A Review of my Coffee Setup I'd planned to review a Latin book today, but was less prepared than expected. I've instead decided to review some nice hardware I have whose use pleases me. I'd normally use the word ``analysis'' to refer to such an article, but calling it a review works too, and I ultimately decide the rules here. I like coffee, one of the prime liquids I drink. I've heard that programmers and writers both smoke and drink coffee moreso than those in any other profession, and I fit in both sets. I've never seen any appeal in smoking, but I've got a decent coffee setup over the years. I drank approximately two thousand two hundred and ninety-one cups of coffee last year, including espresso and Americano, over three hundred and fifty-one days for an average of six and a half cups per day; most would be fairly standard coffee from my French press, but I occasionally go long stretches with my moka pot instead. This calculation was done by my Common Lisp COUNTING function rather easily after several questions. I started with a clone of the ``Mr. Coffee'' drip-brew machine, but generally dislike these devices: the plastic in contact with the hot water is unhealthy, and this was also back when I drank inferior brands of coffee, such as ``Folgers'' or ``Community'', both with disgusting and bitter aftertastes. Nowadays, I like to buy whole-bean coffee from an import store, but I can't claim to have much of an affinity for any brand, or roast; I merely know when the coffee tastes good in a few different ways. My preferred coffee maker is a Bodum French press, which I got as a gift. I previously owned a much smaller model which produced two cups of coffee at a time, but the larger photographed produces six. As the metal top is very reflective, I've not photographed it in a way that would show my reflection therein. That larger model came with a large, black, plastic filter which fit between the metal top and the glass chamber, to hold it in place, and which I've removed as a basic sanitary measure; this lets the top slip annoyingly during use sometimes, and would be one reason to pick some other brand. The French press is a coffee maker for sloth, relatively, as I like to set my kettle on the stove to leave it until I hear whistling; I then pour in the hot water with the grounds and stir via spoon or by making a whirlpool. To clean it, I fill the chamber with water and go outside before swirling it with the grounds to toss them in my yard; it's always pleasant to avoid putting garbage in a can. A French press brews a decent bit of decent coffee by relatively little effort compared to other ways. I particularly like my Bialetti moka pot, although it needs higher maintenance in all respects. For some horrible reason, these can be purchased with added electronic parts, but I never desire to have such things when they may be avoided; in programming terms, requiring a mere heat source is a nicer, more generic interface when compared to needing electricity specifically; its laminated guide offers instructions on how to use it with electric and gas stoves. The main annoyance with the moka pot is the need to monitor it when brewing coffee: It sits on the stove, but shouldn't be forgotten, unlike a kettle. I've by now gained intuition on how to pack it and when to remove it: The guide instructs one to listen for a gurgling noise, but I find lifting the lid occasionally for visual indicators to give better results, and more coffee, even if it usually results in condensed steam rolling down the body until it hits the bottommost, hottest segment and evaporating to leave an easily-removed stain. Mine takes roughly twelve minutes on my stovetop to brew its coffee how I use it, and I now know how to pack and monitor it to produce coffee until the chamber is filled completely rather than halfway. The moka pot produces only four or so cups of espresso, which suits me not. I always make Americano with the resulting coffee, which has a nice characteristic returning some of the sloth I find in the French press: I may let the espresso sit and, when I want more, I heat water in the kettle much like usual. I usually use one third espresso to two thirds water. This allows me to get fresh Americano at any time of day after the initial work, unlike my French press that requires me to heat coffee in my microwave oven once it gets too cold to warrant drinking. The espresso is usually too strong for my preference anyway, and weak Americano is still much stronger than anything from the French press. Cutting my coffee this way, I usually get seven cups of Americano from one batch of moka pot coffee. Cleaning the moka pot is more involved: Disassembling it is rather easy, and the chamber which holds the grounds produces a cake which is easily thrown in the yard, but the rubber ring holding a filter in place is particularly difficult to remove at times. It's oft-times easier to make a ``dry run'', using it with water only, to make it suitable for use again if it won't be put away for many months. The last bit of my configuration is an old-fashioned wood and iron coffee grinder, whose name eludes me. I wanted no coffee grinder with plastic, and wanted a hand grinder rather than automatic, but I learned none are sold anywhere in my part of the world. Some I know scoff at the notion of grinding coffee by hand when a machine can do it faster and better, but I so tire of machines for everything, and find it relaxing to leave my computer in order to grind some coffee. To get it decently-fine, I grind it twice. My one true complaint with the machine is its inability to get coffee ground finely enough for my moka pot, which I use as an excuse to buy ground coffee usually of some Italian brand. I joke that grinding one's coffee oneself makes it harder to hide cockroach legs in the final thing. My tea setup is a simple looseleaf affair with a metal satchel device instead. .