I Stopped Measuring My Coffee and It Got Better

It Smells Better Than It Taste — a quiet coffee newsletter where I share what I’m learning about coffee, curiosity, and daily rituals, this channel is an extension of that space: https://www.itsmellsbetterthanittaste.com/ What if the most liberating brewer on your entire coffee setup costs less than twenty dollars? In Episode 206 of the Coffee Journey, I'm getting honest about the Mr. Coffee machine that's been sitting on my bar next to the Moccamaster and the Olympia Cremina — and why I actually use it and love it. This isn't about defending cheap gear. It's about what happens when you take your hands off the wheel, skip the recipe, and just let the machine do its thing. No scale. No ratio. No bloom. Tap water. And you know what? It was really good. Why a coffee roaster keeps a Mr. Coffee machine on a specialty coffee bar The concept of "permission, not precision" in your daily coffee brewing How brewing without measuring can actually produce a satisfying cup What an automatic drip machine teaches you about letting go of control The honest truth about specialty coffee obsession vs. everyday coffee joy Why 7 out of 10 cups from a basic drip machine will actually work Do you have a brewer in your setup that you're a little embarrassed to admit you use — or that you secretly love? Drop it in the comments. Let's talk about it. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: Permission, not precision 01:03 - Why the Mr. Coffee sits on my specialty coffee bar 02:08 - My wife's machine and the Moccamaster story 03:00 - How I brewed it yesterday (tap water, scoop, button) 04:05 - First sip: was it actually good? 05:00 - Why I stopped measuring with the Mr. Coffee