The Starbucks Christmas Planner
I don’t know if this promo is being offered in other parts of the world but in the Philippines, Starbucks is currently giving away a Christmas planner – and a nice one, too. The idea is for customers to fill out a special card with stickers – 24 in all. Once the card is full, you can exchange it for the Christmas planner.
So how many cups of coffee do you need to buy to get all 24 stickers? Twelve regular flavors and 12 Christmas blends (of course the latter costs more). On first thought, one might think that this is just a scheme to get more money due to increased sales. This might very well be true. You should see the long lines in all Starbucks branches! Yet if you look at it deeper, you’d realise that more than just a sales ploy, Starbucks is actually giving money to charity from the sales during this period.
They have partnered up with UNICEF and with every planner that you get, a certain amount will be donated to Spark of Hope, a charity that helps out the less privileged children in the Philippines. Not bad, huh?
This activity has actually become a tradition for Starbucks Philippines and its countless customers. It has been going on for several years and though the planner changes every year (or maybe because of that fact), more and more people are getting into it.
So if you are in the area or you know someone from the Philippines, ask them to buy more cups of coffee to get that planner for you.
Vietnamese Coffee
The other week, a friend of mine went to Vietnam for a weekend trip. Every one of my close friends go on trips, I look forward to their coming back because they normally bring presents. Not necessarily big expensive gifts but unique tokens of their destination. This time, she brought us some Vietnamese coffee.
She knows I am crazy about coffee – most any kind of coffee, in fact. When she presented the bag of beans to us, she was all excited about it. She was raving on and on about the aroma and how it would drive us coffeholics crazy. Skeptic me, I just said yes, ok, thank you, I’ll try it later, I’m busy – or something to that effect.
Of course, she couldn’t be stopped and went on to grind the beans. I had a short whiff and I was in love. I have never heard of Vietnamese coffee before then. I didn’t even know that they had a special kind of coffee beans. The smell was awesome - thick and strong yet creamy and sweet at the same time. I believe they call it mocha coffee beans.
The way it is brewed is quite particular as well. They have this tin strainer like things that you place the grinds in. You then need to place some hot water and the cover the tin and wait for the coffee to “brew.” The special thing about Vietnamese coffee is that they use condensed milk instead of sugar. The result is a very sweet and creamy concoction.
In this characteristic lies the coffee’s success and failure at the same time. If you are in the mood for something really sweet then you’d love Vietnamese coffee. On the other hand, if you prefer it black then I suggest you skip it.
As for me, I just had a huge tall glass with lots of ice.
Of Coffee Cups
I love coffee mugs/cups as much as I love coffee. One of my treasured childhood memories was my dad making his cup of coffee when he came home from work in the late afternoon. I would get a whiff of that aroma and get a glimpse of the humongous mug in his hands – I was in love. I was not allowed to drink coffee then, by the way, but those instances planted and nourished the seed within me.
To this day, I cannot go a day without at least a cup of coffee. I have also collected a lot of coffee cups along the way, each one having its own story that makes it all the more special.
I rotate the use of my coffee mugs. Which one I use depends on my mood. If I feel like drinking more than usual, I get my BIG mug. If I feel like reliving my college days, I get this mug that was given to me by a friend. If I am feeling a little classy, I use my Starbucks mug.
Right now, my cup of the moment is this quaint light brown one with “Old Glory” written on it. To be honest, I don’t know exactly why I feel like using it. Maybe because it’s the perfect size – it gives me my morning dose of caffeine. Maybe because the design is just nice to look at. Or maybe it fits my hand perfectly. I don’t know, but I sure love this mug!
Choosing Between Espresso and Infused Coffee Brewing
For the coffee veterans, the manner of preparation of their brewed coffee means a lot. Brewed coffee is entirely different compared to the usual concoction that people consume from the manufactured coffee powder anyone can buy in the nearby stores and supermarkets. Espresso and infusion of quality roasted coffee beans offers a more delightful experience for the top tasting coffee that every coffee addict is looking for.
The beauty of espresso is that aside from it regular preparation, it can be combined with other drink such as latte and cappuccino. Espresso preparation pressures the heated water through the coffee grounds and producing the said espresso brewed coffee drink.
Infusion is where the coffee grounds are saturated with fine water to produce the soluble flavors that brewed coffee preparation has today. Infusion caters more to the standard manner of preparation where coffee maker machines are used to produce the quality coffee drink in most homes and some establishments as demanded by the avid coffee drinker today.
Technorati Tags: espresso, infusion, coffee, coffee preparation
Single Serve Coffeemakers
A friend recently decided to buy herself a coffeemaker. She went out and looked around, then came to me and asked what exactly a single serve coffeemaker is.
She understood that these machines make a single serving of coffee at a time (that’s pretty self explanatory). She just didn’t get why they might be better than those that make more cups of coffee.
Single serve coffeemakers are great because you end up with a fresh brew of coffee with each cup. You make just enough coffee each time that you will actually drink; unlike most drip coffeemakers where you tend to make too much and end up with a lot of bad tasting extra coffee after the brew sat on the hotplate too long.
Single serve coffeemakers are also liked by some because they use pods or K cups. These are prepared coffee measures that fit into a slot on your single serve machine. One drawback though is that these machines can only use one or the other, not both. You are limited to the variety that K cups or coffee pods makes.
If you are interested to get a single serve coffeemaker for yourself, check out the Keurig B60 and the Senseo Single Serve units. The former uses Kcups while the latter uses pods.
Technorati Tags: coffeemaker, kcups, coffee pods, single serve, Senseo, Keurig
Hospitals and Coffee
Ever noticed how during emergencies and stress, coffee is one of the most constant companions. Considering how the caffeine affects some by giving them the shakes (at this point they may have had too much caffeine), the loved ones waiting to hear good news about the patient often turn to a cup of joe to keep them company during the long, cold wait to hear good news.
If you are lucky, they have a coffee vending machine that actually turns out a decent cup. More often than not it is a barely passable facsimile of the brew we all love. Hopefully there will be bottled Frappuccino from Starbucks available.
Often the hospital has a canteen or a cafeteria where you can get a slightly better cup. Often, though, the pot isn’t as fresh as can be. This is usually your basic pot of drip coffee. Most feel that it will do. Don’t complain if that’s all there is right?
If you are going to be at the hospital a while the coffee might need spicing up. A good trick to improve the taste is to keep your favorite add-ons in little packets in your bag (make sure they are tightly sealed packs or bags so that they don’t make a mess in your bag). Cinnamon sticks or a small bottle of nutmeg can perk up your coffee but won’t be too heavy or bulky.
Thankfully your friendly neighborhood cafes are usually near to hospitals nowadays, if not actually in them. Keep an eye out. It might just be on a different floor from where you are. If you are lucky, they may even deliver so you won’t have to leave the side of your loved one even when you crave a cup of joe to steady your nerves.
Technorati Tags: coffee, coffee flavoring, coffee shops
People’s Sexiest Man
Don’t you just love a man with a sense of humor? George Clooney, People magazine’s choice for sexiest man of the year, stars in the ad for Nespresso. It just shows that he truly hasn’t let the title go to his head since he can poke fun at himself and point us in the direction of good coffee at the same time.
The ad called The Boutique has the Oscar wining actor overhearing two ladies chat about their favorite “dark, intense body”. He mistakenly thinks they are talking about him. Sorry, handsome, they meant the coffee.
Nespresso UK’s managing director, Brema Drohan, was very pleased that George Clooney chose to take part in their ad campaign. He says that George Clooney was perfect for the role. He has that air of sophistication and style that their coffee has.
George Clooney says that he is indeed a coffee lover. He informed his Nespresso bosses that he has Nespresso coffee machines in his US and Italy homes. It is always good when a person endorses something that they themselves actually own and use.
There’s no need to wait though to find out if Nespresso is the coffee machine for you. They’ve been in business for 20 years and yes, they do make some great coffeemakers. Check out the Nespresso Le Cube. It has nice,simple, clean lines that are perfect for any kitchen. They do make great gifts for your family and friends who love espresso. Do note that it uses coffee capsules though. For more information you can visit their website.
The ad is set to air at the end of this month in the UK, specifically on November 27, 2006. Enjoy the ad…(and your Nespresso).
Technorati Tags: coffee, coffeemakers, ads, George Clooney, Nespresso
Making Friendships Brew
So, how do you make Turkish coffee? First make sure you have an ibrik or Turkish coffee maker. These are available online if you can’t find them in your local stores.Next, grind your coffee beans fine. You want to have it become so fine it is almost powdery. Grinding just before you use the beans also guarantees its freshness which is another reason why Turkish coffee is so delicious.
If you want to add a sweetener, it is best to get something that is easily dissolved. Turkish coffee has 4 degrees of sweetness: sade is coffee - black, az sekerli contains about half a levelled teaspoon of sugar per cup, orta sekerli has one levelled teaspoon of sugar per cup and cok sekerli is the sweetest with 1 1/2 to 2 levelled teaspoons of sweetener per cup.
Fill your ibrik in this order sugar first. The water is poured next. Some coffee lovers recommend using cold coffee. Then pour the coffee on top. All the measurements are on a per cup basis. You can use the fin can or Turkish coffee cup to measure the water into the ibrik, just make sure it only goes as high as the base of the neck of your coffee maker. You put about 1 to 2 heaped teaspoons of coffee per cup.
Put the ibrik on your heat source - yes your stove will - on low heat. You should leave it on until the brew rises but should not overflow. Make sure that you see only froth and no boiling water. If the water is boiling you used too little coffee and the brew is ruined.. Once the brew settles, put it back on the heat. The third time the brew froths up, it is ready to be served.
By the way, don’t stir it! Read the next post to find out why.
Technorati Tags: coffee, Turkey, coffee preparation, turkish coffee
Turkish Coffee
Have you tried Turkish coffee? Its very name sounds so exotic. You’ve probably heard of it yet haven’t tried it. It isn’t exactly carried in your friendly neighborhood Starbucks or Gloria Jean’s.
Coffee has been part of the rituals of Turkish Society since the time of the Ottoman empire. Women were expected to learn how to make coffee well as the taste of her coffee could help determine whether she would be chosen as a prospective wife. Though most of the rituals are no longer used today, coffee is still very much integrated into the culture of Turkey.
Turkish coffee is not made using the drip coffeemakers we are familiar with. For this you need a Turkish coffee maker which they call an “ibrik “. It may also be called “briki”, “toorka”,”cezve”,”jezve” or “mbiki”. Usually they come in an 8oz or 12oz size.
Next, you need coffee. As always the freshest beans are best; preferably a medium roast. In Turkey, they traditionally use Arabica beans but feel free to try other beans.
The beans are then ground very fine. Don’t worry if you don’t have a
Turkish Coffee Grinder or “kahve degirmeni” at home. You can use the grinder you have. Just set it to grinding as fine as it can for you to almost a powder.
There’s more to making Turkish coffee so read the next post. Here’s a point of interest for you coffee lovers out there: Once Turkish coffee is poured it is not meant to be stirred. So no need to think about spoons.
Technorati Tags: coffee, Turkey, turkish coffee, coffeemaker
Flavored Creamers
What goes into your coffee? Do you take it as black as you can get it? Are you among those who believe that adding anything to your cup of joe detracts from the cup? Quite a number of people will agree with you. To really taste the goodness of the beans, the it needs to be pure says our coffee cuppers. For the rest of us though, a good cup may not just be about the bean.
In all things it is great to have variety. This is the basic principle that makes the consumer industry rich. They know that we like some amount of variety, even if it is as simple as adding sugar and some milk to our brew.
So what else goes into your cup with your favorite brew? Most would say non-dairy creamer would definitely be one. Many people have fallen for the tag line that says milk is not for coffee. So they choose to purchase products like Coffee-Mate.
Others want a bit more spice to their coffee. Nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla are favorite add ons. As are other nuts such as almonds, macademia and yes, chocolate.
You could buy some ready made creamer in your favorite stores. On the other hand you could pamper yourself and make your own. Here are some simple recipes to make your regular cup something new with just a little effort.
The base of these flavored creamers is:
3/4 cup of non-dairy coffee cream (powdered)
3/4 cup of confectionaires sugar (you may want to sift this before measuring)
Then add the flavoring:
To make
Amaretto: add 1 tsp of almond extract and 1 tsp of ground cinnamon
Mocha: add 2 Tbsp of cocoa powder and use granulated sugar instead of confectionairs
Spiced Cream: add 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp allspice
Whichever you choose place all the ingredients in a blender and mix well then store it in an airtight container. Enjoy!
Technorati Tags: coffee, cream, flavor, do it yourself, recipe
