If you read my article about wet shaving then you’d know that I am a big believer in rituals. I think everyone should have at least one daily or weekly or bi-weekly ritual. As you know, I have a bi-weekly shaving ritual. And I also have a coffee ritual.
Back in Latvia, I had an old coffee grinder. Made of wood. It did its job and when on the odd occasion I go visit my home country I still use it to grind my beans. Before I met my beautiful woman I used to make Italian coffee, namely, I prepared my coffee with a moka pot. It was not fancy. It was a gift from my parents when I first moved into my place. It was good and it did offer a tasty morning juice.
Later I received as a gift my one and only ceramic coffee dripper – v60. We bought separately a coffee server and my love affair with coffee brewing had begun. Unfortunately, I did not buy a pour-over coffee kettle. I still haven’t. But I will. Someday soon.
Thus our morning coffee ritual started as follows: we grind our beans manually, and we boiled water in a simple non-electric kettle. Once the water is boiled we poured it over a paper filter to both wet the filter and rid it of paper dust and to heat up the coffee server. It is best to drip your coffee on a warm server.
Yes, this method does take time. Yes, the coffee is not as strong as when made in a moka pot. But to us, it is better. It is not as strong, the flavors are more subtle and more gentle, I would say even more nuanced.
But now we have moved to the wonderful city of Brussels. We came here with a moka pot. Simply because we did not want to risk damaging the ceramic dripped and to be able to make great coffee when we are on brief holidays back in Latvia. But we were used to brewing our coffee using a filter. And thus we made an investment.
No. Not a coffee machine. But a Chemex coffee maker. Okay, it was not a huge investment, but it still was one. Since we could have easily continued with using our moka pot. Chemex coffee makers are beautiful. According to themselves:
CHEMEX® coffeemakers are made from the same high quality glass used for lab ware. It is beautifully clear and imparts no flavors or chemicals into your brewed coffee. Each coffeemaker is inspected, polished and hand tied by one of our team, before getting boxed up for shipping.
CHEMEX® Bonded filters are based on laboratory paper and designed to remove bad fats, bitterness, acidity and sediments that all other types of filters leave behind. Each filter is cut in house, on a machine that is operated by one of our team. Our filter paper is manufactured in the USA from North American materials only, adhering to responsible and sustainable practices.
Did I say it was a family-owned company? No. So now you know.
We have a coffee bean grinder here in Brussels. But we don’t use it that much. Simply because we got used to buying coffee that is ground for us. And no, it is not some simple store coffee. We buy premium specialty coffee from CORICA. Ethiopia GUJI is our preferred choice. It is worth every euro.
And now you know that in our household coffee is an important element. That is why we try to invest not only in our coffee brewing equipment but also in the coffee itself.
Furthermore, when we go outside for a walk or for a Saturday breakfast somewhere outside of our home, we tend to look for places that offer specialty coffee. We like it. We value it. And, for a fun fact, our first date was in a coffee/tea shop (to be honest it served more tea than coffee, but you get the picture).
Drink your coffee. It is healthy and it is good for your soul, body, and mind.
Kind regards,
Olaaf
Photo credit: Laurukaa
