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Smooth Tasting: How to Find the Best Coffee Flavors for Your at-Home Java Station

Posted by Meghan Belnap on February 21, 2018 at 11:11am

Do you not have the bankroll to justify going to a coffee shop every day but also find home brewing to be tedious and not flavorful enough? Don’t fall into the trap of thinking all coffee is made alike. There are so many flavors out there for you to try. If you don’t know where to start, this guide will help.

Consider Your Tastes

When you’re at a coffee shop, what flavors are you most drawn to? Not everyone likes coffee, and not every coffee-lover has the same tastes. You might be drawn to a nuttier roast or maybe one with a tinge of fruity flavor. It’s important, to be honest with yourself during this process. Putting on airs with coffee is pointless. Be true to your taste buds and appreciate that they’re yours.

Get the Best Beans

When looking for coffee flavors, see where the beans came from. You can see if they were raised organically or possibly “Fair Trade.” There can be many factors which influence your coffee-buying decision. If the environment is important to you, you can consider buying coffee that’s shade-grown, as it helps keep bird populations thriving. You should also try buying local to reduce the number of carbon emissions.

Consider Your Budget

Buying your own coffee for home is certainly cheaper than getting it to-go every day. However, some flavors might only be affordable as occasional treats. Take a decisive look at your budget when going to the grocery store. If you’re stuck between two flavors of coffee and one is slightly more affordable, go for it. You can purchase the more expensive ones when you have coupons or as a special treat you give to yourself.

Sample Different Flavors

Choosing a flavor of coffee isn’t like signing a multi-year contract. If you want to try another flavor, you’re totally free to do so. Purchase a sampler pack of flavors that cover different taste profiles. You can also browse different websites such as 11th Street Coffee for the best flavors. It can be a hugely rewarding and enriching experience to realize just how much coffee has been out there, waiting for you to try it.

People drink coffee not just because they enjoy the caffeine boost. They drink it because they enjoy the rich taste and warmth and the ritual. By finding the best coffee flavors for your at-home java station, you can make every morning an absolute treat.

By Rail through Java

Posted by Alun Evans on April 10, 2009 at 8:00pm

Many years ago rail was the way I used to get around Java. The Dutch built a comprehensive railway system in the 1880's designed to make passenger and goods transport from the interior easy. At one stage lones ran both West-East and North-South criss-crossing the entire island.These days the railway runs from Jakarta through to Banyuwangi in the East of the island. Tracks service Bandung, Surabaya, Semarang, Yogyakarta, Blitar, Malang and Probolinggo. 10 years ago I used to make it a habit of taking the train where and when possible. Back then air transport was both unreliable and very expensive. The train (and boat network linking the islands) was a busy and viable alternative.There are a variety of choices when it comes to trains- economy class, buisness class and executive. Economy (Ekonomi) class typically have bench type seats and no air conditioning. Not particular comfortable in Java hot, sticky days. Business (Bisnis) have air conditinaing and more comfortable seats, although they are often crowded. Executive (Eksekutif) trains are the luxury alternative. Fairly comfortable airline seats, airconditioned and complete with meals. Prices are around $15 for trips from Jakarta to Central Java, $25 all the way to Banyuwangi or Bali.Revisiting the past Arlini, Elijah and I did a trip through to Arlini's home town of Yogyakarta. We left Jakarta at 8.45 and arrived in Yogyakarta (about 650km from Jakarta) at 5pm. The trip took us along the North Coast, then up over the divide and down onto the Southern Plain.The trip was as memorable as the ones I took a decade earlier. The greeness of the rice field, the blues of the Mountain the mistiness of the pass going over into the South of the island. Fantastic and well worthwhile for visitors to Indonesia. The little things- the vendors at the various stations, the friendliness of the staff and the general "rocking" experience missing in many modern trains are all there.The coffee? Well to be honest it was tradditional Indonesian coffee- Kopi tubruk. Finely ground robusta with heapings of sugar. It was though, good to the last drop!

Java Jive

Posted by Alun Evans on February 2, 2009 at 1:30pm

It was February 6th 2007 when the last big floods hit us in Jakarta. I remember that day well as our cafe in Kemang was flooded a metre deep with muddy, dirty river water that had climbed out of the nearby creek and covered all of the leafy South Jakarta suburb within a few hours. The cleanup took a while, but I am proud to say that we were trading on the sidewalk the very next day for customers in a need for a coffee do not just go away.Yesterday I woke up to the third successive day of heavy tropical rain. It simply is that time of year again, not much can be done about it. I had been thinking about doing a motorbike trip into the West Java countryside, just to snap a few pictures of the locals going abut everyday life. I thought it might be good to post these on BX. In the States most of the Javanese Coffee available is from East Java, some 1200km from where I live. West Java however was where it all begun for the coffee industry in Indonesia. The Dutch originally brought coffee here, Arabica from India, over 300 years ago. Planting initially was around Batavia (modern day Jakarta). In the capital city today streets such as Jl Kopi and suburbs like Jatrinegara are testimony to the fact that agriculture was once part of the trading life blood of the place.The Dutch quickly pushed their systems of plantation agriculture south, through Bogor and all the way to the town of Pelabhuan Ratu (Queens Harbour) on the Indian Ocean coast. Where I live, Sentul, is just about smack in the middle of where the heaviest concentration of plantations once stood. On the hills that wind in towards Jonggol and Bandung, coffee, pepper, rubber, clove and even the occasional nutmeg tree can still be found growing. Many of these old estates are now overgrown, but the trees and the way they were planted in grid patterns gives testimony to the agricultural systems of the day.With the rain still falling I wrapped the camera in several plastic bags, donned some very inadequate wet weather gear and hit the road. Conditions ranged from between warm and very wet, to bloody cold and very wet. The good news was that the light was perfect for photographing the villagers as they sheltered in their verandas of gathered in local Warungs to drink coffee and chat. It was not too hard to get a smile, I looked like the proverbial drowned rat.The villages in this area are still untouched by a lot of the expectation and disappointment that big city life creates in cities as big as Jakarta, or as small as Bogor. Graffiti is rare, people look healthy and are genuinely happy. Don't get me wrong, it is not my place as a visitor here to say that village life is many ways is superior to that in the city. Literacy levels (low) and infant mortality rates (high) are still a problem in rural Indonesia. However, in the coffee projects we operate here we are working hard to keep the farmers on the land, pay them well and develop infrastructure. I think there is no doubt that we have seen rural communities would rather stay in villages as long as they have a similar level of access to resources as those in the cities.On this day I got thoroughly wet. I was caked in thick, sticky mud up to my knees. My eyes stung from the constant rain and the concentration required to keep the bike firmly on the road. My butt hurt from the constant trampolining effect the buckled tracks produced under the bike. By wrists ached, by back was sore. However I had a great day and have absolutely no regrets on doing the trip. Lots of coffee, thick, hot, tar-like Robusta with sugar was drunk along the way. I met newborn babies to a couple of 95 year men who told me stories of the Japanese occupation and Independence. I ate rambutan and sweet manggis picked from trees hanging over the road. I helped villagers pull a dilapidated land cruiser from a swollen river and walked amongst the ruins of a long abandoned colonial coffee plantation. Yes, a great day. Next week I will bring back the prints of the photos I took yesterday for the friends I made along the way and, hopefully, get a few more pictures while I am at it.

French press drinkers only

Posted by grant yeamans on November 16, 2008 at 4:40pm

Ok, maybe not only press drinkers can respond- but those of you out there that want to share some insight here. I am now ready to replace my house with a new french press (in moving always take the time to secure & wrap your delicacies) and don't know what to get. So here's my question- Is a double wall glass french press worth the extra $? Sure it'll keep the coffee hotter longer than a reg. beaker, but i don't typically keep my coffee lying around for two hours. So, worth it?

Consider Your Tastes

Get the Best Beans

Consider Your Budget

Sample Different Flavors

Note: this page contains paid content.

Note: this page contains paid content.

Note: this page contains paid content.