Full disclosure. I believe it was John Fante’s Ask the Dust novel that he describes his wife’s unhappiness with his father getting up early and percolating the coffee with egg shells.
Myself, I have had percolated coffee out camping. Percolated coffee camping is good. But then again, almost anything camping tastes good. My father never used an egg shell in with the percolation, so I was being a bit snarky up thread and repeating what I’ve read here and there. And I have never actually tried eggshell percolated coffee, so am totally pulling that out of my ass.
I have had Cowboy Coffee many many times. Either camping or in China.
I think the moka pot is not a bad choice although it definately has more of a “burnt” taste. To be very lazy, fire up the moka pot, put some milk in the top chamber, let it get to the extraction, and it’s at least passable coffee and milk. Works well camping too.
Coffee used to be oilier than it is now. Maybe go some place where you can grind it yourself. Fresh ground coffee might work better.
At any rate, I inherited a coffee grinder from my grandmother when we moved her into a nursing home two years ago, and bought beans, which I’d grind every morning for my drip machine, and even that tastes a lot better than coffee you buy ground.
I do remember that percolated coffee to time, much more time than a drip maker.
Dumb question, but have you Googled “How to make good coffee with a percolator”?
ETA: Is it steel or aluminum? I remember my mother buying one as a wedding present once, and spending more money for a steel one, because she said the aluminum ones made terrible coffee.
Stainless steel pot. Fresh ground coffee. Google only takes you to a lot of coffee sites with practical advice and instruction, not too different from Scumpup @ #32 – no arcane secrets to be found.
This morning Pot #4 came out the most palatable of the lot, very strong and rich, less bitter. One difference was making MORE, six cups with a corresponding increase in coffee grounds…maybe it’s important to make a LOT for the process to work properly?
And one of the reasons to not be nostalgic for the '60s. But I should talk. The kids got us a H-B Keurig clone and I use it to heat water for Aldi instant.
Inspired by this thread, I got out my Farberware percolator and made some coffee this morning. It was pretty good. (A dash of Anisette in it didn’t hurt.)
I have a stovetop percolator (2 or 3, actually, but only one I’ve used - the others just looked nifty,) and I think it’s the same as yours. I’ve tried various methods on the stove, and I just do not like the results. The only time I’ve really really really really really enjoyed it? When we had a major winter storm a couple of years ago, and the power was out everywhere, and I made coffee using the fireplace. At that point, anything warm and marginally better than instant was ambrosial. I think our nostalgia about perked coffee may be related to the fact that there wasn’t something better within our grasps at the time?
Just wanted to day I use a glass percolator and love the coffee. I also love coffee from other types of coffeemakers. It’s a matter of taste preference I think, and a love it different ways.
I’ve had one of those for years, and I love it. Grew up with electric percolators, then a Mr. Coffee. The Melitta makes a smooth but strong cup of coffee that can stand up to the cream and sugar I put in it. Easy to use and clean too.
Their cone things also come in other sizes if you want to make more than one cup.
BING BING BING WE HAVE A BREAKTHROUGH IN THE FIELD OF PERCOLATOR COFFEE ENGINEERING
This morning, in Experiment #5, Subject turned off the stove after five minutes of perking and, in a burst of intuitive genius, IMMEDIATELY REMOVED THE BASKET/SPREADER/PUMP TUBE ASSEMBLY.
Now, in a Chemex drip coffee process, the idea is to wait until the last of the water seeps through the grounds and filter, in order to get the last delicious drops, and the strongest coffee is the last to go through, no?
With the percolator, the coffee is ALREADY PLENTY STRONG. And the last hot water just drags the gunk and sludge and tiniest grounds down into the pot, making the coffee look dirty and taste foul.
Early removal of grounds basket equals excellent coffee from percolator, QED.
(This morning’s reaction was “Why didn’t those coffee nerds at Straight Dope TELL me to take out the basket?” but I now realize that your reaction would probably be “Gee, Uke, what kind of colossal dumbass WOULDN’T remove it right away?”)
I was going to recommend a Bodum Don Pedro coffee maker but see it is the same as your Chemex one - never heard of the Chemex name before but had several Don Pedro’s untill my son smashed the last one.
