Casual Conversation

I buy Intelligentsia's Black Cat and grind it by the dose for espresso.

Ali or Evergood. Nothing breathtaking, but good enough for everyday use and reasonably priced.

Massive jar of aldi instant. It's cheap, strong coffee and I'm not a fan of filtered coffee. I just like instant.

https://josuma.com/

We like the single origin. We exclusively make espresso (Americano usually, but occasional cappuccino and latte, never sweetened). We were looking for something roasted semi-locally and at prices that can sustain our habit. And then I had to try a single origin bean from India too.

Turned out pretty perfectly for us. We grew up on the coattails of second-wave coffee and prefer a rich, earthy flavor to the bright third-wave varieties, and this nails it for us. Lovely crema, mouth feel, etc. Apparently, it's very low acid too, which is a bonus when you're drinking at least 3 doubleshots daily.

So it makes a perfect everyday kind of coffee.

Local roasters, because I enjoy their coffee and enjoy supporting small and local businesses when I can.

I roast my own coffee these days, so I buy my greens from Sweet Maria's. I'm not going through enough greens that I'm able to buy wholesale, and they usually have so much variety that I don't really see the need to shop for a new supply.

When I was buying coffee, there were a few places I would order from online. During the pandemic, Tectonic Coffee was running a promotion where anyone who made a purchase from them would have access to their wholesale pricing for life, so I took the plunge. To date, their Colombia Decaf is my favorite decaf bar none. Their single-origin offerings are also good, but they're probably more than I'd feel comfortable paying without the wholesale pricing. Not because they aren't worth it, but I don't think most people want to daily drink something quite that expensive. The blends are pretty much as advertised.

The other roaster I'd order from regularly is S&W Roasting. It looks like their website has since changed, and they don't offer sizes larger than 300g bags now. They used to run a permanent discount code (I believe it was REDDITOR15OFF), but I'm not sure if it's active anymore. The quality of the beans and the roasts were great, and I'd usually get a little hand-written thank you note in my orders. I stuck to the lighter roasts, so I can't comment on their blends or medium roast offerings. Their beans were always sweet, bright, and fruity, something that I didn't fully appreciate until I roasted my own coffee and started experiencing firsthand how easy it is to get mouth-puckering acidity in city roasts.

I don't really shop by brand any more.

I developed a caffeine sensitivity back maybe fifteen years ago, so it's decaf or nothing, and only small amounts of decaf at that.

So, since I go through maybe a pound or so in six months, I shop by region and try to find the best beans I can based on what I'm looking for.

Blue mountain is pretty much the best out there for my tastes, though getting it in decaf is sometimes a difficult thing.

There's a ton of great coffee coming out of Ethiopia, and I've yet to find a brand that wasn't palatable. Some of it is amazing, but again you have to hunt down decaf.

Kona is a good happy medium, and easy to find decaf in most brands, sometimes even at a grocery store (though it's rarely great coffee).

Whatever is on sale at Publix because 99% of the taste of my coffee is from the creamer, not the coffee.

I like Herkimer from Seattle, because it's great quality and a local (to me) business.

I have a happy mug light roast subscription so you get coffee from a different place every bag, a real stand out was the new guinea which I think they try to keep in stock as much as they can now.

Folgers. It's cheap, readily available in almost every grocery store, and not too bitter or acidic for me. Three scoops in a drip is good enough for me for day to day use. If I really want a good cup, I'll just go to a cafe where they know how to make it properly.

Whatever's on sale. I'm not trying to savor nuanced aroma and flavor profiles, I'm trying to get caffeine in my body so I can function.

Dunkin Donlts medium roast. It's the only coffee my bf likes.

my wife is friends with a lot of people at Kamiak Coffee so she prefers that. it also reminds her of home

Kirkland medium blend whole bean. It's inexpensive and smells amazing when I open it. If it tasted exactly like the beans smell I think it might be the most delicious thing ever.

That being said, I make and drink coffee because my wife loves it. When we are apart I usually don't bother.

I started trying coffee 6 months ago. I asked my brother (a coffee snob) for recommendations and he recommended Rave. It's been great and I keep ordering from these guys.

https://ravecoffee.co.uk/

Blend 1 is fantastic

Blend 3 is good as well

I haven't experimented beyond that

I am very lucky in that a couple of guys from my hometown, which I still live close-ish to, opened up a mini-roastery that makes absolutely exceptional coffee. I get it from there whenever I can

Barring that, it basically depends on what's available and priced well at the supermarket. I know I tend to enjoy East African coffees best, so I'll go for one of those if I can. Union's stuff is really good but quite pricey, so I usually only go for that if it's on offer or want to treat myself

I also keep a jar of Douwe Egberts decaf instant coffee in the cupboards too, because I quite enjoy one of those on cold evenings. It's not the same thing as proper coffee, but it hits its own role for me

Better Best Houseblend https://m.brand.naver.com/betterbest/products/4737529443

Because it's just a 10 minutes walk from home to the rostary and the flavor is great and the price while high is still reasonable.

Domus Barista has some reasonably priced single origin coffee that's more or less priced to be able to be drunk daily. To some extent you get what you pay for, but bang for the buck is pretty high compared to other specialty coffee. I like the Mexico bean the best personally, nice fruity sweet acidity to it.

Otherwise I do enjoy Lavazza the best as a non-specialty coffee brand probably.

Gevalia. Their mild traditional roast has no bitterness. It is great black.

Whatever is on sale and strong

Sometimes I come out with a tin

Sometimes I come out with 6 bags because it was cheaper

I don't drink coffee, but my wife does. When I bought her a Moka pot I picked up some Bustelo because I hear the grind is perfect for a Moka pot.

https://www.cafebustelo.com/

Then when she went on a cold brew kick, I got her some Jot. She REALLY, REALLY likes Jot.

https://jot.co/

None. I am not a coffee zombie