i have been camping since i was 12 ( 38 years ) and i always like the idea of ruffing it , and always used an older banged up cowboy coffee ( grounds in your teeth ) percolator , but last summer i bought a colman drip coffee maker that you use on the burner of your gas stove top , I LOVE IT , the only drawback is that you have to turn the flame off as soon as the coffee is perked so i picked up a coffee carafe at a tag sale to pour the coffee into to keep warm , also it has a glass pot so you have to be careful with it , i carry mine in the ice-box on my pop-up because i use a big cooler in the back of my pickup anyway
We tried the Coleman coffee maker also but did not like it at all. Yes it did do the drip thing and made coffee but once I found out you had to shut it off I decided against it. If I am going to make coffee in something then that something needs to keep the coffee hot after it is made. We returned the one we bought. Since then we used the Aeropress and a simple kettle to boil water in. We put enough coffee in it to make 2 cups. Then extract the coffee with the boiling water and split it between the 2 cups. Then add more hot water for an Americano type cup.
The Coleman was ...ok just not what we were after if we were going to cary another item to camp.
I have used my Chemx at home and it works real nice. This is what we will use next time. I figure we can make 4 or 5 cups at once in it and it will sit on the burner on low and keep the coffee nice and hot.
Neither of us care for perked coffee, and rarely have a curre/ant bush nearby... French press coffee is really good, but a waste of water to clean, and goes cold since we have a glass one. Used two Melitta one=cup pourovers for a long time, into travel mugs, then remembered I had an old stainless steel carafe left over from a dead drip coffeemaker. Now, I put coffee enough (usually Aldi's brand Columbian, five and a heaping tablespoons) in the Melitta, put it on the old carafe, and brew a whole pot... Takes a little time, but great coffee. We prefer it to the coffee in the electric drip coffee maker at home.
we used to use a percolator, but then realized we hate percolated coffee. we are not fans of drip coffee, so we use a bodum, or coffee press at home. after having 2 break inside the trailer in transit, we realized there had to be better than a glass one, also glass doesn't keep the coffee hot. being seekers of gourmet coffee, we were in a branch of the evil corporation starbucks, and found our bodum. it's all stainless steel, and the plunger is even metal. it's a hollow wall design, and the lid is hollow too. we can make coffee, and 2 hours later it still comes out hot as when you made it. evil place to go, but it's the best bodum i've used. this one's going on 3 years now.
The simplest, quickest, cleanest, cheapest is the paper filter in the plastic cone with stove water poured through it. No fuss, no muss -done.
Before I chimed in, thought I'd check all the pages of this topic, and sure enough someone else has hit on this method. Maybe I have an improvement. I use a plastic funnel ($1 at dollar store), #4 cone filter, 1/2 cup of fine ground (in camp) home roasted coffee of my choice from Sweet Maria's, water just off the boil (around 200 degree F). The funnel sets in my 1 qt. Stanley Aladin Thermos bottle. The drip through the funnel seems just about right to get a good extraction from the beans. When done I have my coffee ration for the day, piping hot in the thermos. On longer outings, when I run out of roasted beans, I roast more green beans in my Poppery II popcorn popper (1/2 cup at a time). Electric only needed to grind, so when I know we will be without AC (hydro), I grind beans ahead of time (freshness vanishes quickly after grinding, I find).
Before I chimed in, thought I'd check all the pages of this topic, and sure enough someone else has hit on this method. Maybe I have an improvement. I use a plastic funnel ($1 at dollar store), #4 cone filter, 1/2 cup of fine ground (in camp) home roasted coffee of my choice from Sweet Maria's, water just off the boil (around 200 degree F). The funnel sets in my 1 qt. Stanley Aladin Thermos bottle. The drip through the funnel seems just about right to get a good extraction from the beans. When done I have my coffee ration for the day, piping hot in the thermos. On longer outings, when I run out of roasted beans, I roast more green beans in my Poppery II popcorn popper (1/2 cup at a time). Electric only needed to grind, so when I know we will be without AC (hydro), I grind beans ahead of time (freshness vanishes quickly after grinding, I find).
We have a solution that's a best-of-both-worlds kinda thing. When we have hookups our 110v Black-and-Decker coffee maker works just as you'd expect any coffee maker to work. There are two things that make it perfect for our trailer, though. The first is that the lid over the water reservoir and coffee filter basket flips all the way back, so you can boil water in a kettle and pour it through the grounds manually when you don't have 110v AC power. The other nice thing is the coffee maker has a stainless-steel thermal carafe that both keeps the coffee hot without any electricity for a couple of hours after it's brewed and, because it's stainless steel, is shatter-proof.
One more nice thing about the thermal carafe is the coffee maker doesn't even have a hot plate to warm the carafe, so there's no leaving the coffee maker turned on and coming back to a pot full of burnt coffee.
For those who gotta have their pot-o-coffee . . . I'm not saying I'm one of them (or am I) . . . this is a dream machine.
While I'm not a coffee drinker at all (I think the stuff tastes like DIRT! hehehe) I have an old Corelle perk pot in my trailer (little blue flower and everything!) for both making hot water on the stove, and for any company that needs their coffee fix. From what I've seen in this thread though, I might as well be making battery acid, as low the quality of perk coffee seems to be judged at, hmmm? hehe
My best buddy is a coffee fiend though, who can't begin his day without a whole pot of coffee in his stomach, and he SWEARS by the Coleman drip coffeemaker. He hasn't commented one way or the other about having to turn off the burner when it's done brewing though, so I don't know if that's a bother or not. I know that the glass pot is a concern, though it hasn't gotten broken on a trip yet. The easiest fix for that is the padded carrying case that Coleman sells (like $15 or so), keeps the whole contraption safe during travel.
quick comment on coffee making...we use a percolator without the guts....pour water into the pot and add coffee....however the trick with the grounds is to put the grounds (for us, it's about three scoops) into a nylon stocking (washed of course) and knot both ends so that its like a ball about the size between a golf ball and tennis ball ....simmer on campstove or better yet open fire until the water gently boils, the strength of the coffee depends on the amount of grounds and the length of steeping them......(the coarser the grounds the better).....best yet no coffee gunk at the bottom of pot and no filters to deal with....
... home roasted coffee of my choice from Sweet Maria's... [b]Electric only needed to grind, so when I know we will be without AC (hydro), I grind beans ahead of time (freshness vanishes quickly after grinding, I find).
I haven't tried coffee from Sweet Maria's yet, but it's been on my "want to" list.
For the grinding, have you tried a manual grinder? I've always detested the sound of an electric grinder in the morning, so I've never used one. Instead I bought an older German grinder from eBay for about $15 and I love it. Good gears and the grind is adjustable. I use it all the time, even at home where I have electricity. It might be a bit too much work if I were making coffee for a convention, but for my typical usage, it's fine. Mine is like this one:
I've also used wall-mounted manual grinders (Zassenhaus and Spong), but I like the one pictured above for portability and lightweight.
I can't quite get comfortable with pouring near-boiling water through plastic to make my coffee, so I still use a glass drip-type pot (Chemex). Kind of bulky for camping, but.... I like it anyway.
My wife and I each have a french press type of stainless steel mug available from Mountain Equipment Co-op. Makes great tasting coffee that stays hot a long time.
The only downside is that our 2 year old ones were made in the USA and the ones they stock now that are exactly the same are made in China.
Buzz Line Desk Press Coffee Press
Product Number: 5005-106
They're relatively hard to find in shops, but plentiful on eBay. However if you do want a new one, Sweet Maria's is a nice place to work with (they have a website).
I used to be enamored of the wall mount, for various reasons, but now I find that I prefer my portable wooden one. I can sit wherever I like to grind the coffee There are quite a few on eBay, as I mentioned.
Some good brands in this size would be Zassenhaus, Trosser, and PeDe (there are others, which you'll see if you do a search on "manual coffee grinder").
On mine the grind adjustment is "hidden" on the inside of the grinder, so don't assume there isn't one just because you don't see one (some are on the outside where you can see them).
It really is easy to grind the amount for, say, an 8 or 10 cup pot of coffee. I have a Dutch friend who told me that in Holland, they believe hand-ground coffee tastes better
I'm hoping to use my new Keurig single cup coffee maker on a camping trip next week. You can purchase individual serving K-cups in a variety of flavors and many are organically grown and come from "fair trade" companies. The Keuring model I have makes hot coffee on demand in about 30 seconds. However, it uses a wopping 1500 watts! Does anyone know if regular campground hookups, like the ones at the Lake Casitas rally, can handle this much amperage? I've never camped with hookups before.
Otherwise, I'll go back to my stovetop percolator or drip filter system like I've used for years when tent camping.
1500 watts should be no problem for the campground electrical system. We've used electric heaters and DW uses a hair dryer that draw that much current and never had a problem.
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1980 Bigfoot 17' & former owner of 1973 Compact Jr
[b][Moderator's note: A later topic on the same subject has been merged with this one.]
Original post:
We are going on our first campout in our Scamp, and I have our old tenting camp utensils including a small coffee pot thing--but it has nothing inside. Am I missing parts i don't remember, or can you make coffee in this thing. Most rv sites say get a percolator pot for stovetop or campstove. I do have a french press, but it's glass.
any suggestions, recipes???
I only drink one cup of coffee a day - but it runs from 24 - 32 0z...
Simple is best - and makes great coffee. I used to own and run an espresso bar and for "regular" coffee this is the best system we found for flavor.
A couple of tips:
Pre-measure the water. You won't have to guess how much to pour.
Use a grind between drip and espresso. A fairly fine grind works well.
Be sure to pour some H20 on the grinds and wait. Then pour the rest slowly into the cone.
I use this cone and filter when cycling, motorcycle camping, backpacking and at home. Why mess with a good thing.
I would agree, why mess with simple and tasty! The single cup drip cone on mug is perfect, gives yummy coffee. Just follow instructions given by Tom U, and have the coffee beans ground fine enough. On top of that, I always have some nice German roasted beans at hand.... At our tent camping trips this year with a bunch of people I was quite busy fixing some coffees though.... However, meanwhile other people fixed breakfast such as eggs and bacon...
Pre-measure the water. You won't have to guess how much to pour.
Use a grind between drip and espresso. A fairly fine grind works well.
Be sure to pour some H20 on the grinds and wait. Then pour the rest slowly into the cone.
I use this cone and filter when cycling, motorcycle camping, backpacking and at home. Why mess with a good thing.
This is how we make our morning coffee at home. I cannibalized the filter holder from our cheap drip machine when it broke, and made it fit snugly in the top of a stainless thermos.
One other detail i can add (as if we haven't exhausted this topic already): if you use paper filters in your filter holder you'll get a nice clean cup, if you prefer the earthyness of a frenchpress we have a reusable filter (it is plastic but you can get some that are gold mesh too) and it lets more oils through and some fine "dust" from the grind. makes an entirely different tasting cup from the same coffee.
FWIW i can get excited about all kinds of different coffees. My brew of choice is espresso / macchiato / cappuccino from a good quality machine(and someone who knows how to use it) with fresh ground Illy or similar roast. but i also really enjoy turkish coffee, vietnamese coffee, Tim Hortons, french press and even look forward to a good cup of cowboy coffee the way dad would make over the campfire, give it a gentle swirl before you pour to keep the worst of the grinds in the pot. If you check your expectations, the next different cup you try might be your new favorite.
On top of that, I always have some nice German roasted beans at hand....
I hate to admit it - my "house blend" is a Viennese Blend made from equal parts French Roast and Colombian purchased separately at Costco and mixed at home. Cost per pound is less than $4.00. Tastes great.
For a long trip in the boondocks with the trailer I bring along my Spong, an old fashioned hand grinder that does really well.
BTW for a 24 oz cup of coffee I use 5 rounded to heaping plastic tsp of beans.
Uhla, that sounds really nice!! I should try that... Next time when shopping at Costco I will have a look for those beans... Yes, yummy coffee is VERY important to me. You perhaps notice in my profile how I am going to call my egg that I am getting next year....
2008 Oliver Legacy Elite
2005 Scamp 5th Wheel
There are quite a few on eBay, as I mentioned.
I've never camped with hookups before. 
1980 Bigfoot 15B17G
"Purrfect" - Fiber Stream
Cafe Egg
However, meanwhile other people fixed breakfast such as eggs and bacon... 
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