I have been 国产吃瓜黑料鈥檚 Gear Guy for聽the better part of a聽decade, and during that period I鈥檝e tested dozens of outdoor coffee-making systems, from the highly refined聽 ($30) to good old-fashioned cowboy coffee. Still, when it comes to getting my morning pick-me-up at camp, my favorite聽coffee-making device is the same聽simple one聽I used聽before I got a job that has me playing with聽all kinds of fancy gear: the 听($17).
Several years back, after my beloved ($35) fell off the tailgate of my truck and shattered,聽I went looking for a coffee gadget that wasn鈥檛 prone to breaking and that was lightweight enough to bring on river and backpacking trips. My search led me to the聽MugMate, which has proven remarkably dependable. For many years now, I鈥檝e shoved the sub-one-ounce plastic and steel filter聽into packs and duffels without concern. It鈥檚 never broken or warped.聽聽
Durability and light聽weight聽are all well and good, but a coffee filter鈥檚 main duty is producing聽a good cup of mud. At this, the MugMate has earned a special place in my heart聽because its 150-micron聽stainless-steel mesh screen makes it easy to brew damned strong coffee. I鈥檓 not one to聽shy away from complicated gear, but I don鈥檛 need that kind of hassle when I鈥檓 groggy and bleary-eyed first thing in the morning, jonesing for my caffeine fix. I simply dump a scoop of pre-ground coffee into the MugMate, set it in my favorite coffee cup, pour water over the grounds, and wait a few minutes. One dose in the morning delivers enough of a kick in the pants for an entire day.
The MugMate聽can make only one cup at a time, so it鈥檚 not聽right for聽a group. And yes, there are a number of instant-coffee options out there that are more portable, taste almost as good, etc., etc. But drinking coffee in the wilderness that鈥檚 just like what I have at home and that allows me to follow my usual聽morning聽brewing ritual is not something I鈥檓 keen on abandoning. Just ask my backcountry partners on a day when Joe hasn鈥檛 had his joe.