Drinking the black stuff
I wouldn’t say I’m an avid coffee drinker, yet I would say I do enjoy a cup of brew every so often, and there are times I get hooked into drinking the stuff for weeks at a time. Coffee is bad for you! That’s been all the rage for years, but I don’t really care because I also hear drinking tap water is bad for you (I blame the coca-cola company for that one, see Dasani).
When I was growing up my father would make the darkest, blackest, thickest, most bitter cup of joe I have ever seen or tasted. At a very young age I was put off by coffee and didn’t really start drinking it until I was in High School. I think the main reason I started drinking coffee was due to the coffee house craze; which took off quicker than Bush declaring war on Iraq.
“Kaffa” (in Marda loop – Calgary) was THE destination to get out of school for a break, or to skip some stupid school wide assembly. Outside of drinking coffee purely for the caffeine fix, it truly became a social gathering. There simply wasn’t a better venue to attend (and I don’t think there is any other currently) than meeting up at a coffee house to catch up on old times, or spend a calm evening with someone. I’d gladly go to a martini bar, but they absolute stink of smoke, and normally the music is too loud to have a conversation with more than one person at a time.
“Let’s meet up for coffee”
Currently my coffee drinking habits have changed tremendously from my virgin years of the java hook. When I was going thru school, I wasn’t really drinking all that much coffee to be honest, but the coffee I was drinking was absolute crap compared to my new elitist coffee trends. I blame Italy.
Standing in a small grungy and totally foreign coffee bar in the middle of butt-ass-nowhere stranded on an over extended bike ride; I layed down a couple thousand Lira and ordered a coffee and a few pastries. The pastry was excellent due to my extreme famine, but I stared blankly at the shot-glass-like coffee cup seeing clearly my reflection in the tar black substance that was “my coffee”. Whilst finishing my snack, I was observing some older gents coming and going ordering the same cocktail as I, pouring spoons of sugar and mixing it swiftly followed by downing it like a “China White shot”. I decided to follow suit and slam the coffee with a few sugars mixed in. To say the least when I got back on my bike to finish my ride I got home pretty quick.
True coffee I discovered was much different than my past indulgence of North American “long” coffee. Italian coffee was extremely strong, and the social scene associated to it was completely different. It seemed that Italians drank coffee purely for the effect of the substance rather than chilling out and speaking with friends. Then again, go to France and it’s more like North America, but the coffee is still quite different. Most coffee shops in Italy look more like a truck stop than a Starbucks, and in France resemble more like a restaurant serving baguettes en mass.
After spending a few years abroad I had settled on drinking stove top espresso (see the very first issue of r4nt). This was a bit milder than the average espresso, but made for an excellent coffee nectar which was easily converted into a mochachino or a weekend lounger (add Bailey’s). The pro’s of drinking this stuff are easy to recognize. Firstly you are generally making just enough coffee to make one serving, which is normally more than enough, so drinking too much coffee is hard. Also the coffee itself is very affordable considering it’s potency and how much water you require (about a cup) to brew it. Making this for a few people is a totally pain in the ass though since you have to unscrew the system and clean it, fill it, and heat it up all over again. So when I have company over, or if I feel like drinking 10 cups (like when having to finish an issue of R4NT) I’ll brew regular long style coffee.
When I lived with a group of Brits I got converted into drinking “proper” tea. I learned all the intricacies of the tea pot, and adding milk and biscuits to your regiment. At first I figured all British people are certifiable (which isn’t too far off I guess), but then grew to love drinking their tea. I’m sure it’s better for you (at least your teeth) than coffee, but for some reason I just couldn’t keep up with the routine compared to my coffee habits. I simply don’t have any motivation to drink tea.
However, I’m the farthest thing from a coffee snob, and I will drink pretty much anything if you put it in front of me. You won’t however see me dishing out ten bucks to buy some fancy pre-made-by-a-17-year-old-super-amazing-coffee. That’s just a complete waste of money. I’ll keep that money in my pocket and fund myself a months worth of coffee drinking instead thank you.
- Drinking the black stuff
- by David Gluzman
- Published on October 1st, 2003
More from David Gluzman:
-
Mad Fast Classics
It’s October and since October is just that little bit different.. Propellarheads, Diana Krall, Tricky, & INI.
-
Crazy Hot New Music
Much like our past features, such as “Mad Fast Reviews” I’m going to quickly attempted to brainwash you out of the mainstream tar pits and into the world of dope, hot, buzzin’ new beats.
-
R4NT Radio June 2006
Welcome to yet another round of R4NT Radio. Today we are featuring some tastey treats from: Carl Craig, Beat Assailant, Roisin Murphy, Quantic, Aceyalone & RJD2, and Kraak & Smaak.
-
Fubar (The Movie)
Just Give’r.
Sweet, a movie about head-bangers that shotgun cans of Pilsner. What else would you want to see in a low budget movie depicting some white trash in Calgary.
Having seen Terry (Dave Lawrence) act out several times at the Loose Moose theater, I was greatly anticipating the release of this movie. I first heard about … -
Interview with Coldcut
After almost 8 years since their last release. We got the chance to catch up with Matt Black to talk to him about “Sound Mirrors” along with all things tech, with a side of politics, and some clips from the new album. Tune in!
-
uOY KCuF
…Zooming in daddy’s brand new jaguar while passing in and out of lanes @ 30km/h over the speed limit while talking on their cell phones and smoking a cigarette…
Other recent features:
-
Sónar 2010 – Barcelona, Spain
The festival attracts a lot of outsiders, but the Mediterranean, Spanish and more specifically Catalan nature of the people makes the festival what it is. Catalan people are passionate and this passion is infectious. The atmosphere is electric in Barcelona as a city and heightened by music and intoxicants at Sónar.
-
Summer Party Naval Styles at Seven RestoLounge
Oysters, like wine are affected by terroir and these Miyagi’s flavor profiles ranged with one showing a cleaner, almost tropical profile and the other being more salty, marine driven. As I was devouring the seemingly endless plates put in front of us, I sipped on a glass of fine sauvignon blanc.
-
R4NT Radio March 2010
R4NT Radio March 2010 um wow it’s been far too long since the last edition edition, featuring: Hector Hernandez, The Infesticons, Blockhead, Gramatik, Emika, Thunderheist, Parov Stelar, Eddy Meets Yannah, Anti-Pop Consortium, The Slew, Lighterthief, Andreya Triana, Parasyte Woman, Mathon, Venetian Snares, and Funki Porcini.
-
O Restaurant & Lounge revisited
Calgary has a diverse set of urban communities, most of which have the ubiquitous strip mall watering hole. In the South West community of Marda Loop, a reinvention of this paradigm has been established.
-
Predictions 2010.. and beyond!
So 2010 eh? Almost but not quite (no year zero they say) another decade? It seems like just yesterday that the world was waiting for Y2K. R4NT started publishing in March 2001, so we’re not quite 10 years old yet, but in internet years we are already a senior citizen.
-
Invictus
No matter what, the reality of Nelson Mandela is something that deserves screen time. Should this film even remotely intrigue the masses to take interest in this figure, the world would likely benefit greatly from it.