Cook.
A continuation of
my adventures in new gear. For the background to this series read
this:
Part 2: The Kitchen Gadgets
The only thing I
really need in order to be happy outside, at least in terms of food
and drink, is a hot, strong cup of coffee in the morning. For years
(like 15) I have used a camp french press in the style of old plastic
travel mugs made by Big Sky Brewing. I have wandered in my affection
during that time, sure, trying single-cup drips and small
Italian-style espresso pots, but I pretty much always come back to
the french press. This year, I went in search of an update for both
my brewing system, and my travel mug, which was of the cheap,
whatever you find at whatever store you happen to be in variety.
Meaning that it leaks, falls apart, and keeps my coffee warm for
about two seconds. I like to set a low bar.
The Brew
I tried all manner
of outside coffee makers, including making single serve 'coffee bags'
by tying up coffee filters filled with grounds with kitchen string,
every portable drip system I could find, and even a plastic french
press or two. But I kept going back to my Big Sky Bistro original.
Eventually though, the nice people from Planetary Design sent me an
alternative.
Planetary Design
makes coffee and tea presses and travel mugs in addition to kitchen
storage containers. While they make larger presses, they sent me the
travel mug double shot version. It was a little smaller than the Big
Sky version, but it was made of stainless steel, and a much nicer
design, especially in the deep green that I have. The press works
well, though I would prefer a larger cup, especially if I need to use
it to make coffee for two or three on the trail. But for just myself,
it made a pretty good cup of coffee. Better than the press feature
though, is the cup itself. It actually comes with a warning label
about how hot the contents are kept, and they mean it. There's no
heat being lost through that mug. I've never seen anything like it.
There is no doubt that you can keep your cup of coffee hot for a long
time even while snow camping with their gear. Though for your average
summer weather, it does seem like a bit of dangerous overkill. The
other odd feature of the press/mug is that the bottom has a hidden
compartment that screws off, presumably to hold an extra dose of
grounds or packets of creamer and sugar, but given how much of the
total volume of the mug it takes up, and hot hot the contents are
kept, it seems like an unnecessary feature. Also, it doesn't apply
very well to the outdoors,what's the point of having extra grounds at
hand if you still have to unpack and set up your stove to boil water?
Most of the people I show it to mention that it looks like a great
place to keep your stash.
I also received
the Commuter French Press/Mug from GSI Outdoors. I actually had to
watch this Youtube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1u7s3cfEJY
to understand how to work this product, but once I did, it was
pretty easy to use. Instead of the traditional plunger, this mug is
nested, with the removable inner cup acting as the press. It's a
clever design and a nicely balanced, large travel mug that 's a good
cup of coffee. It doesn't lend itself to sharing as it doesn't pour
well, but that's not its real intention. What's great about it is
that it keeps your coffee ground free, but I found that the pieces
can be difficult to separate, especially if you like your coffee
strong and use a lot of grounds. The biggest selling point is that it
is leak-free, I was able to pack it in a pack and ride my bike with
it safely stowed and completely filled.
In the end, I
decided that for brewing at camp and with more than one person, Big
Sky is still the best bet. But Planetary Designs is making some great
mugs, and their features seem to be of more benefit to tea drinkers
and GSI is great for single-person use. All o f them make a stronger,
hotter cup of camp coffee that other techniques.
In another
coffee-related development, the folks over at GSI started offering a
camp-kitchen coffee mill last spring, and it's really pretty great.
It's small, sturdy, hand powered and a great addition to any car
camping kitchen. It's heavy, so I wouldn't recommend in for touring,
even it it is super compact and you are a devoted coffee aficionado.
Hang onto the instructions when you first unpack it, it's not as self
explanatory as it seems, it took me three or four tries before I
really remembered how to use it, but it isn't complicated either.
What I love best about this product is that it lets me store whole
beans in my camp bin and grind them fresh in the morning instead of
relying on stale grounds that are prone to absorbing moisture. It is
far from a necessity, and really edging towards glamping, but it is
the best stocking stuffer idea for outdoors people that I've seen in
a long time.
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