All Narfed Up words (and some photography pre-2010) by Bryan Villarin

Coffee

AeroPress customer support rocks

In Business, Coffee, Review on 13 October 2008 with no comments

A few weeks ago, the rubber stopper on my AeroPress started to come off easily when removing the plunger from the chamber. It didn’t affect its operation – it was just annoying.

So, I emailed Aerobie received a very quick reply that they’d send a replacement seal.

A few business days later, I received it in the mail, removed the old one, and popped on the new one. Perfect!

I’m so stoked with awesome customer support like that, especially since they didn’t bug me about a receipt.¹

I’ve had the AeroPress since March 2007 – over a year and a half now. It still works perfectly.

Aerobie 80R08 AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

Aerobie, Kitchen, $25.89

Review: French Press coffee – not good times

In Coffee, Life, Review on 4 February 2008 with 2 comments

To save money, Karla is finally going to put her French Press to use (which has been unused in her office for almost a year now). We went upstairs to the kitchen to try it out with Starbucks Christmas Blend coffee.

After four minutes, it was done. In short, it was too bitter and acidic for my tastes. I had to add more sugar than I wanted and needed milk to give it a smoother taste. Cleanup was tougher, too.

I’m glad I can say I’ve finally tried coffee from a French Press – and I don’t think I will again. Buy an AeroPress, and especially get one for someone who owns a French Press. It takes about a minute to make it and you won’t have to drink the coffee immediately.

Fun fact: A 1 lb. bag of Dunkin Donuts Original Blend coffee is $7.99 USD. You can make 30 shots of coffee with the AeroPress, which is about 27 cents/cup!

Don’t worry, you don’t have to buy the coffee or AeroPress online. They’re available in retail stores, too. I’ve seen Dunkin Donuts coffee at CVS and Target, and you can see the USA retailers for the AeroPress and replacement filters.

AeroPress – the only way to make great coffee

In Coffee, Life on 16 May 2007 with 1 comment

I’m on a break at work. I need coffee, and I’m not going to walk to Starbucks. Our kitchen has brewed coffee, so I’ll try it.

Ugh! Bitter!

My AeroPress is still rocking since I bought it almost two months ago! Have you read my Aeropress review? It’s worth buying! I rarely go to Starbucks anymore, except to buy more coffee beans.

[View on Flickr]

Aerobie 80R08 AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

Aerobie, Kitchen, $25.89

Register your Starbucks card, you might get money

In Coffee, Money, Tip on 23 April 2007 with no comments

I had my Starbucks card registered a few months ago. This weekend, I got a postcard in the mail from Starbucks:

Because you’re a loyal registered Starbucks card member, we’re giving you a little gift: $5 loaded onto your Starbucks Card by April 19, 2007.

Use the $5 to treat yourself to that indulgent beverage you’ve always wanted to try or anything else you enjoy at Starbucks.

The choice is yours. Thank you and enjoy.

Your Friends at Starbucks.

Moral: Load up all the gift cards you get at the Starbucks website (up to three); even if they’ve got zero balance, you might get this cool gift!

Review: AeroPress Coffee & Expresso Maker

In Coffee, Review on 25 March 2007 with 3 comments

I bought an AeroPress because:

1. I want to save money by not buying Starbucks on a regular basis.
2. I want to save time.
3. I want to cut down on the sugar and calorie intake that comes from buying a tall or grande non-fat no whip mocha in the mornings.
4. Smooth brew, no bitterness and extremely low acidity.
5. You can store the concentrate for a few days.

First, I tried it Friday morning with Gevalia coffee I had from December 2004. [1] It didn’t taste that great.

Then, I bought a bag of House Blend from Starbucks, then ground the beans with our new Magic Bullet. I’ll probably make four servings at a time, because I can supposedly store the concentrate for a few days.

Saturday morning, I drank one cup of coffee during breakfast (American coffee, with 2 tsp of sugar), then a 12-oz. mug on the way to a conference. I was up kind of late the night before, so I felt I needed that much. My leg was shaking profusely for the next few hours.

That afternoon, I made more concentrate so I wouldn’t have to grind the beans Sunday morning and wake up everyone in a 100-yard radius of the Magic Bullet. [2] I put a sticky on the coffee concentrate (covered with a saucer) so mom would know what it was.

So, this morning, I woke up to the sound of my mom heating up the mug. Fortunately, she just scooped 2 tbsp and added water. [3] After adding creamer and sugar, she was it tasted really good. Sweet! As for me, I fill the mug about 6 oz. then add milk and a teaspoon of sugar. Very nice!

I’m sure I have lots to learn. I’m using the microwave, heating for 2 minutes 30 seconds, but I don’t have a thermometer to check it.

An awesome idea would be to bring some of the concentrate to make an afternoon cup of coffee from work. That’s awesome!

Recommendation: If you like coffee, buy it!

Aerobie 80R08 AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

Aerobie, Kitchen, $25.89

Update 3/26/2007 @ 5:10pm: Like I said, I brought the coffee concentrate to work. I also told a couple coworkers about it. So, when I was making it, one of them came into the kitchen. She didn’t want a whole cup, so she tried a spoonful from the cup I just made, which was still without sugar. She was very impressed! “I’m gonna come to your office for coffee now!” High five!

Footnotes

[1] Don’t worry, they were all still vacuum-sealed. I was buying Gevalia for awhile, because I received a free 10-cup coffee maker from them. But, it’s simple using a big coffee maker when I’m the only one drinking coffee on a semi-regular basis, so I stopped using it.

[2] You’ll probably get the best results when the coffee grounds are fresh and you make the coffee extract immediately.

[3] I showed her the scooper she needs to use for a serving.