Camp Coffee Set-Up

7 January 2015

Speaking of Rob, his #coffeeoutside is the S24O of the everyday morning. He was the first person I saw doing it – there may have been other innovators/distruptors. My friend Errin has a large group who meets at the Los Angeles River. Other friends Russ & Laura from Path Less Pedaled made this great video showing what its all about without any words. What I love about it is #coffeeoutside transforms something you’d do normally and reclaims a little bit more of a human experience. Essentially, one takes the time in the morning to do what one normally does in the car or at the desk, distracted by the human-built world and workflow all around. But instead, making coffee out-of-doors allows for some deep breaths of (hopefully) clean air, and time with others if a group gathers.

I love coffee, and when camping or touring, beans and brewing hold addictive priority over my mind. The same set-up for a camping trip can be used for #coffeeoutside. Here’s mine:

That:

1. JetBoil I’ve had for several years. Quick boil, everything fits into the canister, no matches.

2. Hario V60 filter cone in plastic: when room allows, its not as fragile as ceramic and does the job very well

3. Helix collapsible coffee dripper: those little wings and the single stainless coil means it folds nearly flat

4. Porlex mini stainless coffee mill. This is so good, I’ve been using it at home lately

5. Montbell double-walled stainless mug. Mugs are not usually worth mention unless they have good graphics, but this is the mug I’ve been dreaming about for a long time – double walled, stainless, nice size, good in the hand. Solid. I found this on a trip to Portland, Ore.

So far, I prefer pour-over with this set-up when camping or doing #coffeeoutside. Its easy to clean, so long as you can find a place to dispose of the grounds and filter. Aeropress is “cleaner” in terms of waste, but requires more rinsing. I may try it at the next #sdrivercampcoffee on Fridays down here, but so far, this stuff does great.

Written by Esteban