Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joe Stormer on May 2, 2008 at 8:19am

Speaking of oil, I use the oil that I wipe from the inside of the hoppers to polish my wood tamper handle. It looks pretty nice.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Brady on May 2, 2008 at 10:36am

You can burn compressed coffee? I guess it makes sense. I wonder if dried out pucks would burn? Might make for an unusual spin on the "puck war" described by the original poster :)

I occasionally use spent grounds and pucks on my garden, also in my compost pile. It definitely improves texture and drainage in my clay soil, and I hear is a good slow-release source of nitrogen. But beware if you use it as a topdressing... when the sun hits it it gives off a strong "stale coffee" aroma. Not exactly what I like to smell when working in the garden.

As far as making yourself smell like coffee... don't we all kinda smell like coffee most of the time anyway?

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Bel Townsend on May 2, 2008 at 11:55am

According to the Uncommon Grounds book (Pendergrast), they burnt surplus coffee in Brazil during the Depression, because they couldn't sell it.
"German journalist and historian Heinrich Jacob first encountered the burning coffee from a low-flyinh airplane in the early 1930s. "An aromatic yet pungent odour was rising from beneath and permeated the cabin." he wrote. "It dulled the senses, and was at the same time actually painful.. The smell had by now become intolerable, and the fumes had produced a ringing in my ears.It seemed to sap my strength."
Yuk.
It does say though, that they compressed it in to bricks, and used it as fuel on the railroads. If it smelt that bad from the air, imagine what it'd be like in a train carriage!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jason Haeger on May 2, 2008 at 12:10pm

Right, but they were burning green coffee. Ever inhaled much smoke from roasting?

You get a taste of what he described.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Bel Townsend on May 2, 2008 at 12:29pm

no,I haven't... going to a roasting company for research soon though, soI just might yet!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Tom Steffens on May 2, 2008 at 1:39pm

effin' Alex... man - if you'd only have told me this in person... now I have to mock you from across the country... ;)

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Tom Steffens on May 2, 2008 at 1:46pm

it's pretty gnar-gnar...

at first it is really pleasant when the beans are just toasted - around where you'd want to stop roasting them and start brewing...

it's when you go past the "Starbucks' Roast" stage (read: burnt) and stuff actually starts charring that the smell is pretty much indescribable...

I'm sure you'll get a whiff of what they're talking about in that book there when you visit the roastery...

or sneak out some green beans and throw 'em in a small fire and experience yourself!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Stickman on May 3, 2008 at 9:59pm

There is a company around here producing what they call Java Logs and it is similar to a prest-o log. Apparently it's old, dessicated grinds mixed with something (probably wax) to holt together and maybe to encourage it to burn. I've thought about it a lot. If I didn't have a large property I don't what I'd do with my grounds...Although so far what I don't take home is usually collected by gardening customers and maybe they put a little bit underneath a thin slice of our composted cucumber and place them gently over their eyes.......I dunno!

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Alex Negranza on May 8, 2008 at 3:23am

OOo....That's a fun new spin to the "puck wars."

I will recruit Joe Stormer for this science experiment and report back.

• ▶ Reply

▶ Reply to Discussion

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• Next ›
• Page