Coffee
For me, most days commence with a delicious cup of home-made coffee first thing in the morning.
I don’t even remember when I first started drinking coffee but I do remember the first time I had a real coffee.
I was about twelve years of age and my family were travelling through central New South Wales on a holiday. My mother had always been especially keen on cappuccinos (she still is). As we pulled into one of those roadhouse cafés in a small town to buy petrol and have a snack, I asked my parents if I too could have a cappuccino. To my surprise, my parents agreed and before I knew it I was scooping chocolate-dusted froth off the top of my own ‘chino.
I am unsure how my parents thought I might respond to this novel drink, but I took an instant liking. Perhaps that shouldn’t have been a surprise because my favourite flavour of Big M had been “iced coffee” since I could remember. As the years progressed, I started drinking Moccona ‘Indulgence’ instant coffee (Nescafé never impressed) before finally buying a coffee machine when I started working a decade ago. I’ve never looked back.
These days I generally have one drink a day, always for breakfast and occasionally a second with lunch.
Despite the popularity of coffee in Melbourne, I’m no coffee snob. I do prefer espresso and am fortunate to have a modest coffee machine at home but I don’t mind which brand of coffee I put into it (I like Illy but tend to buy Lavazza or Vittoria). Making a fresh coffee each morning is a part of my daily routine.
For those who like good coffee, the economics of making one’s own are very good. I have calculated that mine cost less than a quarter of the price of a shop-bought coffee and generally taste just as good in the opinion of this non-connoisseur.
One point of debate I have had with friends is whether one should add sugar to coffee. I find the bitterness of coffee without sugar a bit much to bear, so I add a single teaspoon of white sugar to mine.
Some people are masters of coffee art but sadly I am not one of those. One day I might be able to create a fern leaf (rosetta) but for now, my unadorned coffee shall suffice. To compliment a breakfast coffee, I enjoy a couple of slices of raisin toast, generously buttered. If it’s the weekend or I am feeling decadent, smoked salmon with cream cheese and baby capers on toast ensures a good day ahead.
Bon appétit!
Comments
One response to “Coffee”
A most evocative blog indeed. I can almost smell that wonderful aroma of a freshly brewed cappuccino. I have not the luxury of a coffee machine, but I have a close friend who does and I have enjoyed a cup of delicious cappuccino on more than one occasion. My first taste of a ‘new’ type of coffee was back in the fifties, when cappuccino was something different. I was immediately impressed, and have enjoyed the pleasant, and comforting experience of sitting, along with many others, taking time over a very hot cappuccino—no sugar though, I think sugar spoils the taste.