Atterton
Master Tinkerer
Only The Shadow knows
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« Reply #50 on: September 10, 2011, 07:25:06 pm » |
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Of course then it would no longer be Mr Coffee, but rather Sir Reginald Coffeethon, Esquire.
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In space, no one can hear you steam.
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barb dwyer
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« Reply #51 on: September 10, 2011, 08:17:15 pm » |
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 touche'!
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* ... minimalism - it's the least you can do ... *
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proteus
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« Reply #52 on: December 02, 2011, 04:11:41 am » |
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Sadly, my underdeveloped palate cannot abide coffee (except as a flavoring agent in tiramisu), and I'm simply not that fond of tea in general.
As for coffee, it's entirely possible that (dwelling as you do in the US) you've never had anything that's not a truly horrid cuppa. I find that most folks who don't like coffee have only tried grassy, bitter, acidic stuff. I have a stack of about 15 converts to the Way of the Bean by simply sending them decent beans, a whirly-bird grinder (<$20), and some instructions to make pour-over coffee (boil water, let it come off-boil, pour over fresh-ground beans in a filter and holder [<$5]). As for tea, I was never fond if it either until I discovered that Lipton et al in the US is basically the dregs of tea. Go to a proper tea shop and try some loose Assam or some such; you might be pleasantly surprised. |
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--
"Politics and religion are just like software and hardware. They all suck, the documentation is provably incorrect, and all the vendors tell lies." — Andrew DalgleishHow To Financially Support Brass Goggles — now with a subscription option!
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elvisroe
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« Reply #53 on: December 02, 2011, 07:16:35 am » |
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Agreed proteus! "Down with Liptons and off with 'is head" I say. One of the biggest problems with popular teamaking is that the art of brewing a good cup-o-cha has been lost. The general approach to the modern brew is to wave a cheap tea bag in the general direction of a cup of hot water, add a splash of milk and call it a cuppa. Loose leaf, a nice teapot and let it brew people, let it brew...oh, and never sully your tea with sugar!  As for coffee, I agree with the majority that it is indeed profoundly steampunk. The British stock exchange was born in the London coffee houses (ie the famous Jonathan's) where it appears one would drink it from a "dish". Novelist David Liss wrote a book called "The Coffee Trader" about the birth of the western coffee industry set in the 17thC - it's a great read if you like historical fiction...and coffee |
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Pivole
Gunner
 England
Salvum Terram Meam!
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« Reply #54 on: December 03, 2011, 06:07:57 pm » |
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Let it brew, but for God's sake man, don't let it stew.
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Fellowship is life!
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LadyClankington
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« Reply #56 on: December 05, 2011, 07:59:32 pm » |
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As for tea, I was never fond if it either until I discovered that Lipton et al in the US is basically the dregs of tea. Go to a proper tea shop and try some loose Assam or some such; you might be pleasantly surprised.
Ugh, Lipton. For those in the US, I highly recommend finding a Teavana near you and asking for the full spiel. They know more about tea than anyone probably should (and their wares are awesome). http://www.teavana.com/ |
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walkthebassline
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« Reply #57 on: December 06, 2011, 05:13:15 am » |
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As for tea, I was never fond if it either until I discovered that Lipton et al in the US is basically the dregs of tea. Go to a proper tea shop and try some loose Assam or some such; you might be pleasantly surprised.
Ugh, Lipton. For those in the US, I highly recommend finding a Teavana near you and asking for the full spiel. They know more about tea than anyone probably should (and their wares are awesome). http://www.teavana.com/Just found a location near-ish me. Close enough for special occasions anyway. Thank you for the link! |
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"Well, I don't really think that the end can be assessed as of itself as being the end because what does the end feel like? It's like saying when you try to extrapolate the end of the universe, you say, if the universe is indeed infinite, then how - what does that mean? How far is all the way, and then if it stops, what's stopping it, and what's behind what's stopping it? So, what's the end, you know, is my question to you."
~ David St. Hubbins
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D.Oakes
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« Reply #58 on: December 07, 2011, 04:00:39 am » |
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As for tea, I was never fond if it either until I discovered that Lipton et al in the US is basically the dregs of tea. Go to a proper tea shop and try some loose Assam or some such; you might be pleasantly surprised.
Ugh, Lipton. For those in the US, I highly recommend finding a Teavana near you and asking for the full spiel. They know more about tea than anyone probably should (and their wares are awesome). http://www.teavana.com/Was introduced to the one in Lancaster by my fiance....I am never letting her touch the debit card again....EEEEEEK!!!!! |
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Will Howard
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« Reply #59 on: December 27, 2011, 05:41:41 pm » |
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When possible, I buy bulk tea & brew it PROPERLY. Teabags are a poor second choice...
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"I'm a Barbarian by choice, not ancestry..."
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Steam Titan
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« Reply #60 on: December 31, 2011, 05:10:32 am » |
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cant stand coffee and don't care for tea all that greatly either. My hot beverage of choice is hot chocolate
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Uncle Arthur
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« Reply #61 on: December 31, 2011, 11:33:35 am » |
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Bulk tea is so much superior to the bagged floor sweepings. As finances permit I stock up on a lovely jasmine green tea handled by a wonderful Mennonite store near here that has all kinds of goodies in bulk.
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If at first you don't succeed , CHEAT!
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Will Howard
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« Reply #62 on: December 31, 2011, 08:36:18 pm » |
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cant stand coffee and don't care for tea all that greatly either. My hot beverage of choice is hot chocolate
Hot Chocolate is an EXCELLENT drink. Also, coffee & hot chocolate mix well together in a variety of proportions. |
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Athanor
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« Reply #63 on: January 01, 2012, 02:14:08 am » |
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Well folks, I've tried Lipton's Tea and admittedly it's fairly mediocre as teas go; but it's the nectar of the Gods compared to some of the stuff on sale in grocery stores here on the Pacific coast of Mexico, even in bigg(ish) cities like Puerto Vallarta. I won't name names, but - ugh. Having grown up in England, world centre of Real Tea drinking (tea should be brown, not green, in my opinion), I became used to the Real Thing - loose tea, brewed in a pot with water at a good rolling boil - at an early age.
Coffee now, that's a different story. Some truly splendid coffee is available here, so that's mostly what I drink while I'm here. Well, when I'm not drinking Tequila or, wonder of wonders, some quite drinkable (albeit blended) Scotch whisky for less than $10 a bottle. Amazing.
There's real irony here though. There are big coffee plantations just inland of us, some of the best coffee in the world, yet if you ask for coffee in a restaurant, as likely as not you'll get Nescafe instant. All I can say is - weird. Just one of the wonders of 21st century Capitalism, I guess.
Athanor.
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The Mutant must be tested severely before being allowed to remake the world in its own image.
"Truly I say to you, he who seeks, shall find. And quite often, he shall wish he hadn't."
- Elias Ashmole Crackbone O'Finnerty, "The Aphorisms of Fud". from "The Lesser Precepts", Collected Works, Vol.23, page 666; Miskatonic University Press, Arkham, Mass., 1999 (reprint)
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KT421
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« Reply #64 on: January 09, 2012, 10:04:44 pm » |
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To return to the original poster's question, coffee can most definitly be considered Steampunk. The average percolator doesn't inspire much, but go look at a Keurig brewer. That's halfway a mad science device right there. All it needs is a new brass chassis/paint job, some gagues, and maybe a steam vent or two.
It actually makes pretty good coffee, too. The single-serve K-cups costs more per cup of coffee than straight beans, but they don't go bad in two weeks like the beans in an open bag do.
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proteus
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« Reply #65 on: January 10, 2012, 06:54:13 pm » |
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Those Keurig brewers... ugh, they make me so angry (read in Marvin the Martian's voice). The K-cups are overpriced, are only barely acceptable from a flavor point-of-view, and are both those things largely because Keurig has a patent that prevents other people from making K-cups. If you're the sort that only has a single cup in the morning, and you're in a rush, and you don't mind sorta-crappy coffee, then it might be for you. However: If you're only making one cuppa, get a No. 2 Ceramic Filter Holder and use the pour-over brewing method (slowly pour off-boil water over freshly-ground beans). This takes no longer than brewing a cup of tea. If you're also in a hurry, you could grind your beans a little coarser and use an insulated French-press travel mug; simply add grounds and water, walk out the door, and a few minutes later, you can press the plunger and enjoy your brew. There is absolutely no reason to use any form of "instant" coffee except in the pinchiest of pinches.  |
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Birdnest
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« Reply #66 on: January 10, 2012, 07:56:53 pm » |
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Coffee is really my caffeine of choice ... although I try to avoid it from chain restaurants and gas stations. We're such coffee snobs around here that we buy bags of french roast beans for the shop so our crew doesn't have to stoop to Folgers or worse. And we also try to stock a nice supply of real half and half. Artificial creamers ought to be a crime. The K-cups are overpriced, are only barely acceptable from a flavor point-of-view, and are both those things largely because Keurig has a patent that prevents other people from making K-cups. Those things are the stupidest and most overpriced things ever invented ... it's just a ploy to justify charging 4x the cost. For the perfect cuppa - I prefer a french press brewed strong enough to melt a spoon with a bit of half and half. The brass and glass ones can fit in nicely to your steampunk decor. A great bracing cup of coffee will get you appropriately wound up for Kraken hunting. |
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Reality is for those who cannot properly commit to the absurd.
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D.Oakes
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« Reply #67 on: January 11, 2012, 06:09:28 am » |
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The perfect cup is certainly a cup of coffee/chicory, served black....ahhhhh....especially if it is early morning in New Orleans before the tourists wake up. I need to get a new coffee pot, I miss my morning cups of coffee. In fact when I'm in a coffee mood I hardly drink anything else. |
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Banfili
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« Reply #68 on: January 11, 2012, 06:22:36 am » |
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I WANT one of those stunningly beautiful coffee making thingies!
I did purchase a single cup stove-top espresso maker at a Sunday market recently - a bargain at $5, & it goes off with a very reassuring hiss & spit of steam!
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proteus
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« Reply #69 on: January 11, 2012, 09:09:38 pm » |
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The perfect cup is certainly a cup of coffee/chicory, served black....ahhhhh....especially if it is early morning in New Orleans before the tourists wake up. In my opinion, the perfect morning cup is a well-executed macchiato (and not those Starbucks abominations). Espresso, properly done, is the pinnacle of coffee flavor - and that slight dollop of milk-foam adds a wonderful sweet balance for the morning. Besides, there are some *really beautiful* espresso machines:  is a lovely manually-pumped machine, for example. |
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Lord Wraste
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« Reply #70 on: January 13, 2012, 05:09:34 pm » |
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The perfect cup is certainly a cup of coffee/chicory, served black....ahhhhh....especially if it is early morning in New Orleans before the tourists wake up. In my opinion, the perfect morning cup is a well-executed macchiato (and not those Starbucks abominations). Espresso, properly done, is the pinnacle of coffee flavor - and that slight dollop of milk-foam adds a wonderful sweet balance for the morning. Besides, there are some *really beautiful* espresso machines: is a lovely manually-pumped machine, for example. One of those things I always hated about working the cafe was having to ask, "Starbucks macchiato, or real macchiato?" Tea is my drink of choice. Love it. I also love making coffee, but I've hated the taste of it since the first days of my existence. On topic: As someone that's made it for over 8 years professionally, it is sooooo definitely Steampunk. I used to have the burns to prove it.  |
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Gomez Darkholm
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« Reply #71 on: January 13, 2012, 10:27:36 pm » |
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LOL .... I love this particular comic and whould love that coffee maker; come to think of it ... so would my lady Wife as I would be in a so much better mood after the first cup of the day. I wonder how Agatha would do with a custom teapot ? |
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