9.24.2007

Monday


Coffee brewing in a Chemex coffee maker via dogmilque's photostream -- this guy loves coffee.

I love coffee in ways that probably aren’t natural and not just because I’m thoroughly addicted and can’t function in the mornings until my first sip. I genuinely love everything about it -- the taste, the smell, the ritual of pouring that first cup and adding just the right amount of cream and sugar. My father was born and raised in Louisiana (the land of few laws), where it was not only acceptable but commonplace to give young kids a mug of weak café au lait (think a big mug of warm milk with a splash of coffee and sugar for color and taste.) My folks have always been big coffee snobs...I remember them toting around their red bag of Community Coffee for fear of not having access to good coffee (this was before good coffee was ubiquitous, with a Starbucks on every corner.)

The irony of my current situation -- with two small daughters underfoot -- is that I need a great cup of coffee more than ever but have very little time to make one. I lust after stuff like the Chemex coffee maker. Not only it is really beautiful, but it’s supposed to make the perfect cup of coffee. I’m daunted by the precision of the steps required to brew a cup though. How hard is this? Does anyone regularly use one of these??

2 comments:

mominaledo said...

Get a Keurig. They're great! I've given 2 as gifts to fellow coffee addicts.

Michelle DuPuis said...

Hi Joslyn, I came across your blog last night while looking for terrariums so this post is pretty old, but if you're still looking for that perfect cup of coffee I highly recommend the Chemex. I have one that belonged to my grandparents and would NEVER trade it in for an electric coffee maker! It's super easy to use, and only takes about 5 minutes to brew a pot (not including the time it takes to boil water). It's really easy to clean, environmentally friendly (I throw the filter and grounds in my compost pile), and it's so pretty I usually just leave it out on the stove (although it's light enough to put up in the cupboard if I need more room, something I couldn't do with a counter top coffee maker). Plus it makes excellent coffee - always smooth, never bitter, and oh so delicious! In the summer, the iced coffees I make with it beat anything I can get at Starbucks! ;)