Yes, I know - I'm always taking too long between posts.

I am getting ready for a trip to Israel, hoping the coffee on the trip will not be too bad. Is that a sign that I think about coffee too much? I have laid out all of this money for the best tour with the best accommodations and my big worry is the coffee over there?

I supposed I could always send out to Turkey for some good coffee - did I ever blog about my trip to the Turkish embassy in NYC? Probably not. The group I was with almost had to drag me out at the end because I wanted to drink more of the coffee. Yum :)

So where was I... Oh yes, rambling about my trip. So of course I do not want to waste any coffee. That being said I have finished off all of the coffee in the house and needed to pick up just a little bit to get me through the next few days. So off I go this morning to my favorite coffee roaster, Georgio. I was going to just grab a quick quarter pound of beans of one of my favorite blends, but he had a bean on the menu that I had not seen or tried yet: Ethiopian Cup of Excellence. This one just came in recently and he expects to be out of it quickly, so I grabbed a quarter pound.

I am sipping it as I type this. It is nice, a bit mellower than what I normally drink, especially in the morning, but it has a nice undertone to it - a hint of deep earthy richness that just kind of sits in the background and lets you know it is there without being the primary flavor or texture of the coffee. I think I like it. I also think I had better not fall in love with it, since by the time I am back in the US in September I expect it to be long gone.

Long Island Press ran a great seven page story this week about coffee, entitles Everything You Know About Coffee is Wrong. You should read it - good stuff. Bad Long Islanders. Learn about coffee!

Coffee for a party?

I was at my local coffee shop discussing a partyu that I have coming up in a few weeks. That led to a conversation of what type of coffee to serve and how much to make?

What I was told was that Columbian is always a good choice. However, I think I will disagree in this case. This particular event is a brunch that will begin around 1 pm. Knowing many of the people there, I think that perhaps a blend will be the way to go this time.

The blend I am thinking about is one that I have mentioned in a previous post: Georgio's Testarossa blend. However I do believe that the numbers are correct: 1 pound of coffee for every 35 people invited.

What I am going to do is have bags pre-ground for the party for 50- and 100-cup pots. Not too pre-ground though. We always want our coffee to be nice and fresh!

My daughter discovers coffee

My daughter is a Junior in High School. She has been around coffee all her life, but only recently has she learned to appreciate it - much to the chagrin of my wife.

Our house has a order to it in the morning in which each person wakes up, gets ready then goes downstairs. There is some overlap, but generally my wife (last) gets down just as my daughter (first) is going to school or just afterwards. The order is: Daughter (5:30), Son (6:00), me (6:15), wife (6:45). Each of those changes a bit, but that is roughly it. My daughter leaves for school at 6:45, so the wife-daughter connection does not happen every morning.

This morning it did, but my daughter had gotten up ealry to cram in some studying for today's AP exam, so coffee was made early and she had more than usual. I had my morning cup and sat down to check email and watch the news. After my daughter had left my wife went to pour her coffee and there was only a half cup left.

I am so glad I will not be home when they see each other this afternoon!

A tasting!

I was lucky enough to attend a coffee tasting recently at Georgio's Coffee. I cannot begin to tell you how fun and informative this is. I cannot begin to describe how awake I was for the next 24 hours as well from all of the caffeine!

We started with 3 coffees, each coarsely ground in cups and then added hot water. stir and sit for 4 mins. taste. Wow! This is apparently how coffee is tasted when the buyers go down to decide which one they want 100 pounds of. Every feature of the coffee is magnified. The African (Ethiopian) has a distinct flavor of lemon. The brazillian had little taste and the Columbian was just wonderful. you could tell it would make a great cup of coffee.

When then had some brewed Columbian, then the real treat. A cup of Rwanda Kabuye "Cup Of Excellence". This coffee sells for $40/lb and I can see why. If I had money to throw away, as many families in our area do, I would have bought 10 pounds of the stuff.

But alas, I am on a budget and for the free pounnd allowance my wife and I got a pound of Peaberry Bourbon and Georgio's great Testarossa blend.

If you ever get to go to a tasting, be sure to go!

...and if you are wondering, I do not work for Georgio, nor do I get paid by him. I just love his coffees!