Coffee Should Not Be Well Aged
April 25, 2009 by Marye Audet
Filed under Coffee
So, Marc and I went on a coffee date tonight and ended up at a certain place we go now that Starbucks has gone. I generally love this place, which is why I am not naming it (although if you a friend on facebook or twitter you all ready know) but tonight? Well as Marc said, “Whoa, they are having an off night!”
They were out of several items but the worst thing was….get ready….oh this is SO bad….
Sigh….
The coffee was marked as having been made at 5:15 and it was 6:45. EWW.
Now, I will admit that at home I can drink all kinds of coffee…aged, cold, lukewarm, not done quite right…but if I am paying for ti I want it to be very hot and very fresh…..Man I could have SO made a cheesey old joke there..where just goes to show you that I am getting old and cheesey.
So, tell me…what is the maxiumum half life of coffee that you feel is still drinkable? Two hours? Three? Ten minutes?
If you put it in a carafe it will last a little longer but still not the hour and a half that this was sitting out…aging, cooling, and becoming bitter. Insert another cheesey joke here.
Oh, and if you are interested in following me on twitter or face book just follow @MaryeAudet or MaryeAudet on facebook. My daughter even started a fan club for me, since my cookbook is being released in the fall…feel free to become a part of that nonsense and inflate my ego even more.
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Oh twenty minutes is the max for me at home or anywhere else, including my mom’s. It’s really too bad that someone allowed your favorite place to have a bad night like that. Hope you mentioned it to them or you won’t have anyplace to go for your date night. Any chance of a Tim Horton’s in your area?
Yay for the cookbook, but I’ll cheer you on from here. I’m way too busy to bother with Twitter or Facebook. ;D
Vee, me too.
I can deal with fairly old (couple hours+) coffee if it’s been put into one of the thermal carafes right away – when it gets left on the burner and just keeps cooking it gets so nasty so quickly. (Especially if they didn’t empty the basket of grounds as soon as it’s done brewing.)
I don’t know, Cindy, even in a thermal, when I am paying 2 bucks give or take for a cup of coffee I want it to be very very fresh and hot. I can microwave my coffee at home
If I’m paying for it, I don’t think it should be more than 10 minutes old, you can really taste the difference after that.
When I’m at home, I try to keep things fresh, but I’ll sometimes drinking coffee that is a couple of hours old. It doesn’t always taste great and it’s probably another reason that I should get a single serve or smaller coffee maker.
I agree Mike..and you should really try the JazzyBird …single servings..just microwave..amazingly good.
I’m with you! Premium coffee has to be fresh made, 20 minutes MAX, 10 min preferable.
Yeah I need to remember to email the company. sigh.
Oh, I want my coffee fresh out of the brewer into my cup. Once it’s in my cup, I may sip on it for a couple of hours – yeah, even after it gets cold – but if it’s being poured into my cup, either out or at home, it had better -just- have finished brewing. When I drink coffee at a coffee house, I almost always opt for espresso rather than what they’re brewing. At home, I skim the first cup off the pot and let the roomie finish it off. If he doesn’t within an hour, I pour it off for coffee ice cubes, cold coffee or plant water and make a fresh pot. I know. I’m a fanatic. It just tastes nasty if it’s sat in the pot at all.
Chameleon, yep! Absolutely.
Coffee should never be allowed to sit on the burner…ever! You’re right, keeping coffee in a thermal carafe does extend the freshness, it shouldn’t be more than 30 minutes old. I would have requested a freshly brewed pot, especially considering you are a repeat customer. I can drink quality coffee at any temperature (at home) I even like to see how the taste of a coffee evolves during the cooling process, maybe I’m weird that way.
Nate, I dont mind it so much if it is my coffee it home. It is paying premium prices for aged coffee that makes me mad.