Types of Coffee

The two main coffees grown for commercial use are Arabica and Robusta coffee. For a gourmet coffee, Robusta does not fit everyone’s taste. Having double the caffeine of Arabica coffee, it lacks the aroma or taste. Arabica gourmet coffee is a superior grade coffee with fabulous aroma and a wonderful taste.

A gourmet coffee pod is a pre-packaged, pre-measured amount of sealed coffee that you drop into your coffee pod maker and just add water. In 30 seconds, you are drinking a fresh, perfect mug of gourmet coffee. No measuring of coffee necessary so this makes them very convenient and fast. Once the gourmet coffee is finished, simply throw the pod away. There are also tea pods for all the tea lovers that work the same way as the coffee pods.

When you get up in the morning, the very last thing you want to do is get out a filter, measure your gourmet coffee, measure the water and wait for the coffee to brew. This is almost torture for a person that cannot function without their first cup of gourmet coffee. Coffee pod makers are a wonderful invention that allows you to have a fabulous cup of gourmet coffee in 30 seconds. You fill the coffee pod maker with water, put a coffee pod in it and push a button. There are coffee pod makers that only make a single cup or some that make several cups. Half a minute later, you are drinking your rich, frothy gourmet coffee. Coffee pod makers are stylish and sleek and look great in a kitchen or breakfast nook.

Flavors of Gourmet Coffee Pods

You can get gourmet coffee pods in several brew strengths such as mild, medium and dark roasted. Although this coffee may cost a little more, it is well worth the extra money spent. Gourmet coffee pods come in many different and unique flavors and sizes such as 14 pod bags and 50 pod boxes. Here are some of the many flavors available:

? Caramel nut crunch
? Chocolate cappuccino
? Mocha cinnamon
? French vanilla
? Hazelnut
? Swiss chocolate almond
? Almond
? Chocolate mint
? Peppermint
? Express
? Irish cream

Gourmet coffee pods are also available in decaffeinated. If you are one of those people that cannot open their eyes or function before they have their first cup of coffee, then a coffee pod is the way to go. By the time you put your gourmet coffee pod in the coffee maker and push the button, it is time to drink your first mug of coffee and wake up to the wonderful aroma and taste of gourmet coffee. Life is great.

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Let me start by acknowledging I am the middle man you guys mention - I own Mission Grounds Gourmet Coffee and give all my profits to orphans. I own an IT company too so no one draws a salary so all the profits go to kids. I am a US citizen but own a coffee farm in Costa Rica. The family I bought the farm from still farm it for free - I buy my coffee from the Co-Op my farm belongs to in Costa Rica

Here are the problems with Fair Trade and here are the problems with buying coffee directly from the farmer. In Costa Rica and as in most coffee countries the farmers you want to help don’t have any resources or assets. Most dont have telephones or computers or any other means to know about Fair trade, so 95% of the poor farmers we want to help don’t even know what fair trade is. And they don’t have the resources to set up an on line business or to even pay the transportation costs. Most barely have running water ; some might even have electricity. And none have a FDA import licensce or the money to set up the bonds needed for Dept. of Agriculture import inspections.

Secondly almost all sale their coffee to a co -op or coffee roaster - its the only market they know or have - local sales. Fair Trade was set up for Americans to then be the middle man and have Americans feel good about themselves. In theory its a great idea - in practice it has done very little to help the small farmer. and in this cycle the worse off - are the laborers and children who pick the coffee - making lless than a $1 per hour. Do you think the farmers who are fair trade certified pass their extra money to the laborers? or the ones who aren’t.

?And the thing that is wrong about Fair Trade is you only have to certify you paid $ 1.26 per pound for the coffee - it doesn’t matter who you paid. So a Starbucks can pay the middleman or the roaster - $1.26 and its certified Fair Trade. And this middle man may have paid the farmer $.40 and eveyone drinking Fair trade coffee from Starbucks thinks they are helping a farmer. Please drink some coffee and wake up to the truth.

So unless you travel to that poor farmers farm you have no chance of helping him directly. They just don’t have the communications, resources, distribution to get their coffee to you. Plus the US requires all coffee to be roasted before it comes here. So even green coffee is roasted 10%. In a third world country very few people have the resources to buy a coffee roaster. so the coffee roaster controls the coffee. And the money. And hes the guy who is Fair Trade certified. And he keeps the extra money Fair Trade brings. Amazing the Americans came up with an idea that helps the rich get richer. And we feel good about it.

If you want to truly help buy Thousand Hills Coffee - they use the proceeds to help farmers and laborers in Africa. Or buy Mission Grounds Coffee? which helps orphans and homeless kids with their profits. and we buy our coffee from the farmers co op at $1.50 per pound.

What is Sustainability?

Sustainable coffee is produced on a farm with high biological diversity and low chemical inputs. It conserves resources,

protects the environment, produces efficiently, competes commercially and enhances the quality of life for farmers and

society as a whole.

A sustainable coffee should be developed with the following guiding principles:

Practices will promote the protection of biological diversity, soils, and clean water, and enhance global carbon

sequestration, not only through farm management but also by the protection of watershed vegetation and other

patches of natural vegetation, reforestation, minimal use of agrochemicals and compliance with wildlife protection

laws and the integrity of existing parks and reserves.

1.

2. All interested parties should have input into the development of criteria, particularly the farmers themselves.

3. Sustainable practices should be verifiable by disinterested party.

The quality of the product will be maintained or enhanced during the process of conversion to more sustainable

systems.

4.

5. Producers should have fair access to information and credit necessary to shift to more sustainable systems.

6. Producers should have ready access to new markets developed for sustainable coffee.

7. System should promote the economic diversification of producer families.

8. Production should comply with internationally recognized standards of treatment of workers and their families.

Practices should promote the protection of cultural diversity, particularly locally-based knowledge systems of

farmers.

9.

APPLICATION SYSTEMS

As we work to define criteria, we have to keep in mind how they will be used, the application systems. Do we want to just

reward the best producers or encourage many producers to improve? Should the standards be so strict that only the top 5

percent of producers can comply, or should they be flexible to engage the greatest number of producers? In the interest of

fairness, we advocate a ranking system that places farms in categories such as good, better and best Four-star systems, for

example, are commonly used to rate hotels, movies and records coupled with a set of minimum criteria that must be met.

Such a graded system could easily be adapted to existing classifications of shade management (see below) or to

transitional versus formerly certified organic practices.

It should be remembered that not all of the production criteria are under the control of the farmer. Some, particularly those

involving trade practices, should be seen as characterizing the relationship between farmer and merchant in the

marketplace. Finally, some of the goals of establishing sustainable coffee fall outside of the power of the farmer or

merchants and may need to be addressed outside of the following production criteria.

SPECIFIC ISSUES

Environmental Issues

Management of shade trees and other on-farm vegetation, such as riparian corridors and forest remnants to

conserve biodiversity.

l??

l?? Provide healthy environments for workers and downstream communities.

l?? Protect waterways (buffer zones along streams, for example) and sources of drinking water.

Reduce soil erosion through shade management, employing agronomic techniques, and planting on hills with

appropriate slopes.

l??

Manage and reduce or eliminate pesticide and chemical fertilizer use through use of biological control and other

organic practices.

l??

l?? Use a pruning regime that will have minimal impact on biological diversity.

l?? Minimize use of fuel wood for drying.

l?? Encourage use of traditional varieties and varieties that are resistant to pests.

l?? Protect wildlife from direct threats such as hunting and collecting.

l?? Control pollution at mills, both wet and dry.

l?? Maintain machinery and equipment to avoid contamination from fuel, fluids and lubricants.

Social Issues

l?? Guarantee a fair and stable prices for producers.

l?? Provide access to credit to producers employing sustainable technologies.

l?? Promote democratization and community participation in all aspects of sustainable coffee production.

l?? Provide technical assistance and environmental education for farmers shifting to sustainable technologies.

l?? Insure adequate wages, housing, and health care for workers.

l?? Provide access to markets for all producers, irrespective of farm size.

SUGGESTED CRITERIA

Shade Management

To maximize biological diversity, shade trees of coffee plantations should be taxonomically and structurally diverse,

provide shade over most of the farm throughout the year, and support abundant epiphytes, mosses, lichens, and parasitic

plant assemblages. Tree pruning should be kept to a minimum and whenever possible be conducted at the onset or during

the rainy season. Snags and dead limbs should be maintained as much as possible. Native and evergreen tree species

should be used as much as possible.

Quantitative measurement of these parameters, however, may be logistically difficult and the development of specific

values is probably beyond what is currently possible with existing peer-reviewed research results. Therefore, we

recommend that a gestalt classification of coffee agro-ecosystems be employed, similar to the one currently used in

Mexico. This system recognizes distinct nodes in the gradient of coffee plantation diversity (Figure 1) and can be modified

to include additional systems, such as monocultural deciduous shade, and monocultural Grevillea plantations. In a graded

system we would set the minimum at commercial, evergreen, polycultural shade and provide additional achievement stars

for traditional polycultural and rustic plantations.

In addition, buffer zones of unmanaged native shrubs and trees should border watercourses. These buffer zones should be

scaled to either farm or stream size. A hedge row or living fence should border the plantation and plantation roads. The

question of forest protection is complex. Although I discussed the possibility of a prohibition against converting forest to

shade coffee plantation, it is possible that such a restriction would under some circumstances encourage deforestation to

other land uses (such as cattle pasture).

Agrochemical Use

In the long run, most chemicals are damaging to the environment and all efforts should be made to eliminate their use.

Organic growing techniques should be the first option used. The endpoint for the sustainable coffee criteria should be the

prohibition of chemical use except in emergency situations. Such an allowance is made under organic certification if a) all

nonchemical techniques have been implemented and failed; b) only the least toxic chemicals are used with carefully

controlled applications; and c) application is conducted with the consultation and oversight of the certifier. In addition, it is

recommended that the following classes of chemicals should never be used: herbicides, nematocides, and chlorinated

hydrocarbons. The use of organic techniques for soil improvement should be emphasized and chemical fertilizers avoided.

When chemical fertilizers are used, they should be mixed with organic fertilizers and direct application to waterways

avoided. A graded system could be adopted where farms using small quantities of pesticides in an Integrated Pest

Management system and low levels of chemical fertilizers receive a one star rating and strictly organic or transitional

organic a two star rating.

Pollution Control and Energy Conservation in Processing

Certification must be separate for the farm mills since the producer often has little control over post-harvest processing.

Agrochemicals should never be used in processing or storage. Coffee pulp should be used as natural fertilizer and never

dumped directly into waterways. Mills should employ waste processing and water-saving systems. When the appropriate

technology for residual water is available, it should be phased in. Pollution control to reduce air contamination should be

phased in as well. Fuel wood for drying should be minimized and obtained from sustainable harvested sources. Patio

drying should be used whenever feasible. Alternative fuels, such as coffee husks and trimmings or solar energy should be

used as much as possible.

Social and Economic Relationships

Brokers or roasters should provide a fair and stable price for producers using existing formulae developed by fair trade

organizations as a starting point. The price should include all costs that are incurred to transform and maintain

environmental sustainability including the cost of certification itself.

Help ensure access to credit for production, processing, marketing and conversion to environmentally sound technologies.

Technical assistance and environmental education should be available to all members of coffee growing communities. The

formation and maintenance of democratically run producer cooperatives should be supported. Laborers should receive

wages equal to or greater than the legally mandated minimum wage for agricultural workers. When workers are provided

housing, it should provide adequate living conditions. Health care and proper sanitation should also be provided. All

producers should have fair access to the newly forming sustainable coffee markets. Particular attention should be paid to

small-scale producers through the fostering of more direct relationships between producer and roaster.

A Comparison of Systems

Table 1 compares the recommended guidelines of this working group (Sustainable) to some systems that are either in

existence or far along in the planning process: organic, Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance’s ECO-OK label, Conservation

International’s coffee program guidelines, and the point system of Thanksgiving Coffee.

Diagnosis

Two strategies exist for the promotion of sustainable coffee in the marketplace. We can work with the above existing

systems (organic and fair trade) which already have a significant market share, name recognition, and an established

infrastructure. Or we can develop a new, more holistic program that incorporates, from its inception, all of the aspects of

sustainable coffee.

Strategy 1. Working with existing seals

Overall, Organic and Fair Trade certification address different and complementary aspects of coffee production. The two

systems already interact to a great degree, particularly in the European market. Together the two seals cover many of the

concerns of sustainable coffee. However, they do not address all of the possible aspects of sustainable production. Most

notably missing from the environmental side of the equation are criteria concerned specifically with shade management

and the conservation of vegetation buffer zones and forest patches. In addition, organic certification does not directly

address many of the aspects of pollution control at the mill.

In terms of social issues, since fair trade targets small producers in cooperatives, there is little leverage for addressing the

concerns of farm labor–an issue that faces many coffee farms, but particularly larger farms. In addition, for a variety of

reasons, many de facto organic farms are not certified and therefore receive no particular compensation for what is

essentially good land stewardship in the marketplace. Although all issues that are not addressed by current seals probably

cannot be incorporated, many can. Discussions should begin with groups involved with organic certification and fair trade

to consider addressing some of the issues that have fallen between the cracks. Already OCIA has expressed an interest in

incorporating shade management in organic certification.

Strategy 2. Creation of New Seals

Although the Thanksgiving Coffee system takes an innovative approach which incorporates many facets of sustainable

production, it is not designed to be systematically verified or certified by a disinterested party and so I will not consider its

merits further here. This leaves the ECO-OK certification system and the Conservation International program as two

existing alternative programs. The advantage of promoting these new approaches is that the full complement of issues

underlying sustainable production can be incorporated from their inception, rather than added on. I have already listed

some of the issues not currently addressed by Fair Trade or Certified Organic.

Conservation coffees tend to be more inclusive in their approach, attempting to impact as much land under management as

possible. In order to achieve this, the systems tend to be more flexible or set lower minimum performance levels.

However, this may result in undermining the work that has already gone into the existing programs. ECO-OK, for

example, replaces strict adherence to certified organic practices with a more flexible and less rigorous approach to

agrochemical inputs. In addition, issues pertaining to small-scale farmers are largely ignored and a greater emphasis is

placed on enlisting large producers. By doing this ECO-OK may be addressing a relatively larger area initially and might

also have some impact on the treatment of workers and worker families on large plantations. ECO-OK calls for relatively

minimal changes in shade management practices and appears to rely more on informal incentives and further education to

promote more diversified shade systems. How ECO-OK could dovetail with Organic Certification is unclear.

The Conservation International program begins to incorporate the concept of a graded system and allows for the

incorporation of organic certification. Similar to ECO-OK, the CI program allows for entry with minimally diverse shade

management and calls for improvement of shade up the scale to traditional polycultural shade after inclusion into the

program. However, the program has no specific requirements or marketplace incentives for this to occur. While not

embracing Fair Trade, CI proposes some progressive economics including a guarantee of price over cost of production and

access to credit for small farmers.

Final Comment

We may find it impossible to develop a fully unified approach to certifying and promoting sustainable coffee. My feeling

is that the mission of Fair Trade is so focused and well defined that it will have to stand separately as the environmental

criteria are hammered out. Because the infrastructure and markets already exist, I would argue that all efforts should be

made to broaden the issues approached in Organic Certification. When shade management is fully incorporated into

Organic Certification using a graded classification system, then these coffees can be promoted to the larger potential

markets concerned with such issues as bird conservation. Thinking of the systems in the broader sense, it seems that the

more flexible guidelines of conservation coffee and the more rigorous criteria of Organics could be incorporated into a

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HNB Gourmet Takes Aim At the “Big Business” of Coffees & Teas

While other stores in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex area are bowing their heads to the Starbucks of the world, HNB Gourmet (aka Harry, Nat and Bernie’s) is looking to take a bite out of the Seattle-based mega coffee house’s business.

Our Crack Coffee team is spearheading the operations for the Plano, Texas store and have scoured several different coffee producers and tea importers to bring a more wide array of coffees and teas to their online and retail store operations.

Plans for coffee and tea tastings are currently underway for the anticipated opening of their retail store operations on the corner of Park and Los Rios (near the bordering cities of Parker and Murphy) on a monthly basis.

HNB Gourmet’s primary goal for this endeavor is to bring only the best coffees from around the world to their customer’s doors.

“So many people think that coffee should taste bitter without any other flavors coming through,” says Robert . “We’re hoping to change people’s opinion that coffee needs to have flavor shots and sugar to overpower the bitterness that comes when a company purchases substandard product and then compensates by over-roasting the coffee beans.”

Scott adds, “When coffee beans are over-roasted, they turn the end product bitter rather than bring out the natural flavors.”

Every week, HNB Gourmet will have a “Coffee Break” and an “Afternoon Tea” hosted at their Plano, Texas store. During those days, at specific time periods, customers will be treated to a coffee or tea selection of the day and surely be tempted to try one of the many signature pastries and chocolates that abound

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Whatever it’s wrapped in, gourmet coffee is different, and it smells different too. Some gourmet coffee has chocolate flavors, some are nutty and others are minty. Gourmet coffee is usually ground and ready to brew, so get that coffee machine ready and try out a wide variety of gourmet coffee’s on the market today.

Most gourmet coffee comes packaged in either individual packets or in a one pound to five-pound bag. Some is ground, while offer whole bean coffees. No matter which kind you buy, your taste buds are in for a treat if you’ve never tried some flavors and blends.

For example, gourmet coffee can come in non-flavored selections such as Columbian Supreme, French Roast, Mocha Java, Kenya Blend and Major’s Breakfast Blend, just to name a few. Most of these types of coffee claim robust flavor, premium aroma and a smooth, deep flavor.

For those who have gotten used to the offerings at local coffee bars, the sweeter coffees have become extremely popular. Ever had an Amaretto Supreme? This coffee creation is made with almond flavor and almond flavored liqueur. What about Hazlenut Cr?me? This gourmet coffee is known as ‘noisette’ in French, and offers coffee drinkers a nutty flavored and sweet coffee.

If you’re a chocoholic, there are a variety of gourmet coffee flavors that will interest your taste buds, like Ultimate Chocolate and Swiss Chocolate Almond, to name just two. For those who like to make their own, most gourmet coffee brands make at least a dozen or more flavors from French Vanilla to Caramel Cr?me and Southern Pecan and a dozen more. Most gourmet coffee suppliers offer these coffees at moderate prices, so making your own just got easier.

Books for sale in bookstores and those to be found on library shelves teach consumers how to make their own gourmet coffee blends with coffee purchased at supermarkets or ordered online through coffee vendors. Some gourmet coffee blends cost more than others, but most can be had for less than ten dollars for a one to five pound bag, depending on your flavor. Since there’s nothing like the taste of a gourmet coffee once in a while to keep things exciting, many people opt to purchase several different flavors to keep in their homes.

Many people freeze coffee to make it last longer, and most claim that doing so doesn’t alter the taste. Storing coffee in an airtight container will also preserve shelf life. When shopping for gourmet coffee, browse the aisles of your local supermarket first, and if they don’t carry what you want, then try a coffee specialty store. Some coffee shops sell their own special blends of gourmet coffee, as do dozens of online gourmet coffee vendors. No matter what you’re looking for, you’re bound to find a flavor of gourmet coffee that tickles your fancy, guaranteed.

About the Author:

Still looking for the perfect coffee? Try visiting http://www.AllCoffeeSite.com, a website that specializes in providing coffee advice, tips and resources to including information on the gourmet coffee.

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Gourmet coffees, which like fine wine were once a symbol of prestige, are now sold everywhere–fine coffee houses, grocery stores and retail discounts stores. Franchises have been built around the sale of gourmet coffee in the past 20 years and many will allow you to order your cup of gourmet coffee through a drive-thru window.

What caused the increase in popularity of gourmet coffees? Did everyone just decide they need a dash of mint, a hint of vanilla or an ounce of caramel? It is unlikely that the rise in gourmet coffee sales was due only to a change in our taste in coffee.

Marketing and a good product is most likely the reason for the increase in gourmet coffee sales in the past 20 years. It is fashionable to walk around with a coffee cup sipping on the latest gourmet coffee sold at the trendy coffee house.

Many people are introduced to gourmet coffees when they receive a gift set at Christmas or for a special occasion. These gift sets may included a variety of flavored gourmet coffees such as almond, chocolate and Irish cream. The gourmet coffee is often placed in a designer mug that you will most use when you drink your gourmet coffee after it is brewed.

Many convenience stores offer flavored coffees that are marketed as gourmet coffees, along with espresso and cappuccino. While these coffees may taste like they are gourmet, they are usually derived from coffee grounds found on grocery store shelves.

That?s because the real secret to gourmet coffee is not in the flavor, but in the type of coffee bean. Gourmet coffee is composed of Arabica beans, while most canned coffees are made from robusta beans. These Arabica beans will grow in mainly sub-tropical regions. Good weather is important to the growth of these gourmet coffee beans.

Gourmet coffee is often identified by its name and that name can come from a variety of derivatives, include the region where the bean is grown. You may want a cup of Colombian gourmet coffee. This type of gourmet coffee gets its name from the country where it is grown.

But another type of gourmet coffee, French Roast, has nothing to do with France but with how the bean is roasted.

Gourmet coffee has found its way to grocery stores in recent years and you can find a variety of inexpensive gourmet coffees to try at home. Many of the packaged gourmet coffees are paired with a hint of flavor. Favorite gourmet coffee flavors include vanilla, hazelnut, mocha, peppermint, chocolate mine, Irish Cream and caramel to name a few.

Some people like to add more than just cream and sugar to their gourmet coffee. Whipped cream, chocolate chips and fruit juices are popular additions to gourmet coffees.

So when you wake it to your morning cup of java, why not make a cup of gourmet coffee? Try exotic gourmet coffee flavors and add more than cream and sugar. You may find yourself addicted to gourmet coffee.

About the Author:

Still looking for the perfect coffee? Try visiting http://www.AllCoffeeSite.com, a website that specializes in providing coffee advice, tips and resources to including information on gourmet coffee.

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Don’t believe me? Just ask Consumer Reports. In February 2007, a panel of trained testers put a cup of Starbucks up against some STRONG competition: McDonald’s, Dunkin’ Donuts, and Burger King. McDonald’s wins with their Premium Roast being labeled ‘cheapest and best.’ Starbucks finishes dead last after being judged as “strong, but burnt and bitter enough to make your eyes water instead of open.” I guess most expensive doesn’t always mean best.

2. Save money. More than you realize. Really!

On average, a cup at a shop is going to run you about two bucks. Two cups a day, 6 days a week(let’s pretend your religion doesn’t allow you to drink coffee on Sundays) comes to nearly $1250 a year! Now suppose you’re a college kid spending the money from student loans that will accrue interest over the next 20 years. I don’t even want to go there(no one told me about this when I was going to college.) Brew your own and put that 4 bucks a day into a compound interest savings, and you’ll have a balance of over $55,000 by the time you’re 40. Try it out for yourself: www.interestcalculator.turbo-traffic.com

3. Two bucks for a supposedly “TALL” cup of coffee? (and just by what standards do they consider what they serve “TALL”?)

An average pound of gourmet coffee beans runs anywhere from around $10 to about $20. The average home brewer can make around 10 pots of coffee from a single pound of gourmet coffee beans, which in turn should give you around 10 cups of coffee for each pot. That’s 100 6 oz. cups of coffee from one pound of coffee beans. Ok, now what does that mean? Coffee chains are making astounding profits from every pound of beans they roast, grind and sell. Makes you want to go into the coffee business doesn’t it? Ok. So brew at home, and you end up paying about 10 to 25 CENTS per cup of coffee. Brew at home and even the most expensive, rare coffee you can find (such as the Kopi Luwak bean) and it’ll still only cost you under 4 bucks for a 12 oz. cup. (by the way, if you don’t know where Kopi Lowak comes from, I won’t tell you about that now. I don’t want to be the ‘butt’ end of a joke, especially one that will run you around $150-$180 per pound!) This all sounds much better to me, doesn’t it to you, too? And guess what? It will all TASTE MUCH MUCH BETTER!

4. Shouldn’t most people want FRESH coffee?

Coffee bean’s two greatest enemies are air and moisture. How long has that cup of java been sitting there warming before you get it? The only way to know you’re truly getting fresh ground coffee is to buy the beans online where they are roasted and shipped the same day and grind yourself. It is best to buy fresh-roasted gourmet coffee beans in amounts that you will use within 7 to 10 days. I personally recommend grinding only what you need and storing the rest of the whole beans in an airtight container. I used to think storing the remaining coffee beans in the freezer or fridge was best to keep them fresh. I discovered the worst thing for beans is any extreme temperature, or exposure to air, light, moisture or strong odors.

5. Impress your date with your homemade brew!

Ok, coffee may not be the best thing to sip before that first good-night kiss, but the knowledge you can share about how you made the perfect cup of joe can be perfect first date conversation! Imagine what might happen if you tell her that you even roasted your own beans? Just make sure to make a prior investment in a good sugarless gum or mint to follow up the cupping(the coffee tasting…what were you thinking?)

6. It really doesn’t make you cooler than you already are.

Ok. Call me crazy, but do you think that a large portion of those that are hooked on Starbucks could possibly just be hooked on the pretentiousness associated with the whole idea of being a coffee drinker? That might upset a few people, but we’re being honest here, right? Forget what people think and just make your own. Drink what tastes best to you, period. Then, create a fancy label with your logo and slap it on the side of your coffee cup. You’ll be impressed with your own branding. Hey, you own the company, right? And no one has to repeat back to you what you just ordered…unless you just want to stand in the mirror and impress yourself.

7. Grinding, brewing, even roasting your own coffee can be fun.

The investments you make in the beginning in coffee equipment(whatever matches your budget) can last you a lifetime and become quite a great hobby. People LOVE to talk about coffee(especially the Kopi Lowak I’ve found.) Just how much can you go into depth about how they poured and served you that last cup of coffee at Starbucks. That story might last you all of say…30 seconds? Learning about the history of coffee can lead to great conversations with friends, family, or even to share to the world in an article like this!

8. No waiting in line.

The only waiting you’ll be doing is when you’re grinding and brewing. But then, you’ll be grinding and brewing, so that’s not really considered waiting is it?

9. Conserve energy, help fight global warming, and support charities.

Ok, grinding and brewing your own coffee at home probably won’t achieve any of these things, but you should do them anyway. I just wanted to mention that.

10. Did I mention it will TASTE BETTER?

I guarantee it! If you’re not completely amazed with the difference you’ll see between you’re own freshly ground and brewed coffee and the bitter, awful stuff you’ll be exposed to commercially, I will…well, I’ll be really shocked. And sad. And probably feel really bad. But I’d feel worse if I had to start drinking bitter coffee, so now I feel so better again. Really though, I think you’ll be glad you did. I personally recommend trying Kona blend gourmet coffee beans. I absolutely love pure Kona coffee, but it’s a bit expensive, and a Kona blend still gives you a great taste that’s easily affordable. Then pick up the best coffee maker you can afford and enjoy!

William Thompson

Kansas City, MO.

Make My Day Coffee.com

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Tags: Capuccino, specialty coffee, coffee, coffee recipe, coffees

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