Life's too short ...

... to drink instant coffee

This is my philosophy, and I'm sticking to it. Call me a coffee snob if you will, but when you drink as much coffee as I do (who? me? an addict? I can give it up any time!!) you really don't want to waste your time or tastebuds on the floor sweepings that are usually passed off as instant coffee.

For quite a long time I have consumed only plunger coffee at home, and the only instant coffee I have in the house is the jar of Nescafe I bought when my parents came to visit about 3 years ago, because my Dad prefers the pretend stuff to the real stuff. (I think it is all solidified and even more disgusting now than when I bought it).

I have a friend in Tassie who is quite earnest in his quest for a good cup of coffee. He can't drink a lot of coffee, because too much gives him migraines, so he is determined that what he DOES drink will be good. He has been singing the praises of his little stove-top espresso machine (picked up for a bargain price). And of course, he has to grind his own (with a hand grinder... none of this electric business!).

He has been suggesting to me for quite some time (actually, ever since he stayed at my place on a visit to Melb a few months ago) that I should lash out and get a stove top device... "the coffee is so much better than with a plunger" he says.

Well, yesterday, I was tempted. I suspect that my capacity for critical appraisal was minimised due to the high I was on after my session with my Spiritual Director. I had a coffee in my favourite Kew cafe, and en route to the rather nice gourmet supermarket (just for a browse, mind you!) I happened to wander, absent-mindedly, into the little homewares shop between the two.

And there I saw it:

A gleaming metal stove-top espresso machine... going cheap... virtually screaming at me to buy it! (ooh! shiny!)

Of course, I did the responsible thing, and (considering that I already have 3 plungers and a dripolator) told the sales woman that I needed to think seriously about whether I really needed it... knowing full well that after my excursion to the supermarket, I would be back there like a shot to buy the gizmo. (sigh... I am so predictable!)

After getting it home and putting it though its paces (just a few times since yesterday afternoon), I think I agree with Mike, that the coffee does in fact taste better. One consolation is that it certainly makes the coffee stronger, so that means to get my desired strength, I don't need to use as much coffee as I do in the plunger...

Can I use that as justification? The stove top machine will really save me money, because I don't use as much coffee- it will pay for itself in no time!

Oh well, perhaps if I repeat that mantra often enough, I'll start to believe it :-)

This now creates a bit of a dilemma. I have another friend who is quite a tea buff, and has embarked upon a project to attempt to educate me in the art of tea appreciation. I think he suspected from the start that he would have his work cut out for him with such a hardcore coffee head as myself... but now the degree of difficulty of his task has just increased. I hope he's up to the challenge! :-)