Dear Ozbargain community
I have just purchased a coffee plunger and would love some suggestions on good ground coffee for the plunger. I have watched videos on how to use the plunger and now need a good medium roast coffee.
Please note that I like my coffee medium strong and always add milk to the coffee.
Thanks in advance for your recommendations.
Cheers.
Yes but it can't hurt to start with recommendations
ive been buying from Airjo (when they have the discounts available)… or just go to your local cafe, and buy from them
If you're serious about good coffee, you should be buying the freshest-roasted beans you can find and grinding to order. Failing that, like supasaiyan says get your coffee from a fave local cafe that gets a regular supply of fresh-roasted beans and have them grind for you.
French press should be pretty coarsely ground…more so than pourover even. So you'll just need to be careful you don't pick up something ground for an espresso machine (which is way finer).
If a packet of ground coffee doesn't say what it's for, then it will probably be too fine. Of course, if you like the taste of plunger coffee with a fine grind, that's ok.
Boutique roasters will often grind on request to a variety of sizes (such as Airjo mentioned above).
If you want to take it up a notch, then you'll want to buy your beans whole and grind them yourself.
Buy a good quality grinder and grind fresh before each pot. I buy beans from Morgans but they are a tad dearer. however the beans are always freshly roasted within the last few days of buying. I get a medium roast either 'Fusion' or 'Morganic' beans and I have a burr grinder.
+1 again for a local cafe. Eventually you'll probably want to get a grinder because unless you're getting through it really quickly, even 250g of coffee can go pretty stale long before you're done with it and all the bargains are usually in 1kg bags (or, personally, I like Direct Coffee. 4x250g and a good chance to try a few different things)
+1 for grinder
I did not mind the pre ground offering at Aldi. Goes good in aeropress with inverted method.
I usually go dark roast
https://www.aldiunpacked.com.au/aldis-lazzio-coffee-has-done…
Aldi coffee is amazing. The beans won a Canstar award. The ground coffee is pretty good.
If you are serious about this (after all, it is about coffee), have a look around for a nearby coffee roaster. Most of them are pretty helpful and if you explain your preferred brewing method, etc., they will likely suggest a couple to try and could probably grind them to suit.
Some cafes are ok but most will only have espresso blends / grinds. You are looking for something different to that, and roasters usually have a wider selection of beans etc.
Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts and recommendations. i will certainly explore the ideas of local roasters and aldi ground coffee, or better yet get a coffee grinder! ;)
I have a Delta press and I just pop down to my local cafe and ask them to grind me a box. then I leave it in the fridge
Your local cafe will likely only have 1 (or very few roasts), but if you like their coffee they are a great place to start and can definitely give you a good baseline while you explore other options
A local coffee roaster is also a good idea, but perhaps look for a couple of roaster as different regions, different bean types and different roasts all impact the end flavour and a particular roaster may be limited in the beans they can stock
Another thing to look for is a trial pack (not an endorsement, I have never tried it but an example)
https://kimberleycoffee.com.au/shop/coffee/blended-coffee-tr…
I can attest to the Aldi coffee (but I like it very strong)
Good luck.
Sacred Grounds from Woolworths are really good - check the bottom for the roast date, try to get a roast date within a few weeks.
There is no such thing as good pre-ground coffee.
I don't drink coffee but isn't this a subjective thing? You probably need to try a few to find one to your taste. Regardless of brand or popularity. There's dozens in local supermarket or Amazon, grab what's on special and try them out.