Wednesday, May 20, 2009

corner view wisconsin:: coffee


The corner view this week is coffee. I love coffee - I could sniff beans all day long. That said, about two months ago I 'gave up' coffee. I was a few pots of espresso a day person, who was still exhausted and easily irritated. Ahem.


My acupuncturist along with a bazillion other people recommended that I stop the coffee to see if it would help with a few things. So I did. And it did. And I've spent the past two months drinking green tea. Now, I'm not a cookie monster kind of coffee drinker...you know what I mean, if you even so much as MENTION coffee I go berzerk and rush down the road ripping cardboard cups out of peoples hands shrieking must consume coffee NOW. Not that bad. So yes, I have had a coffee here and there since I 'quit'.

I must out myself now, then. My husband and I are not really average coffee drinkers here in the US. First, we prefer to buy fair trade coffee (better for people). Shade grown is good (preserves habitat). Organic is nice (better for everything). Local roaster is wonderful (good for community). For me, the darker the roast the better. We drink it with either fresh milk we pick up weekly from a local farm, or, as a special treat, hemp milk. I do love the blackest espresso without anything in it but a bit of cane sugar. Mmmmm. My husband even has what I call his 'whizzy whizzer' (oh, but he refers to it as a MILK FROTHER...uh, whatever Mr. Whizzy Whizzer! ;)) Coffee is definitely something to be savored and enjoyed in this house, no matter what you use to make it.


Most people around Madison are perfectly happy with whatever comes in a cardboard or styrofoam cup at a fast food drive through, or that they brew at home using one pot insta-bags of coffee that comes in a can. To each their own! Of course we do have lots of chain coffee joints, local chains, and many wonderful local cafe's serving coffee from local roasters, and there are indeed many people in my city who wouldn't miss their morning cup at that local cafe for the world...and I love hanging out at a cafe with my family, puttering a morning away.

Jane at Spain Daily had a great idea to answer some questions this time around too, so we can find out more about all of these diverse cultures around the world.



How do you say, "two coffees with milk" in your corner? Hey, it´s up there with "please," "thank you," and "toilet?" (Or in your dream vacation spot.)

Um. Two coffees with milk.

What are the most popular ways to drink coffee?

I think most people around here like coffee with cream and sugar. Frou frou is the double shot iced skim no whip with energy mocha. raw sugar, please.

How do you take your coffee?

See above.

French press, percolator, espresso, or other?

I have a french press. I have an espresso maker.

Are you a dunker?

Oooh.

What was the funniest topic of conversation over a recent cup of coffee?

Looong story (involving the whizzy whizzer, of course).


(Dunker = to dip (bread or other food) into a drink before eating it.)

Visit the Corner View around the world::

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad, caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t.,jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, dongdong, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, jenna, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, virgina, april, rebecca, b, sunnymama, kyndale, samantha, karen, kristina, angelina, dorit, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, nicki, ruth, mcgillicutty

18 comments:

Beth H said...

We drink our coffee with milk...and a little sugar. AND it's organic, fair trade (sometimes a shade grown variety) roasted just outside of KOHLER WI!!!!!! You have to try it. The company is owned by my brother in law's family and is called Torke Coffee...their Organic variety is a private label named Weeden Creek. It is so good...we actually sell it here in FL to our co-op members.
By the way, we love your blog and continue to get our little dose of WI with every post.

Sam said...

It's 6pm and I just read your post. I can almost smell the coffee beans from your beautiful photos. I love my coffee, and have tried on occasion to give it up, you must share your insight as to how you gave it up.

Your coffee looks like heaven to me :)

Carrie said...

How wonderfully written.I love my coffee. I wish I could drink more of it, but an ulcer rudely makes me aware that I should limit my intake. Espresso.. my favorite.. I think I am more of a fru fru type coffee drinker. I'm so glad I am reading your blog again... you always make me smile.

PS.. I'm a dunker too. ;~)

Palmer and Co said...

Ha! Love this... too funny!

Happy Day to you!

...Lisa

Michelle said...

Okay, this is too funny. I stopped coffee 6 years ago due to some estrogen dominance problems. I then started to only drink green tea. In the past 3 months I have begun to drink coffee again. Dark, organic, shade grown, fair trade. No sugar or milk (which I used both of before I quit). And I love it black. But, now I have some of the same problems I had before. Aghhh!

epe said...

great post! thank you for sharing!

Heaven said...

Mmmmmm coffee. Love fair trade. I have a Kitchen Aid perc, a vintage milta drip in avacodo from the 70s, a glass stove top perc from the 70s but my fav is my stainless french press. Okay, so I'm just slightly obessed.

Here in Canada there is a coffee obsession the average Joe heads to the local Tim Horton's drive through on their way to work and they typically order a "Double, Double" - two cream, two sugar.

Heaven said...

Oh and I will pick up some hemp milk the next time I'm out. Great idea!

tiff said...

black...black...black!

we are french pressers for the last 8+ years...and love...LoVe...LOVE it!

we are true coffee snobs...i wanna come have a coffee or two with you! what fun that would be!

Kasia said...

Fantastic post and very nice photos. I'd like to have this fancy whizzy whizzer :) Thank you for sharing :)

Have a great day,
Kasia

et lille oejeblik - a little moment said...

oi, you are a feinsmecker. not like me :) but after reading all this magnificent stories about coffee - real coffee, not my instant kind of coffee - i feel i'll have to get my standards up a bit.

have a great day - trinsch

Sarah said...

I drink coffee with my morning blogs....and a little 1/2 & 1/2.

I think I need a whizzy whizzer.

Lisa Anne said...

Beautiful photos, I am not a big coffee drinker but if I am going to drink it, it has to be great. We have a local roaster that uses organic fair trade beans. We have started composting for them on our farm and when it is warm the whole farm smells like coffee...it is making me crave coffee a lot more. The very nice thing about composting for this company is they give me a cappuccino or espresso for free when I pick up their grinds. It truly is the best I have ever tasted (and I have been to Europe).

Erin said...

I am right there with you cookie monster. :) I gave it us for half a year and then recently have fallen back into the occasional cup again.. even though I KNOW I'm so much better off without it, it's so hard to let go of completely!

Joy said...

I love your shots! We're big on fair-trade, shade-grown, locally roasted (hopefully, organic) and have a couple of local roasters to choose from, fortunately. I get bored with the same taste though so we have to keep rotating. :)

dawn klinge said...

I love the photos that go along with this post. I think you would fit in well here in Washington state...coffee is a very big deal here. I've tried to quit drinking coffee a couple of times, but it's not easy- at all!

Jenell said...

Denise, I have "quit," too.
And I had one cup, two days in a row this week. Yesterday and today--none. And now I have a headache from the netherworlds!

I'm not a "cookie monster" when I quit, but I am one when I drink coffee. I'm not my best self. But I do love the smell of coffee (and the "energy" it gives me)! Oh, I think someone is brewing it in my neighborhood right now! I can smell it! Seriously.

If my head didn't hurt so bad, I might go out and get some!

Gypsy Forest said...

Yum. I agree with you on the fair trade shade grown organic dark roast coffee *phew* did I get all that? I like mine with a splash of cream no sugar and I adore that brown mug. I am on my way out of WI in a few weeks and I am so happy to have found your blog so I can still feel connected to it.... it's a great place. We hope to be back in a few years.