So A Midnight Rider kind of poked at my coffee obsession in the comments of one of my recent posts. I got a chuckle out of it, then I had an epiphany. I really am a coffee nerd. Every day, I grind up some coffee beans to take to work (in a good conical burr grinder, not one of those $5 food-processor-wannabe grinders), I measure the grinds as I scoop them into my stainless steel press, add water that's darn near boiling, stir it, wait a few minutes, then press it, inhaling the dark aroma as I pour it into a ceramic chalice. Then, I imbibe the warm, strong, tasty goodness that is a proper cup of coffee. I even recycle my coffee grounds and give them to the lady who takes care of the plants around the office. They make a great soil additive for certain types of plants.The other thing I love just as much as coffee is good, old-fashioned water. I'm not terribly picky where it comes from, and I usually drink cold tap water that's been poured into a mass-marketed bottled-water bottle. I found that the 24oz Dasani bottles actually have a perfect little ridge cut out on them to fit just right in most bike bottle cages. They last quite a while, too. So if you've wondered why many pictures of my bikes show a bottle or two of Dasani, I'm not hooked on spending more per gallon of water than most people spend on a gallon of Gasoline, I just like the bottles. This is an old picture, but it shows the shape of the bottle.
This morning's commute was just a little below freezing and I couldn't find my gloves. A t-shirt under my windbreaker was more than enough warmth, though. I'm ready for spring! As you can imagine from my early-morning post, I didn't get much sleep. No matter, though. Sleep is a weakling's substitute for coffee!
I'm right there with you dude. I start every day with a home-made mocha latte (using Lavazza Gold ... which is becoming more and more difficult to find) and top of my water bottles with water from the Britta pitcher.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! That's the stuff we used back when I was working at Kozoru. I'd usually kick the day off with an Americano. I love straight espresso but if I just want something to sip on while I warm up to the work day, an Americano's the only thing that trumps a good steaming cup of French pressed coffee. I like Mocha as well, but I never mastered it and I don't have an espresso machine at home.
ReplyDeleteI am very disappointed if I cannot have an expresso after dinner in a restaurant. It's a great substiute for desert.
ReplyDeleteMy morning coffee is Gevalia coffees
The roasted brands are a favorite. Especially the French roast. I have thought about the expresso roast but....... I dunno, it seems odd.
Of course we stand well on tap water here, as KC is rated to have some of the cleanest tap water in the country. Going by the actual regulations of bottled water, the tap water you drink might actually be cleaner.
ReplyDeleteHow can you tolerate that freezing weather on a bike? I'm down here in Houston and when the weather gets down in the upper 50's it's curtains for me.. How about a blog of pointers on you cold weather gear?
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ReplyDeleteI posted my cold-weather stuff back in january ago. Here you go:
ReplyDeletehttp://kc-bike.blogspot.com/2007/01/how-i-stay-warm.html