Q - Coffee Bean Brand Recommendations ?

[ChiFlyer]

I have recently arrived for a longer (6 month) stay. On a shorter stay I would just buy the instant coffee and use a hot pot. But staying for a longer time, I want to increase my creature comforts. Back in the states I am a bit of a nut about my coffee to start the day. I buy whole beans from a specialty supplier (I prefer a medium roast Brazilian called "Superstitious Sunrise"). I have a burr grinder and a very high end coffee drip machine. Not looking to go that far here in Thailand.

Been looking around on Lazada. I am targeting an electric burr grinder and a French Press. I noticed they also sell coffee beans. My US supplier will not deliver outside the US, so I figured I would try one of Lazada's to start. Like I said I prefer a medium to medium-light roast. What one might call a breakfast coffee. Definitely want Arabica beans. In the US I like Latin American beans as opposed to African or Hawaiian.

I would guess that here Indonesian might be a good substitute.

Any ideas?

tia,

CF   

[Scuba+]

Many people and coffee places buy beans from Benjamet, they can grind for you too

[striderman]

19 minutes ago, Scuba+ said:

Many people and coffee places buy beans from Benjamet, they can grind for you too

i was gonna say the exact same thing. benjamit is by the tues/fri mkt south end of buakaow and it's closed on a sat

[forcebwithu]

I like a good cup of coffee too. I use a Krups burr grinder, Piccolino espresso machine, and BonCafe, Nakula, Arabica Extra Dark bean. 

I also like a large cup of coffee so just run the espresso machine until my 10 oz cup is filled. I use the large coffee basket so the coffee is strong enough to suit my taste.

 

[Scuba+]

I actually enjoy an instant coffee at home, usually Nescafe Gold blend, then when I'm out i have a decent ground coffee. Its not easy getting a decent ground coffee at home, lots of trial and error probably

[davidge]

Ethiopian Sidamo medium roast is my usual here in the UK. Don’t know if that’s available in Pattaya.

Kenyan a good alternative or, if you want a little more exotic, Guatemalan Antigua.

Colombian can be a safe alternative when all else fails.

If you find any of these in Pattaya then let me know 

[ChiFlyer]

4 hours ago, forcebwithu said:

I like a good cup of coffee too. I use a Krups burr grinder, Piccolino espresso machine, and BonCafe, Nakula, Arabica Extra Dark bean. 

.......

 

Interesting. Do you shop directly at Bon Cafe? I see they have shipping and an impressive product line.

http://www.boncafe.co.th/en/home/

 

[ChiFlyer]

1 hour ago, davidge said:

Ethiopian Sidamo medium roast is my usual here in the UK. Don’t know if that’s available in Pattaya.

Kenyan a good alternative or, if you want a little more exotic, Guatemalan Antigua.

Colombian can be a safe alternative when all else fails.

If you find any of these in Pattaya then let me know 

I will keep an eye out. The site that forcebewithyou mentioned looks promising and looks like they deliver.

 

[davidge]

29 minutes ago, ChiFlyer said:

I will keep an eye out. The site that forcebewithyou mentioned looks promising and looks like they deliver.

 

The Kenyan AA beans are about 3 times the price of here in the UK. 

Hope there are some cheaper options around.

[forcebwithu]

40 minutes ago, ChiFlyer said:

Interesting. Do you shop directly at Bon Cafe? I see they have shipping and an impressive product line.

http://www.boncafe.co.th/en/home/

I make a trip to Bon Cafe's shop about once every six weeks. The coffee comes in 200 g, vacuum packed bags. I buy a kg at a time as you get a slight discount by buying 1 kg. I keep the unopened bags in the refrigerator until needed. Cost for 1 kg of Arabica Extra Dark bean is 447B. Friendship on Pattaya Tai also stocks Bon Cafe beans, but while closer to where I live I don't trust how fresh the beans are, nor do I trust them to properly rotate new stock on to the shelf.

[ChiFlyer]

I went about half way on things getting started here.

I bought a French Press, a low end burr grinder, and about 1/2 kg of Starbuck's Pike Beans. I have had the Pike Beans before and although they are not my favorite, they are a known quantity and good enough for now. I still spent about 4000 baht on these things, which is pricey.

I am planning a full day of shopping on Saturday, so I may well stay on the baht bus into Nakula to pick up some additional beans at Bon Cafe. I agree with fbwu in that I do not trust the management of shelf life for products that are important to me. In my case that includes coffee beans, herbs, and spices. I will pay up to guarantee quality on those items. Yeah, I know. There are no guarantees in this life, but at least you are improving your odds.

I like the idea of the French Press as I am a one cup a day in the morning guy, but do enjoy having a quality experience for that one cup.

[ChiFlyer]

4 hours ago, davidge said:

The Kenyan AA beans are about 3 times the price of here in the UK. 

Hope there are some cheaper options around.

I got a little sticker shock in looking around. The burr grinder I bought is more than double what I would have to pay for it in the US. I rationalized this by thinking that it is not a repeatable transaction and I am getting what I want. I think some of this price difference is related to import costs, but I am not sure. 

[Scuba+]

I like the idea of the French Press as I am a one cup a day in the morning guy, but do enjoy having a quality experience for that one cup.

If you're a one cup a day person i don't get why you don't just go out somewhere that sells good coffee with a good atmosphere and maybe view. I bet 10 baht you can't make coffee as good as say Benjamet, Gafae, Coffee & ride

[davidge]

5 hours ago, Scuba+ said:

 

 

If you're a one cup a day person i don't get why you don't just go out somewhere that sells good coffee with a good atmosphere and maybe view. I bet 10 baht you can't make coffee as good as say Benjamet, Gafae, Coffee & ride

 

You’d lose your bet 

The coffee I’m drinking right now, made with my bean to cup machine and Ethiopian Sidamo beans, is miles better than anything I’ve ever been served in Pattaya.

[Scuba+]

You’d lose your bet [emoji4]

The coffee I’m drinking right now, made with my bean to cup machine and Ethiopian Sidamo beans, is miles better than anything I’ve ever been served in Pattaya.

That's good but its not Thailand, usually takes a fair bit of trial and error to get the right coffee and make it right. Some of the shops in Pattaya are pros at making coffee, they should be they do it all day, such as Ying Coffee 40 baht on corner of Soi 15 and Buakhao

 

[forcebwithu]

13 minutes ago, Scuba+ said:

That's good but its not Thailand, usually takes a fair bit of trial and error to get the right coffee and make it right. Some of the shops in Pattaya are pros at making coffee, they should be they do it all day, such as Ying Coffee 40 baht on corner of Soi 15 and Buakhao

I was wondering about the cost of a cup of coffee at some of these places. 40B is reasonable. What's the cost at the other places you recommended?

[Scuba+]

I was wondering about the cost of a cup of coffee at some of these places. 40B is reasonable. What's the cost at the other places you recommended?

Coffee & Ride which I'd recommend for you and[mention=143068]Dragonrider[/mention] is 45 baht for an Americano. Benjamet is 55 baht for an Americano and great Almond Croissants for 30 baht. Smile Coffee by Wat Yan lake is 45 baht. Lattes are usually 5-10 baht more everywhere.

 

Ying Coffee is cheaper because its one of those wooden booths with chairs.

 

[ChiFlyer]

16 hours ago, Scuba+ said:

That's good but its not Thailand, usually takes a fair bit of trial and error to get the right coffee and make it right. Some of the shops in Pattaya are pros at making coffee, they should be they do it all day, such as Ying Coffee 40 baht on corner of Soi 15 and Buakhao

 

I am with Davidge on this one. The difference in grinding the beans of your choice is huge. Just so much more satisfying. Also, I am here for 6 months this time and thinking about making a reloc permanent. I really enjoy making my own coffee and sipping it on the condo balcony in the morning. 

To each his own.

I am going to trek over to Nakula this morning to check out the selection at Boncafe. I can stop on the way to pick up some Kumagra near LK Metro and then meet a few buddies for lunch. Might get a massage too.

Life is good.

 

 

[ChiFlyer]

On 9/27/2018 at 13:23, davidge said:

Ethiopian Sidamo medium roast is my usual here in the UK. Don’t know if that’s available in Pattaya.

........

If you find any of these in Pattaya then let me know 

I was in Benjamet today. I noticed a bag of Ethiopian Sidamo. I like Benjamet and will probably be buying my beans here. I bought a 250 g bag of Thai Arabica for 140 b. The guy in the store recommended it as a medium roast. I would guess the Sidamo is not much if any more expensive.

The bags are clearly marked as to when the beans were roasted. I did not notice anything more than a few days old. So no shelf life concerns. Do wish they would include the dark-medium-light description on the bag.

Benjamet is near tukcom and shows clearly on Google Maps.

[Scuba+]

I was wondering about the cost of a cup of coffee at some of these places. 40B is reasonable. What's the cost at the other places you recommended?

Another place on Siam Country just past Blue Dolphin does coffee for 30 baht. Good stop if passing in that direction.

https://maps.google.com/?q=12.918265,100.970480

[ChiFlyer]

I bought a coffee bean grinder from Lazada. I have used Lazada before and am overall very pleased with their products and service.

https://www.lazada.co.th/

This time I hit a couple of snags. Without thinking about it, I bought a grinder that was sourced from South Korea. It took close to 3 weeks to arrive. Yep, CF you dummy, it has to go through Customs. Lesson learned. Only buy things that are sourced from somewhere in Thailand, unless you are willing to wait.

When the thing arrived, it did not work. Plugged it in and it produced a weird smell and did nothing of value. Lazada's return policy is pretty decent, but hang onto those receipts. If you return something (you have 7 days depending on circumstance), they show you online a list of locations where you can drop it off at no shipping charge to you. There were several nearby 7-11s in the list. 

Sent it in and had my refund in about a week.

After that, I decided to go to Central Festival for a coffee bean grinder. Had a devil of a time finding one. Had my pick of at least 75 rice cookers, if I was interested. Finally found a store on the 5th floor who had a real decent burr grinder for a little over 3000. Works well and I am finally enjoying my morning cup.

[Scuba+]

I bought a coffee bean grinder from Lazada. I have used Lazada before and am overall very pleased with their products and service.
https://www.lazada.co.th/
This time I hit a couple of snags. Without thinking about it, I bought a grinder that was sourced from South Korea. It took close to 3 weeks to arrive. Yep, CF you dummy, it has to go through Customs. Lesson learned. Only buy things that are sourced from somewhere in Thailand, unless you are willing to wait.
When the thing arrived, it did not work. Plugged it in and it produced a weird smell and did nothing of value. Lazada's return policy is pretty decent, but hang onto those receipts. If you return something (you have 7 days depending on circumstance), they show you online a list of locations where you can drop it off at no shipping charge to you. There were several nearby 7-11s in the list. 
Sent it in and had my refund in about a week.
After that, I decided to go to Central Festival for a coffee bean grinder. Had a devil of a time finding one. Had my pick of at least 75 rice cookers, if I was interested. Finally found a store on the 5th floor who had a real decent burr grinder for a little over 3000. Works well and I am finally enjoying my morning cup.

Just the standard experience when you decide to make ground coffee at home. A lot of trial and error usually. I really enjoy my instant coffee 5 baht. Ground coffee when I'm out

[nekkid]

If I were to spend longer periods in Thailand, which I am thinking about doing, I would have to make arrangements to have decent coffee without having to go out for it.

Coming to the end of my second two week visit and both times I have brought a couple of packets of ground coffee and a Bodum combination travel mug \ french press with me. Simple and inexpensive and has worked a treat, and I love chilling in my room with coffee before I go out, or when it's pissing down like it has been been this afternoon.

[davidge]

For coffee lovers in the UK I can recommend Redber. They roast the beans to order and delivery is quick.

Recently got my latest supply:

About £31 for the 2kg including delivery.

[ChiFlyer]

On 24/10/2018 at 17:56, davidge said:

For coffee lovers in the UK I can recommend Redber. They roast the beans to order and delivery is quick.

Recently got my latest supply:

 

About £31 for the 2kg including delivery.

Sounds like you will be doing some light smuggling.

 

For US based persons, willing to smuggle a little, I recommend:

 

http://lostdutchmanroasters.com/

Never been disappointed. No international delivery though.