beans at a good price

Curry Addict

any tips for buying decent beans at a good price?
im looking for a general use bean for daily use, price limit of around 15e a kilo... online or shop.

Slaphead07

Curry Addict wrote: »

price limit of around 15e a kilo... online or shop.

Nick's Sweet Espresso. http://www.nickscoffeecompany.com/

IsThatSo?

I used to be hugely active on this board, until the 'being a parent' thing curtailed it...........and in all the time I haven't been around here I have been ordering my beans from www.hasbean.co.uk. Great choice and good value too..........so for 2 entire years I haven't found the need to change from Hasbean. That is about as good a recommendation as I can give

Curry Addict

hasbean seem expensive, around 30e a kilo delivered, unless im missing something?
how much is nicks per kilo on average?

alastair

15 euro a kilo would rule out an awful lot of options. Mostly the decent ones. The stuff just isn't that cheap - unless you're buying green.

mandarin

Nick's is 4.50 for a 225g bag, according to this thread
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=73869163

That is a very competitive price.

Will probably have to stick with supermarket coffee beans if you want to pay around 15 per kg. Lavazza have 1kg bags for around that price, Starbucks is 4.15 for 250g bag in Tescos.

Curry Addict

alastair wrote: »

15 euro a kilo would rule out an awful lot of options. Mostly the decent ones. The stuff just isn't that cheap - unless you're buying green.

yes i understand that, im just looking for a general use, good enuf quality bean in that price range( if it exhists here).
ive no problem paying for expensive beans but not for everyday use.

in holland there are bean shops all over selling freshly roasted beans around this price range but of course the market there is way bigger!

Curry Addict

mandarin wrote: »

Nick's is 4.50 for a 225g bag, according to this thread
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=73869163

That is a very competitive price.

nice ill check this out

Diarmuid

http://www.discountcoffee.ie/

PPC

1Kg of http://www.hasbean.co.uk/products/Jailbreak-Espresso-Blend-Mk4.html would be about 18.50 minus delivery. Do a bulk order and pop a few bags in the freezer and you'll be fine.

Curry Addict

PPC wrote: »

1Kg of http://www.hasbean.co.uk/products/Jailbreak-Espresso-Blend-Mk4.html would be about 18.50 minus delivery. Do a bulk order and pop a few bags in the freezer and you'll be fine.

i see the postage is not so bad when u make a big order, these beens are under 20e a kilo if i buy a few kilos which suits. thanks!

Curry Addict

Diarmuid wrote: »

http://www.discountcoffee.ie/

i have seen these, their prices are great. can you recommend any particular bean?
i wonder how fresh they are?
anyone else tried these and could recommend a bean?

Slaphead07

Curry Addict wrote: »

how much is nicks per kilo on average?

As I said, about €15. I think it might have crept up to €17 recently as prices rise worldwide. If you're buying a bag of beans of any size you get a free cup of coffee too. This isn't "discount" coffee by the way, it will stand beside any coffee, it's my staple. It makes a superb espresso.

Curry Addict

Slaphead07 wrote: »

As I said, about €15. I think it might have crept up to €17 recently as prices rise worldwide. If you're buying a bag of beans of any size you get a free cup of coffee too. This isn't "discount" coffee by the way, it will stand beside any coffee, it's my staple. It makes a superb espresso.

ill pick up some of these next sunday, thanks!

naasrd

Gurman's in Kilkenny are worth a visit if you're near by. They're supposed to be opening an outlet in the Stephen's Green centre next month.

macgabhs

I would not put gurmans in the category of beans at a good price most of their offerings are €3.50 per 100g

the beer revolu

macgabhs wrote: »

I would not put gurmans in the category of beans at a good price most of their offerings are €3.50 per 100g

And they're all in glass jars for people to take the lid off and have a sniff.
There's no knowing when the beans were roast or how long they've been in the jars.

naasrd

macgabhs wrote: »

I would not put gurmans in the category of beans at a good price most of their offerings are €3.50 per 100g

Wow, that is expensive.

mandarin

By may calculations, you'd need to buy about 10kg of Hasbean's Jailbreak to get it for around 20 euro per kg. Say you buy 5kg of Jailbreak for 80stg, 16stg postage = 110 euro at current exchange rate approx, or 22 euro per kg. Buying in such quantities doesn't seem the most practical, unless a person is convinced they'll never tire of that particular coffee.
If you're willing to consider Irish coffee roasters in or around that price bracket, there's also Badger and Dodo (2.5kg of red rock espresso plus postage works out at 61 euro, or roughly 24 per kg). Ariosa coffee is somewhat cheaper (500 gram bag is 10 euro, delivery is 6 euro for orders up to 2kg and 12 euro up to 10kg) and Ponaire cheaper again (19 euro per kg, delivery of 7 euro for any order).
Obviously, can avoid the delivery charge if you buy locally (via your cafe or at a farmers' market etc).

Curry Addict

mandarin wrote: »

By may calculations, you'd need to buy about 10kg of Hasbean's Jailbreak to get it for around 20 euro per kg. Say you buy 5kg of Jailbreak for 80stg, 16stg postage = 110 euro at current exchange rate approx, or 22 euro per kg. Buying in such quantities doesn't seem the most practical, unless a person is convinced they'll never tire of that particular coffee.
If you're willing to consider Irish coffee roasters in or around that price bracket, there's also Badger and Dodo (2.5kg of red rock espresso plus postage works out at 61 euro, or roughly 24 per kg). Ariosa coffee is somewhat cheaper (500 gram bag is 10 euro, delivery is 6 euro for orders up to 2kg and 12 euro up to 10kg) and Ponaire cheaper again (19 euro per kg, delivery of 7 euro for any order).
Obviously, can avoid the delivery charge if you buy locally (via your cafe or at a farmers' market etc).

great info thanks!
coffee beans are damn expensive in ireland

mandarin

No prob Curry Addict. Ariosa used to be at Temple Bar market on Sat mornings (assume they still are) - they do a good coffee and 10 euro for 500g espresso blend is pretty good, all considered.
As for supermarket coffees, most are pre-ground - the only packet of beans I can think of that almost exactly matches your price preference is Lavazza's 1kg bag (14 or 15 euro).

adrian522

mandarin wrote: »

No prob Curry Addict. Ariosa used to be at Temple Bar market on Sat mornings (assume they still are) - they do a good coffee and 10 euro for 500g espresso blend is pretty good, all considered.
As for supermarket coffees, most are pre-ground - the only packet of beans I can think of that almost exactly matches your price preference is Lavazza's 1kg bag (14 or 15 euro).

I'd consider that pretty expensive esp. as they won't tell you what beans they are using in it.

mandarin

Won't or don't? Granted, they should mention the components on their webpage but I assume one would be told if the question was asked. Website says they 'only roast with speciality coffee', not commodity coffee. Given that, and prices of other roasters, €20kg seems competitive.

adrian522

No, won't. Whenever I asked I was told it was a secret as I could be a competitor. Go figure.

mandarin

That seems a bit OTT. Would have assumed you'd be given the basics, ie, countries of origin,etc - there are so many variables involved in the roasting process, that'd hardly be giving the keys to the kingdom.

naasrd

Curry Addict wrote: »

great info thanks!
coffee beans are damn expensive in ireland

Yeah, I discovered HasBean through this forum and have started to treat myself every 2 weeks to a different bean selection. For the 7-9 euros it costs me and the enjoyment I'm getting out of it, it's the best value I've had in a long, long time. I'm like a kid at Christmas waiting for the postman to arrive.

Gran Hermano

naasrd wrote: »

Yeah, I discovered HasBean through this forum and have started to treat myself every 2 weeks to a different bean selection. For the 7-9 euros it costs me and the enjoyment I'm getting out of it, it's the best value I've had in a long, long time. I'm like a kid at Christmas waiting for the postman to arrive.

Well if you're ordering that frequently you may as well set up an In My Mug subscription.;)

naasrd

Gran Hermano wrote: »

Well if you're ordering that frequently you may as well set up an In My Mug subscription.;)

It's my birthday this month so I've asked the kids for the 12 Month Coffee Gift!

gerardduff

Slaphead07 wrote: »

Nick's Sweet Espresso. http://www.nickscoffeecompany.com/

I was disappointed to see Nicks coffee place on Tara St seems to have closed down. At least I used to hit it on a Saturday morning at last Saturday it was closed on both sides of 10o'c.
The free coffee with a bean purchase was proper order and it guaranteed my custom...great time saver too.

Slaphead07

gerardduff wrote: »

I was disappointed to see Nicks coffee place on Tara St seems to have closed down. At least I used to hit it on a Saturday morning at last Saturday it was closed on both sides of 10o'c.
The free coffee with a bean purchase was proper order and it guaranteed my custom...great time saver too.

Fear not, they've moved to a new shop in the old Irish Times building on D'Olier Street.

Curry Addict

the best beans ive found so far in the 15e per kilo price range is M&S luxury italian beans. nicks standard blend is good at 18e a kilo, not much better than M&S tho.
after tasting fallon and byrnes beans i was inspired to order 5kg of a variety of has beans as they should be similar quality and not too bad a price at 22e a kilo delivered. ive yet to try arosia beans, ill check these out soon.

nc6000

I ordered a selection of beans from Hasbean and should receive them hopefully tomorrow or Monday.

What's the best way to store the beans? We'll probably get through a bag a week so might have some beans sitting around for 5 or 6 weeks. Is just popping them into a kitchen press until they are used OK?

donnacha

a dark dry place is best - some people freeze unopened bags, but if you'll be using them in 5 or 6 weeks you'll be fine.

nc6000

So I got my order from Hasbean, not very impressed with the beans so far. I've tried two types of beans(Kicker and Costa Rica Finca de Licho) both in my Moka Pot and my French Press. I'm finding the coffee leaves a very bitter aftertaste.

Anyone else find this? I can't see that I'm doing anything wrong.

Curry Addict

I got a nice big order from hasbean last wednesday including 2 bags of kicker and 4 bags of Costa Rica Finca de Licho. i went through a bag of each so far and they were exceptionally good(coffee heaven) with a very sweet aftertaste.

Gran Hermano

nc6000 wrote: »

So I got my order from Hasbean, not very impressed with the beans so far. I've tried two types of beans(Kicker and Costa Rica Finca de Licho) both in my Moka Pot and my French Press. I'm finding the coffee leaves a very bitter aftertaste.

Anyone else find this? I can't see that I'm doing anything wrong.

Sound like the ratio of coffee to water is off and you're either over or under extracting.

Try and get your hands on a weighing scales and have a look at these

http://www.hasbean.co.uk/pages/French-Press-Brew-Guide.html


http://www.squaremileblog.com/2008/11/12/videocast-2-french-press-technique/

nc6000

Thanks for the replies and links. I think I was putting too much ground coffee into the Moka Pot. I reduced the amount and the result wasn't as bitter as before.

PPC

A good video on how to make stovetop coffee here as well http://www.squaremileblog.com/2009/01/21/videocast-4-stove-topmoka-pot/
More can be found at http://brewmethods.com/

Hobite

I am so happy to find a COFFEE thread.

I usually buy beans at Tesco, Lavazza Rossa espresso in beans 1 KG (~ 13-14 euros).

Thank you for recomendation to buy coffee beans at M&S. I will try them too.

jingojonson

Do any of you know where I can source green beans in ireland? (apart from discount coffee.ie)
I want ot home roast and postage is a killer if ordering abroad.

donnacha

I don't know of any options for getting green beens locally in Ireland. If you there were local options then the beans would be more expensive as they would be factoring in the additional shipping costs of getting the beans to Ireland themselves.

The postage from hasbean.co.uk is pretty reasonable considering the weight you are getting shipped - god knows what the irish postal service would charge for similar weight shipments.

mandarin

Hasbean's postage shouldn't be a killer if you are buying in bulk. The starter pack of 5 x 2kg green beans for £88 is an extra £17 in postage. Buy four samples (ie, 40 kg) and the deal works out at £352 plus postage is £40. Weirdly, it says that postage is just £16 when you buy five or more packets (ie 50kg upwards) but I assume that is some software bug. Anyway, point holds that the more you buy, the less an issue the postage is.
Of course, you're completely screwed if you buy a bucketload of greens that aren't to your taste:eek:

Sinfonia

mandarin wrote: »

Nick's is 4.50 for a 225g bag, according to this thread

Just got a 250g bag for 4.50 in the Ranelagh shop, first cup was delicious!
That said, I'm moving from illy, so any fresh bean probably would have made a big improvement.

mandarin

Seeing as offerings in the region of €22 per kg are being considered...Badger and Dodo's monthly subscription works out at €22.50 (€18 per kg plus €4.50 in postage). That's a nice discount on the usual rates and there's always a very good range of coffees (different coffee sent out every month).

http://www.badgeranddodo.ie/site/products/47/monthly-subscriptions-a-different-1kg-each-month

trap4

I'm after jumping into the world of whole bean coffee (bought a grinder last week) and have to say I'm kind of stunned at the price of the stuff. In fact I'm kind of sorry now I didn't buy a Nespresso instead.

I know, it's my own fault I didn't do my sums, but I was expecting it to be a lot cheaper to grind my own coffee and brew it in a French press. Instead I'm finding that it's working out more expensive than cost of Nespresso pods (and I avoided going the Nespresso route because I saw so much bitching about the cost!).

Am I just not looking in the right place?

http://www.discountcoffee.ie/ is the cheapest I could find by the way - what blends would people recommend there?

Curry Addict

trap4 wrote: »

I'm after jumping into the world of whole bean coffee (bought a grinder last week) and have to say I'm kind of stunned at the price of the stuff. In fact I'm kind of sorry now I didn't buy a Nespresso instead.

I know, it's my own fault I didn't do my sums, but I was expecting it to be a lot cheaper to grind my own coffee and brew it in a French press. Instead I'm finding that it's working out more expensive than cost of Nespresso pods (and I avoided going the Nespresso route because I saw so much bitching about the cost!).

Am I just not looking in the right place?

http://www.discountcoffee.ie/ is the cheapest I could find by the way - what blends would people recommend there?

this sounds odd. I cant imagine how it could be more expensive than nespresso!

Sinfonia

trap4 wrote: »

I'm after jumping into the world of whole bean coffee (bought a grinder last week) and have to say I'm kind of stunned at the price of the stuff. In fact I'm kind of sorry now I didn't buy a Nespresso instead.

I know, it's my own fault I didn't do my sums, but I was expecting it to be a lot cheaper to grind my own coffee and brew it in a French press. Instead I'm finding that it's working out more expensive than cost of Nespresso pods (and I avoided going the Nespresso route because I saw so much bitching about the cost!).

Am I just not looking in the right place?

http://www.discountcoffee.ie/ is the cheapest I could find by the way - what blends would people recommend there?

For a 250g bag, I usually pay between €5 and €10.
The site you've linked to is giving prices there for 4kg of coffee (..!), which would probably last me more than 5 months, so not that expensive really. You'd be better off buying smaller amounts, if for nothing else then the sake of freshness.

Big difference in the cup between fresh ground beans and Nespresso btw.

trap4

Curry Addict wrote: »

this sounds odd. I cant imagine how it could be more expensive than nespresso!

Okay, my quick, back of the envelope calculations --

On average it looks like coffee is coming in at €20 per kilo right now (rounding a little for ease of calculation).

Hasbean recommend 75g per litre of water. My cup is 1/3 litre = 25g per cup.

25g = 1/40th of a kilo = €20.00 divided by 40 = 50c per cup.

At 50c per cup it's coming in more expensive than Nespresso. Right?

Curry Addict

trap4 wrote: »

Okay, my quick, back of the envelope calculations --

On average it looks like coffee is coming in at €20 per kilo right now (rounding a little for ease of calculation).

Hasbean recommend 75g per litre of water. My cup is 1/3 litre = 25g per cup.

25g = 1/40th of a kilo = €20.00 divided by 40 = 50c per cup.

At 50c per cup it's coming in more expensive than Nespresso. Right?

333ml is a very large cup a nespresso lungo is 120ml so you need nearly 3 nespresso pods to get that amount at approx 1.14 euro!

adrian522

I would think 15g beans for 250ml of coffee would be a better measurement.

PPC

60g/litre is the optimum for a proper cup of brewed coffee.
So thats 20g per 333ml of water, and If you're making espresso its 19g for 30ml of espresso.

So thats about 40c/drink which isn't too bad for freshly brewed coffee, its probably on par with the cost of Nespresso but the extra flavour is worth it.

For reference most mugs are just over 300ml, a cup is 240ml and a cappuccino cup is 180ml.