Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t drink coffee at all but have followed this thread with some curiosity. I am a tea drinker and would never tell someone they should provide a tea strainer and loose leaf tea for me since that is what is best. Some of you coffee drinkers sound insufferable as guests!

The problem is that there is no good equivalent of the tea bag for coffee; there are coffee bags but coffee goes stale quickly and you rarely hear about them being used. Generally, either you use instant coffee crystals which many coffee drinkers don't like or you brew it somehow. Since coffee drinking guests are likely to prefer brewed coffee if given the option, this thread tries to provide simple options to provide that without requiring OP to buy a bulky machine that they'll hardly ever use. If anyone knows of a good individual coffee bag, that might be an alternative for OP.

My husband is that guy who cares too much about the coffee he drinks. That said, he comes prepared with everything the needs to make it anywhere he can get hot water. He uses these filter bags that sit on top of the cup and swears by them. They are cheap, take up very little space, and combined with a well-sealing container of ground coffee will more than meet the needs of any guests you have.
https://a.co/d/dbL3o47

French press. But whole bean coffee at Trader Joe’s and use their in-store grinder. An associate can help you if you can’t find it. Grind the coffee on the coarsest setting for french presses. Store ground coffee in the freezer.

I don't understand why you'd take up kitchen space and keep ground coffee (which goes bad unless you freeze it) around. I'd buy a small box of instant coffee. Nowadays there are amazing instant coffees that are way better than our parents' Folgers. If you ever go to H-Mart you can pick up a small bottle of Maxim instant. Or you can pick up organic Mt. Hagen instant from Whole Foods. Bonus - if you make brownies or chocolate desserts, you can use a teaspoon of this instant coffee to intensify the richness of chocolate.

Keep it simple. Just get a regular coffee maker. They are cheap and easy to use.

Keurig is expensive and tastes disgusting
French press has sludge and I don’t know how to use it.
Starbucks via packets would be my second choice after regular drip.

Coffee keeps fine in the freezer.

Get a percolator. They are cheap and make great, robust coffee in small or larger batches. Easy to store when not in use.

I suggest getting a Nespresso Vertuo and a box of Starbucks pods, both available at Target. It's not really too expensive since they make money on the pods, not so much on the machine. Your guests will certainly enjoy it and the overall cost is not much. You can keep it in storage when you don't have guests. This set up is really not wasteful since it is only for the occasional guest.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Best coffee possible is from a Bialetti. They’re small and you can shove it in a cupboard somewhere. The only downside is if they want a second cup. French press is easier to use but harder to clean. I wouldn’t buy a machine just to make an occasional cup of coffee.

Aren't Bialettis made with aluminum? That would seem to be a health concern.

Nope.

Many Bialettis are made with aluminum. Another PP said they also make stainless steel ones.

Maybe, never seen one. Mine is steel, as are all the others I’ve ever seen.

The Moka pots are aluminum. https://www.amazon.com/Bialetti-06800-stove-coffee-Aluminum/dp/B000CNY6UK?th=1

So don’t buy the Moka.

If cost is not a concern, consider a superautomatic coffee machine which makes a wide range of coffee drink types from fresh beans. If you would use it very infrequently it probably makes no sense, but if you entertain often it can be nice to be able to offer a variety of drinks like espresso, regular coffee, americanos, cappuccinos, lattes, etc. Superautomatics are one-touch machines, no barista skills required.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M5E5PHC/ref=sspa_mw_detail_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A23M3P8BKKV3LL&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9kZXRhaWwp13NParams
Small and practical. Just get good pre ground coffee.

Anonymous wrote:I don’t drink coffee at all but have followed this thread with some curiosity. I am a tea drinker and would never tell someone they should provide a tea strainer and loose leaf tea for me since that is what is best. Some of you coffee drinkers sound insufferable as guests!

The problem is that there is no good equivalent of the tea bag for coffee; there are coffee bags but coffee goes stale quickly and you rarely hear about them being used. Generally, either you use instant coffee crystals which many coffee drinkers don't like or you brew it somehow. Since coffee drinking guests are likely to prefer brewed coffee if given the option, this thread tries to provide simple options to provide that without requiring OP to buy a bulky machine that they'll hardly ever use. If anyone knows of a good individual coffee bag, that might be an alternative for OP.

I don’t drink coffee at all but have followed this thread with some curiosity. I am a tea drinker and would never tell someone they should provide a tea strainer and loose leaf tea for me since that is what is best. Some of you coffee drinkers sound insufferable as guests!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Best coffee possible is from a Bialetti. They’re small and you can shove it in a cupboard somewhere. The only downside is if they want a second cup. French press is easier to use but harder to clean. I wouldn’t buy a machine just to make an occasional cup of coffee.

Aren't Bialettis made with aluminum? That would seem to be a health concern.

Nope.

Many Bialettis are made with aluminum. Another PP said they also make stainless steel ones.

Maybe, never seen one. Mine is steel, as are all the others I’ve ever seen.

The Moka pots are aluminum. https://www.amazon.com/Bialetti-06800-stove-coffee-Aluminum/dp/B000CNY6UK?th=1

Doesn’t bother me one bit.

Anonymous wrote:100% pour over, it's like drip but on a smaller scale.

Agree. I’ve had just about every kind of coffee maker you can get and for op’s case I’d suggest pour over. Easier to use, clean and store than a French press and more practical than a drip coffee maker or a nespresso. Also, I agree with others that keurig makes gross coffee.

I can’t drink Keurig, just get the cheapest nespresso machine

Anonymous wrote:100% pour over, it's like drip but on a smaller scale.

The "OXO Brew Single Serve Pour-Over Coffee Maker" is really like a drip coffee maker, because it has a reservoir that you pour hot water into, and it takes care of dripping it into the coffee. Basically a drip coffee maker that relies on you to heat the water. Doesn't plug into anything, easy to wash, dishwasher safe, and no gaskets or anything to wear out. True pour over requires you to stand over the apparatus for a few minutes dribbling the water onto the grounds. I did that for a while, got tired of it, and bought this thing. Very satisfied with it. OP, if you're set on providing brewed coffee then this is simpler than a French press. Like anything, it requires a learning curve, and some guests may not get it right immediately, especially if they always get their coffee from a coffee shop. If the goal is just to provide coffee to guests who want/need it, I reiterate my earlier suggestion to get packets of good instant coffee.