3 ms·

I understand that packing the coffee in a moka pot is a real faux pas

stevoski 3y ago
My dictionary says "faux pas: an embarrassing or tactless act or remark in a social situation" I can't work out how packing the coffee in a moka pot is a faux pas.
- unwind 3y ago
  Depending on your level of coffee nerd/snob factor, "doing it wrong" can indeed be a source of embarrassment. I don't think this is limited to coffee snobs, either.
- bell-cot 3y ago
  Making & serving coffee is often a social ritual, so doing it "wrong" is a faux pas.
  - michaelt 3y ago
    Ah but it is also a faux pas to apply social ritual rules outside of the formal dining areas of the house. Nobody's tamping down the ground coffee in their moka pot in the receiving room or the dining room. If a guest is invited into the more intimate areas of the house like the kitchen, (food safety issues aside) they can no more object to what they see than a theatregoer given a backstage tour could complain that the actors are out of costume.
    - petesergeant 3y ago
      > If a guest is invited into the more intimate areas of the house … they can no more object to what they see than My brother, I can assure you that this is not actually how that works in the real world
      - michaelt 3y ago
        It is among the kind of people who use the terms "faux pas" and "social ritual" and who think it's possible to use a moka pot in an "embarrassing or tactless" way. If I'm having the queen around for high tea it might be a "faux pas" to serve biscuits in a plastic packet or tub, and proper to arrange them artfully on a china plate. But if we're following that ritual, the queen absolutely does not enter the kitchen. If on the other hand the guest wants to engage in the "we're just regular people" ritual they gain the right to enter the kitchen - but lose the right to complain when the biscuits are served straight out of the packet, or to use the term "faux pas"
- petesergeant 3y ago
  The faux pas is the admission that you’ve done this amongst peers who expect you to know better (presumably; personally I’d drink caffeinated dirt)
ahartmetz 3y ago
Yes, yes it is. Source: did that once, got a minuscule amount of coffee in the top part and an about equal amount coming out of the sides.
happymellon 3y ago
If you are doing it at home, then there is no one to judge you. Just make good coffee, and stop using those pod abominations.
tussa 3y ago
I'm all in favour of a better word. What's a good one of for pouring the granules into the sieve and leveling it off? "Packing" definition doesn't require stomping although it's often applied, both with coffee and suitcases.
eschneider 3y ago
If you pack too hard, the steam can't go through the coffee and if you're lucky, it'll come out the overpressure valve and if you're unlucky (or overfilled the water) you can blow up the pot.

My dictionary says "faux pas: an embarrassing or tactless act or remark in a social situation" I can't work out how packing the coffee in a moka pot is a faux pas.

unwind 3y ago
Depending on your level of coffee nerd/snob factor, "doing it wrong" can indeed be a source of embarrassment. I don't think this is limited to coffee snobs, either.
bell-cot 3y ago
Making & serving coffee is often a social ritual, so doing it "wrong" is a faux pas.
- michaelt 3y ago
  Ah but it is also a faux pas to apply social ritual rules outside of the formal dining areas of the house. Nobody's tamping down the ground coffee in their moka pot in the receiving room or the dining room. If a guest is invited into the more intimate areas of the house like the kitchen, (food safety issues aside) they can no more object to what they see than a theatregoer given a backstage tour could complain that the actors are out of costume.
  - petesergeant 3y ago
    > If a guest is invited into the more intimate areas of the house … they can no more object to what they see than My brother, I can assure you that this is not actually how that works in the real world
    - michaelt 3y ago
      It is among the kind of people who use the terms "faux pas" and "social ritual" and who think it's possible to use a moka pot in an "embarrassing or tactless" way. If I'm having the queen around for high tea it might be a "faux pas" to serve biscuits in a plastic packet or tub, and proper to arrange them artfully on a china plate. But if we're following that ritual, the queen absolutely does not enter the kitchen. If on the other hand the guest wants to engage in the "we're just regular people" ritual they gain the right to enter the kitchen - but lose the right to complain when the biscuits are served straight out of the packet, or to use the term "faux pas"
petesergeant 3y ago
The faux pas is the admission that you’ve done this amongst peers who expect you to know better (presumably; personally I’d drink caffeinated dirt)

ahartmetz 3y ago

Yes, yes it is. Source: did that once, got a minuscule amount of coffee in the top part and an about equal amount coming out of the sides.

happymellon 3y ago

If you are doing it at home, then there is no one to judge you. Just make good coffee, and stop using those pod abominations.

tussa 3y ago

I'm all in favour of a better word. What's a good one of for pouring the granules into the sieve and leveling it off? "Packing" definition doesn't require stomping although it's often applied, both with coffee and suitcases.

eschneider 3y ago

If you pack too hard, the steam can't go through the coffee and if you're lucky, it'll come out the overpressure valve and if you're unlucky (or overfilled the water) you can blow up the pot.