Coffee and the process.
 

Hello

I am in the process of narrowing down items from a list which quickly goes to excess. Coffee is a serious subject for me and I enjoy at least two cups a day. I have always taken along an old stove top aluminium coffee pot camping, but this next trip is solo. I've considered and rejected a French press since the weight is the same as the old coffee pot.

Has anyone tried a cold brew process while on tour? A piece of cheese cloth with string to form a bag. How do you make coffee on the go when travelling alone?

Give Starbucks Via a try. While not as good as drip, it is passable. I believe it is similar to "Turkish" coffee; an ultra-fine grind that makes a decent cup for "instant" coffee.

Only one solution brother, from one coffee snob to the next... The Aeropress.

I take it camping, fishing, hiking, boating, biking, on flights, anywhere. people dont understand coffee most places, so i ensure a decent cup this way. Pre grind the coffee or find a hario hand crank burr grinder. sweetness.

Or you could look for a plastic French press. Mine weighs very little. Certainly not as much as an aluminum stop top pot. And you drink straight from it. Keeps the coffee hot for a long time on those cold mornings.

Another Via user. Good stuff. Can be added to a water bottle, too. OTOH, some people tour with aluminum lawn chairs. Whatever.

Thanks for the responses.
I've seen the star bucks stuff and could do that as an emergency. I have a travel cup/press but I have the stainless version and it's kinda heavy. For personal reasons I don't want to pack disposable products. But now I'm thinking maybe a reusable basket filter is not to heavy. Like this one, Amazon link.


Thanks for the help with this one.

For backpacking I just take Via, sugar, and Nido (dried whole milk powder). For bike tours I always don't take even that and sometimes rely on getting my coffee at diners. I never go without my coffee at home, but on tour if I miss a day or even two it isn't the end of the world. If I miss my coffee I treat myself to some good dark chocolate.

Hey, I like that idea. I travel with chopsticks and can see how they would work fine with this.

I've been considering trying this, although if the Bodum is too heavy, this doesn't look like it will save you any weight.

I use a collapsible filter, this one, and an insulated cup. It does use paper filters, so that's one more thing to carry. I usually grind my coffee at the point of purchase and carry a couple days worth with me.

I don't ride with chopsticks, but I have never been unable to improvise something while camping in the boreal forests of Canada.

Via...

Although I've thought about bringing along a little wire filter holder, as well as the MSR or similar in the cup filters... but... I hand grind my beans and brew them straight away in a Chemex. I won't be bringing a grinder, and unless I'm only going out for a night or two, I don't really want to have ground coffee with me... so, Via is the next best, albeit strange, substitute.

But it works. Its not the sit around the fire or breakfast table and really breathe in the aroma, and enjoy the process and atmosphere sort of coffee... its the - warm, caffeinated drink that I only use camping sort of thing.

Though it's the best substitute I've found, contrary to what a lot of people say Starbucks via is NOT coffee, it's a warm beverage. Came to this conclusion on my last tour when I decided to leave the French press at home. Horrible idea.

On the flip side I too travel in the boreal forest and have never been unable to improvise chopsticks in that situation either.:thumb:

My current setup is the bottom third of a 24oz beer can with about 8 tiny holes drilled around the bottom edge. It fits the top of my Camelbak Forge travel mug perfectly. I put a coffee filter into it, a few scoops of ground coffee to make a good cup of pour-over coffee.

A few years ago, I made a percolator to fit into my cooking pot out of beer cans:
http://www.bikeforums.net/touring/71...l#post12552867

In that same thread, I found my old recipe for instant coffee that I prefer over Via.

It doesn't have the same caffeine kick that brewed coffee has, but it got me by on a few mornings, until I got underway and found a place to buy a decent cup.

MMACH5 mentioned that they "can't stand Starbucks coffee so Via is out". I too typically don't like Starbucks coffee as they prepare it, but find both Via and beans purchased from Starbucks and brewed at home to be different. I find Via to not be great but to be acceptable in a pinch.

Not sure about Medaglia D'Oro instant espresso since I have not tried it, but I found Nescafe Classico to be awful. Maybe it is better in your mixture though.

BTW, on a different note, for me nothing sucks as bad as McDonalds coffee. I find it completely undrinkable and even loading it up with extra cream and sugar can't mask the nasty taste.

When was the last time you tried it? A few years back they switched from (what I thought was) undrinkable sludge served at a temperature slightly hotter than the sun's core, to what I find to be quite reasonable coffee. I hate the McDonalds corporation, but to be fair, I don't mind their coffee.

Here is my favorite prep method while backpacking, canoeing, or touring:

O.D.Compact Dripper 4 | Montbell America

I pour through directly into a Nalgene, or large mug, depending on how much I brew.

I am not sure when I last tried it. It may have been as long ago as 2012. I remember dumping it out a couple times on a 2012 tour before giving up on it entirely. Do you know when they changed their coffee? I'd hate to try it again if it still tastes like it did in 2012.

I should probably share that the posts I linked are from 2011. In 2012, Starbucks came out with it's "Blonde" roast and it is way better than their usual fare. The Via Veranda Blend, Blonde Roast makes a pretty good cup of coffee.

As for McDonald's coffee, I'm not a big fan. I'm not a big fan of iced coffee either. However, McDonald's Café iced coffee doesn't suck.
Any time I order it, I have to argue with the cashier. They always ask, "What flavor?"
I say, "No flavor. Just sweetener."
They fumble around and sometimes have to get a manager to show them how to get the register to ring up without picking a flavor.
One day, (admittedly when I was shorter tempered than usual) the cashier said, "No, you HAVE to pick a flavor."
"Watch me not pick a flavor." And I walked out the door.

I have a little plastic filter I picked up at REI that sits down in a pot of boiling water to steep. Weighs next to nothing and tiny. I put it in the same one pint pot that I cook other stuff in. So that and a cup and some ground coffee puts me in business.

I only drink coffee when I tour, as much for the buzz as for any endurance effects. I don't pack it. I drink it when I get breakfast. If it isn't available, I go without.

Here is an interesting article at travellingtwo.com about a method for making coffee in pot without any other equipment: Making The Perfect Camp Coffee | TravellingTwo: Bicycle Touring Around The World

There are also additional ideas in the comments section.

Instant. Not fancy, not gourmet, but it is fast and easy.

If you are a snob, instant expresso.

http://www.amazon.com/Medaglia-DOro-.../dp/B002BTI9B0

camping size French press, perfect coffee.