Mastodawn

I calculated that I could save roughly 280€ a year by switching to a cheaper brand of coffee

I calculated that I could save roughly 280€ a year by switching to a cheaper brand of coffee - Feddit UK

The one I’m drinking right now is 6.76€ and the cheapest one is 1.28€. First of all - what a price difference. Secondly, it’s actually not bad. It does have that faint “cheap coffee” taste, but after a few cups I barely notice it anymore. The real question is: is the tradeoff worth it? Do I give up a few percent of enjoyment on every single cup just to save the equivalent of a month’s grocery bill yearly? I’m not in any dire financial spot - frugality is basically a hobby/lifestyle for me at this point - but it’s getting rarer and rarer to find ways to pocket savings of this level anymore.

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manualoverride Mar 16

How are you buying/making your coffee? I switched from good quality instant to good quality beans and halved the price per month and got much better coffee in the process.

I did need a grinder and an espresso machine which consumed the first years savings, but after that it was all crema and savings.

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Janx Mar 17

I’d like to point out that you do not need to buy an espresso machine to enjoy good coffee. An Aeropress, a Chemex, a french press, a v60 pourover, or even a drip machine, with burr grinder can produce amazing coffee…

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dandelion Mar 17

but you do need an espresso maker to make espresso, which still tastes better than the coffee pour overs or drip machines can produce 😅

but you can also buy a bare-bones, manual press-lever espresso maker for much cheaper - it’s smaller, easier to maintain, has no electronic parts

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Janx Mar 17

espresso, which still tastes better than the coffee pour overs or drip machines can produce

Ah, there’s the bias. Espresso is just concentrated coffee made with pressurized water, it’s not a different level in quality. You can make bad espresso just like you can make amazing Aeropress, french press, pourover, and yes: drip coffee. You’re perfectly allowed to prefer that style of coffee, but even the experts agree: it’s not automatically better than other types.

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dandelion

oh, of course - sorry, I don’t mean to imply there is no such thing as bad espresso, or no such thing as good french press coffee, or that all bad espresso is better than all good french press, etc.

but I will say that each method has its particular benefits and downsides

no other method creates the crema and concentrated flavor espresso makes

but neither espresso nor french press are particularly stable, so if you want coffee that doesn’t quickly become bitter (e.g. when you make coffee in an office and want to be able to drink a few cups over a few hours), making a pot of drip coffee makes more sense, because drip coffee is more stable and has fewer free-floating coffee grounds that continue to leach astringent chemicals.

So, you’re right - it’s entirely a matter of taste, purpose, and context - not everyone even enjoys good espresso.

But I personally still think it doesn’t get better than the way espresso tastes so rich and creamy - it does feel like the highest / best form of coffee to me.