50 beans | trying something new

This is a new experience for me. While I would characterize myself as a coffee person, I’m not really sure what I’m getting myself into here. Over the past few weeks I’ve been exploring the magical world of coffee. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I haven’t had coffee before, but I’ve only recently begun venturing into the world of grinders and presses, siphons and pour-overs.

This sudden rise in interest started when I stumbled upon the NYT coffee blog by Oliver Strand. His description of coffee in the big apple, coupled with the explosion of renowned roasters that are setting up shop there (blue bottle, stumptown, counter culture, etc.), makes me want to take that leap into the third wave and go exploring. Remember in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, when the girl first steps through the wardrobe into the magical world of Narnia? That’s how I feel right now, except the magical world is coffee, and I’m not a little girl.

While browsing the NYT coffee blog, I came across this set of videos called Coffee 101 by Intelligentsia Coffee (one of the larger 3rd wave coffee roasters in Chicago). They created the series to help people that are relatively new to coffee explore all there is in the world of coffee. These sets of videos describe everything beginning with selecting the beans, to finding a right grinder, and culminate with perfecting that brew.

Through this process, I’m hoping that I move away from the dependence on coffee and inch towards drinking it for enjoyment. I’ve definitely been at the stage where I’m downing cup after cup for that jolt to keep me going. I guess the best thing to keep in mind is that it’s only good in moderation, and as long as it’s not something I rely on. As Saint Paul reminds the Corinthians: “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31)

So I guess this brings me to the point of this post. I’m not sure if you’ll notice, but I’m starting a coffee aspect of this blog called 50 beans (tagged as such). From time to time there will be posts that are decidedly coffee themed. All other posts will still be out of left field.