What do you get when you combine Red Bull, coffee and beer? A full featured make your own (MYOG) bikepacking coffee maker of course. You didn’t expect a party did you?
For me, morning coffee while camping or bikepacking is a must have.
Kit Setup
The total kit weighs in just under 7 oz. and that even includes 2.5 oz of fuel for the alcohol stove. The full kit contains the Heiney Pot, cozy, windscreen, instant coffee for 2 days, lighter, alchohol stove, and fuel for the stove.
The stove used is a zenstoves.net Low Pressure Side Burner Stove made from a single Red Bull can. This stove design is the best one that I have made, but I haven’t tried out the pressurized alcohol stove. For me, I wanted a stove that worked well and could be easily rebuilt.
Each “pot” of coffee uses about 0.5oz of fuel depending on weather conditions. Colder mornings will require a bit more fuel to get the water hot. For coffee, you don’t have to bring the water to a full boil.
Total Cost
Total cost for this setup is around $13.00 although I would argue that it’s more like $9.00 because I would have drunk the beer even if I wasn’t going to make a coffee pot out of it.
Mini Bic – $1
Red Bull – $2 (It gives you wings, but only because it’s now used to make coffee)
Denatured Alcohol – $1 (found at any hardware store)
Heineken Mini Keg – $4 (Heineken no longer makes this, but the Foster’s Oil Can is the same size and works well)
Coffee – $1 (Using Taster’s Choice instant, but you could use Starbucks Via or even make cowboy coffee with your favorite grounds)
Handi Wipes – $3 (use any type of wipes or heavy duty paper towels around the house)
Reflectix – $1 (this was the hardest item to find. I ended up buying a roll and Lowe’s for about $20, but only used about $1.00 for each of the cozies I made. If anyone knows of a source to purchase small amounts of Reflectix, please share.)
Future Changes
As with any MYOG gear, the setup is always changing as new crazy ideas come up.
The idea of carrying the fuel within the kit needs to be validated to make sure there is no spillage on the inside of the pot. If that’s the worst case, that fuel could be burned off to get rid of any alcohol on the inside of the pot.
Another idea is to use the GoGoSqueez applesauce packets to store alcohol. The packet holds 3.2oz which would be enough alcohol for 5-6 days of coffee. My kids have tried the applesauce and I proceeded to confiscate the pouches for testing. Ok, I’ll admit, the applesauce was purchased for the sole reason of confiscating the pouches for testing. Sometimes the kids have to take one for the team too.
There you have it, a lightweight fully contained coffee making kit. Add water, light the stove, and you’ve got hot steaming coffee in about 7 minutes.
