http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h3qPYjDK6Q
The coffee percolator changed the meaning of the word, percolate to add the second definition based on the effect of water bubbling up to the first definition of water seeping down through permeable material. I doubt that many people ever used the word percolate prior to the introduction of the coffee percolator.
The word percolate just sounds like the visible bubble-up action of a coffee percolator, so the word acquired that definition by popular perception. Actually the name of the coffee percolator was derived from the invisible action of hot water seeping down through the coffee basket.
So percolate became a word with two definitions that were actually opposite of each other.
Sure I remember percolators, I've even got one back in one of the kitchen cabinets here in the Fortress Firelock. Haven't used it in years, almost forgot it was there, but you know, I just may take it out and give it a try tomorrow.
Back in the olden times that's how everyone made coffee. One of my fondest memories of my grandmother's house is the percolator on the stove and the aroma of "Eight-O-Clock" coffee filling the house. I've tried to recapture the smell but just can't do it. Maybe it was the water in Tenafly NJ. The coal furnace in the basement was cool too, but that's another tale.
And I DO remember the old coffee cans with the key! POP! WOOOOOOSSSSHHHHH....as the vacuum filled. The last time I heard a noise like that was in opening a 600 round can of M1 carbine ammo in the '80s. I don't know anyone who remembers who doesn't miss that coffee can pop.
EuclidThe coffee percolator changed the meaning of the word, percolate to add the second definition based on the effect of water bubbling up to the first definition of water seeping down through permeable material. I doubt that many people ever used the word percolate prior to the introduction of the coffee percolator.
And let's not miss the semantics of 'perking up' or a 'perky' personality that derive from coffee made this way... to say nothing of expressions like 'perking right along' that confuse the coffee boiling up with the coffee brewing down...
Firelock: Tenafly, eh? I'm from 81 Joyce Rd (1958 to 1966, when we moved one town over). Weren't you over where the high school was put in?
Hi Overmod! Grandma and Grandpa's house was on Gordon Avenue, right up the hill from the new high school. During the winter when the leaves were down you could see the school from the front steps.
I was up there last year and the house is still there. Can't say the same for the house I grew up in in Paramus. That was torn down for a McMansion several years ago. Matter of fact the whole block I grew up on is just about unrecognizable. I won't go back to the old neighborhood now, what's the point?
It's remarkable though, just how little Tenafly's changed.
And those coffee cans were great for storing nuts, bolts, and the like! The one pound cans, short and squat, were just the right depth.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
Overmod I trust that people here remember percolators. The difference between these and the 'drip' machine was that the water started out in the bottom, boiled up a tube (sometimes into a glass knob that showed you the 'perking' was happening) and then trickled down through the basket. Difference with a modern coffeemaker is that there was no 'separation' between the trickled-down brew and the starting water: it just kept going, getting stronger and stronger with multiple passes through the grounds. It could be difficult to keep the thing from developing burned spots (departure from nucleate boiling!) on a gas burner, or an electric one that was turned up too high; I'm sure there could be problems with the electric kind.
I trust that people here remember percolators. The difference between these and the 'drip' machine was that the water started out in the bottom, boiled up a tube (sometimes into a glass knob that showed you the 'perking' was happening) and then trickled down through the basket. Difference with a modern coffeemaker is that there was no 'separation' between the trickled-down brew and the starting water: it just kept going, getting stronger and stronger with multiple passes through the grounds. It could be difficult to keep the thing from developing burned spots (departure from nucleate boiling!) on a gas burner, or an electric one that was turned up too high; I'm sure there could be problems with the electric kind.
Overmod,
You're not supposed to nuke the coffee!
Remember some of my NE texts stating that most LWR's were designed with a max heat flux about 1/3rd of what was needed for DNB.
I remember the key's for the three pound cans of Maxwell House that my parents would use for coffee, with the lid making a stab at a seal. Plastic lids started showing up around '63 or '64, they made halfways decent Frisbees after the can was emptied. They typically used a "once-through" percolator, with the hot water supplied by a tea kettle, which avoided the burning.
- Erik
FWIW, just a couple years ago you could get coffee percolators that were designed for use on a camping stove. Not sure if that is still the case.
NorthWest FWIW, just a couple years ago you could get coffee percolators that were designed for use on a camping stove. Not sure if that is still the case.
Possibly. You'd have to get out and look at a place like Bass Pro Shops or check out a Campmor catalog. I've got a large campstove percolator that I used on a barbecue grill when we entertained family on the Fourth of July. Piled up the briquets under it and it worked like a champ.
Lady Firestorm was amazed I bought a huge coffeepot for the Fourth of July party. "It's the Fourth of July!" she said. "It's going to be hot! Who's going to want coffee?"
"You don't know my family" said I. Turns out she didn't know her own as well as she thought either.
I have a fairly good representation of the history of coffee pots.
I now use a Tassimo. I have an '80's vintage Melita coffee maker, still with its' original Carafe. I also have a small percolator like Northwest describes, I think. It makes good coffee, but I see why they were replaced with drip coffee makers. Percolators require too much attention at just the right moment when the coffee is ideally brewed.
But, after we cleaned out my parents place, I inherited my Mom's parents "Cowboy Coffee Pot". It is enamel coated, with I guess a 1 or 1½ gallon capacity. It has a lip around the bottom like an aluminum pail and a handle so you can hang it over a campfire. I don't know how you would heat it on an electric stove as that lip has a greater diameter than the largest burner, so it would sit right on the stove top. I don't know what kind of problems that would create, and I think my landlord would take a dim view of having an open fire on my balcony.
There was a Western movie out a few years ago that sparked a splurge of "Cowboy Coffee" recipes on the internet, but I didn't know I should save any at the time. Basically, you throw in a certain amount of unground beans, along with a handful of salt to deal with any deficiencies in the water from the nearest stream, and heat it for a very long time.
I also inherited an enameled teapot(how very British of me) and a tin cup.
Bruce
Geez, now all I want to do is listen to the Sons of the Pioneers singing "Cool Water" and "Tumbling Tumbleweeds".
So shovel the coal, let this rattler roll.
"A Train is a Place Going Somewhere" CP Rail Public Timetable
"O. S. Irricana"
. . . __ . ______
Coleman made a light 4 or so cup percolator and I've seen larger ones as well similar to the enameled cowboy coffee pot size and shape. Coleman also makes a drip/filter coffee maker for campfire stoves, works like a charm.
Thanks, Erik. I think that is what I am thinking of.
It looks like they are still available, and there is also a propane cylinder powered model similar to the average home maker!
This 'ol boy from Texas I knew in the Marines told me the proper way to make "Cowboy Coffee."
Fill the coffee pot with water, throw in a fist-full of coffee, boil it 'till you think you've boiled it enough, then open the pot and break an egg into it. The egg will drift to the bottom and pull the grounds down with it.
Then to show everybody what a hard case you are, eat the egg!
And then there is the vacuum coffee pot:
http://www.vacuumcoffeehq.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/NG-Yama-Stovetop.jpg
So very 1970's.....
http://di3-2.shoppingshadow.com/pi/i.ebayimg.com/00/$(KGrHqQOKpME1qs2sEVbBNsp3RhGF!~~_32-260x260-0-0.JPG
A vacuum coffee pot! Wow, haven't seen one of those in years. I don't know anyone who had one, the only place I remember seeing a vacuum coffee pot was in diners.
My parents had a vacuum coffee pot back in the late 1950's - have some very vague memories of it.
So, has anyone looked at that Moondoggie Coffee site I recommended?
Beware the wrath of Lady Firestorm if you don't!
Her spies are everywhere....
I did. The “Jamaican Me Crazy” blend at $14 a pound is too expensive for me. Young coffee addicts should keep in mind they’ll have to buy tens of thousands of cups of coffee before it’s over. Settle for something reasonable.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rf-VoI7EU9Y
Well no, Moondoggie's not cheap, but it's something I get from time to time as a treat. Considering the amount of coffee I drink on a regular basis Moondoggie would be too expensive for me too.
Not cheap, but the best never is.
Say, a while back someone said they were looking for a percolator but weren't having any luck? Well, I've just gotten my Vermont Country Store catalog and lo and behold, they've got one, a Farberware to be exact.
The bad news, it ain't cheap.
The good news. they've got an old-fashioned stove top percolator for a bit less.
Check out www.vermontcountrystore.com
They've got a lot of other cool stuff too.
OhioRiverTrail www.vermontcountrystore.com Well worth the trip on the ethan allen to go up there
www.vermontcountrystore.com
Well worth the trip on the ethan allen to go up there
You know, they seem so good at getting obsolete candies reproduced I wish they'd go to work on bringing the old "Milk Shake" bar back! Man, those things were good!
Firelock76You know, they seem so good at getting obsolete candies reproduced I wish they'd go to work on bringing the old "Milk Shake" bar back! Man, those things were good!
Have 'em ask Hershey -- they got the rights back in the '90s, and may still have the recipes. In a world where Kraft can own Cote d'Or, just about anything ought to be possible...
I want the Butter-Nut bars back, myself... At least they're marketing Mallo-Cups again!
OBLIGATORY RAILROAD CONTENT: Yes, I'd take the Ethan Allen to get a couple of cases.
And, then again...
Horehound or hoarhound is a common name applied to two related genera of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae:
Candy flavoring from one of these plants?
.
Johnny
OhioRiverTrail Horehounds are my fav classic candy. Great for sore throats. Legend had it in the 1700s that special dogs in puratanical times wheres used to sniff out certain sinfull women and witches in order to round them up. In some New England towns there were so many of these sinful women that the dogs lost there bark. So the town alchemest came up with this concoction so the dogs would get there bark back and so hence the name of the candy named after these special dogs.
Horehounds are my fav classic candy. Great for sore throats. Legend had it in the 1700s that special dogs in puratanical times wheres used to sniff out certain sinfull women and witches in order to round them up. In some New England towns there were so many of these sinful women that the dogs lost there bark. So the town alchemest came up with this concoction so the dogs would get there bark back and so hence the name of the candy named after these special dogs.
She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw
Overmod Firelock76You know, they seem so good at getting obsolete candies reproduced I wish they'd go to work on bringing the old "Milk Shake" bar back! Man, those things were good! Have 'em ask Hershey -- they got the rights back in the '90s, and may still have the recipes. In a world where Kraft can own Cote d'Or, just about anything ought to be possible... I want the Butter-Nut bars back, myself... At least they're marketing Mallo-Cups again! OBLIGATORY RAILROAD CONTENT: Yes, I'd take the Ethan Allen to get a couple of cases.
OK, no sooner said than done. I sent a product suggestion to the Vermont Country Store concerning the Milk Shake bar. Let's see what happens.
MY obligitory railroad content: I went as a railroad engineer on Halloween once, and got my first taste of Milk Shake bars! Woo-Woo! Chuggity-chug!
I watched an episode of "How It's Made" that dealt with how coffee beans are harvested and prepared for market and it was stated that Arabica beans yield the lowest quality coffee.
baberuth73 I watched an episode of "How It's Made" that dealt with how coffee beans are harvested and prepared for market and it was stated that Arabica beans yield the lowest quality coffee.
I have always heard that the best coffee comes from Arabica beans. Arabica and Robusta are the two main beans, and Robusta is generally rougher tasting than Arabica. Not all Arabica beans are equal, but you cannot get the best coffee out of Robusta beans.
EuclidI have always heard that the best coffee comes from Arabica beans. Arabica and Robusta are the two main beans, and Robusta is generally rougher tasting than Arabica. Not all Arabica beans are equal, but you cannot get the best coffee out of Robusta beans.
I guess so. (from Wiki)
"Robusta is easier to care for and has a greater crop yield than C. arabica, so is cheaper to produce.[12] Roasted robusta beans produce a strong, full-bodied coffee with a distinctive earthy flavour, but usually with more bitterness than arabica due to its pyrazine content.[13][14] Since arabica beans are believed to have smoother taste with less acidity and a richer flavour, they are often considered superior, while the harsher robusta beans are mostly used as a filler in lower-grade coffee blends.[15][16] However, the powerful flavour can be desirable in a blend to give it perceived "strength" and "finish", noticeably in Italian coffee culture. Good-quality robusta beans are used in traditional Italianespresso blends, to provide a full-bodied taste and a better foam head (known as crema). " and
"Gourmet coffees are almost exclusively high-quality mild varieties of arabica coffee, and among the finest arabica coffee beans in the world used for making espresso coffee are Jamaican Blue Mountain, Colombian Supremo, Tarrazú, Costa Rica, Guatemalan Antigua and Ethiopian Sidamo."
Most robusta is from Vietnam these days. It appears that GCC may have a negative impact on coffee growing. http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0047981?imageURI=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0047981.t001
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
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