Running out of coffee means that life is no longer worth living.
I hate mornings. There, I said it, let’s get it out of the way. It seems to be almost sacrilegious to imply that the morning hour isn’t the dew-covered pinnacle of happiness, and somehow the time when the sun is coming up isn’t the peaceful paradise of serenity and joy. Bollocks! It’s time that could be better spent sleeping, and the world would be a much better place if businesses would realize that the only people who are coming in at 8AM are people who have no other choice. If they could come in at 10AM, they bloody would, but they can’t, because their workplace has to open at 8AM to cater to other people who would rather come in at 10AM but can’t because their workplace opens at 8AM. It’s a ridiculous cycle, and nobody wants to deal with the ultra-early morning crowd anyhow.
The one thing that makes it all worthwhile is coffee. We’ve talked about our love for coffee before, but never the process we go through to get it. Sure, we all have our preferences for a good cup, but how we get there varies greatly. Some are content with the cheap swill that most workplaces spurt into a cup. Some take no prisoners and insist on fresh-roasted beans, dropped into a grinder that serves up just the right amount before it goes directly into an espresso machine. Some sit somewhere in the middle. On our counter, we have a grinder, a high-end espresso machine, a very nice stainless-steel coffee pot, and a Tassimo for emergencies. We don’t screw around. But more often than not, the plain old coffee maker does the caffeination duties, simply because it’s reliable and hard to mess up.
How do you make your morning cup of coffee? Are you particular and careful, do you take whatever swill is in the pot at your workplace, or do you join in on the 500m queue at Tim Horton’s in the morning?
I'm definitely a morning person and am ready to conquer the world when I wake up. I have a Braun coffeemaker which doesn't require paper filters. I like my coffee kinda strong, so prefer what I make at home. My choice of brands is Maxwell House French Roast.
Eugh. You morning people. You're the worst. You're about a half of one percent of the population, yet somehow you all think everyone could join you in your love of mornings if you're just a little bit perkier.
Before long 10AM will be the new 8AM, and then you'll wish for 12AM mornings, and soon 2PM. My work starts at 3PM, and it's just as bad as when it started at 7AM. Worse actually, because once I get off work the only thing that's open are gas stations and McDonald's so I can't do anything useful after work.
Mornings are awesome in theory though. Last week I went to get a couple of beers after work, and long boring story short I'm waiting for a taxi at 6AM in an unfamiliar part of town, the cobblestone streets are empty, the sun is starting to shine thru the thickest fog I've seen in years and it's all just very nice.. or it would have been, had I just woken up after a good nights sleep and not felt the impending hangover of doom.
Machines, unless Gaggia and operated in Spain, do not produce decent coffe
These, with a new roast produce the best
Moka Pots http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Moka2.jpg
You're right, and most of my friends find it disgusting too.
I have become a morning person with old age, and coffee really makes that possible.
A few weeks ago, I busted the carafe of my Braun coffee maker. This coffee maker is probably damn near 7 years old, and I just knew it would be impossible to find a replacement. Well, surprisingly, the internets came through, and Amazon found me one. ETA? 4 weeks! Fuuuuuuuu
I pulled out the espresso machine that is a bitch to operate at the crack of dawn, and tried to make an Americano. Fail. So I got a giant Bodum press (I drink like, a liter of coffee before 8:30) and that worked well for the interim. Thankfully my carafe showed up 2 weeks early, and things are back to normal.
I take my coffee in Red Bull form.
This is my "coffee" on most mornings:
<img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_XDnp3RqDjJM/TEaWya6TELI/AAAAAAAAAbo/Ryo2Km1O5KY/s1600/DietMtDewCan.gif" width="200/">
On the weekends I will use our Kuerig coffee maker to make a cup. In the last week or so I broke down and tried the stuff in the break room at work. The new insulated pots in place of the ones that continue to cook the coffee for hours have helped. I also like lots of cream and sweetener in my coffee, so enough of that will mask most anything.
A Farewell to Teeth. (Confession: I used to keep an open bottle of it in the 'fridge because I liked to swill it cold and flat in the morning. Then again, I was 20, and drank Hi-C Ecto Cooler when I got home.)
I vacillate between either the trusty old French Press or a newfangled pourover style brewing method called the Clever Dripper… pretty cool little device that has a trap at the bottom so you can control steeping time. I buy only light-moderate roasted single origin beans from a local roaster – never more than 3 days after roasting. I can't afford some fancy grinder, so I dug up my grandma's old hand-crank one, sandblasted the stones to get the rust out, and thereby have a burr mill to do the deed. When the occasion calls for something special, I break out the ibrik and do my coffee Turkish style, with cardamom ground with the beans.
I don't mess around.
I use a Kitchenaid Proline burr grinder:
<img src="http://i1144.photobucket.com/albums/o491/dmilligan666/kitchenaidprolineburrgrinderkpcg100.jpg" width="300" border="2" style="border:2px solid black;" alt=" " />
and a Melitta coffee maker:
<img src="http://i1144.photobucket.com/albums/o491/dmilligan666/Melitta-12-Cup-Coffee-Maker.jpg" width="300" border="2" style="border:2px solid black;" alt=" " />
And Kicking Horse Kick Ass or 454 Horse dark roast.
<img src="http://i1144.photobucket.com/albums/o491/dmilligan666/Kicking-Horse-Whole-Bean-Coffee-Can.jpg" width="300" border="2" style="border:2px solid black;" alt=" " />
Repeat until awake.
I was waiting for you to reply with something a bit heavier duty.
There are some things that even I won't fuck with.
Kicking Horse is from a small town near where I grew up; it's truly great coffee, although I can say I'm not a fan of their 454 roast. Kick Ass is just plain good coffee though.
Remember that time you recommended online tea to me? That was good advice, thanks, but right after that I found a nearby store, and then another, and yet another, yippie! Also there is a guy I work with with a place back in Canada where he's originally from, he brings me more tea when he travels, he even got me some when he went south in IL, he's a heck of a good guy! Anyway I have gone cold turkey on the coffee now for more than two weeks. I've done this before though, we'll see how it goes this time. I went to the doctor with a viral infection and learned I had high blood pressure, plus he said all the coffee I drink dries the mucous membranes, making any secondary infections I might get worse. It was a really bad flu, I decided no more coffee
I used to drink from an Italian stove top coffee maker thing, made strong coffee. Damn I'm jonesing now!
Is the mucous membranes drying out an issue with the coffee? or is it the caffeine? Because you'd have to be wary of certain teas if it was the caffeine.
Oh crap I just googled it, it's the sweet sweet glorious caffeine… I had been drinking only decaffeinated apple cider flavored tea until two days ago, but I have had Irish and English breakfast teas again now. I am so going to fall off the wagon again aren't I!
Simple! I wake up after the guy that has to wake up earlier than me! He usually makes a big ol' pot that serves three or four of us.
When I was that guy, I would make one french press full, which was enough for me and my girlf, and the other homies had to fend for themselves.
Right now I have a deal going with a workmate whose boyf works for a well known roaster-cafe chain. I bring in fresh eggs from our flock of chickens and trade them for high end coffee. Also, a house guest bought us a burr-type grinder and I have to say it's much better than the spinning blades of doom.
Like with the recent old-school tech question, I'm not adamant about high quality coffee, but if it comes along I'll gravitate towards it. Can't bear French Roast or flavored coffee, though. Blech.
I make tea. Never coffee.
What's worse, I use bagged tea and heat the water in a microwave oven.
Even worse, I frequently still call it a "microwave oven" instead of just a "microwave."
Worst of all, I continue to do so despite knowing better, so it's pretty much just a hollow affectation at this point. Feel free to add it to the list.
Do you put laundry into the hot press and relax on the divan?
I can only dream of such things, as with most furniture and major appliances. Or minor appliances.
There are indeed microwaves that are not ovens, but I believe you would have even more difficulty fitting that equipment in your house.
<img src="http://www.seltelecom.com.my/wp-content/uploads/antenna1.jpg" width=500>
Given his taste in cars, i'm surprised even a regular microwave oven fits in his house
Short of a morter and pestle and making the fire to boil my water I'm completely hands on in the production of my coffee.
First I start with this:
<img src="http://www.bigskycountrygifts.com/files/cache/adbfdaf1ab8ac0106d329f233393a137.jpg" width="500">
Then I grind in a cheap grinder so I can get the consistancy just right to put into this:
<img src="http://www.batdorfcoffee.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/a/e/aeropress-330_1.jpg" width="500">
and then I pour it into my go mug (I use contigos) and I'm off for the day.
AeroPress is the way to go for single cups of coffee. Now that I'm the only coffee drinker in the house, I use mine every day.
For beans, I go with the French Roast from Peerless in Oakland. It's the best retail coffee in the Bay Area.
Huckleberry coffee!? What witchcraft is this!? I must have some! Two of my favourite things combined!
Tis not wichcraft my friend but infact, the work of the gods. How do you take yours? Whole bean or ground? Cause I can pick you up some next time I head down to the states.
Ground please! Must try! We're down in Calgary often enough, you can join Number_Six and I for a pint or twenty.
That'd be grand. I'll email my phone # to your AT account with my username as the subject cause yunno, spam and whatnot.
Whole bean, please! Let's get Dearthair stinking drunk and abandon him at Cowboys.
One order of drip grind and another of whole bean. Should be a couple weeks.
I don't have just one type/roast that I like, I like to try all kinds of different ones. However, I don't like automatic drip coffee machines..–I have one that brews in to a reservoir and then dispenses through a nozzle but never use it. I tend to use a french press while at work (when I work) and a 1950's era 6 cup pyrex percolator with a bake-lite handle. Nostalgia is delicious.
I also drink ridiculous amounts of tea, normally of the cold variety, but sometimes hot too. I make a gallon of sun tea every couple of days.