Quote Originally Posted by dr del View Post
I'm one of those who regularly drinks instant coffee but, since I can't get the one I liked in the uk any more ( kenco brazillian), I was swithering on whether "good" coffee might be worth trying.

To this end I have a small hario grinder, an aeropress, a milk frother ( ) and a variety pack of beans arriving tomorrow.

And the metal filters for the aeropress arriving on monday.

Any tips or recomendations on how to proceed?
You and I are in the same boat, my friend! Good coffee is definitely worth trying. I only ever made pre-ground coffee in my super cheap coffee maker before this pandemic madness started, but I decided to get fancy when I started working from home. I have a small Hario grinder, milk frother (that I never use), and a variety of good, locality whole beans (even my coffee's locality, lol). The coffee I make now definitely has more flavor and tastes better. While I'll still drink the cheap stuff if need be, I'll probably only be making "fancy" coffee at home now.

When I was talking to the guy at the fancy coffee shop I got my stuff from, he said the best thing you can do to improve your cup of coffee is to get good, whole beans and grind them right before you make your cup. The quality and freshness of the beans you use has a much greater impact on the quality of your cup compared to the brewing method. That definitely holds true for me, considering I'm still using my super cheap coffee maker to actually brew my coffee!

While you're trying new varieties of beans, pay attention to their acidity and flavor profiles, and make note of the ones you like. You should be able to better predict if you'd like a new variety of bean this way. You may want to be wary of dark roasts while you're picking stuff out -- a bad dark roast just tastes burnt, and (according to a coffee buff colleague of mine) some roasters take their sub-par beans and roast the heck out of them to cover up their non-ideal qualities. If you find something you bought is too bitter, try adding a tiny pinch of salt to the grounds -- it helps cut the bitterness.