# Red Bird aficionados: Red Bird, or Blue Jaguar?



## SameGuy (Jul 20, 2012)

About to place my first Red Bird order, 5 lbs of decaf espresso and 5 of real espresso. Which is the better choice, Bird or Jaguar? My preference is more sweetness and chocolate, and less roast than Seattle-style. I like a medium or city roast (Tuscany or Naples) rather than a full-dark city-plus like Starbucks gets away with. My standard is Black Cat -- is Blue Jaguar a riff on IC's trademark? -- and I also thought Counter Culture's Toscano and Rustico were pretty decent.

Also, how long does USPS take from Bozeman? Both IC and CCC get to me in upstate NY in two days.


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 22, 2012)

Anybody?


----------



## obtuse (Jul 22, 2012)

I don't drink espresso very often, anymore. Why do you want your espresso in two days? It's usually best 7 days after roasting.


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 22, 2012)

It's a logistics issue; I live north of the border and get stuff delivered to a mail-drop in upstate NY. I don't drive down every day, so I usually need to know what day to order stuff in order to get it on the days I'm available to go.


----------



## Pabloz (Jul 22, 2012)

I haven't tried any of those. Normally I order from Caracolillo in Florida. Their Rico Rico makes my Rican wife HAPPY.

PZ


----------



## Dieter01 (Jul 22, 2012)

I live in Norway so havnt tried them but red bird generally get rave reviews. Isn't it possible to get a pound of one and maybe a bit more of the other? Then you can try them both and see which one you like better....


----------



## wenus2 (Jul 22, 2012)

Red Bird is the closer one to Black Cat. It's very good, and the reason RedBird has become so well known and loved.
Jaguar is lighter and more elegant, and as such, a bit more finicky to brew. It is my personal preference of the two, but I am in the minority.
Bird is more well suited to milk (and flavoring) if you are a latte drinker, a cappuccino or less should be fine with either.


----------



## Mike9 (Jul 22, 2012)

I'll have to try those - I've used Bustello caf/decaf blend in my drip maker for decades. Maxwell House doesn't cut for us.


----------



## Jim (Jul 22, 2012)

How long would 10 lbs last you?


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 22, 2012)

That depends, but I tend to let the five pound bags out-gas for a few days (up to a week) then portion out 8-ounce vacuum seal bags and freeze them. The decaf is for my sister and BIL, so 5 lbs is for me. I'd say two months, give or take.


----------



## UCChemE05 (Jul 22, 2012)

My preference is Red Bird but I typically drink it in mokas. I thought it was better suited then the Blue Jag due to being a bit more chocolately IMHO. I'm not sure which I'd choose if I were drinking straight espresso,.

If you buy a 5lb bag, he'll ship one additional 1lb bag at no additional shipping charge. (he manually refunds the charge) I'll order an additional 1lb bag of something other than Redbird just to try something different. 

As soon as I get the beans, I portion them into pint mason jars and toss them in the freezer. This will typically last me 2-3 months.

Shipping takes 2-3 days to OH.


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 22, 2012)

Thanks for the responses. I'll order the Bird then, and maybe throw in a pound of Jag to play around.


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 22, 2012)

What the...? Paypal only, and only *US*&#8203; Paypal accounts? Odd.


----------



## UCChemE05 (Jul 22, 2012)

That is odd. Jeff always been very responsive to my inquiries in the past; hopefully he can work something out for you.


----------



## wenus2 (Jul 22, 2012)

Yeah, he's a cool dude. Id just pick up the telephone.


----------



## Burl Source (Jul 22, 2012)

Can someone post a link to the website so I can get some?


----------



## wenus2 (Jul 22, 2012)

Burl Source said:


> Can someone post a link to the website so I can get some?



Sure thing Mark!
http://redbirdcoffee.com/index.html


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 24, 2012)

Jeff couldn't get to the phone today, but he responded to an email _very_ promptly... even though I sent mine at midnight eastern time! He sent me a Paypal Invoice for the amount, and told me tomorrow's roast is all set so mine would go out Wednesday. He thinks it should still arrive by Friday.

:thumbsup:


----------



## UCChemE05 (Jul 24, 2012)

SameGuy said:


> Jeff couldn't get to the phone today, but he responded to an email _very_ promptly... even though I sent mine at midnight eastern time! He sent me a Paypal Invoice for the amount, and told me tomorrow's roast is all set so mine would go out Wednesday. He thinks it should still arrive by Friday.
> 
> :thumbsup:



Nice... so whada get?


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 24, 2012)

5 lbs each of Red Bird (for me) and Decaf (for sister and BIL). I'll try the Blue Jag next time. Thanks for the help!


----------



## Burl Source (Jul 24, 2012)

wenus2 said:


> Sure thing Mark!
> http://redbirdcoffee.com/index.html



Thank You for the link.
Looks like I will be trying out the Costa Rican.
I drink my coffee black and fairly strong but do not care for dark roasts.

The pea berry looked interesting as well.
Any opinions of what I should try are welcome.


----------



## Deckhand (Jul 24, 2012)

For an experiment Jamaican blue is good.
http://www.bluemountaincoffee.com/
National geographic article on it.
http://adventure.nationalgeographic.com/2009/03/coffee-tom-clynes-text


----------



## pumbaa (Jul 31, 2012)

a car forum friend runs westcoastroasting.com his coffee is insanely good. he roasts everything himself


----------



## SameGuy (Jul 31, 2012)

It only took a couple of pulls to nail down the parameters with my meager setup (Silvia v.3 and a cheapie burr grinder), and it is clearly better than the last few batches of Black Cat I've brought home. I'm in dire need of a better/real grinder. Rocky? I can't really afford anything more expensive than that (Mazzer, Ascaso, etc.). After that, the PID for the Silvia.


----------



## UCChemE05 (Aug 1, 2012)

I had a LeLit PL53 when I had my Silvia and liked it a lot, especially being stepless.

http://www.1st-line.com/machines/home_mod/lelit/PL53.htm

I currently have a Vario. I love the built-in timer function. Mine takes some TLC every several months in tightening a screw to keep the grinding consistent.

http://www.1st-line.net/cgi-bin/category.cgi?item=Vario&type=store


----------



## SameGuy (Aug 1, 2012)

I've been eyeing the Vario for some time, but is it worth a hundred bucks more than the Rocky?


----------



## Bulldogbacchus (Aug 1, 2012)

You guys cost me some money..... 5 lbs Blue Jaguar + 1 lb Costa Rican 

Thanks for the link....


----------



## UCChemE05 (Aug 1, 2012)

SameGuy said:


> I've been eyeing the Vario for some time, but is it worth a hundred bucks more than the Rocky?



What are you going to do w/ the grinder? If just espresso, how do you consume it? For me, I typically drinking mokas, caps and some americanos.


----------



## SameGuy (Aug 1, 2012)

Almost exclusively ristretti and doppio ristretti. Once in a while for a treat I'll attempt a latte or cappuccino -- and I will probably do that more once I get the PID from Auber.


----------



## UCChemE05 (Aug 2, 2012)

Depends on who you talk to and what you need... some people swear the Vario makes the best grind for home user but many people have and still make extellent espresso with their Rockies. With new pricing, the Rocky is ~$100 cheaper than the Vario. While you can "easily" change between grinds for drip, press and espresso, you'll need to recalibrate your espresso grind each time you change. The flexibility, portafilter holder and timer are the reason I went with the Vario. Luckily i was able to get a really good deal on a Vario at the time due to Bing cashback so it was a no-brainer for my needs.

Personally, if the features of the Vario are not worth the extra money to you, I'd chose the Le Lit over the Rocky to save some more money. It's stepless, low grind retention and good grind quality.


----------



## SameGuy (Aug 2, 2012)

I think the big selling features of the Vario _do_ weigh in the eventual decision. Bigger, ceramic burrs; indirect drive keeping the coffee from heating; yes, the timer and the portafilter holder. I have a small bonus coming in September and will probably make the jump then. DW: "Does the little [Krups] grinder still work? OK then." Me: grumbles and glances over while putting close to 50 lbs on the PF in order to get a 25-second shot...


----------



## UCChemE05 (Aug 3, 2012)

Well at least you get your exercise for the day 



SameGuy said:


> indirect drive keeping the coffee from heating



I call shenanagins on this. The indirect drive will help minimize damage though if a stone happens to make its way to the burrs.. I'd much rather replace just the burrs and maaaybe a belt as opposed to the former and likely having the drive system repaired or even replaced.


----------

