Home Brew

And I don't mean beer. Although, while we're (sorta) on the subject, I want to mention some of the best beer I've ever tried is my father's home brew.

Now that we've got that out of the way, the subject of this post is actually about what kind of coffee I make at home.

I'm a fan of darker roasts. Not the Starbucks style, "Burnt until all you taste is carbon" dark, but dark as is "We've roasted these bad boys until they've surrendered all their flavor." Light roasts are a lil too subtle for me, and as a rule they aren't my favorite.

Not too long ago, I was drinking the 100% Columbian variety from Folger's Coffee House Series. It was dark, it was flavorful. I liked it. Then, one day, my girlfriend was at the store buying coffee for me, and called to say, "Hey, they have this dark roast stuff called Black Silk that's cheaper. Want that?"

And lordy, what a great suggestion it was. It's not only a darker roast than the Columbian, but it's got a much more bold flavor. It really reaches out and smacks me in the face from the first sip to the last, and man what a delicious smell...

In short, I'd go out and try some of this stuff. It's really worth a taste, if you like dark roasts.

McDonalds McCafe

Not long ago, I was heading into an early shift at the pizza place I deliver for. It was inconvenient for me to stop anywhere but...McDonalds.

Now, when I first heard that McDonalds was coming out with espresso products, I scoffed. This McCafe nonsense was going to be just another half-assed attempt to draw in Starbucks and Dunkin' Donuts customers.

I discovered, while sipping on a hot mocha, that while it was definitely an attempt to get a cut of the coffee house market...it was NOT half assed. The mocha was easily as good as anything I'd gotten at Starbucks. At least, since Starbucks went automatic.

While the two and a half buck price tag is a lil higher than what I usually go to Micky D's for (I mean, c'mon...$1 double cheesebuger, $1 fry, and a dollar Sundae makes a GREAT lunch) it's infinitely cheaper, and faster, than getting the same product from Starbucks.

And for the record, I've also tried their lattes (and if you like their flavored iced coffees, you'll like the flavored lattes) so I know it's not just mocha syrup covering bad coffee. It's not GREAT coffee...but it's very solid, especially for the price.

Changes...

So...that second job I mentioned took more time than I realized. And it was set up in such a way that I just...couldn't make it work, without changing my schedule. And once I changed my schedule, it took a while to get adjusted...which I dunno if I really am...but...

Excuses, y'know. But the point is, I'm back. And ready to try again. But with a twist...

I'm not so sure about this coffee shop thing as an immediate goal. Maybe some day, but as my next career move? Nah uh. No thanks.

So...does that mean I like coffee, or coffee shops, or coffee paraphanelia less? Absolutely not.

I'm still in search of the right blend...but just reasonably sure it won't be my own for the next few years.

So watch this space for more coffee loving stuff, including

• Coffee shop reviews!
• Coffee drink recipes!
• Coffee blend reviews!
• Coffee fiction! (?)
• Coffee tool tips!
• and probably more...