Thread: Plunger Beans?

A good question....

re degree of roasting:

I dont change anything when going from one method of brewing to another. I like all my "espresso roasts" as brewed in the plunger and besides, because the infusion method is a much "weaker" form of brewing that extracts a lot less out of your grinds, it is counter productive to for example, roast the beans to a lesser degree, where in the plunger this would result in you extracting even less out of the lighter coloured grinds.

And I dont go roasting any darker either, because I dont like burning coffee.

Re type of beans / blends...

ditto, they are all there to be appreciated, and you cant account for their different tastes as individuals until after you have given a selection of coffee and they tell you what they liked and disliked.

So....dont change anything, & let them appreciate your proudly produced roasts just they way they are!

Regardz,
FC.

I agree with FC.
However, i roast and grind for my own plunger at work and I really like the aromatic beans as, when it comes down to it, coffee always smells better than it tastes from a plunger. Therefore a like to use beans like your Bali god mountain, India tiger mountain and i love the Ugandans. (You can also use the opportunity to get rid of a few beans that are taking up valuable space like those stupid Kenyans).
Matt

The general accepted wisdom is to roast lighter for plunger ... but rules are made to be broken! Some coffees suit plunger better than espresso (I think of some Nicaraguan Marogogype I had last year ... espresso=ewww, plunger=mmmm...), and other coffees prefer espresso.

I recently had some really nice PNG Purosa Organic, roasted to the end of first crack, which I drank from a plunger over the weekend. Tasty!

I tend to prefer high-acid, full-flavoured coffees in a plunger or vac pot. So, while I wouldnt choose to drink a Brazil Cerrado in a plunger, a Kenya is simply perfect. Here are some that I found to work a treat in a plunger/vac pot:
- Kenya
- Ethiopean Yirgacheffe
- Ethiopean Harrar
- Costa Rica
- Nicaraguan Marogogype
- Columbia

Yes Mattyj, I tend to roast slightly lighter for a plunger (for the same bean/blend) because the acidity tends to somewhat compensate for the less efficient extraction...but some beans do go well in a plunger, whatever the roast.

I like a SO PNG Sigri (medium roast) in a plunger, as well as a blend I make of Sigri, Brazil, Colombian and just a little Robusta...this makes for a very mild, drinkable blend that even my wife likes!..

In the quest for the perfect espresso extraction, we sometimes forget the humble plunger, but ten or fifteen years ago, they were all the rage! I still like to take a pot outside and relax with the paper on the weekend....

Absolutely nothing wrong with taking the plunge ;D..... makes for a nice alternative method for enjoying a great cuppa :)

Mal.