Bed and Breakfast blend

For my new beans, I had to do something quick and easy and bought a lb of Millstone Bed and Breakfast blend from the local monster Wal-Mart. I'm not a big fan of Wal-Mart. When I was in college, before Wal-Mart mutated to the beast it is, I used to spend my weekends strolling the aisles, looking at appliances, eye-balling sheet sets, picking out a VHS to buy (before I discovered the magic of DVD). In college, Wal-Mart sold a small amount of food: milk, break, canned goods, pancake mix, brownie mix, chips, beer. I'd get a frozen pizza, a box of brownie mix, a dozen eggs, and a B-movie from the bin and that would comprise my weekend.

I also drank powdered coffee. It wasn't the crystalized coffee like Sanka, but a cappuccinno mix, and I thought I was classy. I'd fill my travel mug with what is essentially coffee-flavored hot chocolate or hot-chocolate textured coffee. Either way, I got it from Wal-Mart because it cost $.99.

On my way back from spending the afternoon in Gucci, Prada, Ralph Lauren, and Barney's (not to mention the Gap outlet - ok, they were all outlets and I still couldn't afford to buy anything), I had to quick stop buy Wal-Mart to grab food supplies for my week on my own. I don't think I've graduated from the college way of eating, since I stocked up on TV dinners, tater tots, milk, Frosted Mini-Wheats (the only sugar cereal I could buy and not feel like I'm psychologically regressing), and coffee beans, since I used up the last of my Guatamala Estate that morning. There would be no opportunity to buy anything else that could be subsidized by my benefactor.

When I spend that snowy night in December with Trish, in her tiny motel room studio apartment, she introduced me to coffee. Trish was a bit of a caffeine addict, as coffee drinkers are. You start off with fancy-smancy coffee but your budget ends up such that all you can afford is the stuff at the supermarket. Trish's Italian Roast, the cup to which I compare all my cups, was Millstone, bought from the local Mutant Wal-Mart. When it was time for me to pick new beans, I first gravitated toward Starbucks beans, as I felt that probably would be the best quality in a flash (who am I kidding), but decided to go with Millstone. I don't recall why I chose the Bed and Breakfast blend; perhaps it's because the blend is so common. So I decided to give it a whirl. What do I have to lose?

I want to talk about my Toastmaster coffee grinder for a minute. It's a pain in the butt to grind your own beans every morning and honestly, I really don't taste any difference. Along with grinding, I have to clean the grinder with soap and water and I am a terribly lazy person. The grinder works satisfactorily, but with one problem: it doesn't give an even grind. The grinds are powder fine at the blade, and adequately coarse at the top. Mother finally put her foot down and told me that I needed to make my coffee a little weaker - the caffeine content makes her queasy. I've adjusted to a larger water to grind ratio, but I'm still having problems making a perfect pot. I blame my grinder and my need to be coffee sophisticated.

My first pot of Breakfast Blend was potent. It had that "burned" taste of Colombian Supremo, slightly bitter, not at all good. The next pot was better and with me switching to half-and-half, I'm starting to get a real taste of the coffee.

I'm caring little about my coffee, as long as it gives me that jolt of energy that makes me so charming, regulates my bowels, and keeps me from eating my weight in ice cream. I'm a little distressed at my caffeine addiction, since my religious upbringing warned me about it. Maybe Dad was right and coffee is bad. As soon as the Millstone bean is gone, I'll go to something really swank, just to get me on track. Like the %100 Kona my mom is bringing me back from Hawaii. Nice.

Sadly neglected... out of guilt (Guatamala Estate)

I am ashamed. I have committed the biggest blogging sin in not blogging often enough. Some bloggers can get away with a post a month, so long as their posts are long and interesting. My posts are short and boring to tears.

Another reason I am ashamed is because I wrote only one (or two) posts about the Nicaragua Segovia and none at all about the Guatamalan Estate bean I got at the World Market. Or maybe I did. My memory fails me at the moment.

Let me talk about the Guatamalan (and no, my memory is indicating that I had not written about it). I discovered a wonderful store in a very large strip mall. This store is a bastard child of Peir One Imports and a gourmet food and wine shop. And it's very large. And it's right next door to the Dress Barn. On the back wall, in the international food and wine section, is a whole wall of coffee. Reluctant to go to Starbucks in order to buy exotic beans, I have found a mine of silver (not really gold since they aren't that diverse -- the only pacific rim coffee I saw was Kona. Cheap Kona). Since starting with the Colombian Dark Roast, I have decided to fully explore south and central American coffees before I move on to Africa (with the exception of the 7oz of pure Hawaiian Kona my parents are bringing back to me from Oahu). I mentioned the Nicaragua Segovia, a cup that left a nasty taste in my mouth for days. That's all I can say about Nicaragua Segovia.

I picked up, after some debate with Mother, since she has enthusiastically offered herself as a guine pig in my coffee experiment, some Guatamala Estate beans. I was debating between that and Costa Rican Terrazu (check my spelling since I may be wrong) and decided on Guatamala, since it seems more rare than Costa Rican coffee. My first brew was ambrosia. The coffee is smooth and warm and chocolaty. I loved it. Mother, on the other hand, thought it tasted faintly like cat piss. She loved the Nicaraguan. I find it scientifically fascinating that our preferences are different. And a bit offended she said that it tasted like cat piss.

I drank a pound of it in a week. I'm starting to become thoroughly addicted to coffee, a fact that came upon me as I exited my summer Algebra class at the community college. With Mother and Dad vacationing in Hawaii this week, I have the freedom to walk around my house naked and eat all the junk food I want, since Mother and Dad prefer a mostly vegan diet (with Mom's exception to my coffee experiment). Independence Day was spent watching a Project Runway marathon on the couch and I didn't budge from that position all day. I didn't even make coffee. My body was screaming fatigue to me and all I wanted to do was be sentient. With out my coffee, though, I grew *irregular*, munched snacks, eclairs, ice cream, and 2 of my frozen diet dinners, and generally binged on junk. I also was slow, stupid and lazy. The day closed and I woke up the next morning to responsibilities, namely acing my Algebra class. I made myself a pot, drank a cup, and bounded off to the college two hours early to study. I noticed that I was a more willing smile flasher, was nice-nice to everyone, sucked up to teachers, and annoyed the crap out of mine by answering all his questions before he finished them. Coffee gives me energy, moves my bowels (which will not want to move -- a result of my brain tumor), and diminishes my apitite. Basically, I am physically addicted.

I really liked the Guatamalan bean, but don't think I will purchase it regularly. It's a pain to get to the World Market. It's not like it's a store you can pop in and out. I would have to spend an entire afternoon for a coffee errand. As much as I liked the chocolaty (or cat piss) cup, I think I'll go for a more convenient bean.

I've gotten a new bean since the Guatamala Estate and switched to half and half. But that's for my next post. And I promise it will be sonner than a month.

I also want to complain about my grinder. That will be in the post, too.

A fine cup of coffee

Can it have been a week and a half since I posted? Bad, blogger! Bad, blogger! While I should be telling you the intricate details of my latest cup, I've been shying away from Coffee Cheek, dissapointed that my last post got deleted, losing all of my well-thought out writing. Research is hard and I don't like doing it?

Why am I doing this experiment again?

In my last post, I complained the the Nicaragua Segovia was a raunchy cup, leaving a dried leaf aftertaste and too many acid notes. Since I had a pound of the stuff, I kept on drinking, too thrifty to buy new beans. Mother likes the Nicaragua Segovia but interrogating her as to why leaves her furrowed, confused as to why I even care. Mother's opinion is very important to me. It is why I am 25-years-old and don't have a credit card.

With my new beans and new grinder, I haven't been focusing so much on the bean but finding a meathod to the maddness of brewing. The Toastmaster grinder is a bit frustrating, but I'm please I got it so cheaply, as equivalent grinders cost twice as much. That's internet shopping for you. The Toastmaster grinder grinds an uneven amount, producing very find grounds at the bottom and medium coarse grounds on the top. Also, I never know how much bean to grind to make my cups, always grinding too much or too little. Scooping the grinds from my grinder spills them all over the counter, annoying Father, since he hates coffee. He drank instant coffee while getting his master's degree and has negative associations, mainly of late night studying and failing the GRE several times before finally passing. But, I think I have it down. I like to brew about 16.9 oz of coffee, the amount in a Dasani water bottle. I scoop out 6 tables spoons of grind, giving me a cup that is perfect for me. I like my cup a little on the strong side. So every morning, I've been practicing the dance of grinding beans, scooping the grinds, filling the water bottle and brewing coffee. Habit makes perfect and I have a pretty fine cup, even though it's of funky coffee.

I got rid of my International Delight. I agreed with Mother that flavored creamer took away from the taste of the coffee and true coffee drinkers drank it black or with half-and-half. My International Delights gave the right amount of cream and sweetness to the coffee but, Mom is right, it has to go. I compromised with Coffee-Mate instead, but what's the point? Now I am creaming and sugaring my coffee. Weird, but the Nicaragua Segovia tastes better with out flavored creamer.

I am becoming more and more a coffee drinker. I drink coffee not only for the flavor, but to wake me up in the morning, keep my bowels regular (and I have probs with my bowels working right because of my brain-tumor. Oops! I didn't tell you about that, did I?) and to suppress my appetite, because since I work from home, I have the tendency to eat all day out of boredom. I'm headachy and grouchy with out it and wired with it.

I am a true coffee drinker.

Nicaragua Segovia - Full City Roast

I wrote a whole thing about the ins and outs of my new bean, mentioning the need for coffee education in California, Colombian vs. Nicaraguan but since I am new to blogger...

I EREASED IT ALL!!!!!

Sigh. What is the point of it all?

Dark Roast Colombian

With the new Mrs Tea arrived from eBay, my toastmaster coffee grinder in hand and a bag of dark roast colombian beans, I can continue my experiment. I brewed myself a cup of dark roast Colombian, my second official cup, as yesterday's cup, a makeshift brew with my carafe-less Mrs Tea and a large coffee cup, served only one function and that was to make my caffeine headache go away. Now I can truly enjoy my beans.

I chose the dark roast, as opposed to the supremo, because I like a bolder cup. The Colombian beans did not dissapoint me as my coffee was extremely flavorful. As to Mother's advice, since she delights in my journey into sophicate trancendence, I took a sip of the coffee black first, before quickly adding my flavored creamer (I really need to get rid of that crutch).

Colombia is rich and flavorful. It also tastes like coffee. Now, Colombian is the bean of choice for whole-sale blends. This is what you will find in your Folger's and Maxwell house coffee and at your local Denny's. I can taste the similarities, except my fresh-ground beans don't have the nasty bitterness that these swill coffees have. The flavor is a smokey flavor that floats up the palate and reminds me of tobacco smoke. It has a full body, which is pleasant to my tastes, and markedly different than the Mocha Java, which contained the lighter east African coffee (although coffee from the island of Java is supposed to be very bold). It is complex, with a smokey first taste, to a dry after taste on the back of your tongue. It's very coffee.

I think I prefere the Mocha Java.

Feeding my habit

At Mother's suggestion, I decided to place a coffee mug on the warmer of my Mrs Tea. Nervous and wary, yet excited to finally use my beans and grinder, I brewed myself a cup. It didn't turn out bad at all.

At least my coffee headache has now gone away. And by the way, the grinder and the new beans are GREAT!

I still can't drink coffee black, though.

Beans and a french press

I stopped by this local organic, whole foods store and optimistically bought some beans. Dark Roast Colombian this time, and some chocolate raspberry flavored beans for Mother. With my beans sitting in their air-tight containers, ticking like a time-bomb, and a Toastmaster coffee grinder waiting patiently to put him in use, I almost broke down and bought myself a small, three-cup french press.

It's wedding season and with wedding season comes the bridal registry. I'm not a fan of buying other people gifts for the fact that I never have enough money to buy other people things and still have time for something nice for myself. Case in point was the french press. With Father's day around the corner, my nephew's 8th birthday in the morning and an up-coming wedding, blast it, I had to deplete my checking account to buy gifts and couldn't afford the $12.00 press. Yes, I am that broke that I can't even afford a french press. Pretty sad. And I've been wanting to own a french press more and more since reading up on brewing meathods. Plus, a History Channel special on coffee sealed the deal.

The preferred meathod of brewing by master cuppers and coffee conneseurs (again, forgive my spelling) is the french press. This brewing meathod brings out the best flavor, the most complexity and produces the richest cup of coffee. Now that I have a grinder that allows me to control the corseness of my grinds, I'm primed for a press. But, the demands of my wallet are louder and I'm going to have to wait for Mrs Tea to come and make my life bright again. She still hasn't arrived from eBay, the fat thing. My migrane headaches are getting worse and worse in her absense.

I'll keep you posted and we can begin discussion on Dark Roast Colombian.