Let's go back to 1974 - May to be precise. I had just begun dating Jeff and as an adult of 25, had never had a cup of coffee. To be sure I could doctor my Dad's coffee exactly how he liked it - a bit of cream and "99 grains" of sugar! Dad would never have asked for anything as exacting as a teaspoon of sugar. No only he and I referred to the "teaspoon" of sugar I put in his cup as just 99 grains.
Oh back to May of '74, and dating Jeff. He told me one night before visiting friends that had I noticed that when offered a drink after dinner, the offer was for a cup of coffee - not for a cup of tea. I was thinking to myself - and your point? Oh and he had one two other thoughts about coffee: (1) first you need to learn to drink coffee; and (2) you need to drink it black. He assured me that nobody wanted to have to drag out milk or creamer and/or sugar. So I went into training - coffee drinking. My first cup of black coffee was disgusting. All I could think of was why do so many people drink this tar like concoction and they do it willing - and every day! Ick. But not one to give up, I soldered on. Pretty soon I was not having any trouble downing my first cup in the morning, followed by multiple ones throughout the day. Basically, it came down to this: I could at that point literally drink Jeff under the table when it came to coffee! Frankly, I believe I still can - though it's in no way a competition - much.
In this morning's paper I was delighted to see a huge article in the Food Section all about coffee, and the myriad of devices out there to help you brew your morning cup. Some of these new devices look like they might have come from outer space and their prices are really deal breakers - at least for me.
I don't know if you remember but there was a time when every home had a little aluminum coffeepot that you used on your stove. It looked something like this:
After the Corning Ware coffee pot, I know that my parents went through a lot of different coffee pots and eventually coffee was no boiled coffee on the stove. Eventually electricity came to the lowly coffee pot and we Americans have never looked back. There was a time when it seemed like every household owned a Mister Coffee, or something similar..
But now we've gone high tech with our coffee drinking. After putting up with numerous coffee makers over the years, emptying the grounds, grinding the beans, etc., I finally encouraged (okay maybe I begged) the other half to consider the Keurig machine. One cup at a time - no grounds, no grinding. Just cute little cups (though terribly pricey) that made one cup at a time and any flavor you wanted. I love my Keurig and the taste of freshly brewed coffee each and every time. Coffee done - drop your little K cup into the trash, no fuss and no muss. Perfect.
So with a full page article about coffee making devices in the paper today, I had to check out what I might be missing - turns out not much. There are several little devices, all relatively cheap, that make one cup at a time, but with one device you have to use specific filters (when something needs "specific" anything, then it's been my experience that adds up to $$). Another one requires that the user needs to learn water pouring techniques (seriously?) and again those specific filters. Another one doesn't require any special pouring skills (thank goodness) but you can't put it in the dishwasher and it stains.
The priciest one, starting at $279 and requires no special pouring skills. It makes good coffee but takes up a lot of counter space (bummer), the decanter is breakable and has more equipment to clean than other devices. Where do I sign up to buy such a "wonderful" gadget?
Trust me there were other coffee makers mentioned in the article and some of them looked like they were from outer space. Bottom line: they all make coffee. Just depends on how much fuss and muss you're willing put up with and whether you believe that the more expensive the equipment is, the better the coffee. Ultimately, we know that's not true. And, I have never once been asked by anyone what kind of coffee pot (maker or whatever you want to call it), I use. Folks just aren't that interested - all they want is a cup of coffee - and there are any number of devices out there that can do just that.
Speaking of coffee, my cup is empty and it's time to get out of the chair and go do something!
P
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