Got to love the bean juice (re-post from the tumblr archives)

Over the course of the last 10-15 years I have been on a bit of a coffee journey. I started out drinking things that by my current standards might not even be considered real coffee. Along the way I experimented with grinding my own coffee, but I never took full advantage of the process because I used a pretty inferior drip brewer.

I have experienced everything from bargain basement blends of pre-ground coffee all the way up to fancy imported whole bean roasts. In order to make the coffee more palatable I usually had “a little coffee with my cream & sugar.”

[Note: I stopped over-using cream and sweetener in my cup over the years as my coffee choices got better and better. I continue to use some ( I am not a black coffee type of guy), but far less than my coffee early years.]

A few years ago I was fortunate enough to get a Keurig K-Cup coffee machine at a ridiculously low price. After some initial experimenting I settled in on the Newman’s Own Special Organic Extra Bold K-cups. If you are in the market for a bold, rich, cup of coffee out of the K-cup system then I highly recommend that you give it a try.

Around the same time that I got the Keurig however, I began hearing about the Aerobie AeroPress from a friend in New York. It is a singe cup brewer that… well rather than trying to explain it just watch this:

I was intrigued by the device and by the reports I was hearing about how delicious the coffee made with it was, but it wasn’t until this past Christmas that I received one of my own.

Even though it looks like a weird bit of medical equipment or something, the AreoPress allows you to brew a small amount of any coffee. Which means you don’t have to buy really expensive K-cups. The coffee is extremely rich and full flavored because you fully immerse the coffee in the water rather than relying on a disproportionate drip machine that over-extracts some parts of the coffee, while under-extracting others.

You can also use a lower water temperature than a standard drip brew or French press, which leads to a less bitter cup of coffee. The AreoPress is phenomenal and it has led me to dig out my old blade coffee grinder and try different beans. I can tell you that with the AeroPress (as mentioned in the video) you really taste a big difference from one blend or roast to the next.

I have also noticed that pre-ground coffee goes stale really fast. So here on out I will be buying whole bean only. I am currently drinking Rwanda by Westrock Coffee. It is not only terrific, but the company is doing a lot of good in Africa to boot.

Whenever I hear someone sharply say “I hate coffee,” I wonder if all they have had is Folgers Instant or coffee from a McDonalds Drive-Thru. It may not be for everybody, but all coffee is not created equal and when its roasted, ground, and brewed correctly it is a very complex and delicious drink. Got to love the Bean Juice!