Quoting Woodroe_Call:

A little lore first...

Arbuckles was a grocery store in the east that developed a process of roasting coffee beans so they kept fresh. Before that the cowboy and others of the frontier had to roast their own beans then "grind" them before getting to have that morning cup. So Arbuckles became the coffee bean of choice with its sugar and egg glaze and became the catchword for some to encompass coffee in a broad sense.

James Folger took samples of Pioneer Coffee west to the goldfields in 1851, then eight years later bought out his partners in Pioneer Mills and renamed the firm James A. Folger Company. His son expanded the business in the 1890's by distributing bulk-roasted coffee beans to grocery stores in sacks and drums. Before that the beans had to be roasted in a frying pan, on a stove or open fire and then run through a hand held grinder. The next step for a drinkable coffee was to throw a handful of grounds into a pot of boiling water as the water cooled the grounds to the bottom. Not all the grounds sank, though, so people often drank by the "saucer and blow" method, pouring coffee into a saucer, blowing to cool it off then slurping it to avoid any grounds.

John Arbuckle came out with the Arbuckles brand in 1860 and came up with the method of coating his roasted blend in a mixture of sugar, eggs and Irish moss. In addition to the packages, such as coupons for razors, scissors and such and if someone was desperate enough a wedding ring. Each package contained a peppermint stick to appeal to the younger cowboys as the cooks would bribe them to grind the coffee for them. But the highlight was the brown paper bag it was pure delight as toilet paper was not carried on trail drives.

Of course when cooks made coffee on the range, it's taste varied. If the water was extremely hard they might add a dash of salt. If the water was heavy with gypsum they might throw an egg and or egg shells in the pot to eliminate the acidic bite.

Arbuckles was so prevalent that most cowboys never knew there was any other brand. Arbuckles became a generic name for coffee, like Stetson for hats or Levi's for jeans.

I still make mine the same way each morning but in a smaller pot and not always with the eggs only when I get nostalgic and even though I use other beans depending on the budget I still grind up the beans. And I still have the large pot when company drops by. This most likely explains why I like Folgers when ma' pocket book is gettin' skinnie and I can't' buy no Arbuckles...

Today it is much easier to make if you are brave at heart, or just plum crazy and LIKE strong coffee (that's me) it can be an easy to appreciate our ancestors...

Here is how to make it on the trail.

4 quarts of water in a large coffee pot, bucket , big pan brown paper sack or whatever ye got handy.

1 1/2 cups fresh ground coffee (about or adjust to taste) bean of your choice.

egg shells

1 cup cold water (about0

Bring water to a boil then add the coffee and egg shells remove from heat, let stand 2-3 minutes ( helps the grounds settle) then slowly pour the cold water to drive the grounds to the bottom. Let stand for another minute or so if you can wait that long-then fill year camp cup...

Now that is good.

A little lore first...

Arbuckles was a grocery store in the east that developed a process of roasting coffee beans so they kept fresh. Before that the cowboy and others of the frontier had to roast their own beans then "grind" them before getting to have that morning cup. So Arbuckles became the coffee bean of choice with its sugar and egg glaze and became the catchword for some to encompass coffee in a broad sense.

James Folger took samples of Pioneer Coffee west to the goldfields in 1851, then eight years later bought out his partners in Pioneer Mills and renamed the firm James A. Folger Company. His son expanded the business in the 1890's by distributing bulk-roasted coffee beans to grocery stores in sacks and drums. Before that the beans had to be roasted in a frying pan, on a stove or open fire and then run through a hand held grinder. The next step for a drinkable coffee was to throw a handful of grounds into a pot of boiling water as the water cooled the grounds to the bottom. Not all the grounds sank, though, so people often drank by the "saucer and blow" method, pouring coffee into a saucer, blowing to cool it off then slurping it to avoid any grounds.

John Arbuckle came out with the Arbuckles brand in 1860 and came up with the method of coating his roasted blend in a mixture of sugar, eggs and Irish moss. In addition to the packages, such as coupons for razors, scissors and such and if someone was desperate enough a wedding ring. Each package contained a peppermint stick to appeal to the younger cowboys as the cooks would bribe them to grind the coffee for them. But the highlight was the brown paper bag it was pure delight as toilet paper was not carried on trail drives.

Of course when cooks made coffee on the range, it's taste varied. If the water was extremely hard they might add a dash of salt. If the water was heavy with gypsum they might throw an egg and or egg shells in the pot to eliminate the acidic bite.

Arbuckles was so prevalent that most cowboys never knew there was any other brand. Arbuckles became a generic name for coffee, like Stetson for hats or Levi's for jeans.

I still make mine the same way each morning but in a smaller pot and not always with the eggs only when I get nostalgic and even though I use other beans depending on the budget I still grind up the beans. And I still have the large pot when company drops by. This most likely explains why I like Folgers when ma' pocket book is gettin' skinnie and I can't' buy no Arbuckles...

Today it is much easier to make if you are brave at heart, or just plum crazy and LIKE strong coffee (that's me) it can be an easy to appreciate our ancestors...

Here is how to make it on the trail.

4 quarts of water in a large coffee pot, bucket , big pan brown paper sack or whatever ye got handy.

1 1/2 cups fresh ground coffee (about or adjust to taste) bean of your choice.

egg shells

1 cup cold water (about0

Bring water to a boil then add the coffee and egg shells remove from heat, let stand 2-3 minutes ( helps the grounds settle) then slowly pour the cold water to drive the grounds to the bottom. Let stand for another minute or so if you can wait that long-then fill year camp cup...

Now that is good.

If you tell the truth have one foot in the stirrup ! ! !