coffee_lui Senior Member Joined: 20 Sep 2012 Posts: 34 Location: Harwood Heights, Illinois Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Alex Duetto 3 Grinder: Mazzer Mini-e type B Vac Pot: Cona D Roaster: Behmor 1600
Posted Thu Sep 20, 2012, 6:20pm Subject: Cona Vac Pot
I got the Cona D about a month ago and I've been playing with it for a bit. Problem is I haven't been too impressed with it YET!. I think that my owning an expresso machine has something to do with it. I understand they are different methods but there's something missing in the Cona's result. Should I not expect it to be sweet and smooth like what I get with the expresso machine ?. The Cona's results are nice but it's either I haven't found the right grind/gram weight combination or something else. What do you guys think. I'm currently using 55 grams and grind them right beofore the top part gets all the water from the bottom.
I got the Cona D about a month ago and I've been playing with it for a bit. Problem is I haven't been too impressed with it YET!. I think that my owning an expresso machine has something to do with it. I understand they are different methods but there's something missing in the Cona's result. Should I not expect it to be sweet and smooth like what I get with the expresso machine ?. The Cona's results are nice but it's either I haven't found the right grind/gram weight combination or something else. What do you guys think. I'm currently using 55 grams and grind them right beofore the top part gets all the water from the bottom.
What if we compare instead to other types of brewed coffee you might have tried in the past?
I have the opposite problem. Right from the start I liked the results of mine so much that i don't want to change (at the risk of splurging on a technivorm or something & not liking its results as much for over 10x the price), but i really would like to move to something that's easier to clean. That's my only nit-pick with the vac-pot. BTW what type of filters are you using? There are a ton of options there, paper, metal, plastic, cloth, glass rods etc. Anyway maybe just keep the cona around for occasional use, for guests who enjoy drip coffee?
Point taken.... As it compares to other drip brewed coffee I've had is mostly similar and that's when I start thinking I'm doing something wrong. I have to admit the cup is rather 'transparent' but there's some flavors there that seem not to be too desireable. I roast my own coffee so I'm not sure if it's the whole picture needs to be realigned(I'm used to roasting for esspreso) so as it relates to 'roasting' I'm not sure if I need to roast a lot lighther or what the ideal profile is for drip.
I've had a Cona D for several years. I don't use it very often any more, but I've always enjoyed the coffee I've gotten from it. I love the grand finale at the end too. A few things:
1) I roast my own coffee too. I generally use a medium roast, unless I'm using something a little funkier like a Yemen or a DP Ethiopia. I've occasionally used pretty fresh roasted beans I've bought. These have tended to be a bit darker than I like, and I haven't been as happy with the results. I use pretty much the same ratios you do, about 56 g/1 qt of water. 2) Are you using the Cona rod? I love that. Easy to clean too. 3) I never use the spirit lamp that comes with the Cona. I have a Hario Nouveau too, and really like the one that comes with that. However, I found that the one that comes with the Cona takes much too long to heat things up. I haven't used it for years. Instead, I use my electric kettle to get the water hot, then use a heat diffuser on my gas stove. I'll start grinding right after I put the hot water on the heat diffuser and turn on the stove (low to medium) . I've had good success with that. 4) I tried putting in the grounds after the coffee was at the top, but stopped doing it quickly. After I grind the beans, I'll dump them into the funnel, then immediately--after stirring the water with a chopstick--put the funnel in. As the water rises, I'll gently move the grounds around. Basically, I'm just trying to make sure the grounds are all wet when the water finishes moving up. Once the water is all up, I'll keep it up for 2 minutes, then take it off the heat. I think Tom from SM recommended that once. It's worked well for me.
coffee_lui Senior Member Joined: 20 Sep 2012 Posts: 34 Location: Harwood Heights, Illinois Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Alex Duetto 3 Grinder: Mazzer Mini-e type B Vac Pot: Cona D Roaster: Behmor 1600
Posted Sat Sep 22, 2012, 11:49am Subject: Re: Cona Vac Pot
Thanks for your reply pje65... I'll try your technique spelled out in 4 above... Yes I use the Cona rod and it's great. Is there an origin that has really wowed you on the Cona?
Posted Sat Sep 22, 2012, 8:19pm Subject: Re: Cona Vac Pot
I think milder coffees do better in a vac pot, as the vac pot tends to smooth out the brew. I tend to use a lot of Centrals, Colombias, maybe a tamer Kenya. Wilder stuff isn't bad in a vac pot either, but I prefer a French press when I'm brewing a Yemen, Harar, Indonesia, etc.
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