Coffee
Tea is wonderful, tea is essential. Tea can be very difficult to find out in the wild, in this coffee culture. Warm water and a cheap teabag in a styrofoam or paper cup is common. Or an aluminum pot of hot water, a ceramic cup, and a small assortment of flavored tisanes and maybe one Earl Grey bag, with a few lemon slices, sugar and fake sugar packets and creamer. As though they should cover up the tiny portion of tea, which they find an unpleasant substitute for coffee. I have not tried to order tea out for many years, giving it up as a bad job. Except at Chinese restaurants, where it is always oolong, but at least it's reliably good. Indian restaurants only serve the sweet milky mix, which is probably fine, but I've never liked sweet tea. A drop of milk* I can stand, especially if I've over steeped a pot but I still want to drink it.
So often, I wished I could like coffee. But unlike most people, I can't even stand the smell of it. My father eating shredded wheat with hot coffee poured over is the most likely explanation - since that stinks of wet dog on a hot day. And I have tried to drink it, no one in the army hasn't. I'd have done almost anything on that duty to get some caffeine in me, but I couldn't manage downing a mug of coffee. D has tried as well, and had an even worse reaction than me. I did have some at a local specialty cafe, some Kenyan stuff, along with gazpacho, after a final exam. Not that I liked it much, but I figured I could get used to it. I could taste the quality, although it was not quite happy on my tongue. That place had decent tea, but the odor of coffee around reduced how much I could enjoy it.
In Boston, coffee was water of life, even the hospital cafe had good quality beverage. Dunkin' Donuts was not about pastry, it was all about the caffeine delivery system. I listened to others wax poetic, and I waited to get home to drink tea. No wonder it took me so long to stop drinking sugary cola. At this job, not only is there a coffee maker, two if you count the surgeon lounge, but someone brought in a French press, and a lot of mornings they do a batch up. At least the aroma does not fill the room.
On the other hand, the coffee maker has a hot water spigot, very nearly boiling. And I have a cubby hole to keep a ceramic mug, and a tin of oolong bags. It's not ideal, but it helps.
*Yes, I know. I can't explain this either.
So often, I wished I could like coffee. But unlike most people, I can't even stand the smell of it. My father eating shredded wheat with hot coffee poured over is the most likely explanation - since that stinks of wet dog on a hot day. And I have tried to drink it, no one in the army hasn't. I'd have done almost anything on that duty to get some caffeine in me, but I couldn't manage downing a mug of coffee. D has tried as well, and had an even worse reaction than me. I did have some at a local specialty cafe, some Kenyan stuff, along with gazpacho, after a final exam. Not that I liked it much, but I figured I could get used to it. I could taste the quality, although it was not quite happy on my tongue. That place had decent tea, but the odor of coffee around reduced how much I could enjoy it.
In Boston, coffee was water of life, even the hospital cafe had good quality beverage. Dunkin' Donuts was not about pastry, it was all about the caffeine delivery system. I listened to others wax poetic, and I waited to get home to drink tea. No wonder it took me so long to stop drinking sugary cola. At this job, not only is there a coffee maker, two if you count the surgeon lounge, but someone brought in a French press, and a lot of mornings they do a batch up. At least the aroma does not fill the room.
On the other hand, the coffee maker has a hot water spigot, very nearly boiling. And I have a cubby hole to keep a ceramic mug, and a tin of oolong bags. It's not ideal, but it helps.
*Yes, I know. I can't explain this either.
Posted by Zhoen on Wednesday, August 03, 2011
7 comments:
I don't like coffee much either. I drink it when I am not at home, for the very reason you write of: tea cannot be made with warm water and a tea bag. It just tastes like the bag. Jerry makes coffee in the morning for himself and tea for me. I have taught him that he must use BOILING water.
But because I was brought up by a British mother, I like it with milk. Creamer -- ugh.
boiling water makes bad coffee, not boiling it makes bad tea!!
I just wish people wouldn't drown decent coffee in hot milk!!
Each to their own :-)
Anne,
I grew up with a Canadian mother, and always milk in my tea. Well, when I was small, it was the hot drink on a cold day, mostly milk with enough tea to make it warm. Red Rose tea bags, but the water was always boiled. I gradually reduced the amount of milk in my tea, until it disappeared altogether. But sometimes, I will put in a few drops.
gz,
And at altitude, water boils at a lower temperature. The electric kettle helps, because it keeps the pressure up enough to compensate a bit.
My daily dose is one liter of black tea (black, India, with a little milk) minimum. I got hooked on tea when I moved to Ireland and there tea is really strong and not only must the water be boiling, the tea pot must be warmed beforehand also.
I must be all tanned with the tannin inside but luckily someone discovered positive medicinal effects of black (as well as green) tea. Because there is no way I could give it up.
There is free gourmet coffee at my work place. Free hot water dispensers in a few spots but no tea. I drink Coca-Cola as I don't like either coffee or tea, and it is subsidized to be only a quarter.
I really do adore the way it looks in Japanese ... tea ... 茶
Although I usually don't get so excited about a balanced graphic representation ....
don't drink coffee or put milk in my tea despite having a hubby who is a coffee loving indian who also drinks milky teas. i may have 1-2 cups of coffee a year - on freezing cold, snowy days when i am sleepy, but i prefer hot cocoa.
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