Apparently they're called Moka Pots, never knew that.
What appealed to me about the moka pot at the time was the reeeeeally "strong" coffee flavor. As I've moved away from it, I think my palate was just geared towards really dark roasts - very little the bean brings to the table at that point.
Or in other words, the way to make something espresso-like when all you have is a heat source.
Such a great tool...
(There's a lot of range in what one person might call fairly good compared to the next, too, of course.)
Two weeks ago I paid $9 for a pound of whole bean coffee from a good local roaster. That may be a bit below average but $11/lb is easy to find if your not living in a high-dollar, high-status coastal city.
Something costing 30-50% different in another country is kinda what I'd expect, the double or triple stuff I think would more be fancy people being extra-fancy.
