One More Secret

I just can't let this blog go. Even though I do not drink coffee, well not as much as I used to, I still think about coffee, and like writing about it. So I thought I would give you guys one more secret. Again, this isn't that big of a deal and it may appear simple, but it is absolutely necessary to the perfect cup of coffee.

The secret is fresh beans. I know it is nice to buy beans in bulk but it simply doesn't work if you store the beans for a long time and then try and make a cup of joe with them. The coffee just tastes nasty. I know, because on Thursday I made some coffee at night and I used the only beans I had and they were about a thousand years old. Consequently the coffee tasted, um, how do you say, NASTY.

So remember if you are planning on having guests over and serve them coffee, consider buying the beans that day, preferably if they have been roasted that day too. This will be a sure way to impress your friends and insure they keep coming over to hang out with you!

Sad

Well some of you may not know this but I have sad news about my coffee habits. Basically it goes like this. About 9 or 10 months ago I started to get heart palpitations. It was crazy and not so fun. I went to the doctor, because I'm always so responsible, and he told me this...

No more caffeine! Actually no more stimulants, such as antihistamines. You know, what's in allergy medication. So I have had to lay of the juice, coffee, and pills. But I cheat all the time and have a cup here and there. I hasn't killed me...yet.

All of this to simply say I don't know how I can keep up on a coffee blog when I don't get to enjoy the witch's brew. And don't tell me about decaf. I drink it because it tastes vaguely like coffee but it is nowhere as good.

So I may have this site dedicated to coffee voyeurism. I watch people enjoy the brew and take photos, post them, and report what a saw. So if you see someone poking around your bushes with a camera don't shoot him for heaven's sake!

S'more Secrets

SJ goaded me into writing another post for RJ Coffee House. She left some nasty comments so I thought I should get on the ball and write another post, even if it ends up being a short one.

I thought I would share another secret to brewing the perfect cup of coffee. It is the grounds to water ratio. This may sound silly to some of you out there but it is absolutely necessary to have the right amount of grounds to water in order to brew the perfect cup.

Some put way too many grounds then add about a thimble full of water and end up with some gnarly java. You all know what I'm talking about. The next problem is similar only in reverse. One bean is ground up and 32 gallons of water are used. Hello that's the bottom of my cup. The coffee should be dark enough so you can't see the bottom of the cup but not so dark that it pulls light from the atmosphere.

So the next time you're brewing coffee for your guests remember to have a propionate ratio of grounds to water and you friends will always feel welcome.

Top 10

Since I did a top 10 of why coffee is better than tea, I thought I would do a top 10 on why tea isn't so bad.

10) Tea does have caffeine.

9) Tea is served hot.

8) Tea can be served cold - and boy is it good!

7) Tea can be made is small portions - per person isn't so bad.

6) Did I mention the caffeine yet?

5) Going to the Ritz and taking high tea is a blast!

4) Tea does go well with cream.

3) Hey, England is pretty cool and they drink tea.

2) Two words: Sweet Tea.

1) It may only take 32 cups to affect you but tea does have...caffeine.

So there you have it, ten reasons why tea isn't so bad. Feel free to add 11, 12...you know the drill. Enjoy.

Perfect Brew

My wife has been giving me a hard time about my 'coffee knowledge' saying, and I quote, "What do you know about coffee?" "Plenty," I respond, "what do you know about teaching?" So we go back a forth, it's fun. But that is not what I'm here to talk about this morning. I want to talk about brewing the perfect cup of coffee.

There are two main ingredients to making the perfect coffee. The first is obvious coffee, the second may be less obvious water. We will start with the first.

Coffee - many today make a big deal about making sure it is whole bean and that you only grind enough for the amount you're making. That is ok advice but it starts before that. You have to find the coffee that you like best. Yes there are different types of coffee out there, crazy I know. There are Latin American beans, Arabian beans, African beans, Asian beans, basically any place that starts with an 'A' has a coffee bean. You have to figure out which is you favorite. This will take time and money but keep at it and enjoy the process. My personal favorite is called Sumatra. I prefer it light roasted but even dark it is better than any other coffee I have tasted. So make sure you have the type of bean you like!

Water - coffee is 99% water. Hot water is what you are drinking when you drink coffee, so why people use the water straight from their tap is a mystery to me. Tap water is full of chlorine and other 'stuff' that needs to be filtered out before making coffee. I suggest either filtering the water or using bottled water. I know what some of you are going to say, 'that is so expensive'. No offense but a flat of water at Costco is $4.49 so I think you can swing it, even if you bought one a week.

So there you have it. Beans and water, that is all you need for the perfect cup of joe. Good luck with finding your favorite beans and remember to keep on brewin'.

First Top 10

I'm not sure if this will become a regular on RJ Coffee House but I was thinking of randomly having a top 10. So for this week's list the subject is why coffee is better than tea. Here we go!

10) We're not British!

9) Coffee tastes better black.

8) Coffee is black - if you can see the bottom of the cup it is not worth drinking.

7) Coffee tastes better with cream.

6) Caffeine - I know what you're going to say 'tea has more caffeine than coffee' yeah I know dummy but that's per pound not per cup!

5) Scones - what the crap is a scone anyway? No real coffee drinker ever eats a scone.

4) Coffee has better nicknames, joe, java, oil, mud...etc what does tea have...that's right - nothin'.

3) Coffee doesn't have a 'time'. It is good any time unlike tea which must be consumed at 'tea time'.

2) Smooth. Coffee is much smoother on the pallet than tea. Tea leaves a bitter aftertaste.

1) And the number one reason - Bitter. Coffee has the perfect bitterness for a hot drink without a nasty bitter aftertaste (unlike tea see #2 above).

I hope you enjoy the first top ten. Remember as you drink your steaming hot cup of joe that you are part of an elite group of hot beverage imbibers and with every sip of that delicious brew you're saying 'down with tea!'

New One

I've started a new blog devoted to the joy of coffee. This site will will give advice on the following, how to brew the perfect cup of coffee, why coffee is better than tea, and even how to do some home roasting. Links and ads will be on the site shortly, but in the mean time it will be simple. So, link me up on your site and visit often, I'll leave the pot on for you.