How do you make camp coffee?

Tent + Car Camping Campfire
#1

So I am not an ultra coffee snob, but I enjoy a good, not bitter cup of coffee,

I’ve seen all sorts of folks solutions to this.

For me there is nothing quite like sipping a nice mug of hot coffee on a cool winters morning (I’m in Texas, truly cold days exist, but they are rare), especially overlooking the birds hunting the lake…

I do have one of those fancy Coleman stove top drip coffee makers, and I upgraded it with the stainless steel carafe and a brass permanent filter. However I am also married to someone that does not share my enjoyment of coffee all that often…

So a whole pot of coffee is typically a big waste.

I decided I typically go through one of those 30oz stainless steel insulated tumblers, and why just brew straight into it like I do at home?

So I went to REI and grabbed a GSI Ultralight Java Drip, and then over the Walmart for a 12 cup stainless steel percolator.

Yes I said percolator, and no coffee grounds will NEVER see the inside of my percolators. It is a water boiler only. I like the percolator because it is easier and safer to pour into a mug than just a pan of water, and the percolator allows you to see when the water is boiling REALLY easily if you somehow magically missed the noise…

And with the 12 cups we get just enough for 2 mugs of coffee / tea the way we make it, and have leftover for instant oatmeal for breakfast while sausage and eggs are cooked up…

I replaced the perc knob with a glass one because, well, I could.

I simply load up the java drip on the tumbler, load the coffee grounds in while the water is getting to a boiling point. Let the water cool a touch, and then just wet the grounds, and wait 30-45 seconds to let the coffee bloom, THEN do the pour over brew.

I use a stainless protein shake shaker bottle as a milk frother, and do basically a giant latte for my mornings… Due to years of acid refulx I can’t do black coffee any more…

So that’s my method. What’s yours?

#2

Moka pot by Bialetti. https://www.bialetti.com/us_en/ You can get a battery operated milk frother from any number of stores and on-line. The Moka pot is as close to real espresso as you can get without an electronic maker.

#3

I’ve seen folks mention the Moka pot before. I never knew they were an espresso brewer. I always thought they were basically a 1 cup percolator type thingy…

I might just have to add that to my arsenal.

It should be noted, while not a TRUE espresso machine in the strictest sense… you CAN brew a rich brew that mimics espresso pretty well with a pour over coffee maker. Start with a slightly finer grind that still won’t pass through your filters, if using something like the Ultralight Java drip, ADD a paper cone filter, and use generous amounts of grounds, wet to bloom, pause, pour, pause, pour pause. letting it effectively bloom between pours, until you have achieved the quantity of rich, dark, strong espresso like brew you are seeing to achieve.

It’s not perfect, but it is a pretty decent simulation for not a lot of storage space.

#4

When it is a bunch of us, we use a perc. However, if it is just my partner and I, we use a hand grinder and a pourover (https://shoponline.melitta.com/products/1-cup-pour-over-coffee-brew-cone-black), and biodegradable filters. Great fresh coffee with minimal cleanup. It is really the freshly ground coffee which makes the cup perfect.

#5

Well french press, dip or any of those fancy ways to make coffee suck. The real good coffee is perked or boiled like cowboy coffee. If you don’t the grounds which I don’t I pour throu a filter.

#6

I typically just do a one cup pore over. And bring my creamer. It just tastes better when your camping or backpacking.

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#7

French press. Got a little metal canister so you can use it for other cooking but this one came with a plastic French press. Makes 3-4 cups , takes 5-6 minutes including heating water and cleans up easily with no filter. I normally use the kids leftover fruit loop milk for my cream - how’s that for camping

#8

Coffee is a MUST. I do a pour over usually I used to do a perc but for the same reasons mentioned above, I moved to the pour over (I have a one that collapses) HOWEVER the Aeropress is also an excellent coffee delivery system while camping. the coffee just tastes better from an Aeropress.

#9

I do that in a large stainless steel stock pot with a filtered spigot when camping in large groups. For solo/couples camping, French press and percolator pot to boil water are best, as not everyone shares in my taste for fine coffee (and sometimes I just don’t want to share).

#10

I found a Stanley container that is a french press. Crazy cool! I also usually have my small 5 cup perk pot. Slow perk over the campfire makes the best! If youre absolutely without…cowboy coffee works but can be kind of strong :slight_smile:

#11

I bought a pretty cool piece of gear a couple months ago but I ended up becoming very disappointed in it. I bought a French press attachment for my JetBoil pot. The idea is you can heat up some water, mix in your grounds, then press the grounds to the bottom of your pot with this I ended up disliking this product because no matter how slow I pressed I always managed to wind up with a mouthful of coffee grounds. It’s also really annoying to clean because you have to do dishes between brewing a cup of joe and making breakfast. I would suggest picking up a camp french press, it may take up some extra space but it’s guaranteed to make you a much better cup of coffee than my silicone press, despite how appealing the all in one design might be.

#12

This. Easy packing and great cup of coffee.

#13

I see all the wonderful ways coffee lovers are using to concoct their precious brew and all are great. But no one here has mentioned the number one most important part of making great coffee. IT’S THE COFFEE YOU USE!! You have to start with a good coffee. I guarantee if you bought it off the shelf, it’s a blend and it’s terrible. Get yourself ~Black Rifle~ coffee in the flavor and strength you prefer. They will grind the beans to fit your particular method of brewing or get em whole.

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#14

I just make “cowboy” coffee which I picked up from Kent Rollins (youtube). I try and keep my gear as minimal as possible so I cleaned and prefilled several 5 hour energy bottles with coffee and carry a bottle for each day I have planned and one per person. I like my coffee super strong so one bottle will make two good cups although I like it paint stripper strong. I do carry filters if I decide to go the filter route which is basically using a heavy fishing line tied around the filter creating a tea bag type of brew but the cowboy coffee doesn’t come out bitter or leave you with heart burn which is a plus. I don’t use creamer so I just carry a couple repurposed pill bottles with sugar in a full spice kit also made from old pill bottles.

With cowboy coffee, if made correctly, I’ve never had an issue with coffee grounds in the coffee and there is a trick to it if you look up the video. I don’t carry a stove or any of that fancy stuff. Just a raw camp fire is all I use to cook on.

#15

The Moka pots make a strong cup of coffee, but not espresso. True espresso requires high pressure, which is hard to replicate without electricity. If you buy one though, when they refer to how many cups it makes, they’re talking about 2 oz cups!

#16

I use a tea pot (so I don’t have to buy anything new) and pour over my coffee with the GSI Outdoors Ultralight Java Drip Coffee Maker.

It’s a bit of a game timing the tea pot so it doesn’t boil, for some reason my tongue doesn’t like being burned (go figure!).

#17

I’m the sole coffee drinker typically. I like it easy and clean when camping, so I’ve been using those Starbucks instant packets – especially backpacking (happy with it, and I french press at home). Otherwise, cone paper filter pour over – just toss the used filter/grinds into trash. Of course, if making the coffee is part of a sweet morning ritual, by all means, indulge in a more complex process – my ritual is to sit back and enjoy the coffee.

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#18

I’ve tried several ways but using an aeropress, which was mentioned above, seems to be the most convinient for making coffee. Really, this thing is a savior, because I do not know how to stay without coffee :slight_smile: In my first days of camp I like adding some coffee creamer like this, because all my life I put them in my coffee, and it is hard to change my habits completely.

It was interesting to know about different ways of making coffee, I think I should try it again.

Enjoy your camp and coffee!

#19

I used to use an Aeropress for YEARS! Then I bumped into these little guys from Traveling Jo and haven’t looked back! . They call it the The POW, and its a biodegradable pour over coffee filter. It’s all in one so you don’t need a ‘structure’ or plastic/metal piece holding it up. Just open the wings and put 'er on your cup! And the best part, it makes an INCREDIBLE cup of coffee, and I’m a snob. lol.

#20

I have that attachment too, and same. I wound up swapping to freeze dried coffee which isn’t the best, but it hasn’t been gritty.