coffee's newest convert
Would you believe that I've made it the ripe old age of 38 without ever being a regular coffee drinker? Well, that's about to change.
I've been finding this semester particularly challenging so I've taken to drinking coffee a few mornings per week, and am so amazed by the boost of energy I've gotten from it that I have now actually invested in a coffee maker of my very own, so I can have a caffeine rush every morning. And not just any ordinary coffee maker either, but a cold brew system, which I must say is rather a bit more work than I had originally been imagining (you use a pound of coffee at a time, which requires multiple grinding sessions, but supposedly the end product is a concentrate that yields 32 six-ounce cups of coffee, and that ought to last me a few weeks).
I splurged and bought a pound of a "Boulder blend" whole beans, but from what I understand the cold brew system works just as well with store bought ground coffee, which would've reduced some of the work involved. But the overall concept is still quite strange, of pouring cold water on top of a pound of ground coffee and letting it sit overnight, and then draining the end product into a small glass decanter which can then be kept in the refrigerator. To make a cup of coffee you mix one part of the concentrate with three parts hot water (or cold water or milk for iced coffee).
I was originally attracted to the idea because of the promise of less acidity, which is good for those of us with delicate stomachs. That is the main claim to fame promoted on the packaging materials for the cold brew system. But once I was half way through the process of starting my first batch I came across some fine print in the manual that suggested, as though this was another benefit, that this kind of coffee also has less caffeine. That of course stopped me in my tracks, as caffeine is the whole point of the enterprise. Does this then mean that I'll have to drink twice as much cold brewed coffee (which means twice the amount of milk and sugar) just to get the same benefit I'd get from a regular cup of hot brewed coffee? If so, then what's the point?! It's not as though I drink coffee because I like the taste; I just want the buzz. Well, OK, so I like the taste a little bit, but I sure dont need to be taking in extra sugar.
I'll be able to test the results of my first experiment around 10am tomorrow. Hopefully it's all it's cracked up to be, and gives me a decent caffeine boost to boot.
I've been finding this semester particularly challenging so I've taken to drinking coffee a few mornings per week, and am so amazed by the boost of energy I've gotten from it that I have now actually invested in a coffee maker of my very own, so I can have a caffeine rush every morning. And not just any ordinary coffee maker either, but a cold brew system, which I must say is rather a bit more work than I had originally been imagining (you use a pound of coffee at a time, which requires multiple grinding sessions, but supposedly the end product is a concentrate that yields 32 six-ounce cups of coffee, and that ought to last me a few weeks).
I splurged and bought a pound of a "Boulder blend" whole beans, but from what I understand the cold brew system works just as well with store bought ground coffee, which would've reduced some of the work involved. But the overall concept is still quite strange, of pouring cold water on top of a pound of ground coffee and letting it sit overnight, and then draining the end product into a small glass decanter which can then be kept in the refrigerator. To make a cup of coffee you mix one part of the concentrate with three parts hot water (or cold water or milk for iced coffee).
I was originally attracted to the idea because of the promise of less acidity, which is good for those of us with delicate stomachs. That is the main claim to fame promoted on the packaging materials for the cold brew system. But once I was half way through the process of starting my first batch I came across some fine print in the manual that suggested, as though this was another benefit, that this kind of coffee also has less caffeine. That of course stopped me in my tracks, as caffeine is the whole point of the enterprise. Does this then mean that I'll have to drink twice as much cold brewed coffee (which means twice the amount of milk and sugar) just to get the same benefit I'd get from a regular cup of hot brewed coffee? If so, then what's the point?! It's not as though I drink coffee because I like the taste; I just want the buzz. Well, OK, so I like the taste a little bit, but I sure dont need to be taking in extra sugar.
I'll be able to test the results of my first experiment around 10am tomorrow. Hopefully it's all it's cracked up to be, and gives me a decent caffeine boost to boot.