The Right Coast

December 13, 2003
 
Christmas guy toys -- Part I: Coffee
By Tom Smith

My favorite things I often buy for myself. But here is an update on various toys, many fitness related, that might make a good holiday gift, or you can just buy for that techno-nerd fitness geek on your shopping list, i.e. yourself. (I-am-not-a-sexist disclaimer: I use 'guy' to mean male and female guys.)

First things first. Caffine. You wake up but you don't want to get up. At all. Then your mind moves to that first cup of java. You find you have gotten out of bed. Life may not be good yet, but there is hope. What works? The best coffee, short of the little coffee bar on the corner up from your pensione in Sienna or even the occassional Starbucks, comes from a French press. This is cheap, effective technology. Here's one at a great price.

But sometimes you want to make a big pot of the stuff at home, like every morning. What to do? I think the dirt cheap brewers you can get at Target for $20 can do a pretty good job. But if you want something more reliable and longer lasting, or just want to indulge your coffee fetish, here is a dandy machine. The milk frothing device really works, but don't expect to be as good as your local espresso bar. If you are really a nut with money to burn, buy this and invite me over to try it. I'll even set it up for you!

Another promising type of device is this thing. I've never tried it, but some people swear by the vacuum method. It looks like a bit of a hassle to me. If I had time to do this, I would just use the French press instead.

If you are sick enough, you may want to buy a conical burr grinder. I don't have one, but it's the next step.

Where should you buy coffee? I know lots of bean-heads turn their noses up at Starbuck's, but I don't think they are that bad. If you want something better, you can buy it at Peet's. Or look around locally. There may be a coffee roaster in your area that does a good job. Look for beans that look really oily, almost like they've been dipped in olive oil. That oil is where the flavor comes from, or most of it. That's why a french press is better than a gold filter, and gold better than paper--it lets more oil through.