The coffee thread

[caseydog]

[Mod Comment: posts moved from tea topic to start a new topic (TR)]

I was just watching a British food show I like, and instant coffee came up. It seems to be popular in the UK. Is it?

I've seen instant iced tea, and it is not good. Instant coffee is pretty bad, too.

CD

 

[karadekoolaid]

Instant coffee is pretty bad, too.

It's appalling, but my wife drinks it every morning (and she's Venezuelan, not English).
I say to her:
" Why don't you make proper coffee? We've got some of the best coffee in the world!!"
"Because I can't be bothered."

There's no answer to that!

 

[TastyReuben]

"Because I can't be bothered."

I think the whole instant/quick food industry is founded on that attitude.

I’m not necessarily bashing it, we’re all free to spend our time as we see fit, and as hard as it can be to get sometimes, some people just don’t care about food in general (or at least certain food items) and are more “eat to live” than “live to eat.”

Instant coffee - I keep it in the house as an ingredient (some recipes call for coffee granules), and I’ll drink it about once a year.

My paternal grandparents never made coffee the usual way, they drank instant coffee exclusively (Sanka), and even ordered it in restaurants over brewed coffee.

 

[rascal]

I can get decaf PG tips tea here from most supermarkets but I'm not sure why I'd want to. Coffee has far more caffeine that tea. Unless you drink multiple cups of tea each day the caffeine is very little.

Anyway, you (I happen to know) commit complete tea sacrilege by putting cream in it!

I put cream in my corfee!

Russ

 

[TastyReuben]

I put cream in my corfee!

Russ

My coffee definitely gets heavy cream, which is heavier (meaning higher percentage fat) than single cream, but not as heavy as double cream. We don’t use those terms here or have those exact same products.

 

[rascal]

My coffee definitely gets heavy cream, which is heavier (meaning higher percentage fat) than single cream, but not as heavy as double cream. We don’t use those terms here or have those exact same products.

I use whipping cream. Quite thick and delish.
I'm drinking corfee along with tea.

Russ

 

[SandwichShortOfAPicnic]

I was just watching a British food show I like, and instant coffee came up. It seems to be popular in the UK. Is it?

I've seen instant iced tea, and it is not good. Instant coffee is pretty bad, too.

CD

It used to be but went out of favour very fast when easy to use coffee machines hit the market, that got people really into it and there are now plenty of coffee shops (in Bristol anyway) that are dedicated to selling good beans.

I know only know one person who drinks instant coffee and they only do that because they're a stick in the mud!
When they come to my house they immediately ask for coffee because "your coffee's so nice"

 

[Morning Glory]

I know only know one person who drinks instant coffee and they only do that because they're a stick in the mud!

Now you know two.

If ever drink coffee (rarely) it is instant. It has to be Arabica though. I think many people in the UK use instant coffee because its easier and probably cheaper. Supermarket shelves here have many varieties of instant coffee, so it must sell.

 

[SandwichShortOfAPicnic]

Now you know two.

If ever drink coffee (rarely) it is instant. It has to be Arabica though. I think many people in the UK use instant coffee because its easier and probably cheaper. Supermarket shelves here have many varieties of instant coffee, so it must sell.

I think theres a bit of a generational divide going on as well.
I (and most of my ilk) were brought up with mostly instant and filter coffee with the occasional percolated or cafetiere coffee thrown in. Instant was usually our first taste of coffee.

None of my sons generation were introduced to coffee with instant.
He tried it when he started uni and realised money doesn't grow on trees but was horrified by the flavour so spent half his weeks food budget on an aeropress

My other son who couldnt be bothered with the mess of real coffee ask for a Nespresso machine for his 21st!

Their friends are also smitten, spending the little budget they have on different varieties of beans from specialist coffee shops!

I understand that generation really isn't big into alcohol like previous generations and coffee and shakes are where they do their socialising.

 

[rascal]

I think theres a bit of a generational divide going on as well.
I (and most of my ilk) were brought up with mostly instant and filter coffee with the occasional percolated or cafetiere coffee thrown in. Instant was usually our first taste of coffee.

None of my sons generation were introduced to coffee with instant.
He tried it when he started uni and realised money doesn't grow on trees but was horrified by the flavour so spent half his weeks food budget on an aeropress

My other son who couldnt be bothered with the mess of real coffee ask for a Nespresso machine for his 21st!

Their friends are also smitten, spending the little budget they have on different varieties of beans from specialist coffee shops!

I understand that generation really isn't big into alcohol like previous generations and coffee and shakes are where they do their socialising.

No coffee in our house. Or any around me. All tea!! I never discovered coffee until my first office job at age 30. Perculated. Stopped coffee until recently. I love plunger coffee atm.

Russ

 

[SandwichShortOfAPicnic]

No coffee in our house. Or any around me. All tea!! I never discovered coffee until my first office job at age 30. Perculated. Stopped coffee until recently. I love plunger coffee atm.

Russ

I had my first coffee in over 10years just last Friday!
I'm guessing plunger coffee is cafetiere/French press coffee?

 

[karadekoolaid]

At uni, we lived on instant coffee. great steaming mugs of it, perfect for hours studying in the library. At home it was the same (and at some stage, I even remember Camp Coffee, which was severely gross) except for Sunday morning, when my mum would drag out the percolator and make fresh coffee.
Then when I'd been teaching EFL for a few years, I had a class full of Colombian, Ecuadorian, Brazilian and Venezuelan students. They'd invite us for lunches/dinners and coffee was always fresh - and absolutely divine. I had no idea coffee was so good.
These days, I'll either drink a "marrón" (which is a strong coffee with a little milk) or a "negro corto" , which is basically an espresso.

 

[TastyReuben]

Here’s the instant coffee I currently have, along with the elaborate preparation instructions:

 

[TastyReuben]

Anybody else remember these?

View: https://youtu.be/hwCosICwnWI


There was a time when, if you saw a can of that in someone’s kitchen…très chic!

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

I know only know one person who drinks instant coffee and they only do that because they're a stick in the mud!
When they come to my house they immediately ask for coffee because "your coffee's so nice"

And another here, though I still drink the UK stuff because the Aussie instant stuff is awful.

I've only found a single coffee bean blend that I actually like and it's hard to get hold of. I also only like in ¼ strength. Anything stronger is awful. (I also don't drink tea. Can't stand the stuff and never have, though some herbal teas are fine. Chai on the other hand I really do like when brewed and served in the traditional manner. )

When hubby's away from home, I'll just use the jar of instant coffee in the fridge (stays fresh much longer) that my parents brought over from the UK last time they visited. I'll pick up fresh in October when we go back for a visit.