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In my world, there is no go without the joe in the morning. I am not especially addicted to caffeine -- I don't drink caffeinated soda if I have a choice, I don't find myself craving coffee all hours of the day and night, and the very idea of the caffeinated donut make me shudder -- but I am addicted to my morning coffee. I am very much a creature of habit, and my morning routine absolutely requires two things: a steaming-hot shower and a big mug of coffee. Otherwise, I can guarantee you it's going to be a Bad Day.
I became a daily coffee drinker about seventeen years ago (!) when I started working at IBM in Portland, Maine. There was a Green Mountain Coffee Roasters store right across the street, and everyone would diligently march over for their morning coffee around 9:00, Whirley mug in hand. In fact, I still have the very same Whirley mug -- it is one of three that I use regularly -- which should be a testamonial to how well they work and how long they last.
I bought my first French press pot about five years later. Though I relied on a drip maker Monday through Friday, I would occasionally use it on weekends. I don't recall exactly when I finally moved over to using the press pot all the time, but I think it was right around the time we moved into The Little Blue House. We still own a drip coffee maker, but I only use it to make coffee when there are guests; Bridget does not drink coffee at all, and my daily dose is only what will fit in one mug (about 24 ounces). The medium-sized Bodum Chambord is just the right size.
Press pot coffee is a whole different beast than what you get out of a drip machine. The grounds have a real chance to steep in the water and develop a fuller flavor. The water in a drip machine spends very little time mixing with the grounds. That's why you never want to grab the coffee as soon as it starts to pour out of the drip maker -- it's weaker than the coffee that comes out towards the end, which has had a bit longer to come in contact. But in a press pot, all the water and all the grounds get to commingle for several minutes.
This post from CoffeeGeek.com goes into great detail about the history of the press pot, as well as the proper way to use one. The poster also opines quite loudly about having the right grinder. I have to admit to not owning a burr grinder, just a regular blade grinder. Consequently, my coffee does have its quotient of sludge at the bottom of the mug every morning, but I have learned to stop drinking the coffee before I hit the bottom, so it doesn't bother me. Maybe some day I'll upgrade to a high-end burr grinder.
Even though I now much prefer the stronger brew that you get from a press pot, I don't really think of myself as a coffee snob. I prefer Starbucks' whole bean coffee, but have lately been buying some Peet's "Major Dickason's Blend" now and then, along with the very occasional bag of Green Mountain's 'Rainforest Nut". But when push comes to shove, I don't have any problem buying whatever supermarket whole bean coffee is available. I have never cared for the watery and flavorless coffee from the assorted canned varieties in the supermarket, but I am also not hung up on having to have super-premium hand-roasted coffee beans picked by young virgins either. My friend Shelley recently recommended this coffee to me, and I'll probably give it a try.
I have never developed a taste for black coffee at all. My coffee is always lightened with half-and-half and sweetened with Splenda. Before Splenda, I was a confirmed NutraSweet user, but I much prefer Splenda now. I cannot stand using milk in my coffee, and do not ever offer me Sweet'N'Low if you want to continue to be my friend. I will use real sugar when required.
I don't smoke, drink very little, rarely gamble, and don't chase women, so I think it's okay if this is my greatest vice. Everybody's got to have one.
Er, uh, will you still be my friend if I am a pink packet user?
Posted by shelley [URL] at 01/31/07
Yes, just don't try to get me to drink anything that has the stuff in it.
Posted by Brian [URL] at 01/31/07
People, I'm here to tell you the boy needs his coffee in the morning. A few weeks back we had no hot water and he was out of coffee. It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day!
Posted by Bridget [URL] at 01/31/07
Ouch, Bridget, that sounds bad.
I don't drink coffee at all. But I can appreciate it.
Here we call it a plunger, not a press pot. Interesting.
Posted by flerdle [URL] at 02/ 1/07
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