No-compromise coffee

[andrewbish]

Life is full of compromises - but coffee shouldn't be amongst them. Instant coffee or coffee bags are simply no way to start your day!

I tried taking a $2 shop glass coffee plunger into the bush. The idea was that it would double as mug. Worked okay until I went to remove the used ground coffee by banging the plunger on a rock (it looked like a nice soft patch of grass in the pre-dawn!)

I have since been checking out the in-cup filter solutions. I like the MSR Mugmate and the Finum Brewing Basket - both look perfect for the job; however I have not been able to find local suppliers of either. One OS suppliers wanted to charge $66 delivery!

Can anyone suggest:
- a local supplier of the MSR Mugmate or Finum Brewing Basket(pref. in Vic)?
- an alternative product I can get locally?
- an international supplier who has a reasonable approach to shipping charges?

[Son of a Beach]

I don't drink coffee, but on a recent walk one of the guys carried a small version of a full-on percolator, as can be seen in two of the pictures in this topic...

here and here

It was moderately small, and light, but possibly not as small and light as you are after. They certainly enjoyed their morning coffees cooked and drunk while still in bed looking out the door at the fresh, deep overnight snowfall.

[Marwood]

Check out the Handpresso.

[corvus]

This may help I haven't used this one but have used their 73410 old style model with good results.
http://www.amazon.com/GSI-Personal-Java ... d_sbs_sg_2
corvus

[Jellybean]

Life is full of compromises - but coffee shouldn't be amongst them. Instant coffee or coffee bags are simply no way to start your day!

I tried taking a $2 shop glass coffee plunger into the bush. The idea was that it would double as mug. Worked okay until I went to remove the used ground coffee by banging the plunger on a rock (it looked like a nice soft patch of grass in the pre-dawn!)

I have since been checking out the in-cup filter solutions. I like the MSR Mugmate and the Finum Brewing Basket - both look perfect for the job; however I have not been able to find local suppliers of either. One OS suppliers wanted to charge $66 delivery!

Can anyone suggest:
- a local supplier of the MSR Mugmate or Finum Brewing Basket(pref. in Vic)?
- an alternative product I can get locally?
- an international supplier who has a reasonable approach to shipping charges?

I completely agree! (and usually go without coffee on walks because I prefer good coffee or none at all! Yes, I'm a coffee snob : ).

Thanks for the heads up. I've been looking for something lightweight to make decent coffee for a while (there are other options out there but they tend to be pretty heavy). I just had a look and it seems that the MSR Mugmate and Finum Brewing Basket are exactly the same thing with a steeper price tag on the MSR version? ($16.95USD vs $9.99USD). I just bought two Finum Brewing Baskets on Amazon.com for $34.75AUD (including postage) - http://www.amazon.com/Finum-Brewing-Lar ... B000J3JFJU (postage for two was $13.72AUD, a little better than $66!). If it works - completely worth it, if it doesn't - not too much money to lose on an "experiment"!

Cheers,

JB

[Orion]

I've got an MSR Mugmate. I've had it for years. It sits dutifully in the cupboard, unused. I've found that a regular old plastic cone and paper filter setup works a lot better. But the weight and bulk of wet grounds usually dissuades me from taking real coffee. Also when it's cold enough outside the coffee cools down in the cone before it gets into the cup. When I really feel like splurging I take my stovetop espresso maker. It's heavy, stainless steel and all, and I'll pack a small ceramic cup to go with it. Luxury trips only.

Usually I go with instant coffee either with instant chocolate (aka "Mountain Mocha") or those tiny 10g UHT half cream tubs (called "Mini Moo's" in the US). I know it's not coffee. I'm painfully aware of that fact.

[jose]

When I occasionally feel like a real coffee I just put the ground coffee directly into the pot containing the boiled water and give it a good stir. After a minute I bang the side of the pot with a spoon a few times to help the grounds settle and give it about another minute settling time then just slowly and carefully pour the coffee into my mug, leaving the dregs behind. I'm no connoisseur but it tastes good to me and saves the weight and space of extra gadgets.

[wazzawalkin]

Have a look at,
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/coffee_beautiful_cup.html?id=bp8GKvUf:180.181.105.131

The only draw back with the "on stove" units is their small bottom my not balance well on your stove.

Let us know how you go.

Happy drinking,
Warren.

[andrewbish]

Thanks all for your suggestions and comments!

So...I will order a Finem filter (like Jellybean I will go with Amazon in the absence of a local supplier) and in the meantime make 'Cowboy-style coffee', as Jose does. When the the Finem arrives, I will use the technique recommended in Warren's BPL link.

Ahhhhhh

[Charlievee]

Another idea I utilize is to make "cowboy coffee" in the pot/billy and then strain thru a fine mesh tea strainer. Works great ! There are some pretty light plastic strainers out there too.... Regards.

[jose]

by wazzawalkin » Wed 16 Mar, 2011 9:18 pm
Have a look at,
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin ... 81.105.131

Yes, 'cowboy coffee' fits my coffee making method although if you use a spoon to stir in the coffee grounds, the surface tension is broken much more effectively than by using a stick. You don't end up with floating grounds and you get a lovely crema on top.

[Charlievee]

Yeah, I give it a good stir with a spoon/spork too. Then I cover the pot and give it a few minutes. Most of the suspended grounds sink. Good coffee really makes a trip nice for me, especially that first cup in the morning before you break camp and head up a long hill.... Regards, CV

[andrewbish]

Was up at the Lerderderg Gorge yesterday. I made myself a cowboy coffee, stirred with a spoon and filtered through a 2-dollar shop sieve - very nice, grounds-free result. (NB The cheap sieve doesn't have a particularly fine mesh, so I made sure to use a coarse grind on the beans)

cowboycoffee.jpg (164.16 KiB) Viewed 65079 times

[cjhfield]

No compromise? Well you have to have freshly ground beans. Beans should be recently roasted - there is a sweet spot for each bean usually around 7-10 days after roasting. I cant say I take this equipment bushwalking but I do take it when I travel or camp in the car.

This is a hand grinder that works very well. They are made in Japan by Kyocera. You can adjust the grind up to Espresso fineness but the finer you set it the longer it takes.

Kyocera Grinder.jpg (54.2 KiB) Viewed 64989 times

This is an Aeropress - works like a giant syringe and makes really good coffee. The small filter papers can be dried out and reused or you can use a metal one. Very smooth mellow coffee and no grounds. I'm not sure why such a simple device makes such good coffee but it does.

Aeropress.JPG (57.76 KiB) Viewed 64989 times

Total weight of those 2 items is about 450g but you would need some fresh beans to go with it. A tad heavy but doable I guess. Less than a bottle of port or scotch and I have been known to take both of those (decanted into a lighter bottle).

HTH

Chris

[Orion]

Good post, Chris. I can only imagine that you've also contemplated roasting your beans on a camping trip.

I haven't tried an Aeropress, only read about it a bit. How much effort is involved in cleanup? The paper filter must make that a little easier but how dirty does the cylinder and plunger get after using it?

What is the weight of just an Aeropress by itself?

[cjhfield]

You can roast beans in a pan with constant stirring but they would be too fresh to use - it is best to let them sit for a week and then use them. There is a very small roaster shaped like a copper ball that you turn over a flame and produces beans that can be drunk straight away but I think it is simpler just to take some fresh whole beans.

The Aeropress weighs about 230g and has no mess at all - the plunger leaves the tube totally clean and the coffee is left compressed on the filter paper - just a tap and it drops in the bin, a quick rinse and on the draining board.

HTH

Chris

[johnat]

Have a look at the Bodum TravelPress. See http://www.bodum.com/gb/en-us/shop/detail/K11102-01/

Ours is Plastic, weighs bugger all, the majority of weight is the ground beans - we took 2 packs and managed to get through the Overland Track with 3 of us drinking up to 3 cups a day each.

[Phil S]

The Kyocera Grinder is a little bit of heaven. Fantastic quality featuring ceramic conical burrs and it's a great morning work-out into the bargain. Too heavy for walking but awesome for car camping when you can have your strove-top system ready and waiting for that yummy fresh-ground goodness.

[gayet]

What about the JetBoil Flash Java unit? It's a JetBoil system with a plunger filter - use it as a normal water heater or add coffee. I can sort of see that as working for a solo walker using dehy food.

[Tofu_Imprint]

I prefer to not drink coffee when hiking. I am actually a member of coffeesnobs lol. Although I have not tried the handpresso.
Unless you purchase something like the otto (which weighs 10kg+), a gas top and a hand-grinder, and are prepared to lug that about then you may as well not drink it at all.
IMO there is no such thing as no compromise coffee when hiking, its not practical.

If I wanted no compromise coffee i'd bring my 60kg 60s lever machine up, a 10kva generator, a 20kg mazzer grinder, a behmor roaster and 2.5kg o green beans! haha.

I stick with tea.

[Puddle Duck]

One of the requirements for my GF, soon to be wife , to come walking is real coffee (& a Platipus Wine bladder!! )

We've been using one of these plungers

http://www.moontrail.com/snow-peak-cafe-press.php

Can also be placed directly on stove to heat water

[Orion]

Just got an Aeropress and a Kyocera hand grinder (newer model). First grind and first cup of coffee at home were quite nice. The grinder does a good job and the forearm workout isn't all that bad. The Aeropress makes a smooth brew, almost too smooth. I'm currently using some very good (read expensive) beans from Italy: Illy.

I'll be trying out the Aeropress in the backcountry this weekend. It is kind of big and clunky, not lightweight, but this'll just be an easy two night trip.... ahhh, coffee!

[phan_TOM]

Life is full of compromises - but coffee shouldn't be amongst them. Instant coffee or coffee bags are simply no way to start your day!

I tried taking a $2 shop glass coffee plunger into the bush. The idea was that it would double as mug. Worked okay until I went to remove the used ground coffee by banging the plunger on a rock (it looked like a nice soft patch of grass in the pre-dawn!)

I have since been checking out the in-cup filter solutions. I like the MSR Mugmate and the Finum Brewing Basket - both look perfect for the job; however I have not been able to find local suppliers of either. One OS suppliers wanted to charge $66 delivery!

Can anyone suggest:
- a local supplier of the MSR Mugmate or Finum Brewing Basket(pref. in Vic)?
- an alternative product I can get locally?
- an international supplier who has a reasonable approach to shipping charges?

Couldn't agree more Andrew, but I have very recently come across another possible solution, one that I couldn't see even though it was right in front of me & which looks promising so far, it's cheap, light and after a test cup it's a brew that even a hardened connoisseur would find hard to fault .

In planning a trip for the coming weekend and gathering piles of gear into smaller more managable piles to load into my kayak my better half heard me muttering about the coffe conundrum and came to the rescue. I was contemplating taking some of these foul 'coffee bags' that I bought for a trip 6 or so months ago and haven't touched since or going the cowboy coffee option which is okay but not great, when my girlfriend pointed out one of these (see below) that has forever sat in the kitchen drawer that holds the spatulas etc and that I have seen a thousand times and not even noticed.

LC1.jpg (69.24 KiB) Viewed 63684 times

I had no problem in making a nice coffee from a locally sourced medium grind with no left over grounds, the only problem I could see would be using it in a cold climate as its a drip filter and might be an ice coffee before it finishes filling a cup. Truly made a delicious coffee though!

Heres some for sale on amazon for less than $4.00 http://www.amazon.com/Importfood-Vietnamese-coffee-filter-set/dp/B000ELGPAO

and heres some instructions on use http://www.ineedcoffee.com/04/vietnamese/

[photohiker]

+1 for the Kyocera/Aeropress. I don't drink coffee on walks, but this combination is the best thing this side of a full-on machine!

Bought one for the missus, she reckons it makes better coffee than most of the coffee shops she's been to. As far as I can tell, she's been to most of them, so that's high praise.

I think

It was all part of her birthday present, signed her up for the Ministry of Grounds fresh roasted bean delivery - they send you fresh roasted beans once a month to keep you going, different beans each time.

[Bronski]

Bodum make a domestic product much like the msr mugmate

http://www.petersofkensington.com.au/Pu ... ainer.aspx

You should be able to get it at a local homewares shop.

[andrewbish]

... my girlfriend pointed out one of these (see below) that has forever sat in the kitchen drawer that holds the spatulas etc and that I have seen a thousand times and not even noticed.

I had no problem in making a nice coffee from a locally sourced medium grind with no left over grounds, the only problem I could see would be using it in a cold climate as its a drip filter and might be an ice coffee before it finishes filling a cup. Truly made a delicious coffee though!

Heres some for sale on amazon for less than $4.00 http://www.amazon.com/Importfood-Vietnamese-coffee-filter-set/dp/B000ELGPAO

and heres some instructions on use http://www.ineedcoffee.com/04/vietnamese/

Looks good, phanTOM. Any idea what it weighs?

[phan_TOM]

No idea but it is really light, I'd be guessing its under 100 grams if I knew what 100g felt like ... I don't have a very accurate set of scales at home but I'll see if I can get something plausible out of it for you.


Edit: hey what do you know, they weighed in at 100 grams on the dot, but I don't know how accurate the kitchen scales are so you could probably give or take a bit.

[Bronski]

Oh, and I've heard that the jetboil coffee plunger accessorie fits the 700ml snow peak pot. Not the inexpensive option, more for the ultralighters with lots of $ to throw at cooking gear.

[andrewbish]

No idea but it is really light, I'd be guessing its under 100 grams if I knew what 100g felt like

...slightly more than a pack of 2-minute noodles or about the same as 5 weetbix.

(I also have room in my head for important facts - like the names of past Brownlow medal winners and suburban train times.)

[phan_TOM]

impressive and are they relevant timetables or just a random selection

I've updated my previous post with the weight and had a closer look at the construction which seems suprisingly solid, i think it would survive okay tossed in a pack but I'll probably keep it nestled in a pot or in my cup. I'm curious about trying it with condensed milk too after reading about the traditional method of brewing up a cup so i think a stop at the shop is on the cards tomorrow