coffee each morning while driving two kids to two different preschools by 8AM before work, I feel like most people can probably make their own coffee.
posted by selfnoise at 6:24 AM on March 5, 2015 [10 favorites]
Do they still sell instant? I haven't anyone buy it or drink it in probably twenty-five years. I'll have to check next time I'm in the supermarket to see if it's still there.
Starbucks sells Via, which personally I think tastes better than your average Starbucks cup. There are other brands out there that are similarly not terrible.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:25 AM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
Starbucks sells Via, which personally I think tastes better than your average Starbucks cup. There are other brands out there that are similarly not terrible.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:25 AM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
It may require greater investment up front, but I suspect most offices will be much happier with a professional espresso maker. And costs over time should be about the same.
My friend buys instant coffee and I'll begrudge that it's drinkable, and caffeinated, but not really enjoyable.
posted by sixohsix at 6:25 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
My friend buys instant coffee and I'll begrudge that it's drinkable, and caffeinated, but not really enjoyable.
posted by sixohsix at 6:25 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
I can understand their popularity in offices, because they solve some common break room annoyances: people making a mess of the coffee area and not cleaning up, people not brewing a new pot, people brewing coffee too strong or weak for others' taste, pots of coffee getting old and nasty. But the home thing is mysterious to me.
posted by thelonius at 6:28 AM on March 5, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by thelonius at 6:28 AM on March 5, 2015 [6 favorites]
Our office has had both in one of the break rooms and the coffee pots by far get more usage than the Keurig machine. Sure it's convenient to pop a capsule in and hit the brew button, but it's even easier just to pour a cup from an already made pot. The K-cup is just easier and quicker for the first person who gets into the office. Fortunately, that guy is thoughtful to make coffee for everyone.
posted by dances with hamsters at 6:31 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by dances with hamsters at 6:31 AM on March 5, 2015
"We've secretly switched this office's coffee k-cups with tomato soup k-cups. Let's see how long before the cops are called due to a bloody riot."
posted by robocop is bleeding at 6:32 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
posted by robocop is bleeding at 6:32 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
So even though he gets treated like a minor celebrity when he tells people he founded Keurig, Sylvan has some regrets about selling his share of the company in 1997 for $50,000. But that’s not what really upsets him.
If that was me I'd start every morning by punching myself in the face. Damn.
posted by Renoroc at 6:33 AM on March 5, 2015 [13 favorites]
If that was me I'd start every morning by punching myself in the face. Damn.
posted by Renoroc at 6:33 AM on March 5, 2015 [13 favorites]
The 70s called, it wants its "Me Decade" label back.
posted by kinnakeet at 6:33 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
posted by kinnakeet at 6:33 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
I have a Keurig at home. I feel no personal shame or guilt about this ...
With three people in the house with differing coffee taste, I just find it more convenient.
posted by DrAstroZoom at 6:34 AM on March 5, 2015 [8 favorites]
With three people in the house with differing coffee taste, I just find it more convenient.
posted by DrAstroZoom at 6:34 AM on March 5, 2015 [8 favorites]
I can understand their popularity in offices, because they solve some common break room annoyances: people making a mess of the coffee area and not cleaning up, people not brewing a new pot, people brewing coffee too strong or weak for others' taste, pots of coffee getting old and nasty. But the home thing is mysterious to me.I know a couple of people who use them at home. They're generally two-coffee-drinker households in which one person drinks decaff.
My office has both K-cups and a coffee collective, where we all pay in and buy Folgers, which we make in a big Bun coffeemaker. I would say they're about equally popular. (My office doesn't provide coffee, so you have to pay for your own, whether by bringing in K-cups or paying in to the coffee collective.) I've thought about buying an Aeropress to keep in my office, but it seems like a lot of hassle.
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 6:35 AM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
That was an interesting article, especially the part about water waste. I feel really bad for liking my Keurig so much but the coffee tastes good. It took me years of futzing with different coffee makers and methods to find coffee I liked and that I felt like messing with every day first thing in the morning.
I wish we had one in the office too because all we have is an espresso machine and sometimes I just want a big cup of coffee.
posted by bleep at 6:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I wish we had one in the office too because all we have is an espresso machine and sometimes I just want a big cup of coffee.
posted by bleep at 6:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
But the home thing is mysterious to me.
My mother has one. It's a more convenient option for her since it's just her making one cup of coffee each morning and she doesn't have to worry about measuring out the coffee in a single cup brewer. She wouldn't have justified the cost by buying a machine for herself but she received one as a gift.
posted by dances with hamsters at 6:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
My mother has one. It's a more convenient option for her since it's just her making one cup of coffee each morning and she doesn't have to worry about measuring out the coffee in a single cup brewer. She wouldn't have justified the cost by buying a machine for herself but she received one as a gift.
posted by dances with hamsters at 6:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
But the home thing is mysterious to me.
It's a very easy way to make one cup of coffee. Vastly faster and easier to clean up with over a press pot, and many drip machines won't make just one cup of coffee, and that's what a lot of people want.
They're a real win in hotel rooms too, you'll get vastly better coffee than you would from that tiny drip machine.
posted by eriko at 6:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
It's a very easy way to make one cup of coffee. Vastly faster and easier to clean up with over a press pot, and many drip machines won't make just one cup of coffee, and that's what a lot of people want.
They're a real win in hotel rooms too, you'll get vastly better coffee than you would from that tiny drip machine.
posted by eriko at 6:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
I have a Keurig at home. I feel no personal shame or guilt about this ...
With three people in the house with differing coffee taste, I just find it more convenient.
100% this. I love my Keurig.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 6:37 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
With three people in the house with differing coffee taste, I just find it more convenient.
100% this. I love my Keurig.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 6:37 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Our office has had both in one of the break rooms and the coffee pots by far get more usage than the Keurig machine.
There's having the Keurig machine, then there's having the Keurig machine *and* providing the cups. I'm completely not surprised that the former would see much less use than the latter.
Our office has a bring-your-own-cup machine. More coffee is consumed from the drip pots, but that Keurig machine is nowhere near idle.
posted by eriko at 6:38 AM on March 5, 2015
There's having the Keurig machine, then there's having the Keurig machine *and* providing the cups. I'm completely not surprised that the former would see much less use than the latter.
Our office has a bring-your-own-cup machine. More coffee is consumed from the drip pots, but that Keurig machine is nowhere near idle.
posted by eriko at 6:38 AM on March 5, 2015
We have a Keurig in our office, and two drip pots. The drip pots are always on the go. I guess a couple people use the Keurig, but it doesn't seem to be very popular.
posted by fimbulvetr at 6:39 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by fimbulvetr at 6:39 AM on March 5, 2015
What do coffee snobs do when they move in with someone who likes something like hazelnut coffee?
posted by smackfu at 6:39 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by smackfu at 6:39 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
My wife's office uses the hell out of their Keurig. It's just eight women, but they all drink different stuff, including hot chocolate and tea.
I'm the lone coffee drinker at home, and that's usually a single espresso in the morning, so a Keurig would really be wasted on me.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:39 AM on March 5, 2015
I'm the lone coffee drinker at home, and that's usually a single espresso in the morning, so a Keurig would really be wasted on me.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:39 AM on March 5, 2015
> With three people in the house with differing coffee taste ...
I'm trying to parse what that could mean. Too strong? Add water. Too weak? Make it yourself. Too harsh? Sugar.
Coffee is coffee-flavoured.
posted by scruss at 6:42 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
I'm trying to parse what that could mean. Too strong? Add water. Too weak? Make it yourself. Too harsh? Sugar.
Coffee is coffee-flavoured.
posted by scruss at 6:42 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
There's having the Keurig machine, then there's having the Keurig machine *and* providing the cups
True enough. That is probably why the Keurig is not widely used -- you need to provide your own cups, while the coffee club provides all the stuff for the drip machines.
At home, I drink espresso, and my wife uses a french press. At work I have a one-serving french press. Easy to do just one cup with a french press.
posted by fimbulvetr at 6:43 AM on March 5, 2015
True enough. That is probably why the Keurig is not widely used -- you need to provide your own cups, while the coffee club provides all the stuff for the drip machines.
At home, I drink espresso, and my wife uses a french press. At work I have a one-serving french press. Easy to do just one cup with a french press.
posted by fimbulvetr at 6:43 AM on March 5, 2015
What do coffee snobs do when they move in with someone who likes something like hazelnut coffee?
Find out way before the moving in stage and date someone else.
posted by dame at 6:43 AM on March 5, 2015 [11 favorites]
Find out way before the moving in stage and date someone else.
posted by dame at 6:43 AM on March 5, 2015 [11 favorites]
Coffee is coffee-flavoured.
You're joking?
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 6:44 AM on March 5, 2015 [24 favorites]
You're joking?
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 6:44 AM on March 5, 2015 [24 favorites]
The environmental aspect is interesting to me because it's just so damned hard to make any sort of definitive statement about which method is "greenest". So it takes energy and water to make the plastic and form the cups, and the cups aren't recyclable. But they ultimately use less water and energy to produce the coffee that goes in the cups (because they use less coffee than other methods), and it takes less water to clean the unit. But then there's the cost to ship the K-cups and collect the waste.
My father's a process engineer and told me awhile ago about a new pharma line they were installing. Turned out it was more environmentally friendly to line the reactor tanks with large plastic bags and throw them away as opposed to washing out the stainless steel after each use. Pretty surprising!
posted by backseatpilot at 6:46 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
My father's a process engineer and told me awhile ago about a new pharma line they were installing. Turned out it was more environmentally friendly to line the reactor tanks with large plastic bags and throw them away as opposed to washing out the stainless steel after each use. Pretty surprising!
posted by backseatpilot at 6:46 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Instant coffee is not so bad. You just can't compare it directly to brewed coffee. Put in plenty of milk and sugar and it's a nice (and caffeinated) drink in its own right.
I would probably take instant coffee over the weak stale stuff that I always end up getting out of a keurig.
posted by geegollygosh at 6:47 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I would probably take instant coffee over the weak stale stuff that I always end up getting out of a keurig.
posted by geegollygosh at 6:47 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Keurig Coffee Maker + Ethical Dilemma + KFC Edible Coffee Cup = Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!
posted by John Kennedy Toole Box at 6:48 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by John Kennedy Toole Box at 6:48 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
I use a filter myself which as Lawrence Block says in Random Walk ,
You could make one cup of coffee at a time and it was as easy as instant and better than what came out of a drip pot or percolator. And when you weren't making coffee, a very tiny person could use the filter to catch very tiny butterflies.
posted by dannyboybell at 6:48 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
You could make one cup of coffee at a time and it was as easy as instant and better than what came out of a drip pot or percolator. And when you weren't making coffee, a very tiny person could use the filter to catch very tiny butterflies.
posted by dannyboybell at 6:48 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Coffee is coffee-flavoured.
Bah ha ha ha!!! Good one!
Our office has a Keurig - and thank Maude - at one point someone brought in coconut mocha K cups. If I had taken a cup of that from a coffee pot, there would have been an office mate with a problem.
Love my Keurig at work. At home, my husband and I agree on plain, black, non-flavored coffee, so we brew a pot on the weekends.
posted by Sophie1 at 6:49 AM on March 5, 2015
Bah ha ha ha!!! Good one!
Our office has a Keurig - and thank Maude - at one point someone brought in coconut mocha K cups. If I had taken a cup of that from a coffee pot, there would have been an office mate with a problem.
Love my Keurig at work. At home, my husband and I agree on plain, black, non-flavored coffee, so we brew a pot on the weekends.
posted by Sophie1 at 6:49 AM on March 5, 2015
Instant coffee is not so bad. You just can't compare it directly to brewed coffee. Put in plenty of milk and sugar and it's a nice (and caffeinated) drink in its own right.
It's not good coffee if you have to put milk and sugar in it.
posted by octothorpe at 6:50 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
It's not good coffee if you have to put milk and sugar in it.
posted by octothorpe at 6:50 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'm surprised that the article didn't mention cost. The K-Cups are significantly more expensive than brewing methods using traditional 'loose' ground coffee. My wife bought me one, but I am just too damn cheap to buy the pods. I got a reusable mesh pod and used my own coffee--until the damn machine broke after 9 months of use. I wasn't about to spend $100+ for a new machine. When I make one cup, I use my AeroPress, which takes little more time and energy.
posted by tippiedog at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by tippiedog at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Nobody's mentioned it yet, but there's a real easy drip solution for single cups: #2 cones. A plasic Mellita cuptop dripper is, like, $3, and the paper cones are quite cheap too. Cleanup's easy too: lift by top, drop in garbage or compost (if your compost setup handels paper). I honestly don't see the appeal of the K-cup for home-use, even in a household with a single coffee drinker or varied coffee preferences.
posted by jackbishop at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [12 favorites]
posted by jackbishop at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [12 favorites]
Do they make vending machines for K-Cups?
Yes. There is one in my company's cafeteria that requires one to insert 25 cents to get the brew buttons (6, 8 or 10 oz of hot water) to be activated. Not very many people seem to use it, however, since the traditional urns of industrial-grade drip brew are free, if vaguely vile-tasting. (Though enough people must use the Keurig for it to be worth the while of the vending company to leave it on site.) A smattering of people have French presses or Melita cones which they use with the hot water dispenser on the side of the old urn brewer (at risk of scalding, I can say, as a tea drinker who uses that sputtering hot water tap too).
So, initially, there was a small problem with theft of the K-Cup supply, until they installed a video security camera in the cafeteria. (According the the facility manager who I chatted with as it was being installed.) So, the K-Cup project was kinda dubious on several fronts, environment, cost, and privacy. (Not that I have any expectation of privacy at work, to be realistic.)
Childishly, on the other hand, I sometimes enjoy saying "k-cup-pack" fast over and over to amuse myself, maybe because it reminds me of "ipecac".
posted by aught at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Yes. There is one in my company's cafeteria that requires one to insert 25 cents to get the brew buttons (6, 8 or 10 oz of hot water) to be activated. Not very many people seem to use it, however, since the traditional urns of industrial-grade drip brew are free, if vaguely vile-tasting. (Though enough people must use the Keurig for it to be worth the while of the vending company to leave it on site.) A smattering of people have French presses or Melita cones which they use with the hot water dispenser on the side of the old urn brewer (at risk of scalding, I can say, as a tea drinker who uses that sputtering hot water tap too).
So, initially, there was a small problem with theft of the K-Cup supply, until they installed a video security camera in the cafeteria. (According the the facility manager who I chatted with as it was being installed.) So, the K-Cup project was kinda dubious on several fronts, environment, cost, and privacy. (Not that I have any expectation of privacy at work, to be realistic.)
Childishly, on the other hand, I sometimes enjoy saying "k-cup-pack" fast over and over to amuse myself, maybe because it reminds me of "ipecac".
posted by aught at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Get a big glass jug and make cold press every week. Awesome coffee for basically zero time and money.
posted by miyabo at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by miyabo at 6:53 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
So, adding in a whole new dimension, but what about coffee vs tea? Seems like the tea should win, since you just heat up the appropriate amount in an electric kettle and can compost the waste, but this article now has me questioning myself.
It seems like the 'best' way of using the k-cups is to have a vast amount of refillable cups that are sent out after use and refilled, like old school milk bottles.
posted by Trifling at 6:54 AM on March 5, 2015
It seems like the 'best' way of using the k-cups is to have a vast amount of refillable cups that are sent out after use and refilled, like old school milk bottles.
posted by Trifling at 6:54 AM on March 5, 2015
We've had both Keurig and drip coffee in my work area for quite a while. And until they upgraded the drip system to use one-push machines that draw their own water, making coffee in the drip pot meant standing at the water cooler for a good minute filling the carafe. So people were reluctant to do it, and a lot of us brought our own K-cups or bought them from someone who had a big box.
One of my coworkers at that time would drink plenty of coffee from the drip pot but hated making it. Whenever anybody used the Keurig, she would berate them for making "selfish coffee" and not making coffee for everyone (i.e., her). That name always stuck with me.
posted by graymouser at 6:57 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
One of my coworkers at that time would drink plenty of coffee from the drip pot but hated making it. Whenever anybody used the Keurig, she would berate them for making "selfish coffee" and not making coffee for everyone (i.e., her). That name always stuck with me.
posted by graymouser at 6:57 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Metafilter: you are doing coffee wrong.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:59 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:59 AM on March 5, 2015 [7 favorites]
Turned out it was more environmentally friendly to line the reactor tanks with large plastic bags and throw them away as opposed to washing out the stainless steel after each use. Pretty surprising!
There is no one set Ultimate Good when looking at how "environmentally friendly" a product or process is. I think you have to evaluate the local constraints. For instance, some areas have plenty of water, or some production technique could result in re-usable water that is perfectly fine for washing something farther down the line, or irrigating the surrounding land. But in more arid climates, water could be a scarce resource, so anything that reduced water usage would boost the local "environmentally friendly" factor.
posted by filthy light thief at 7:00 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
There is no one set Ultimate Good when looking at how "environmentally friendly" a product or process is. I think you have to evaluate the local constraints. For instance, some areas have plenty of water, or some production technique could result in re-usable water that is perfectly fine for washing something farther down the line, or irrigating the surrounding land. But in more arid climates, water could be a scarce resource, so anything that reduced water usage would boost the local "environmentally friendly" factor.
posted by filthy light thief at 7:00 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
and can compost the waste
Coffee grounds (and the drip filters too if not bleached) work in compost too. My partner's coffee grounds go in our compost every weekend and sometimes, if our bin seems too heavy on dry leaves in the fall, we supplement it with big buckets of grounds from the local coffee place.
posted by aught at 7:01 AM on March 5, 2015
Coffee grounds (and the drip filters too if not bleached) work in compost too. My partner's coffee grounds go in our compost every weekend and sometimes, if our bin seems too heavy on dry leaves in the fall, we supplement it with big buckets of grounds from the local coffee place.
posted by aught at 7:01 AM on March 5, 2015
There's a company in Toronto working to make completely recyclable K-cup pods.
posted by Kitteh at 7:02 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by Kitteh at 7:02 AM on March 5, 2015
Trifling: It seems like the 'best' way of using the k-cups is to have a vast amount of refillable cups that are sent out after use and refilled, like old school milk bottles.
That requires a lot of effort to transport, clean, refill and redistribute the refilled k-cups. If you're looking to refillable k-cups, there are already k-cups that sell for $15 or so as Keurig-branded products, or you can get them cheaper as knock-offs. That's what we do, in our household of two part-time coffee drinkers, one of whom generally drinks decaf (she started due to breastfeeding and not wanting to caffeinate our kid, then found she didn't miss the caffeine). Simply fill the little mesh cup with whatever coffee blend/type you want and run it like a normal k-cup, then rinse the strainer after each use, and set it aside to dry and repeat. I honestly don't know why you wouldn't use this system, if you like the convenience of k-cups.
posted by filthy light thief at 7:04 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
That requires a lot of effort to transport, clean, refill and redistribute the refilled k-cups. If you're looking to refillable k-cups, there are already k-cups that sell for $15 or so as Keurig-branded products, or you can get them cheaper as knock-offs. That's what we do, in our household of two part-time coffee drinkers, one of whom generally drinks decaf (she started due to breastfeeding and not wanting to caffeinate our kid, then found she didn't miss the caffeine). Simply fill the little mesh cup with whatever coffee blend/type you want and run it like a normal k-cup, then rinse the strainer after each use, and set it aside to dry and repeat. I honestly don't know why you wouldn't use this system, if you like the convenience of k-cups.
posted by filthy light thief at 7:04 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
At work we have the typical Bunn + Folgers setup and whatever is brewed gets poured into an insulated pump carafe to make way for the next round of brew which is chicory coffee that lives in the second pump carafe.
because New Orleans
and also because New Orleans there is at least one of the many different local brands of coffee concentrate [1, 2, 3] in the fridge at any given moment, for those discriminating connoisseurs who don't like Folgers and don't like Cafe du Monde coffee with chicory and want something just a little bit better.
No Keurig machine in sight. I have a co-worker who would probably bash it with a hammer just out of general Earth Mother rage at the waste of throwing out tiny empty K-Cup after tiny empty K-Cup.
posted by komara at 7:06 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
because New Orleans
and also because New Orleans there is at least one of the many different local brands of coffee concentrate [1, 2, 3] in the fridge at any given moment, for those discriminating connoisseurs who don't like Folgers and don't like Cafe du Monde coffee with chicory and want something just a little bit better.
No Keurig machine in sight. I have a co-worker who would probably bash it with a hammer just out of general Earth Mother rage at the waste of throwing out tiny empty K-Cup after tiny empty K-Cup.
posted by komara at 7:06 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
>
French roast? Pour some motor oil into the cup and flambé it.
posted by XMLicious at 7:08 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
With three people in the house with differing coffee taste ...
I'm trying to parse what that could mean. Too strong? Add water. Too weak? Make it yourself. Too harsh? Sugar. Coffee is coffee-flavoured.
French roast? Pour some motor oil into the cup and flambé it.
posted by XMLicious at 7:08 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
But the home thing is mysterious to me.
I think this speaks to the brilliance of the Keurig concept: It is a classic example of a product whose success can largely be attributed to solving a problem you never realized you had in the first place.
Prior to having a Keurig, either my wife or I would make a pot of coffee in the morning. It was a little bit of a pain just in the sense that it was yet another thing to do while trying to get ready for work, could occasionally get a little messy, coffee makers tended to crap out on us with some regularity, but certainly not anything that was enough of a chore to where I ever thought "There has to be a better way".
Now that we have a Keurig, the idea of going through the process of making a full pot of coffee just seems like this ridiculously laborous chore (even though it was simply a daily task just a couple years ago). Having read this article, I don't know how much more environmentally friendly our previous method was anyway, since we definitely tossed a good amount of coffee down the drain every day (Keurig's are especially good, I find, for the mid-afternoon one-cup pick-me-up coffee, whereas with a traditional coffee maker I'd inevitably make too much and end up wasting quite a bit).
What gets me are the price of the pods. I just figure they aren't recyclable due to the flecks of gold that must be hidden in each cup to rationalize the cost.
posted by The Gooch at 7:09 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
I think this speaks to the brilliance of the Keurig concept: It is a classic example of a product whose success can largely be attributed to solving a problem you never realized you had in the first place.
Prior to having a Keurig, either my wife or I would make a pot of coffee in the morning. It was a little bit of a pain just in the sense that it was yet another thing to do while trying to get ready for work, could occasionally get a little messy, coffee makers tended to crap out on us with some regularity, but certainly not anything that was enough of a chore to where I ever thought "There has to be a better way".
Now that we have a Keurig, the idea of going through the process of making a full pot of coffee just seems like this ridiculously laborous chore (even though it was simply a daily task just a couple years ago). Having read this article, I don't know how much more environmentally friendly our previous method was anyway, since we definitely tossed a good amount of coffee down the drain every day (Keurig's are especially good, I find, for the mid-afternoon one-cup pick-me-up coffee, whereas with a traditional coffee maker I'd inevitably make too much and end up wasting quite a bit).
What gets me are the price of the pods. I just figure they aren't recyclable due to the flecks of gold that must be hidden in each cup to rationalize the cost.
posted by The Gooch at 7:09 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Our office has a Keurig (and no drip coffeepot) and provides the cups, so that thing is going all morning. To my shame, I use it too, though I've taken to limiting how much drink at work because I hate the waste. I can see the convenience and people seem to enjoy choosing different flavors, but throwing away all those little nonbiodegradable plastic cups just seems unsustainable to me.
(I use a regular drip pot at home, make two pots in the morning for me and my decaf-drinking spouse, with the first pot going into a good Thermos, and we compost the grounds. Easy peasy.)
I started a recycling program at work, and I'm trying to think of a way of getting around that K-cup machine. I may look into Trader Joe's instant. But based on the way my local grocery has expanded its K-cup selection to half the coffee & tea aisle, I fear I'm swimming upstream here.
posted by Gelatin at 7:10 AM on March 5, 2015
(I use a regular drip pot at home, make two pots in the morning for me and my decaf-drinking spouse, with the first pot going into a good Thermos, and we compost the grounds. Easy peasy.)
I started a recycling program at work, and I'm trying to think of a way of getting around that K-cup machine. I may look into Trader Joe's instant. But based on the way my local grocery has expanded its K-cup selection to half the coffee & tea aisle, I fear I'm swimming upstream here.
posted by Gelatin at 7:10 AM on March 5, 2015
“I don't have one. They're kind of expensive to use,” John Sylvan told me . . . "Plus it’s not like drip coffee is tough to make.” Which would seem like a pretty banal sentiment, were Sylvan not the inventor of the K-Cup.
It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, collected the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet. . . .posted by Herodios at 7:11 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavoured to form? . . . I had worked hard for nearly two years . . . had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.
I beheld the wretch -- the miserable monster whom I had created . . . the demoniacal corpse to which I had so miserably given life. Oh! no mortal could support the horror of that countenance. . . . it became a thing such as even Dante could not have conceived.
I don't really use k-cups (my office doesn't have them so I only use them if I'm visiting some office or person who does), but if you work in an office where brewing a pot is easy and not fraught with problems from just practical ease and quickness to disparate expectations about who brews and cleans, then you're lucky. At some places I've worked only the women really made coffee (men were drinking it of course) and, worse, a significant fraction of men and women couldn't be bothered to clean up. At one place a kitchen "owner" calendar was instituted but even though the bad actors were on it, they still didn't do the work. So, despite disliking k-cups for many reasons, I understand why some offices get them and keep getting them.
posted by R343L at 7:11 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by R343L at 7:11 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
There's a company in Toronto working to make completely recyclable K-cup pods.
The not-Keurig-sanctioned "San Francisco Bay" pods that you can get on Amazon are something like 98% biodegradable.
There are already "eco-friendly" K-cups out there. They cost less and make better coffee.
But a small subset of my friends need to continually point out that I'm Horrible for owning a Keurig machine, blah blah blah. I live alone, and rarely drink more than one cup of coffee in the morning (if that). I'm not going to brew a whole pot, and the pre-coffee version of myself is way too tired to deal with the Bodum.
posted by schmod at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
The not-Keurig-sanctioned "San Francisco Bay" pods that you can get on Amazon are something like 98% biodegradable.
There are already "eco-friendly" K-cups out there. They cost less and make better coffee.
But a small subset of my friends need to continually point out that I'm Horrible for owning a Keurig machine, blah blah blah. I live alone, and rarely drink more than one cup of coffee in the morning (if that). I'm not going to brew a whole pot, and the pre-coffee version of myself is way too tired to deal with the Bodum.
posted by schmod at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
Do they still sell instant? I haven't anyone buy it or drink it in probably twenty-five years.
One more way in which MetaFilter sometimes takes a narrowly American view. Only about 10% of coffee sold here is instant -- though that still kind of adds up to a lot! But in the rest of the word, instant is way more common -- 25% in Western Europe, more than half in Eastern Europe, dominant in Australia and Asia.
In fact, I am drinking a nice cup of Trader Joe's instant coffee, black, right now while I'm writing this. And it tastes even better now that I know I'm saving the freaking planet.
posted by escabeche at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015 [14 favorites]
One more way in which MetaFilter sometimes takes a narrowly American view. Only about 10% of coffee sold here is instant -- though that still kind of adds up to a lot! But in the rest of the word, instant is way more common -- 25% in Western Europe, more than half in Eastern Europe, dominant in Australia and Asia.
In fact, I am drinking a nice cup of Trader Joe's instant coffee, black, right now while I'm writing this. And it tastes even better now that I know I'm saving the freaking planet.
posted by escabeche at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015 [14 favorites]
This electric Moka Pot costs $40 on Amazon -- so, maybe the price of 3 weeks of K-cups for one person? It sits on your desk and makes your own personal coffee, which can be really good coffee, and generates no waste but grounds.
I won't pretend that it is as convenient as Keurig -- it takes a couple minutes; you have to measure your own grounds, to screw the thing together, and to empty the grounds when you're done. But with a few tweaks and the right marketing, and capitalizing on the current K-Cup backlash, it could be a Keurig-killer.
posted by gurple at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015
I won't pretend that it is as convenient as Keurig -- it takes a couple minutes; you have to measure your own grounds, to screw the thing together, and to empty the grounds when you're done. But with a few tweaks and the right marketing, and capitalizing on the current K-Cup backlash, it could be a Keurig-killer.
posted by gurple at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015
Chicory coffee is really gross. That said, I don't like the waste of the Keurig but Johns Hopkins does provide us with free kcups so I am happy about that. Much easier to have a french press at home though.
posted by josher71 at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by josher71 at 7:12 AM on March 5, 2015
MetaFilter sometimes takes a narrowly American view.
American exceptionalism getting it right for once!
posted by josher71 at 7:14 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
American exceptionalism getting it right for once!
posted by josher71 at 7:14 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
I have one after two years of insisting to my kids' grandma that I didn't want one.
On the rare occasions I make coffee with it, I just use the refillable cup.
But where the Keurig really shines is instant hit water available any time for my terrible tea habit. I finally admit that I love my Keurig, but not because it makes coffee (the large cup setting fills my 2-cup French press perfectly with hot water!).
posted by annathea at 7:14 AM on March 5, 2015
On the rare occasions I make coffee with it, I just use the refillable cup.
But where the Keurig really shines is instant hit water available any time for my terrible tea habit. I finally admit that I love my Keurig, but not because it makes coffee (the large cup setting fills my 2-cup French press perfectly with hot water!).
posted by annathea at 7:14 AM on March 5, 2015
People talking about the life cycle comparison should be aware that the linked study only compares it to drip filter and freeze dried. It does not compare to, for example, fully automatic espresso machines or french presses or Moka's, etc.
posted by Poldo at 7:16 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by Poldo at 7:16 AM on March 5, 2015
But where the Keurig really shines is instant hit water available any time for my terrible tea habit.
You might find a market for that "hit water" in Colorado.
posted by Herodios at 7:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
You might find a market for that "hit water" in Colorado.
posted by Herodios at 7:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
There are already "eco-friendly" K-cups out there. They cost less and make better coffee.
You cannot use these with the new Keurig machines without doing the jailbreak thing, which a lot of people are hesitant to do, as it can actually break your machine.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 7:20 AM on March 5, 2015
You cannot use these with the new Keurig machines without doing the jailbreak thing, which a lot of people are hesitant to do, as it can actually break your machine.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 7:20 AM on March 5, 2015
My friend buys instant coffee and I'll begrudge that it's drinkable, and caffeinated, but not really enjoyable.
What in God's name do you think is in a Keurig cup?
posted by phaedon at 7:21 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
What in God's name do you think is in a Keurig cup?
posted by phaedon at 7:21 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
K-cups feel absolutely ecological compared to the waste from Flavia packets, which is what we had the last time I worked in an office. Great if you want a cup of candy coffee with 30g of carbs, but I felt like I was burning down a rainforest tree every time I made one.
posted by Lyn Never at 7:22 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by Lyn Never at 7:22 AM on March 5, 2015
it takes a couple minutes; you have to measure your own grounds, to screw the thing together, and to empty the grounds when you're done. But with a few tweaks and the right marketing, and capitalizing on the current K-Cup backlash, it could be a Keurig-killer.
Heh, personally I'm no fan of the Keurig and the waste the non-biodegradable cups are creating, but I think you should re-read your paragraph and think about what you said, comparing the effort of each method from the mindset of the average person. The Keurig's appeal is its quickness, disposability, and flavor (from a gimmicky "shall I treat myself with hazelnut, donut shoppe, breakfast blend, Vienna roast, or mocha-choco-java today?") and frankly the majority of its users (I have talked about it with relatives who have Keurigs and love love love them) could care less about other factors.
posted by aught at 7:22 AM on March 5, 2015
Heh, personally I'm no fan of the Keurig and the waste the non-biodegradable cups are creating, but I think you should re-read your paragraph and think about what you said, comparing the effort of each method from the mindset of the average person. The Keurig's appeal is its quickness, disposability, and flavor (from a gimmicky "shall I treat myself with hazelnut, donut shoppe, breakfast blend, Vienna roast, or mocha-choco-java today?") and frankly the majority of its users (I have talked about it with relatives who have Keurigs and love love love them) could care less about other factors.
posted by aught at 7:22 AM on March 5, 2015
Do you people know that you can make your own fucking single cup of coffee by taking a filter out, putting 2 scoops of coffee in it, pouring in 2 cups of water into the reservoir and hit the on button? Why do people think they need to fill up then entire coffee maker every time they want coffee? I think Americans just like to buy things - then talk about them incessantly - instead of figuring out how to diy.
posted by any major dude at 7:26 AM on March 5, 2015 [17 favorites]
posted by any major dude at 7:26 AM on March 5, 2015 [17 favorites]
In Korea, where hot water dispensers are ubiquitous in every place of work, so too are little sleeves of coffee, sugar and creamer. They taste like nothing so much as the Nescafe instant cappuccino and other flavoured coffees my mom loved so much. It was trippily nostalgic to see these in the office for the first few days, but after that I went out and got a cone pour-over rig to do it properly.
Brewed coffee was kind of exotic. Everyone thought I was a weirdo.
posted by bonehead at 7:26 AM on March 5, 2015
Brewed coffee was kind of exotic. Everyone thought I was a weirdo.
posted by bonehead at 7:26 AM on March 5, 2015
What in God's name do you think is in a Keurig cup?
Not to be a dick, but ... what's in a Keurig cup is not instant coffee. For one thing, the reusable cups you fill with regular ground coffee. And for another I just cut open this morning's pod to check, and that ain't instant coffee.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 7:29 AM on March 5, 2015 [9 favorites]
Not to be a dick, but ... what's in a Keurig cup is not instant coffee. For one thing, the reusable cups you fill with regular ground coffee. And for another I just cut open this morning's pod to check, and that ain't instant coffee.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 7:29 AM on March 5, 2015 [9 favorites]
But where the Keurig really shines is instant hit water available any time for my terrible tea habit.
I didn't realize these things could do that! My office has a Keurig that I have utterly ignored as I am a tea drinker. Perhaps I will see if I can get water closer to boiling for my black teas, as opposed to the perfect-for-green tea temperature water I can get from the water dispenser.
posted by bile and syntax at 7:31 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
I didn't realize these things could do that! My office has a Keurig that I have utterly ignored as I am a tea drinker. Perhaps I will see if I can get water closer to boiling for my black teas, as opposed to the perfect-for-green tea temperature water I can get from the water dispenser.
posted by bile and syntax at 7:31 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
What do coffee snobs do when they move in with someone who likes something like hazelnut coffee?
In my house, he just looks at me disdainfully and I get my flavored coffee elsewhere.
Arguing that hazelnut is the only flavor I truly like has so far not moved him.
posted by chainsofreedom at 7:32 AM on March 5, 2015
In my house, he just looks at me disdainfully and I get my flavored coffee elsewhere.
Arguing that hazelnut is the only flavor I truly like has so far not moved him.
posted by chainsofreedom at 7:32 AM on March 5, 2015
fully automatic espresso machines
Good lord I love those things. Even the shitty work sites I have been to in Germany and the Netherlands have them, and they're great. Giant hopper of whole beans, tapped into a water line - press a button and it grinds the coffee and makes a perfect cup. I wish I could justify the thousands of dollars it would cost to install one in our house.
posted by backseatpilot at 7:33 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Good lord I love those things. Even the shitty work sites I have been to in Germany and the Netherlands have them, and they're great. Giant hopper of whole beans, tapped into a water line - press a button and it grinds the coffee and makes a perfect cup. I wish I could justify the thousands of dollars it would cost to install one in our house.
posted by backseatpilot at 7:33 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
For those saying they use it at home so they can make a single cup: Are you aware of single cup pour over devices? They cost like $5-$20 bucks, and all you need with it is a coffee filter and a way to get water hot (I use a plain old kettle.)
No wasteful k-cups needed and if 3 people lived with me, we could easily each have our own flavors.
posted by greermahoney at 7:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
No wasteful k-cups needed and if 3 people lived with me, we could easily each have our own flavors.
posted by greermahoney at 7:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I bought a Braun gold filter 30 years ago, that sits in the plastic Melitta cone I bought 45 years ago, and I make coffee into a carafe, heatimg the water in a fast electric heater. One carafe=two days worth of great coffee. Last summer I made press pot sun coffee, with a back reflector. That was the smoothest coffee, ever. The Mexican market nearby sells only instant coffee. Nobody ever complains about the coffee at my place, I complain about other things while drinking my delicious, environmentally friendly brew.
posted by Oyéah at 7:38 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Oyéah at 7:38 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
The Keurig's appeal is its quickness, disposability, and flavor (from a gimmicky "shall I treat myself with hazelnut, donut shoppe, breakfast blend, Vienna roast, or mocha-choco-java today?") and frankly the majority of its users (I have talked about it with relatives who have Keurigs and love love love them) could care less about other factors.
Also, according to the Moka website it makes 3-6 cups of espresso? I mean I guess if someday I decide I want my heartbeat to resemble that of a rabbit....
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 7:39 AM on March 5, 2015
Also, according to the Moka website it makes 3-6 cups of espresso? I mean I guess if someday I decide I want my heartbeat to resemble that of a rabbit....
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 7:39 AM on March 5, 2015
Oh jesus, now you're going to get people going on the difference between Moka and that which is, technically, espresso.
posted by mr. digits at 7:42 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by mr. digits at 7:42 AM on March 5, 2015
Oh jesus, now you're going to get people going on the difference between Moka and that which is, technically, espresso.
OH GOD NEVER MIND I DON'T CARE I DON'T CARE
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 7:46 AM on March 5, 2015 [10 favorites]
OH GOD NEVER MIND I DON'T CARE I DON'T CARE
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 7:46 AM on March 5, 2015 [10 favorites]
Are you aware of single cup pour over devices?
Yes, we are aware of them. And we also like being able to let the dog out, fill the dog's food and water bowl, and let the dog back in while the water is brewing as opposed to hovering over our coffee cup with a (n optional) weird shaped kettle for 2-3 minutes. There are many ways of making a cup of coffee, and pour-over is probably one of the biggest pains in the ass.
For me, personally, who only makes coffee at home on weekends, generally just for myself (sometimes for Mr. Motion), the sweet spot of cost/convenience/environmental responsibility is a Keurig with a reusable cup, plus a manual burr grinder, and beans purchased by the half pound and kept in the freezer.
Sometimes though, Costco has sales on K-Cups that make them pretty much the same price (or cheaper) than whole beans, and so we will splurge on them an live like lazy earth destroying kings for a few months.
posted by sparklemotion at 7:48 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
Yes, we are aware of them. And we also like being able to let the dog out, fill the dog's food and water bowl, and let the dog back in while the water is brewing as opposed to hovering over our coffee cup with a (n optional) weird shaped kettle for 2-3 minutes. There are many ways of making a cup of coffee, and pour-over is probably one of the biggest pains in the ass.
For me, personally, who only makes coffee at home on weekends, generally just for myself (sometimes for Mr. Motion), the sweet spot of cost/convenience/environmental responsibility is a Keurig with a reusable cup, plus a manual burr grinder, and beans purchased by the half pound and kept in the freezer.
Sometimes though, Costco has sales on K-Cups that make them pretty much the same price (or cheaper) than whole beans, and so we will splurge on them an live like lazy earth destroying kings for a few months.
posted by sparklemotion at 7:48 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
My wife's office uses the hell out of their Keurig. It's just eight women, but they all drink different stuff, including hot chocolate and tea.
Hot chocolate and tea are already instant (just add hot water); coffee can be instant, or pour over, or French press. All you need for any of these is an electric kettle. I still hold that if eletric kettles were common in the US, these types of machines would be much less popular.
I don't know what the increased use of coffee itself means for the environmental impact (I use about 20g of coffee for each cup, rather than 11g). But is coffee an irrigated crop?
posted by jb at 7:49 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Hot chocolate and tea are already instant (just add hot water); coffee can be instant, or pour over, or French press. All you need for any of these is an electric kettle. I still hold that if eletric kettles were common in the US, these types of machines would be much less popular.
I don't know what the increased use of coffee itself means for the environmental impact (I use about 20g of coffee for each cup, rather than 11g). But is coffee an irrigated crop?
posted by jb at 7:49 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Pour overs are fun to play with on a slow weekend, but they're way too fussy for a morning brew when you're half-asleep, or when you really want to spend time with dinner guests.
A brew pot is indeed simplest, but a proper French press is a nice compromise I find. Can be set-up ahead like a brewing machine, and is about as much work as making a pot of tea, which I'm very likely doing at the same time. I'm loving our new Espro press, with its double filter, which both solves the gritty coffee problems with your normal Bodum, and looks fabulous on the dinner table.
posted by bonehead at 7:54 AM on March 5, 2015
A brew pot is indeed simplest, but a proper French press is a nice compromise I find. Can be set-up ahead like a brewing machine, and is about as much work as making a pot of tea, which I'm very likely doing at the same time. I'm loving our new Espro press, with its double filter, which both solves the gritty coffee problems with your normal Bodum, and looks fabulous on the dinner table.
posted by bonehead at 7:54 AM on March 5, 2015
I should add, for the early morning problem, we do use a fancy-pants coffee maker, which works amazingly well.
The real step up from coffee-makers or k-cups or whatever is probably grinding your own beans.
posted by bonehead at 7:59 AM on March 5, 2015
The real step up from coffee-makers or k-cups or whatever is probably grinding your own beans.
posted by bonehead at 7:59 AM on March 5, 2015
Do they make vending machines for K-Cups?
My apartment building's lobby has one. There is a standard keurig and small vending machine with several k-cup choices. People do seem to use it. Fortunately, my wife is satisfied with a French Press and chicory coffee so we save about $5-600 a year over the lobby Keurig users (and about $500,000 over the starbuckers if you include the cost of coffee fetching athletic wear).
posted by srboisvert at 8:01 AM on March 5, 2015
My apartment building's lobby has one. There is a standard keurig and small vending machine with several k-cup choices. People do seem to use it. Fortunately, my wife is satisfied with a French Press and chicory coffee so we save about $5-600 a year over the lobby Keurig users (and about $500,000 over the starbuckers if you include the cost of coffee fetching athletic wear).
posted by srboisvert at 8:01 AM on March 5, 2015
jb: "Hot chocolate and tea are already instant "
hello I think you are unaware of mexican drinking chocolate which has a long and storied history and furthermore is most definitely not, repeat not, instant by any stretch of the imagination.
posted by boo_radley at 8:05 AM on March 5, 2015
hello I think you are unaware of mexican drinking chocolate which has a long and storied history and furthermore is most definitely not, repeat not, instant by any stretch of the imagination.
posted by boo_radley at 8:05 AM on March 5, 2015
Do they make vending machines for K-Cups?
The Multi-Max is a common one.
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:12 AM on March 5, 2015
The Multi-Max is a common one.
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:12 AM on March 5, 2015
Fully automatic espresso makers can be purchased for ~$600. Every bit as easy to use as a Kuerig. Better coffee. Less cost. Delonghi has one that stood up to office use for years at my last worksite.
posted by five fresh fish at 8:14 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by five fresh fish at 8:14 AM on March 5, 2015
I wonder how much effort Keurig made to find recyclable plastic for their cups. My office uses cups and utensils that are fully compostable. They are sturdier than normal plastic cups and utensils. Of course, the plastic for those items is probably more expensive than what Keurig uses, but it would go a long way towards quelling the backlash against the company.
posted by oozy rat in a sanitary zoo at 8:26 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by oozy rat in a sanitary zoo at 8:26 AM on March 5, 2015
For $600 you're not getting a machine that grinds the beans and automatically holds them for disposal. You're messing with grinders and portafilters, etc.
My last office had a $3000 Saeco and it was still a pain in the ass to clean/purge/descale. And if you don't give it that TLC, it will eventually turn scuzzy (bad), or outright break into pieces (worse).
Either way, the coffee station becomes an absolute mess in a week, unless you ask someone in the office to be the Coffee Machine Parent. Which is fun for exactly 1 day.
On top of that, now you're passing the hat to buy beans and supplies. And then you're dealing with the coffee snobs that want to buy the fancy stuff and HEY, CheapAss John in Accounting didn't spring for the good stuff but I caught him using the Intellgentsia yesterday and blah blah blah forget it.
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:26 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
My last office had a $3000 Saeco and it was still a pain in the ass to clean/purge/descale. And if you don't give it that TLC, it will eventually turn scuzzy (bad), or outright break into pieces (worse).
Either way, the coffee station becomes an absolute mess in a week, unless you ask someone in the office to be the Coffee Machine Parent. Which is fun for exactly 1 day.
On top of that, now you're passing the hat to buy beans and supplies. And then you're dealing with the coffee snobs that want to buy the fancy stuff and HEY, CheapAss John in Accounting didn't spring for the good stuff but I caught him using the Intellgentsia yesterday and blah blah blah forget it.
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:26 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
So it's true! Poor people don't even have enough free time to grind their own coffee!
posted by maryr at 8:29 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by maryr at 8:29 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
"Once he had a design that worked, he looked up the word excellence in Dutch—because “everyone likes the Dutch”—and he and his college roommate Peter Dragone named their new company Keurig."How ironic. Because the Dutch invented a system (the Senseo) that not only tastes MUCH better, it also uses paper pods, not plastic. In fact, we switched to the Senseo because of the obscene amount of plastic garbage the Keurigs produce.
posted by monospace at 8:44 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm a tea fiend, and the mister is a fan of coffee. So we bought an electric kettle for me and a 1-cup drip coffee maker for him. He gets his one cup in the mornings, I get hot water for tea that doesn't taste like stale coffee, and we're both pleased.
His parents have a Keurig/drip pot combination coffee maker. It's very strange. Anyway, I tried making a cup of tea in the Keurig part of it once, and it was the weakest, saddest cup of tea I've ever had. Never again.
posted by PearlRose at 9:03 AM on March 5, 2015
His parents have a Keurig/drip pot combination coffee maker. It's very strange. Anyway, I tried making a cup of tea in the Keurig part of it once, and it was the weakest, saddest cup of tea I've ever had. Never again.
posted by PearlRose at 9:03 AM on March 5, 2015
Hot chocolate and tea are already instant (just add hot water)
There's no good way of heating water in the office, except for putting a cup in the microwave. Then there's adding the chocolate mix, stirring, cleaning up the mix that missed the cup, wiping up any liquid that splashed out while stirring, washing off the spoon you stirred with in the bathroom sink...
The K-Cup is all about convenience, and little more. Plop the k-cup in the machine and press a button. No muss, no fuss. As such, it's no wonder it's such a huge hit. Convenience trumps quality every time.
posted by Thorzdad at 9:16 AM on March 5, 2015
There's no good way of heating water in the office, except for putting a cup in the microwave. Then there's adding the chocolate mix, stirring, cleaning up the mix that missed the cup, wiping up any liquid that splashed out while stirring, washing off the spoon you stirred with in the bathroom sink...
The K-Cup is all about convenience, and little more. Plop the k-cup in the machine and press a button. No muss, no fuss. As such, it's no wonder it's such a huge hit. Convenience trumps quality every time.
posted by Thorzdad at 9:16 AM on March 5, 2015
The admin my department had when I started used to make a pot of coffee every morning; she'd drink some, and then the rest of the coffee drinkers would grab a cup too. But then she retired, and our next admin didn't drink coffee. So she didn't make coffee every morning...occasionally someone would make a pot, but it was so irregular that you don't think to check. The last time someone made a pot, it sat there half filled with coffee (and eventually little colonies of mold) for weeks.
I keep thinking that what we really need is a Keurig machine, because then at least you wouldn't have the problem of gross moldy coffee for weeks, but the budget's really tight these days. So instead everyone walks over to the coffee shop in the student center and pays $2 for a 12 oz cup of drip.
...maybe I should bring this up at the next faculty meeting.
posted by leahwrenn at 9:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I keep thinking that what we really need is a Keurig machine, because then at least you wouldn't have the problem of gross moldy coffee for weeks, but the budget's really tight these days. So instead everyone walks over to the coffee shop in the student center and pays $2 for a 12 oz cup of drip.
...maybe I should bring this up at the next faculty meeting.
posted by leahwrenn at 9:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
How did Americans become so excessively weird and fussy about their coffee?
posted by pracowity at 9:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by pracowity at 9:18 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
There's no good way of heating water in the office
There's no kettle? How do you make tea? You could buy a kettle for the office.
posted by pracowity at 9:20 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
There's no kettle? How do you make tea? You could buy a kettle for the office.
posted by pracowity at 9:20 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
For coffee, I take ye olde refillable mug to Sheetz (regional convenience store on steroids) where one may refill ye olde refillable mug (size up to 32 fl. oz) with a selection of hot, ready-to-drink coffee options for a paltry $0.74 (with loyalty card) and doctor said coffee as desired with assorted sweeteners, cow-product additives, flavorings, and whatnot. Every tenth one is free, so really, the coffees cost about 67 cents each and I don't have to do any of the work. For comparison, WalMart says Donut Shoppe Keurigs cost about 50 cents a serving if I buy the 36-pod kind but I also have to buy a hundred dollar coffee maker to go with that and keep up with my own half-and-half supply chain. (Math, math, math, math, and I don't have numbers for the cow juice part) At 17 cents a cup more (one cup per day in the Weekday AMs as day-starter fuel), a Keurig setup would be more cost-effective in two years and change... but then I'd have to futz around with buying pods and keeping half-n-half around blah blah plus also no counterspace in my kitchen...
Honestly, finding out the "most economic/ecological" solution here is kind of a pain in the ass. What portion of the environmental cost of hot-n-ready coffee 24/7 do I bear by patronizing Sheetz for their coffee? How do I weigh that against the supply chain and plastic crap involved in the Keurig system? Is takeout Sheetz coffee in a reusable mug "more environmentally sustainable" than Keurig coffee? How the hell would I even know?
I do what I can live with. You do what you can live with. Hopefully, we will all be able to keep living.
posted by which_chick at 9:22 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Honestly, finding out the "most economic/ecological" solution here is kind of a pain in the ass. What portion of the environmental cost of hot-n-ready coffee 24/7 do I bear by patronizing Sheetz for their coffee? How do I weigh that against the supply chain and plastic crap involved in the Keurig system? Is takeout Sheetz coffee in a reusable mug "more environmentally sustainable" than Keurig coffee? How the hell would I even know?
I do what I can live with. You do what you can live with. Hopefully, we will all be able to keep living.
posted by which_chick at 9:22 AM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Hot chocolate and tea are already instant
Good hot chocolate is not instant. And my cabinets full of loose leaf tea would seem to imply that tea does require at least, a little effort.
There's no good way of heating water in the office.
Unless you want gross coffee-flavored water from the coffee pot. We could buy an electric kettle, and that's what I wound up doing, even though I'm the only one using it....
posted by PearlRose at 9:24 AM on March 5, 2015
Good hot chocolate is not instant. And my cabinets full of loose leaf tea would seem to imply that tea does require at least, a little effort.
There's no good way of heating water in the office.
Unless you want gross coffee-flavored water from the coffee pot. We could buy an electric kettle, and that's what I wound up doing, even though I'm the only one using it....
posted by PearlRose at 9:24 AM on March 5, 2015
These things are terrible and should go away. What will probably happen instead is the Keurigization of other small inconveniences.
Someone could probably make a fortune by inventing a similar pod system to replace the little single-serve jam-packet towers at diners. A system that offered similar choice/convenience but none of the mess might be popular in homes, too (think of all the little half-full random jars and bottles taking up space in your fridge). A Keurig for condiments almost makes sense, and could probably be made recyclable more easily.
posted by oulipian at 9:31 AM on March 5, 2015
Someone could probably make a fortune by inventing a similar pod system to replace the little single-serve jam-packet towers at diners. A system that offered similar choice/convenience but none of the mess might be popular in homes, too (think of all the little half-full random jars and bottles taking up space in your fridge). A Keurig for condiments almost makes sense, and could probably be made recyclable more easily.
posted by oulipian at 9:31 AM on March 5, 2015
Keurig/K-Cups are popular because they reflect one of America's core beliefs: "Give me convenience or give me death."
I've had K-Cup coffee and it was fine, but I'll drink pretty much anything if I'm offered it.
And really, coffee/tea/hot chocolate is as much work as you want to make it. When we ditched our coffee maker for a Chemex, we found it didn't actually take more time and the taste was better. It's worth it to us to have freshly ground/freshly brewed coffee in the morning. It's like people who want tea, but only loose leaf tea. Cool, it's just more work. Same with hot chocolate made from actual chocolate. We all have our preferences.
The thing that does get me about K-Cups, and I say this as an honest coffee snob, is that a lot of proponents try to make claims about quality when it really comes down to preference and convenience. I'll never be part of that demographic since I like to shop locally and do think about the environmental impact of my actions - but if other people are cool with it, bully for them.
And at work right now there's a critical mass of coffee wonks. We have a hand grinder, electric kettle, Chemex, Aeropress, and french press. Only thing we need right now is a scale. And maybe another single cup pour over.
posted by kendrak at 9:33 AM on March 5, 2015
I've had K-Cup coffee and it was fine, but I'll drink pretty much anything if I'm offered it.
And really, coffee/tea/hot chocolate is as much work as you want to make it. When we ditched our coffee maker for a Chemex, we found it didn't actually take more time and the taste was better. It's worth it to us to have freshly ground/freshly brewed coffee in the morning. It's like people who want tea, but only loose leaf tea. Cool, it's just more work. Same with hot chocolate made from actual chocolate. We all have our preferences.
The thing that does get me about K-Cups, and I say this as an honest coffee snob, is that a lot of proponents try to make claims about quality when it really comes down to preference and convenience. I'll never be part of that demographic since I like to shop locally and do think about the environmental impact of my actions - but if other people are cool with it, bully for them.
And at work right now there's a critical mass of coffee wonks. We have a hand grinder, electric kettle, Chemex, Aeropress, and french press. Only thing we need right now is a scale. And maybe another single cup pour over.
posted by kendrak at 9:33 AM on March 5, 2015
Pretty sure once a society has options, they'll get fussy and weird about anything.
Well, that's half the story. I think people are fussy or fussier only if they can outsource the fussiness factor to a machine or another human being. This then provides the incentive for someone else to profit off of it. We're all "Single Serving Jack's" or Jane's.
Also, I'm surprised no one's mentioned the Yerba Mate. One of my friends brought his to a new office he was working at, and his co-workers thought he was using drugs at work.
posted by FJT at 9:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Well, that's half the story. I think people are fussy or fussier only if they can outsource the fussiness factor to a machine or another human being. This then provides the incentive for someone else to profit off of it. We're all "Single Serving Jack's" or Jane's.
Also, I'm surprised no one's mentioned the Yerba Mate. One of my friends brought his to a new office he was working at, and his co-workers thought he was using drugs at work.
posted by FJT at 9:36 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I think the biggest problem would be making people forget the instant coffee of the '80's and '90's. The taste has gotten a lot better, but good luck convincing people of that.
Depends where. I haven't actually had North American instant in ages (I have a container I use for baking, though, where it's very convenient). I've had it in England where it makes drinking mud puddles seem appealing and in Istanbul where it was completely delicious.
posted by jeather at 9:39 AM on March 5, 2015
Depends where. I haven't actually had North American instant in ages (I have a container I use for baking, though, where it's very convenient). I've had it in England where it makes drinking mud puddles seem appealing and in Istanbul where it was completely delicious.
posted by jeather at 9:39 AM on March 5, 2015
As I've mentioned before (my comment is about halfway down), Keurig has been a godsend for my wife, who has multiple disabilities. She can make herself a cup of coffee while I'm at work. The alternatives mentioned would NOT work, and I will therefore NOT consider them.
posted by Mogur at 9:40 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by Mogur at 9:40 AM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
One more way in which MetaFilter sometimes takes a narrowly American view.
You're also discussing some American guy inventing a machine in 1992, some 16 years after the Nespresso machines were first introduced in Europe and at least a few years after they started to become popular in the late eighties :-)
posted by effbot at 9:41 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
You're also discussing some American guy inventing a machine in 1992, some 16 years after the Nespresso machines were first introduced in Europe and at least a few years after they started to become popular in the late eighties :-)
posted by effbot at 9:41 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
I've tried Keurig and Nespresso and -- though I like espresso a lot -- I find Nespresso vile and Keurig perfectly fine.
posted by jeather at 9:44 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by jeather at 9:44 AM on March 5, 2015
Just say no to drip pots and k-cups.
Old school electric percolators all the way.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 9:48 AM on March 5, 2015
Old school electric percolators all the way.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 9:48 AM on March 5, 2015
I've never seen the advantage over the ESE/Senseo systems, personally - I mean, you save a grand total of one step using a Keurig over those, which is basically unwrapping a pod / removing a pod from a canister as opposed to throwing in the whole damned cup. The only thing that Keurig brings to the table over those are attempts to lock you into their "format," and a much more difficult manufacturing process for anyone who would want to make coffee that is "compatible."
I guess the ESE and Senseo systems are "too european" in that they are geared for espresso - but if you used a similar styled system at lower pressure, it would be trivial to make "american" style coffee and save the extra step of adding hot water.
For all I know, you can throw one of those pods in a 2-4 cup automatic coffee maker and get a great result - I really don't see why it wouldn't work. Hotels that avoid Keurig often have something much like this.
posted by MysticMCJ at 9:50 AM on March 5, 2015
I guess the ESE and Senseo systems are "too european" in that they are geared for espresso - but if you used a similar styled system at lower pressure, it would be trivial to make "american" style coffee and save the extra step of adding hot water.
For all I know, you can throw one of those pods in a 2-4 cup automatic coffee maker and get a great result - I really don't see why it wouldn't work. Hotels that avoid Keurig often have something much like this.
posted by MysticMCJ at 9:50 AM on March 5, 2015
In fact, we switched to the Senseo because of the obscene amount of plastic garbage the Keurigs produce.
So what did happen to Senseo? I owned one myself before switching to Aeropress. It seemed like Phillips was all behind this and suddenly they're not (and now they bought Saeco. Go figure).
posted by JoeZydeco at 9:50 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
So what did happen to Senseo? I owned one myself before switching to Aeropress. It seemed like Phillips was all behind this and suddenly they're not (and now they bought Saeco. Go figure).
posted by JoeZydeco at 9:50 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
...the single-serve brewing pods that have fundamentally changed the coffee experience in recent years.
Whatever.
Can someone show some numbers that even remotely support this statement? I assume the writer is just doing the old "my East Coast office and my peers are a good stand-in for the Nation as a whole" thing.
posted by General Tonic at 9:56 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Whatever.
Can someone show some numbers that even remotely support this statement? I assume the writer is just doing the old "my East Coast office and my peers are a good stand-in for the Nation as a whole" thing.
posted by General Tonic at 9:56 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Convenience trumps quality every time.
Keurig, for all the knocks against it, is a step up in both convenience AND quality over any office coffee I've ever had at my disposal.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 10:00 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Keurig, for all the knocks against it, is a step up in both convenience AND quality over any office coffee I've ever had at my disposal.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 10:00 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
And my cabinets full of loose leaf tea would seem to imply that tea does require at least, a little effort.
No, just that you're fussy about tea. (Not that that's unusual - I also have a cabinet full of loose leaf tea. But I find disposable tea bags from the Korean market takes care of much of the hassle, FWIW.)
posted by maryr at 10:08 AM on March 5, 2015
No, just that you're fussy about tea. (Not that that's unusual - I also have a cabinet full of loose leaf tea. But I find disposable tea bags from the Korean market takes care of much of the hassle, FWIW.)
posted by maryr at 10:08 AM on March 5, 2015
If you're stuck in a hospital waiting room for hours or days because of a sick loved one and weren't in a position to pack camping equipment, as it were, beforehand then one of these pod-based coffee machines is a real mercy, IMHO. (Though if it's a large central waiting room you're in you may have to accidentally stumble across the coffee machines while on a field trip to the surgery or ICU waiting rooms, I find, which are more likely to have them.)
posted by XMLicious at 10:18 AM on March 5, 2015
posted by XMLicious at 10:18 AM on March 5, 2015
Can someone show some numbers that even remotely support this statement?
Some numbers. They are the best selling coffee brand at retail, ahead of Folger's, Maxwell House, etc., with 18% of the market.
posted by smackfu at 10:21 AM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
Some numbers. They are the best selling coffee brand at retail, ahead of Folger's, Maxwell House, etc., with 18% of the market.
posted by smackfu at 10:21 AM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
I use the K-Cup things sometimes at work because that's what we have, but I don't find the coffee particularly good or bad and throwing away the little cups kind of sucks. I am fairly picky about coffee but pour-over seems like a drag and I use cream and sugar so I can't ever be in the inner circle anyway.
We have two coffee drinkers at home and after trying various things, we settled on a BonaVita drip maker which has performed really well for the last couple of years. We set the water and filter up the night before but wait until the morning to grind a few beans from a local roaster, dump them in and push the button. It has a thermal carafe and the coffee still tastes quite good and piping hot if you pour a second cup 2 or 3 hours later. Grinding the beans in the morning (vs. the night before) made the biggest difference in my experiments. Filtered/non-filtered water and other stuff didn't seem to matter but we have great tap water in our town.
posted by freecellwizard at 10:37 AM on March 5, 2015
We have two coffee drinkers at home and after trying various things, we settled on a BonaVita drip maker which has performed really well for the last couple of years. We set the water and filter up the night before but wait until the morning to grind a few beans from a local roaster, dump them in and push the button. It has a thermal carafe and the coffee still tastes quite good and piping hot if you pour a second cup 2 or 3 hours later. Grinding the beans in the morning (vs. the night before) made the biggest difference in my experiments. Filtered/non-filtered water and other stuff didn't seem to matter but we have great tap water in our town.
posted by freecellwizard at 10:37 AM on March 5, 2015
My friend buys instant coffee and I'll begrudge that it's drinkable, and caffeinated, but not really enjoyable.
What in God's name do you think is in a Keurig cup?
I've seen this assertion made in a few Keurig threads here, and it is simply not the case. The K-cups contain ground coffee, not instant coffee, and the machines (prior to the newest version with the DRM system) work with various reusable filters that allow for the use of one's own grounds.
The only K-cups I've used in mine were the ones that came with the machine and some I've received as gifts. Even without the K-cups, the machine has provided a good way for me to have my one cup in the morning and another later in the day with no waste and easy cleanup. I like the taste better than my drip machine or percolator, but not as much as french press or Aeropress. The Keurig machine works too fast to get full extraction, so it doesn't get that perfect balance between solids, oils, and soluble components that ideal brewing methods can achieve, but it works as a good compromise for me.
posted by gimli at 10:40 AM on March 5, 2015
What in God's name do you think is in a Keurig cup?
I've seen this assertion made in a few Keurig threads here, and it is simply not the case. The K-cups contain ground coffee, not instant coffee, and the machines (prior to the newest version with the DRM system) work with various reusable filters that allow for the use of one's own grounds.
The only K-cups I've used in mine were the ones that came with the machine and some I've received as gifts. Even without the K-cups, the machine has provided a good way for me to have my one cup in the morning and another later in the day with no waste and easy cleanup. I like the taste better than my drip machine or percolator, but not as much as french press or Aeropress. The Keurig machine works too fast to get full extraction, so it doesn't get that perfect balance between solids, oils, and soluble components that ideal brewing methods can achieve, but it works as a good compromise for me.
posted by gimli at 10:40 AM on March 5, 2015
No, just that you're fussy about tea.
Yeah, I think that's what I was trying to get to. Anything can be fussy if you want it to be, especially if you're picky about the quality.
posted by PearlRose at 10:40 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I think that's what I was trying to get to. Anything can be fussy if you want it to be, especially if you're picky about the quality.
posted by PearlRose at 10:40 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Just popped in to say hi!
My first job involved sharing an office with another person and the standard two-burner office coffee. I can still smell the stench of burned office coffee. And love coffee!
I now measure my life in Nespresso cups, which saves so much time and money over my prior Starbucks habits. Once the old reliable espresso machine I'd used since 1996 died, all replacements machines until Nespresso were terrible and broke quickly.
posted by Measured Out my Life in Coffeespoons at 10:52 AM on March 5, 2015
My first job involved sharing an office with another person and the standard two-burner office coffee. I can still smell the stench of burned office coffee. And love coffee!
I now measure my life in Nespresso cups, which saves so much time and money over my prior Starbucks habits. Once the old reliable espresso machine I'd used since 1996 died, all replacements machines until Nespresso were terrible and broke quickly.
posted by Measured Out my Life in Coffeespoons at 10:52 AM on March 5, 2015
No one's mentioned the Softbrew, which makes utterly perfect drip coffee. If you get the small one you can make a single cup and not have to hang over it for 2 minutes. I make a quart or so in the morning and put it in a thermos.
posted by QuietDesperation at 11:02 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by QuietDesperation at 11:02 AM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I use the K-Cup things sometimes at work because that's what we have, but I don't find the coffee particularly good or bad and throwing away the little cups kind of sucks.
Yeah, I feel like it's kind of neutral as far as taste goes. It's like, on par with 7-11 coffee or maybe slightly better than dunkin donuts coffee. In fact, all the people I know who have keurigs at home are people who otherwise would be going to dunkin donuts every day to buy. Which I find baffling, but I drink two cups a day.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 11:32 AM on March 5, 2015
Yeah, I feel like it's kind of neutral as far as taste goes. It's like, on par with 7-11 coffee or maybe slightly better than dunkin donuts coffee. In fact, all the people I know who have keurigs at home are people who otherwise would be going to dunkin donuts every day to buy. Which I find baffling, but I drink two cups a day.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 11:32 AM on March 5, 2015
Is the Softbrew simpler than a normal drip machine?
It's not a machine. Inside the pitcher is a removable basket with very fine (laser-etched, AFACT) holes that let the coffee soak in water. Then you pull out the basket when you're done. Coffee's as good as a French press, but even less hassle.
posted by QuietDesperation at 11:40 AM on March 5, 2015
It's not a machine. Inside the pitcher is a removable basket with very fine (laser-etched, AFACT) holes that let the coffee soak in water. Then you pull out the basket when you're done. Coffee's as good as a French press, but even less hassle.
posted by QuietDesperation at 11:40 AM on March 5, 2015
There's no good way of heating water in the office, except for putting a cup in the microwave. Then there's adding the chocolate mix, stirring, cleaning up the mix that missed the cup, wiping up any liquid that splashed out while stirring, washing off the spoon you stirred with in the bathroom sink...
In Canada, no office/shared kitchen would have a microwave and no electric kettle. When I lived in a dorm, I had an electric kettle in my room, and walked down four storeys to use a microwave. When I was in high school, I had an electric kettle in my locker (filled it in the bathroom, plugged in the wall nearby during lunch).
A Keurig needs an outlet and to be filled with water. An electric kettle needs an outlet and to be filled with water. An electric kettle costs about $20 and in addition to hot drinks, you can also make things like instant soup, ramen noodles or couscous.
So the office could have bought a kettle. But they chose not to. That choice is theirs, of course, but it was a choice.
posted by jb at 11:42 AM on March 5, 2015
In Canada, no office/shared kitchen would have a microwave and no electric kettle. When I lived in a dorm, I had an electric kettle in my room, and walked down four storeys to use a microwave. When I was in high school, I had an electric kettle in my locker (filled it in the bathroom, plugged in the wall nearby during lunch).
A Keurig needs an outlet and to be filled with water. An electric kettle needs an outlet and to be filled with water. An electric kettle costs about $20 and in addition to hot drinks, you can also make things like instant soup, ramen noodles or couscous.
So the office could have bought a kettle. But they chose not to. That choice is theirs, of course, but it was a choice.
posted by jb at 11:42 AM on March 5, 2015
My office has a Kuerig and provides the K-cups. There's a few flavors, and I've tried them all, and I like none of them. It's drinkable in a pinch if you water it down with lots of milk, so I'll have it sometimes as an afternoon pick-me-up. But I buy my morning coffee from one of a few nearby stores (I'd make it myself, but I really hate futzing with coffee on the subway and avoiding that, to me, is worth $2 a day).
And I'm not even really a coffee snob! I mean, I buy fancy stuff from a local shop that I make with a french press on the weekends, but I have no real problem with Dunkin' Donuts or 7-11 or random deli coffee. It tastes fine, I'll drink it. But K-Cups are not very good.
posted by breakin' the law at 11:42 AM on March 5, 2015
And I'm not even really a coffee snob! I mean, I buy fancy stuff from a local shop that I make with a french press on the weekends, but I have no real problem with Dunkin' Donuts or 7-11 or random deli coffee. It tastes fine, I'll drink it. But K-Cups are not very good.
posted by breakin' the law at 11:42 AM on March 5, 2015
The thing that does get me about K-Cups, and I say this as an honest coffee snob, is that a lot of proponents try to make claims about quality when it really comes down to preference and convenience.
You do realize that "quality" is not an objective thing, right? Just because you don't perceive it as better-quality doesn't mean that other people are lying to themselves or something.
I thought about getting a Keurig machine for my old office. We had the classic "tragedy of the commons" problem with office coffee, in that we were large enough (6-12 people, depending on the week) to justify having a coffeemaker, but small enough that we didn't have an office manager or anyone to manage the coffee. Every once in a while, someone would bring in a pound of coffee, but we rarely had milk/cream - depending on the week, it would either all get used in one day, or would go bad.
For a while, I tried making coffee, but so often no one else would drink it, so I started making just enough for myself. One day one of my coworkers swooped in while I was doing something else, and poured the one serving of coffee for himself. When I confronted him, he was like "you only made enough for yourself??"
Then a coworker got a Keurig for Christmas one year and brought it in, but no one ever bought cups.
Now I work in a larger office where the office manager, bless him, takes care of everything coffee-related. We have an espresso machine with good-quality coffee and there's always milk and cream in the fridge, and it's kind of amazing the positive difference it makes in my morning routine. So I totally get why people would go for the most convenient possible caffeine-delivery system.
posted by lunasol at 11:57 AM on March 5, 2015
You do realize that "quality" is not an objective thing, right? Just because you don't perceive it as better-quality doesn't mean that other people are lying to themselves or something.
I thought about getting a Keurig machine for my old office. We had the classic "tragedy of the commons" problem with office coffee, in that we were large enough (6-12 people, depending on the week) to justify having a coffeemaker, but small enough that we didn't have an office manager or anyone to manage the coffee. Every once in a while, someone would bring in a pound of coffee, but we rarely had milk/cream - depending on the week, it would either all get used in one day, or would go bad.
For a while, I tried making coffee, but so often no one else would drink it, so I started making just enough for myself. One day one of my coworkers swooped in while I was doing something else, and poured the one serving of coffee for himself. When I confronted him, he was like "you only made enough for yourself??"
Then a coworker got a Keurig for Christmas one year and brought it in, but no one ever bought cups.
Now I work in a larger office where the office manager, bless him, takes care of everything coffee-related. We have an espresso machine with good-quality coffee and there's always milk and cream in the fridge, and it's kind of amazing the positive difference it makes in my morning routine. So I totally get why people would go for the most convenient possible caffeine-delivery system.
posted by lunasol at 11:57 AM on March 5, 2015
In Canada, no office/shared kitchen would have a microwave and no electric kettle.
Too true! There are too many tea drinkers to not have one. Our workplace kitchen burns through a couple kettles a year. The kettle never cools down.
I though that it was interesting in the article linked above on instant coffee that it is most popular in tea-drinking countries.
posted by fimbulvetr at 11:57 AM on March 5, 2015
Too true! There are too many tea drinkers to not have one. Our workplace kitchen burns through a couple kettles a year. The kettle never cools down.
I though that it was interesting in the article linked above on instant coffee that it is most popular in tea-drinking countries.
posted by fimbulvetr at 11:57 AM on March 5, 2015
It comes to something like $35/lb for coffee. You could get some serious beans for that.
posted by thelonius at 12:01 PM on March 5, 2015
posted by thelonius at 12:01 PM on March 5, 2015
Our workplace kitchen burns through a couple kettles a year.
We've had at least two catch fire. Now there's a rule that they have to be unplugged when not in use, not just switched off.
Never buy the Loblaws knock-offs, kids.
posted by bonehead at 12:01 PM on March 5, 2015
We've had at least two catch fire. Now there's a rule that they have to be unplugged when not in use, not just switched off.
Never buy the Loblaws knock-offs, kids.
posted by bonehead at 12:01 PM on March 5, 2015
It should probably come as no surprise the Pinterest is awash with dippy craft projects using old k cups.
posted by Biblio at 12:14 PM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by Biblio at 12:14 PM on March 5, 2015 [5 favorites]
For $600 you're not getting a machine that grinds the beans and automatically holds them for disposal. You're messing with grinders and portafilters, etc.
The Delonghi we had was absolutely fully automatic and cost about $600. There was no messing about with anything.
posted by five fresh fish at 12:30 PM on March 5, 2015
The Delonghi we had was absolutely fully automatic and cost about $600. There was no messing about with anything.
posted by five fresh fish at 12:30 PM on March 5, 2015
I'm loving our new Espro press, with its double filter,
Thank you for this link! My husband recently broke yet another French press carafe and this might be just the solution we need.
posted by Squeak Attack at 1:14 PM on March 5, 2015
Thank you for this link! My husband recently broke yet another French press carafe and this might be just the solution we need.
posted by Squeak Attack at 1:14 PM on March 5, 2015
It should probably come as no surprise the Pinterest is awash with dippy craft projects using old k cups.
So what if they're "dippy"? At least they're reusing them, which is more than can be said for, say, the mountains of Kleenex one may use in the course of a week.
(you will pry my Keuring machine out of my COLD DEAD HANDS)
posted by Lucinda at 1:26 PM on March 5, 2015
So what if they're "dippy"? At least they're reusing them, which is more than can be said for, say, the mountains of Kleenex one may use in the course of a week.
(you will pry my Keuring machine out of my COLD DEAD HANDS)
posted by Lucinda at 1:26 PM on March 5, 2015
Starbucks has a single cup brewer that my office uses. You load the hopper with whatever beans (starbucks in our case), and it uses something like an toliet-paper roll of filters for each cup. The only waste is the grounds and the unwound roll of filters. It's a rube-goldberg-esq machine inside though.
It also makes hot chocolate.
posted by wcfields at 1:29 PM on March 5, 2015
It also makes hot chocolate.
posted by wcfields at 1:29 PM on March 5, 2015
My old office was large had a massive industrial drip-machine. Refilling was a matter of 1) dump old filter and grounds into trash, 2) put new filter in, 3) dump grounds in, 4) press button, 5) wait two minutes. Also had a spigot for boiling water for the tea-drinkers. Seemed to keep most people happy.
When I drink instant coffee, it's Medaglio d'Oro. It's not cheap but it is drinkable.
posted by BungaDunga at 1:43 PM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
When I drink instant coffee, it's Medaglio d'Oro. It's not cheap but it is drinkable.
posted by BungaDunga at 1:43 PM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
My office has a Starbucks machine. It's pretty much the best part of this job.
posted by bgal81 at 1:44 PM on March 5, 2015
posted by bgal81 at 1:44 PM on March 5, 2015
Refilling was a matter of 1) dump old filter and grounds into trash, 2) put new filter in, 3) dump grounds in, 4) press button, 5) wait two minutes
Who did that work?
posted by smackfu at 1:45 PM on March 5, 2015
Who did that work?
posted by smackfu at 1:45 PM on March 5, 2015
> You're joking?
Nope. You can drink sugary hazelnut-flavour vaguely caffeinated hot water if you wish, but it's not coffee. For most folks in North America, “coffee” is a way of consuming warm, sugary milk …
> Chicory coffee is really gross
I. Will. Cut. You.
Chicory is a gift for those who don't find coffee harsh enough. With a nice burnt Robusta, om nom nom.
Coffee is to be endured, not enjoyed.
posted by scruss at 1:53 PM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Nope. You can drink sugary hazelnut-flavour vaguely caffeinated hot water if you wish, but it's not coffee. For most folks in North America, “coffee” is a way of consuming warm, sugary milk …
> Chicory coffee is really gross
I. Will. Cut. You.
Chicory is a gift for those who don't find coffee harsh enough. With a nice burnt Robusta, om nom nom.
Coffee is to be endured, not enjoyed.
posted by scruss at 1:53 PM on March 5, 2015 [3 favorites]
Who did that work?
It made gallons of coffee so it really only needed to happen once in a while. Whoever happened to feel conscientious when it started to run low- if it ran out and you wanted coffee you'd do it yourself. If you were the unlucky one, it would take longer than a Keurig machine but like 4 minutes tops.
posted by BungaDunga at 2:10 PM on March 5, 2015
It made gallons of coffee so it really only needed to happen once in a while. Whoever happened to feel conscientious when it started to run low- if it ran out and you wanted coffee you'd do it yourself. If you were the unlucky one, it would take longer than a Keurig machine but like 4 minutes tops.
posted by BungaDunga at 2:10 PM on March 5, 2015
I really understand all of the comments about how there are other really simple ways to make much better coffee, but the primary reason that I own one of these machines is because I don't drink coffee. My boyfriend does, though, and I LOVE that I can get up in the morning with him and make him a cup of coffee to go in about five seconds. Because do you know what he's doing while I'm making coffee? Scooping the THREE SEPARATE LITTER BOXES we have for our THREE SEPARATE CATS. And yet I'm a hero for pulling my cookies out of bed and making coffee! And he LIKES the pod coffee! He owned a machine before we met! He drinks it happily! I don't even feel any guilt over the terrible non-recyclableness of it because I don't eat meat and I don't own a car and SURELY that makes up for at least some of the plastic I generate making coffee.
posted by kate blank at 3:17 PM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by kate blank at 3:17 PM on March 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
FWIW, I work for a large media company, and we have these automated coffee machines on every floor (sometimes twice) that grind whole beans (Starbucks, currently, but...) from one of two bins, then brew it to order. They're rather large, but they are heavily used. They also hold hot chocolate mix that can be selected as well. We also stock about 12 teas.
Overall, I think they're a great compromise for any large office. We do, however, and unfortunately, have a Keurig machine in the lobby for visitors. I don't know if I've ever seen it used.
posted by petrilli at 7:00 PM on March 5, 2015
Overall, I think they're a great compromise for any large office. We do, however, and unfortunately, have a Keurig machine in the lobby for visitors. I don't know if I've ever seen it used.
posted by petrilli at 7:00 PM on March 5, 2015
You could use those used cups to start garden seeds.
posted by Oyéah at 7:45 PM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Oyéah at 7:45 PM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Medaglia d'Oro now comes in decaf. I'm a tea drinker, but keep instant espresso for cooking/baking. I'm delighted to hear it's eco, too!
One question, though; how does MdO make the thin layer of crema on top when hot water is added? I can even make little espresso crema leaves/pictures if I add a bit of dairy. None of the other instant coffees I've used do that.
posted by Dreidl at 8:56 PM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
One question, though; how does MdO make the thin layer of crema on top when hot water is added? I can even make little espresso crema leaves/pictures if I add a bit of dairy. None of the other instant coffees I've used do that.
posted by Dreidl at 8:56 PM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I don't even feel any guilt over the terrible non-recyclableness of it because I don't eat meat and I don't own a car and SURELY that makes up for at least some of the plastic I generate making coffee.
Make him coffee like we make coffee: dump a heaping teaspoonful of ground coffee into the bottom of a mug, fill the rest with boiling water from the kettle, add sugar if you're a sugar-adder, stir a bit, and then leave it alone for five minutes while you go do something else. That gives the coffee time to cool a little and time for the grounds to all settle to a stable layer at the bottom of the cup. Drink until you get your first little harmless nibble of coffee grounds. No filters, no plastic cups, and no hideously elaborate and expensive machines. Basic method also good for tea.
Amazon says you can buy a good electric kettle for 20 to 30 USD. All it needs is an on/off switch and an automatic off when the water boils. Anything more is feature creep.
posted by pracowity at 2:00 AM on March 6, 2015 [1 favorite]
Make him coffee like we make coffee: dump a heaping teaspoonful of ground coffee into the bottom of a mug, fill the rest with boiling water from the kettle, add sugar if you're a sugar-adder, stir a bit, and then leave it alone for five minutes while you go do something else. That gives the coffee time to cool a little and time for the grounds to all settle to a stable layer at the bottom of the cup. Drink until you get your first little harmless nibble of coffee grounds. No filters, no plastic cups, and no hideously elaborate and expensive machines. Basic method also good for tea.
Amazon says you can buy a good electric kettle for 20 to 30 USD. All it needs is an on/off switch and an automatic off when the water boils. Anything more is feature creep.
posted by pracowity at 2:00 AM on March 6, 2015 [1 favorite]
That's extremely close to the way you make Turkish coffee, except that the grounds are much finer and you boil them for a few minutes. There's a remarkable difference in the flavor depending on whether you keep it boiling for, say, two minutes versus five minutes.
posted by XMLicious at 4:13 AM on March 6, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by XMLicious at 4:13 AM on March 6, 2015 [2 favorites]
My boyfriend does, though, and I LOVE that I can get up in the morning with him and make him a cup of coffee to go in about five seconds. Because do you know what he's doing while I'm making coffee? Scooping the THREE SEPARATE LITTER BOXES we have for our THREE SEPARATE CATS. And yet I'm a hero for pulling my cookies out of bed and making coffee! And he LIKES the pod coffee!
Make him coffee like we make coffee: dump a heaping teaspoonful of ground coffee into the bottom of a mug, fill the rest with boiling water from the kettle, add sugar if you're a sugar-adder, stir a bit, and then leave it alone for five minutes while you go do something else. That gives the coffee time to cool a little and time for the grounds to all settle to a stable layer at the bottom of the cup. Drink until you get your first little harmless nibble of coffee grounds.
See this is an example of MeFi perfection.
"You know that thing you do that makes both you, and someone you love, really happy? That works super-well in your lives and the damage of which is easily balanced out by sacrifices you make in other ways?"
"Yes."
"Well stop it immediately and do this thing that your beloved would likely find ACTIVELY DISGUSTING."
If one day my SO served me a cup full of mostly-cold watery coffee grounds in the early hours of the morning, after I had shoveled cat shit in the semidarkness, I would evict him from our shared home and no tenants rights org in the world would convict me.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 9:58 AM on March 6, 2015 [18 favorites]
Make him coffee like we make coffee: dump a heaping teaspoonful of ground coffee into the bottom of a mug, fill the rest with boiling water from the kettle, add sugar if you're a sugar-adder, stir a bit, and then leave it alone for five minutes while you go do something else. That gives the coffee time to cool a little and time for the grounds to all settle to a stable layer at the bottom of the cup. Drink until you get your first little harmless nibble of coffee grounds.
See this is an example of MeFi perfection.
"You know that thing you do that makes both you, and someone you love, really happy? That works super-well in your lives and the damage of which is easily balanced out by sacrifices you make in other ways?"
"Yes."
"Well stop it immediately and do this thing that your beloved would likely find ACTIVELY DISGUSTING."
If one day my SO served me a cup full of mostly-cold watery coffee grounds in the early hours of the morning, after I had shoveled cat shit in the semidarkness, I would evict him from our shared home and no tenants rights org in the world would convict me.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 9:58 AM on March 6, 2015 [18 favorites]
mostly-cold watery coffee grounds
You haven't tried it. It's very hot and very strong, and the grounds are at the bottom where they don't bother you.
posted by pracowity at 11:14 AM on March 6, 2015
You haven't tried it. It's very hot and very strong, and the grounds are at the bottom where they don't bother you.
posted by pracowity at 11:14 AM on March 6, 2015
You're assuming I haven't tried it. But as XMLicious mentioned in the comment after yours, that's a similar process to Turkish coffee, which I've tried (in its native land no less). And I can assure you that my statement stands.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 12:02 PM on March 6, 2015
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 12:02 PM on March 6, 2015
It's not good coffee if you have to put milk and sugar in it.
Look, mate, that's just flat out bullshit, and you need to take a good hard look at yourself.
You could say 'I prefer not to drink coffee that tastes good with milk and sugar', or 'I prefer not to take my coffee with milk and sugar', but there are blends and roasts that lend themselves very well to being served with milk and sugar. Ten million Australians and Sagan knows how many Kiwis who drink nothing but flat whites can't all be wrong.
Jesus this macho elitist 'oh milk in your coffee aren't you a clueless fucking loser with no taste who drinks shit' stuff gets my goat.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 3:57 AM on March 7, 2015 [5 favorites]
Look, mate, that's just flat out bullshit, and you need to take a good hard look at yourself.
You could say 'I prefer not to drink coffee that tastes good with milk and sugar', or 'I prefer not to take my coffee with milk and sugar', but there are blends and roasts that lend themselves very well to being served with milk and sugar. Ten million Australians and Sagan knows how many Kiwis who drink nothing but flat whites can't all be wrong.
Jesus this macho elitist 'oh milk in your coffee aren't you a clueless fucking loser with no taste who drinks shit' stuff gets my goat.
posted by obiwanwasabi at 3:57 AM on March 7, 2015 [5 favorites]
Actually, the macho elitists these days are adding two pats of butter and another two heaping spoonfuls of highly concentrated and processed coconut oil to coffee.
I'm not kidding.
posted by FJT at 8:30 AM on March 7, 2015
I'm not kidding.
posted by FJT at 8:30 AM on March 7, 2015
Here's a cutaway view of the Softbrew. The coffee beans sit inside the basket w/ the bajillion tiny laser holes. The hot water is poured over the top. After steeping for 4 minutes, pour. Some real benefits are:
-Allows the coffee grinds to bloom fully.
-The lasered filter allows on the the finest grinds through, so you get texture & body w/out grit.
-Lots of excellent design features like the insulated handle, and the the angled bottom up front, which traps more of the fines that sink there while pouring off the coffee.
-Easy to clean, no 1-shot plastic cups. All you buy is beans.
-Doesn't need to be plugged in.
-They come in multiple sizes and styles, all based on the same design. And a lot of thought went into the design of this tool.
If you like French Press coffee but it's a drag to clean up, makes too gritty a brew, or just want to excellent coffee w/ minimal hassle, check out the Sowden Softbrew.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 11:47 AM on March 7, 2015
-Allows the coffee grinds to bloom fully.
-The lasered filter allows on the the finest grinds through, so you get texture & body w/out grit.
-Lots of excellent design features like the insulated handle, and the the angled bottom up front, which traps more of the fines that sink there while pouring off the coffee.
-Easy to clean, no 1-shot plastic cups. All you buy is beans.
-Doesn't need to be plugged in.
-They come in multiple sizes and styles, all based on the same design. And a lot of thought went into the design of this tool.
If you like French Press coffee but it's a drag to clean up, makes too gritty a brew, or just want to excellent coffee w/ minimal hassle, check out the Sowden Softbrew.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 11:47 AM on March 7, 2015
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posted by smackfu at 6:01 AM on March 5, 2015 [2 favorites]