The aroma. The taste. The ritual of the preparation, and the anticipation. It’s more than just a drink.
Coffee is an integral part of cycling and cyclists lifestyles. But, like Campa versus Shimano, or white socks versus black, the way we imbibe the magic bean can be just as polarising.
We received an email from a reader with a suggestion for The Rules. Rob infers that anyone partaking in a soy-based brew, or a ‘lite’ milk additive, should be ceremonially beaten. “Harsh but fair” he believes, such as we always imply with The Rules.
Already I am receiving unflattering, downright tempestuous emails from my fellow Keepers regarding my soy intake confession. Yes, I unashamedly admit to this ‘foam pas’ and will accept any abuse like a man. A soy-drinking man, dammit!
But no matter how you enjoy your bean, there’s one thing for certain; coffee is good. Some say it should only be consumed black, sans sugar, in a ceramic cup. Others, like Rob, suggest it can be enhanced with a small amount of milk, i.e macchiato. While everyone has different tastes, I’m sure most of us would agree that caramel, butterscotch and excessive amounts of foam, sprinklings and flavourings have no place in any cup.
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I just had my first cup of espresso since the cannoli indecent. Here I am in Tempe at a hip coffee shop near the uni, how could I resist giving it a try. bitter as hell but I liked it. the girl told me they started grinding it even finer so it was super smooth. I am sold on it.
@G'phant
No worries, my pops thinks Im crazy so he wont be surprised if a kiwi walks in claiming to know me. I have known a few in my day as it is. if they want more info I can pass on my email.
@RedRanger
Glad to hear you liked it! Yeah espresso can be bitter, and in my experience you need to drink it straight away... if you sit there and sip it, the taste will deteriorate.
@minion
Quite the collection! As far as the Bialetti goes, I may wind up buying their Brikka model rather than the Moka... I guess it's a little better at making something approaching crema on the coffee than the Moka.
@mcsqueak
True, that little Mokka has been worked pretty hard over the last five years of ownership - the espresso machine is a thrift store find, and I'm leaning about making proper coffee at home. It ain't pretty but it gets the job done, and if I'm on my game I can make a pretty drinkable little shot. The Mokka will probably be replaced by a stainless steel one, since I think that one's alu and not the best for the coffee. A grinder is also on the cards - you want to pay an Italian premium for something, my goodness try getting one of those that's not 4 times the price of a cheaper inferior grinder.
@Minion
Yeah, I'd love a proper espresso machine, but I can't justify plopping down the cash, and I don't think I'd like the cleaning.
The Moka/Brikka seem perfect for making a few shots of 'espresso' to slug down before a ride, which is my main goal. I don't like drinking normal coffee before going out.
I've thought about getting a burr grinder as well, but again they are so expensive... I'll have to keep an eye out for a good used one. Luckily, Portland has more coffee roasters than we know what to do with, so I can buy small quantities of pre-ground beans to use.
This thing is bad-arse.
Love it to bits.
@Blah</
Nice that's a serious bit of kit. Fancy an exchange? I have a kidney. And some used tyres. My neighbours might have children that I could do without.
@Minion
Hehehe - I live in the middle east and haven't ridden a bike seriously since moving here. Amazing how much spare cash I have when it's not going on tasty bits and pieces. Also amazing how cheap you can get kitchen stuff when it's slightly superceded and dumped in the middle east, the world's bargain basement :-)
So at a jumble market this morning a tenner scores the Krups machine. Another booth and I score a bean grinder (hand powered, adjustable burr) for $2. I have now officially had too much coffee and life can't get much better till I ride this afternoon. There's even space to heat the cups on top.
leglesscyclist!
I have a thing for terrible monikers.