Keurig Coffee Maker For Christmas


 

Rusty James

TVWBB Emerald Member
Ours is the Classic model (about $80.00).

This is the first time we have ever owned one of these things. I purchased a refillable pod to save money, but the women want to use the throwaway pods instead.

What do Y'all think of these machines, and how much do you pay (per pod) for coffee?

I found a 12-count box of Twinings black tea pods for $3.99 at Ollie's Bargain Outlet today. The tea was great.
 
The pods are ridiculous, too much landfill waste, get good coffee, tea and use the re fillable kind, that said they make fairly decent coffee.
I don’t think I’d ever have one! Bad environmentally speaking, unitasker, counter space occupier,....
 
We have one and use it about half the time, manual pour over for the rest. We get Kirkland brand Pacific Bold, 120 to the box for $37 regular price, $32 on sale, which is when we buy it. Works out to .27 per cup, about half of what I pay for local fresh roasted bean. Bought a small box of Starbucks Sumatra a week ago just to see how it compared, taste wise. .52 per cup at the grocery store. FWIW, it tasted better then the Pacific Bold but not as good as the local roasted Sumatra via pour over.

Keurig is certainly the simplest and quickest way to go.
 
I never thought much about the Keurig until last week, I stopped by a neighbors for a few minutes and one of their guests made me a cup & it was finally respectably strong! They said "you have to push the strong button", I must have always just pushed the tall button.
 
I won't swear to this but I think I pay no more than $.35 per cup, either from Amazon or Sam's. While I probably should show more concern, I just use the K-cups; my son uses a refillable cup. This started probably about 7 years ago when my wife asked for one for Christmas. Until then, I never drank coffee aside from on an experimental basis. Then I got hooked drinking hazelnut-flavored iced coffee with a non-flavored cream shot (from hazelnut-flavored coffee, not from a syrup). I usually drink several per day.
 
We had one for years, very convenient. I had some coffee from a Nespresso machine at my SIL's place and the coffee was outstanding. We bought the Nespresso machine and haven't used the Keurig since.
 
I have one, our 2nd.
Like i tell people, keurig does NOT make good coffee
It makes fast cofee

And sometimes, thats what you need.

Keurig is the scourge of coffee world. Coffee in bean form loses 1/2 its flavor in 2 weeks. Pregrind it....much faster. You simply cannot keep coffee stored once roasted. Everything you buy in store is already flat and stale due to distribution time....even vacuum packed. Keurig cups are the worst of this.



I roast my own coffee weekly, and do pourover with V60. Lifes too short to drink bad coffee everyday! Literally, its something i drink daily.....so its worth doing right.

Ok, back to keurig.
The little cups really only hold enough for 6oz cups. Thats the industry standard cup size. If you want 8 or 10 or 12 or 16, its going to be weak.

Solution....use aftermarket refillable cup. Fill with favorite coffee. The best ive used is ez cup i believe. For large cups i use the carafe size.
(the idea that this could make a qt is ridiculous, but it will make 16 oz ok.

Drawback....filters hard to find, and pricey
Solution....make own from regular cheap coffee filters...100 for $1@ walmart. Takes only about 10 seconds....you have to have that paper lid to serve as a gasket.



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Martin, isn't roasting your own beans quite a challenge? I've never seen unroasted beans in the stores to the best of my knowledge. Have you tried Community Coffee?



Thanks for the great replies all. I must admit, the Keurig does make good tasting coffee.
 
Martin, isn't roasting your own beans quite a challenge? I've never seen unroasted beans in the stores to the best of my knowledge. Have you tried Community Coffee?


.

Im quite familiar with community, living in baton rouge .

As to roasting, its ez to do, much harder to do really well.
But....even poor fresh roasted coffee is far better than most of what you buy in store. It simply goes stale and flat rapidly once roasted....much more rapid after grinding........in green form it keeps a very long time.

Its easy to roast small quantities at home. But you need quality grinder too. Even grind is important to get the best out of coffee. You can roast a couple oz in a skillet or whirlypop on stove. People get started making small roaster devices homemade from popcorn poppers, breadmakers, even simple but effective heatgun/dogbowl/wood spoon approach. The problem becomes....if you need 1oz/day...and roast 3 oz at time in small popper....your spending 20 minutes, 3 times a week to keep up.....it gets old....because if you dont...you dont have coffee in morning....so you quickly will want to roast once per week or less. 8oz or so for 1 person, 1 lb for 2. This drives you toward a real roaster.

People havent always bought pre roasted coffee. People once bought green, and roasted it themselves at home, in a cast iron skillet or contraption over stove or fireplace. The pre roasted convenience was a 20th century thing. And taste went waaayy down. Generations now havent known any better. is it any Wonder so many put sugar milk whipped cream caramel in their "coffee"?

In top of that, mass marketed coffee is poorest quality coffee from the start. Ripe beans, partially green ones, rotten ones from low elevation farms all mixed together. Its poor quality cheap coffee from start, and goes downhill from there.

In larger cities there are small roasters that will sell you green coffee and their fresh roasted products. But its simple to buy online. Huge advantage....quality green coffee is cheaper anyway. For average low quality store bought roasted coffee......about $12/lb today. Lower quality green $3.5- 4/lb. Higher is 5-6. Theres a 15% wt loss of moisture when roasted....but its way cheaper, even with ,~$2/lb shipping. This lower quality green...is still superior to mass market coffee. Its just not the most meticulous grown and processed.


I go thru about 35-40 lb /yr at home. That alone is $150+ savings. Over 10-20 yrs......yes it will pay for a small roaster.....you get a hobby.....and way better coffee.

Plus you can choose what you like....bold africans , earthy sumatrans, balanced central americans, coffees with chocolate, caramel like overtones....or citrus, berry, or floral hints. Yes, coffee can have all these flavors depending on where it was grown, and what the roaster brings out of it. I was subscribed to a service (angel flight)where you receive small 32 g samples of several roasters products every few weeks.....i had one, really bold lemon flavor once.

You dont taste flavors in mass produced coffee....their flavor is char...or more char. Its very flat tasting...one dimensional. In fresh coffee..many .flavors hit taste buds all around tongue....its a fuller rounded taste.

For anyone interested in improving their daily grind....Sweet Marias is a decent place to start. Google.

Huge number of craft roasteries that will mail fresh roasted coffee to your door. Usually by 2 -3 day off roast. This is a bit pricey though. Many espresso fanatics do this route.

The downside, once you get accustomed to drinking good coffee....theres no going back.
 
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Rust, congrats on the Kerrigan. We’ve had them for years as I’m the only one in the house that drinks coffee, and I only drink 1 cup a day. So brewing a pot wouldn’t be practical. I love mine, and I hope you love yours. Find a flavor that you like and enjoy some good coffee. I tried the refillable pod, and it didn’t work for me. I guess I was too clumsy or in too big of a hurry because I just wound up making a mess. Try it and see if it works for you, you may find that you love it. Either way, I hope you enjoy your Kerrigan as much as I have enjoyed mine.
Tim
 
Im quite familiar with community, living in baton rouge .

As to roasting, its ez to do, much harder to do really well.
But....even poor fresh roasted coffee is far better than most of what you buy in store. It simply goes stale and flat rapidly once roasted....much more rapid after grinding........in green form it keeps a very long time.

Its easy to roast small quantities at home. But you need quality grinder too. Even grind is important to get the best out of coffee. You can roast a couple oz in a skillet or whirlypop on stove. People get started making small roaster devices homemade from popcorn poppers, breadmakers, even simple but effective heatgun/dogbowl/wood spoon approach. The problem becomes....if you need 1oz/day...and roast 3 oz at time in small popper....your spending 20 minutes, 3 times a week to keep up.....it gets old....because if you dont...you dont have coffee in morning....so you quickly will want to roast once per week or less. 8oz or so for 1 person, 1 lb for 2. This drives you toward a real roaster.

People havent always bought pre roasted coffee. People once bought green, and roasted it themselves at home, in a cast iron skillet or contraption over stove or fireplace. The pre roasted convenience was a 20th century thing. And taste went waaayy down. Generations now havent known any better. is it any Wonder so many put sugar milk whipped cream caramel in their "coffee"?

In top of that, mass marketed coffee is poorest quality coffee from the start. Ripe beans, partially green ones, rotten ones from low elevation farms all mixed together. Its poor quality cheap coffee from start, and goes downhill from there.

In larger cities there are small roasters that will sell you green coffee and their fresh roasted products. But its simple to buy online. Huge advantage....quality green coffee is cheaper anyway. For average low quality store bought roasted coffee......about $12/lb today. Lower quality green $3.5- 4/lb. Higher is 5-6. Theres a 15% wt loss of moisture when roasted....but its way cheaper, even with ,~$2/lb shipping. This lower quality green...is still superior to mass market coffee. Its just not the most meticulous grown and processed.


I go thru about 35-40 lb /yr at home. That alone is $150+ savings. Over 10-20 yrs......yes it will pay for a small roaster.....you get a hobby.....and way better coffee.

Plus you can choose what you like....bold africans , earthy sumatrans, balanced central americans, coffees with chocolate, caramel like overtones....or citrus, berry, or floral hints. Yes, coffee can have all these flavors depending on where it was grown, and what the roaster brings out of it. I was subscribed to a service (angel flight)where you receive small 32 g samples of several roasters products every few weeks.....i had one, really bold lemon flavor once.

You dont taste flavors in mass produced coffee....their flavor is char...or more char. Its very flat tasting...one dimensional. In fresh coffee..many .flavors hit taste buds all around tongue....its a fuller rounded taste.

For anyone interested in improving their daily grind....Sweet Marias is a decent place to start. Google.

Huge number of craft roasteries that will mail fresh roasted coffee to your door. Usually by 2 -3 day off roast. This is a bit pricey though. Many espresso fanatics do this route.

The downside, once you get accustomed to drinking good coffee....there's no going back.

So, it appears the cowboys of yesteryear actually drank better coffee than we do now?

I drank a cup of coffee at the airport in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, years ago, and I must tell you, it was the strongest coffee I have ever tasted. It was served in a tiny tea cup, and the taste stayed in my mouth all the way to Miami. Was it fresh roasted? I don't know, but I am sure they grow their own. I've have ate tree-ripened bananas from the Caribbean, and they taste much better than anything I've purchased in the USA.

Maybe I can find some fresh-roasted beans to try at home for starters. Does Starbucks roast their own on site?
 
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Rust, congrats on the Kerrigan. We’ve had them for years as I’m the only one in the house that drinks coffee, and I only drink 1 cup a day. So brewing a pot wouldn’t be practical. I love mine, and I hope you love yours. Find a flavor that you like and enjoy some good coffee. I tried the refillable pod, and it didn’t work for me. I guess I was too clumsy or in too big of a hurry because I just wound up making a mess. Try it and see if it works for you, you may find that you love it. Either way, I hope you enjoy your Kerrigan as much as I have enjoyed mine.
Tim

Thanks, Tim.

I like it very much so far. I like filling my own pods, too, now that I've seen this video...

 
Maybe I can find some fresh-roasted beans to try at home for starters. Does Starbucks roast their own on site?

No coffee enthusiast would consider Starbucks to be mentioned in the same sentence as good coffee.

Starbucks was second wave coffee. basically everyone was drinking bland stale coffee and they came out with... Dark roast... And coffee drinks. Enthusiast refer to Starbucks lovingly as "charbucks". It is not roasted on site.

Being honest, I despise the burnt taste of Starbucks so much that in a major airport I will go out of my way to find another coffee kiosk on another concourse to avoid buying Starbucks coffee if that's all that's on The concourse I'm on.

What is called third-wave coffee, are real roaster enthusiasts is dedicated to getting the very best out of the best coffee beans. there are many of these around the country and many of them do mail-order business as well, many sell through Amazon too. Some popular names are stumptown, blue bottle, intelligentsia, counter culture, and dozens and dozens more. Innumerable small local coffee shops that roast as well.

But not everyone that roasts makes outstanding coffee or even knows what they're doing. and some of these coffee shops make brew pot coffee and leave it in a hot brew pot for hours....not so good either. If you look for a local place try and find one that does pour over coffee and espresso and roasts and sells beans too. I live in a metro area of about half a million people and we have one shop like that. even though there are several artisan roasters who roast and sell their products online they don't have shops.

Any good coffee will have the roast date on the package. this is super important because you need to use it within two weeks or so for best results. Coffee actually needs to rest after being roasted for about 24 hours. Some roast need up to three days. During this time the coffee is actually improving in taste, as reactions continue within the beans, and CO2 off gases. After the peak it begins degrading. By 2 weeks it's lost half of its flavor. By 3 to 4 weeks it's not even worth making coffee out of unless you have no choice.


Just Google third-wave roasters.

It is not trivial to produce great coffee.

The right variety of bean must be grown at the right elevation, with the right climate and rainfall and shade.

It must be picked with care at the right time... Only ripe cherries picked. it is a very human labor-intensive process to pick. not all cherries ripen at the same time obviously, so multiple pickings must be made. Lower elevations also ripen earlier so they are picked first and then higher elevations are picked later. lots must be kept segregated because you may want the highest elevation, from latest in the picking season.


It must be processed /hulled in the right manner
Beans have to be hand sorted for size and picking defects out.

Then it has to be roasted properly
Then ground properly
Then brewed properly.

If any of these steps fails, the coffee can be mediocre to poor. When you step back and look at how much goes into making a cup of coffee, and making it well, it's absolutely incredible. Pretty impressive you can buy a pound of good greens for $6 as well. Third wave coffee importers and roasters are concerned with supporting the farmers and sustainable practices too.
 
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There's a couple roasters in Asheville.

We have a roaster about 45 minutes from our home, too far to drive every week and shipping makes it prohibitive, to me anyway. What I found was a local coffee shop that gets coffee from the roaster I mentioned. They sell me the roasters whole bean for the same price the roaster would if I drove there. A call to the roaster got me the name of the local coffee shop. I only get a pound a week.

I went with an OXO grinder, works fine as far as I can tell.
 
About a year ago I worked most of the year in Jordan in the middle East. The middle East is a place where men are men, and women are women. And men drink coffee. Arabic / Turkish coffee. They adhere quite tenaciously to their coffee traditions. I won't say that it's good coffee, its not. The Arabic with cardamom and other spices in it is certainly not. But you do get used to having it 5 times per day at work, And, it's a thing. Good in its own way, just because it's different, historic, cultural etc. I found it humorous when an arabic plant worker worker confided to me that he drank Folgers at home.

My wife likes percolator coffee. Just about the worst possible way to brew coffee. The condensate that drips through the bed is too hot, the brewed coffee is heated and boiled, etc. it's not that the coffee is good for her, it's that it reminds her of her father and grandparents. So that's a thing too.

In the end, if you like what you're drinking, whatever it is , that's okay. Even if its with caramel and whipped cream
 
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...... snip.......... it's not that the coffee is good for her, it's that it reminds her of her father and grandparents. So that's a thing too.

In the end, if you like what you're drinking, whatever it is , that's okay. Even if its with caramel and whipped cream

The process and the situation surrounding making and drinking your coffee are indeed important. I lived in Italy for many years and got used to drinking espresso and it's variants (only a few, not like Starbucks) at the typical bar. In Italy bars are like coffee shops that serve liquor, beer, and snacks. I never ran across any place which roasted coffee in-house. I was also never offered a choice of coffee brands or roasts. Many of my friends owned vineyards and produced wine. We had endless discussions about the various aspects of wine but I don't recall any Italian discussing the way coffee was roasted or the origin of the beans used to produce their morning espresso even though coffee is as important to Italians as is their wine. Perhaps there is a coffee snob bar in Milano or Turino or Roma, but I've never been to one.

The product delivered by the barista, as far as I could tell, was identical no matter where you bought coffee; i.e. it was the same anywhere in the country and no matter if the place was a fancy one in a large city or a tiny spot out in the country. From the point of view of a coffee expert, I would imagine the normal Italian coffee is not up to snuff. However, I thought the coffee I got in Italy was good, it was certainly consistent, and the experience was (at least to me) as important as the coffee. I never saw coffee served in other than a ceramic or glass container. Italians simply don't drink or eat in their cars. If it's worth consuming, they consume it on the spot and the process takes as long as it takes. I liked to savor and prolong the experience and part of that experience was watching Italians enjoy their breakfast. Two thirds of Italians eat breakfast and have coffee each morning at their local bar. During the day, workers often come in for a quick espresso and that was fun to watch too. Workers would place their order and pay, the coffee would be prepared and placed on the bar, and the patron standing at the bar would down it like a shot of medicine and immediately leave. The event takes only seconds.

At home in Italy I made my own in a tiny pot something like a regular percolator coffee pot. The water was heated in the bottom and driven up through the coffee chamber by steam pressure. But what made the pot different from perk coffee was the weighted valve which held back the hot coffee allowing the pressure to build up in the lower chamber. Of course the temperature increased well above the normal atmospheric pressure boiling point too. Eventually the pressure will overcome the valve and the super-hot water rushes through the coffee chamber under pressure. It's not as good as a real machine of course, but it did a pretty good job. Unfortunately, it made a single shot, so at dinner parties I hauled out four of the normal Italian coffee percolator pots to make normal Italian home made coffee. It was not very good but it was what every Italian drank at home and it was what they expected to get when drinking coffee not made at a bar with a genuine espresso machine. Nobody ever said, "Gee, I wish I could justify a real machine in my kitchen".

These days I live in a part of the U.S. where espresso machines are nearly non existent. I know of two, but they're a half hour away and manned by whatever waitress who happens to be in the vicinity and who have no real interest in coffee. So I use a Nespresso Vertuo coffee pod machine. It's the quickest way to produce coffee taking literally seconds to make several sizes of coffee. The offer a huge variety of coffee as well as a few flavored options, but I refill my own pods using the same bulk, pre-ground coffee I used to use in Italy. Yes, I know the "crema" is mostly foamy coffee produced by the centrifuge process, but as far as pod machine coffee goes, I think the Nespresso Vertuoline does the best job. Works for me.

I imagine I could produce a better cup of coffee if I roasted and ground the beans myself. I also imagine my BBQ ribs would be better if I raised my own hogs......... but I have my limits. I buy meat products from a high end, non chain grocery store rather than at Walmart or Costco. And I enjoy my pod coffee because it's a nice compromise of cost, speed, convenience, and taste.

In fact, I'm gonna' make a double espresso right now and start writing a letter to my Home Owners Association requesting a waver for a pig pen in my back yard.:rolleyes:
 
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Rust, congrats on the Kerrigan. We’ve had them for years as I’m the only one in the house that drinks coffee, and I only drink 1 cup a day. So brewing a pot wouldn’t be practical. I love mine, and I hope you love yours. Find a flavor that you like and enjoy some good coffee. I tried the refillable pod, and it didn’t work for me. I guess I was too clumsy or in too big of a hurry because I just wound up making a mess. Try it and see if it works for you, you may find that you love it. Either way, I hope you enjoy your Kerrigan as much as I have enjoyed mine.
Tim

I am the only one who drinks coffee at home, and I typically only have a couple of cups, so I too went the way of the Keurig. While I am a bit of a beer snob, my coffee palate is not as refined and the Keurig works well for me. I use a mix of re-usable cup and pods. I have found that I definitely prefer the dark roast in the Keurig over anything else (Caribou Mahogany is what I tend to get). My wife really enjoys Starbucks Chai (I would say she's a bit addicted) and in an attempt to duplicate that at home, I got the K Cafe and it's the first time I have been able to create an acceptable substitute.
 
I use mine for coffee pods and a hot water dispenser. I use a French Press if I am not using pods. I just run the hot water out of the kurig.
 
The process and the situation surrounding making and drinking your coffee are indeed important. I lived in Italy for many years and got used to drinking espresso and it's variants (only a few, not like Starbucks) at the typical bar. In Italy bars are like coffee shops that serve liquor, beer, and snacks. I never ran across any place which roasted coffee in-house. I was also never offered a choice of coffee brands or roasts. Many of my friends owned vineyards and produced wine. We had endless discussions about the various aspects of wine but I don't recall any Italian discussing the way coffee was roasted or the origin of the beans used to produce their morning espresso even though coffee is as important to Italians as is their wine. Perhaps there is a coffee snob bar in Milano or Turino or Roma, but I've never been to one.

The product delivered by the barista, as far as I could tell, was identical no matter where you bought coffee; i.e. it was the same anywhere in the country and no matter if the place was a fancy one in a large city or a tiny spot out in the country. From the point of view of a coffee expert, I would imagine the normal Italian coffee is not up to snuff. However, I thought the coffee I got in Italy was good, it was certainly consistent, and the experience was (at least to me) as important as the coffee. I never saw coffee served in other than a ceramic or glass container. Italians simply don't drink or eat in their cars. If it's worth consuming, they consume it on the spot and the process takes as long as it takes. I liked to savor and prolong the experience and part of that experience was watching Italians enjoy their breakfast. Two thirds of Italians eat breakfast and have coffee each morning at their local bar. During the day, workers often come in for a quick espresso and that was fun to watch too. Workers would place their order and pay, the coffee would be prepared and placed on the bar, and the patron standing at the bar would down it like a shot of medicine and immediately leave. The event takes only seconds.

At home in Italy I made my own in a tiny pot something like a regular percolator coffee pot. The water was heated in the bottom and driven up through the coffee chamber by steam pressure. But what made the pot different from perk coffee was the weighted valve which held back the hot coffee allowing the pressure to build up in the lower chamber. Of course the temperature increased well above the normal atmospheric pressure boiling point too. Eventually the pressure will overcome the valve and the super-hot water rushes through the coffee chamber under pressure. It's not as good as a real machine of course, but it did a pretty good job. Unfortunately, it made a single shot, so at dinner parties I hauled out four of the normal Italian coffee percolator pots to make normal Italian home made coffee. It was not very good but it was what every Italian drank at home and it was what they expected to get when drinking coffee not made at a bar with a genuine espresso machine. Nobody ever said, "Gee, I wish I could justify a real machine in my kitchen".

These days I live in a part of the U.S. where espresso machines are nearly non existent. I know of two, but they're a half hour away and manned by whatever waitress who happens to be in the vicinity and who have no real interest in coffee. So I use a Nespresso Vertuo coffee pod machine. It's the quickest way to produce coffee taking literally seconds to make several sizes of coffee. The offer a huge variety of coffee as well as a few flavored options, but I refill my own pods using the same bulk, pre-ground coffee I used to use in Italy. Yes, I know the "crema" is mostly foamy coffee produced by the centrifuge process, but as far as pod machine coffee goes, I think the Nespresso Vertuoline does the best job. Works for me.

I imagine I could produce a better cup of coffee if I roasted and ground the beans myself. I also imagine my BBQ ribs would be better if I raised my own hogs......... but I have my limits. I buy meat products from a high end, non chain grocery store rather than at Walmart or Costco. And I enjoy my pod coffee because it's a nice compromise of cost, speed, convenience, and taste.

In fact, I'm gonna' make a double espresso right now and start writing a letter to my Home Owners Association requesting a waver for a pig pen in my back yard.:rolleyes:


My son went to Italy for 2 weeks when he was in high school. His mom is italian, and one of cities he went to was where her grandparents were from , so he really enjoyed that . Anyway, he came back raving about the espresso. And, bought him a moka pot too. Moka pot coffee is ..well its moka. Not american coffee, not espresso. But yeah, lots of italians make it that way. Not because its any good, because thats the way they make it.

Making good espresso....is not ez. Its not even common in espresso shops in most of the country. Ive had mostly bad espresso when ive ordered it. Pretty hard to do at home without significant investment as well. Fresh coffee , uniform fine grind, temperature stable machine capable of 10 bar pressure. The stable temperature is the problem with home machines. Its just not easily achievable with small boilers. To be able to make temp stable multiple shots, back to back, and steam milk for cappucino, etc....takes about $1500 for a prosumer machine. Breville has a $1000 double boiler machine thats OK, except lack of parts and support when it breaks, and they break after a couple years. Espresso machines need a fair amount of maintenance to work properly as well. But a lot of enthusiasts pursue it as a hobby, ive got no time for it, and dont care for milk drinks, even though my wife and kids would.

Anyone wanting to know more about coffee, espresso, than a sane person ever would......just head over to https://www.home-barista.com. Beware, the rabbit hole is deep
 
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Works very well, I never know if I want a cup or several, no waste, Nantucket and Breakfast blend by green mountain, Lot of good flavors and ways to use it, 4-6 of them we have owned,
 

 

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