Coffee

How can you make coffee when camping or hiking?

Coffee drinking doesn't have to be restricted to the home or office - there are a number of ways for brewing coffee while you are camping or hiking. It all depends on how much brewing equipment and coffee accessories you want to pack into your camping gear, and how refined your tastes are. Some of the more common methods include:

Hand-Press Coffee Makers - If you like an espresso, this is the camping coffee maker for you. Using a manual pressure pump system, these highly-compact units allow you to use coffee capsules or freshly ground coffee to produce a great-tasting brew quickly and easily.

Aeropress Brewing System - Allows you to use freshly ground coffee beans, and with a simple pressing motion you have a rich, flavoursome brew in less than a minute.

Coffee Bag - Similar to a tea bag, this allows the hot water to pass through the coffee grounds, providing a richer flavour but still conveniently keeping the preparation and clean-up to a minimum. Not as good as freshly ground coffee beans but not a bad option either.

Instant Coffee Mix - A powdered mix that goes with boiling hot water, this is a simple method requiring very little equipment.

One-Cup Filter/Dripper - These manual drip coffee makers come in various materials (plastic, stainless steel, ceramic or glass) and are handy because of how portable and durable they are. They do require paper filters, using gravity to help the boiling water pass through the coffee grounds, but this helps to produce a clean coffee.

Stove-Top Espresso Maker - This will create a concentrated brew with rich and heavy flavour but you need an open camp fire or a camp stove.

Percolator - Big and heavy, so you won't want to be lugging this camping coffee maker around for too long. But if you do get it to the campsite, it is a large brewer so it's good for groups, as well as being easy to use and clean.

Cowboy Coffee - This is made by immersing coffee grounds directly into boiling water, rather than passing water through them. Because of the length of time of exposure to the grounds, more often than not you'll get a sharp, bitter taste or something burnt. The coffee itself is typically dark and thick in texture so it is an acquired taste for sure. On the plus side, it requires very little equipment and no filters.

Is it easy to make coffee when on-the-go?

There are several quick and easy ways to make coffee while you're on the go. The simplest method is instant coffee mix or a coffee bag, which just requires some boiling water. A couple of packets of these won't take up any room in your pack although if you're a coffee aficionado this method probably won't cut the mustard. Short of taking your own brewing kit, a portable coffee maker is the go. Depending on the model of camping coffee maker you're working with, you can choose between capsule coffee or coffee beans for your morning fix, and you'll get closer to a cafe quality mug than most other methods in a fraction of the time.

How much coffee do portable coffee makers produce?

Different models will produce different capacities, but as a general rule a portable coffee maker will make somewhere between 25mL and 100mL. While these are reasonably small quantities if you're making coffee for a group, the upside is the speed and ease with which these work - you can clean them up quickly with some hot water, and brew over and over again.

What types of coffee can you use with a portable coffee maker?

Some portable coffee makers are designed for ground coffee beans and allow you to work with both fine or coarse grounds. Others are made for using capsules. Most portable coffee makers only make espresso so for lattes, extra preparation is required. Whichever method you have, you can create any style of coffee you like. Mountain Designs has a wide range of premium brand portable coffee makers to ensure you start your day with the coffee hit you're craving.