backcountry coffee

[te – wa]

I dont know that polycarbonate has a "plasticky" taste, but I do believe titanium tastes like metal. So, if you are trying to justify your purchase go ahead. im trying to save the guy some $$

i dont see any benefit from making a press in titanium. A tent stake, yes.

[Brad Groves]

Hey, Mike- Nah, just trying to keep it balanced and make it harder for him to decide!

[te – wa]

yep, reading this post before you had your morning cup would be enough to punch a hole through the monitor

hope you get what you are looking for Joe, i know ive tried all i can. maybe i'll just wean myself from coffee altogether.. yea right!

[Simon Harding]

Ahhh, so wtf guys no one has suggested reuseable cotton cloth bags roughly twice the size of a teabag. I got them at the grocery store. Hell the cut off toe section of a clean, old cotton sock would work. Fill with grounds and steep. Fling grounds broadly across landscape and dry on pack during the hike and it is all good.

instant is ok but sometimes, I just have to have real coffee. And the cotton bag keeps the grounds out of my teeth.

French press, coffee pot=heavy. Fail.

Low tech is good tech.

[paul buzzard]

My wife made me one out of triple layer cheese cloth, and sewed a string loop in the top. Coffee in, pull loop, steep, good to go. Launch grounds, tie to pack to dry. Repeat as necessary.

[joe newton]

Would a Buff work instead of the cheesecloth? Another few grams saved! :-)

I'm happy to carry a few luxuries so a lightweight coffee press isn't out of the question. The problem will start when my girlfriend joins me on trips in the summer and starts demanding her daily espresso fix!

[Jesse Coonce]

http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442629467&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302696295&bmUID=1250481324889

It looks like it might work and seems fairly light at 14grams. I picked one up the other day but haven't had a chance to try it yet, I'll post a review when I've used it.

[Gordon Smith]

I switched to Starbucks VIA Instant Coffee for my backpack trips this year and I haven't looked back. It comes in single serving packets and it's really quite good. Far better than any instant I've ever had. I can't imagine coffee being any easier, lighter or more compact than this.

Gordon

[victoria maki]

I have to agree with Gordon. I used Starbucks instant (Italian) on my hike of the JMT. It is the best instant I have ever tasted. I still use the Folgers coffee bags when I don't feel like paying the high price of Starbucks. P.S. I did try Jave juice, but found the taste unappealing, and the packages weighed more than either the bags or Starbucks.

[Patrick Caulder]

You could also try the Montbell O.D. Compact Dripper. After you put your grounds in it, you are a supposed to pour a very small amount of boiling water to get get the grounds hot, and then you slowly pour your water into it. Overall I think it makes a pretty good cup of coffee. You could also probably use it after you make cowboy coffee to filter out the grounds, but I haven't tried that yet.

[John Haley]

Since I stopped using a JB, and it's press attachment, I've been carrying the Starbuck's instant. I've found I like a combination of the Italian and Colombian roasts. One of each in my FireLite 550 pot is nearly a perfect strength. As much as I enjoy cowboy coffee, on a long hike the coffee just gets too stale.

[Michael Cockrell]

I am a committed tea drinker . . . ah . . . Peet's Black Current, or, Scottish Breakfast in the morning. Black Current will make the stress leave.

But I HATE tea/coffee bagged supplies, as the best leaves are loose, like grinding the coffee beans-vs-pre ground.

I use tea sacks, and put my own tea leaf in them. This works for coffee also. Just drop the bag in your water, await 4-minutes, pull out bag.

Great cuppa!

[Doug Johnson]

I agree- I'm a daily home espresso Seattle coffee snob, and the Starbucks VIA is my new favorite.

Good coffee, light, easy, no extra contraptions, no mess- and it tastes better than Java Juice and almost as good as the expensive instant espresso. Light years ahead of the teabag coffees or other instants. A winner in my book!

[Rick Dreher]

I just auditioned Via on last weekend's trip and confess I'm impressed at how good it is for so little weight and fuss (other than buying it, that is). I prefer the Italian roast–not a surprise since I drink espresso at home. The Colombia is a little less distinctive, but still fine when I use less water.

By comparison, Java Juice has a winey (mildly acidic) finish like some Central American and Indonesian blends. A single serving makes more when made to a comperable strength. Both Via flavors have a smoother finish. Via also seems to include some solids in the brew while JJ is completely filtered.

I can make a case for either–it's great to have two choices for single-serving instant that both taste like coffee. I'd love it if both companies expanded their coffee region options so we, the picky could dial in our specific tastes.

Before that happens Starbucks will have to decide their experiement is enough of a success to keep making the stuff and getting it into more stores–something we can't presume, given their love of flinging things at the wall to see what sticks. If you like it, it wouldn't be a bad idea to stock up.

My challenge to Java Juice is to counterpunch by introducing a kickbutt French roast (find the hidden mixed metaphor).

Cheers,

Rick

[Anonymous]

"My challenge to Java Juice is to counterpunch by introducing a kickbutt French roast (find the hidden mixed metaphor)."

To which I would add: Reduce it to crystals. 1/2 oz per packet is too much weight.

[Kier Selinsky]

+1 for the MSR Mugmate here. it's less than an ounce, and works well for me. I bring along whatever African coffee I have at the time, pre-ground. I need a filter because I brew my stuff so strong it makes the stuff they serve at Starbucks seem like green tea in comparison.

[Willem Jongman]

I prefer the yellow Ortlieb coffee filter: 1.1 ounce plus two of my spare tent stakes. See http://www.ortleib.de/index_white.php?lang=en&m1=0&m2=0&file=p-search.php under accessories
Willem

[Ryan Heck]

Reviving an old thread to support a Grand Canyon guide's efforts to bring back a classic

[Brendan Yeager]

If you carry a JetBoil stove, their Coffee Press is a great choice. It weighs under 1 oz and makes a great French Press cup of Joe. You can strain the grounds well enough that they are easy to pack out.

This solution does require a separate mug, since the pot is full of grounds and you can't drink around the press. I couldn't bring myself to pay for a Ti mug or shoulder the weight of one of the cheaper ones so I have taken to carrying a paper to go coffee cup with lid – never put it on the scale but it can't be more than 1 oz.

I like my coffee with cream and sugar. I tried powdered milk but it just wasn't doing it for me. Instead I have been using International Delight flavored creamers. I prefer half and half but these artificial creamers are pre-sweetened (no need to bring sugar) and keep a lot longer in the closet. They weigh in a 0.5 oz each.

[Mark Ries]

The jet boil press also works with the jet boil lid with the snow peak 700 pot. And if you screw the bottom shaft tight to the strainer and leave the joint of the shaft loose you can press the coffee then unscrew the top shaft to get it out of the way while drinking leaving the rest of the assembally in the bottom of the pot

[Shawn Bearden]

Medaglia D'Oro instant espresso or Starbucks Via and hot water

[James Reilly]

On a long distance hike when I want to cover ground I use the starbucks Via iced coffee or regular coffee and cold water. I just add it to my water bottle and drink it as I hike in the morning. When this isn't available I go without.

On short more relaxing outings I will heat the water or maybe even bring the Aeropress though I haven't in a long time.

[M B]

Im not a coffee snob. I drink anything.

I wanted to like Starbucks Via, but honestly every one of them taste burnt, and dont dissolve very well. I dont even like starbucks coffee from starbucks.

I find Tasters Choice House Blend singles fine, cheap, and better than Via. Makes 6oz cup, which is all I want while I wait for dinner to soak.

And I dont care how they make it or what chemicals they use to do it. I dont drink enough of it to matter.

[Anonymous]

Reading this thread reminds me how how nice it is to be no longer attached to drinking coffee. I do sometimes bring tea, my fav for colder weather is a chai red/rooibos tea, which I make cold. The ginger in same gives a wee heat boost which when you don't bring a stove or cook kit, is nice in the morn. For warmer weather, its straight rooibos or mint tea.

[David Brandenberg]

http://canyoncoffee.us/

This is my favorite backcountry press. Press-Bot has been revived. I just sat down with the owner of the company. nice guy with a nice product. They were out of production for years. Company is back under new ownership. They take a little learning on how to get it in and out of the bottle, but once you get it, you got it.

[Author]

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