OLD SCHOOL COFFEE

Some technology makes things faster and more convenient, but not necessarily better. When trying to satisfy your taste buds, especially early in the morning, sometimes you just have to do it the old fashioned way. With American coffee, drip just doesn't cut it. At a young age my parents ruined any possibility of me ever purchasing a drip machine. As a youngster my favorite breakfast was coffee dunk, a speciality of my father's. Its simple, buttery toast is dunked into light sweetened coffee and milk and slurped down your throat. I could go for some now. Coffee in our home was always brewed in a camping style tin-looking percolator. Percolated coffee is stronger, richer and fuller bodied than drip, which in most cases tends to be watery and less flavorful. I admit, I have had great drip coffee, like the Raven's Brew Janet makes when we visit Alaska. But the best drip never compares to good percolated coffee. Most drip drinkers agree. Damn my parents! I love when we visit Alaska and wake up to fresh coffee that started brewing while we were still warm under the covers because of the little bit of genius called a self-timer. But I can't have a self-timer, I have to start my coffee shivering and puffy eyed over the stove. And the real slap in the face is when the percolator has not been washed from the day before and I have to hand wash the five separate parts first with the cats clawing at my ankles for food. But its worth it, because it just tastes better. 

The coffee pictured is "Snickers" coffee (yeah, thats right!) brewed by the Hamptons Coffee Company. The chocolate caramel aroma of this coffee is almost as satisfying as enjoying a cup of it.