A new obsession: honey lattes!

I blame you, New Orleans, for introducing me to my newest source of tooth decay. After spending years weaning myself off of sugar in my coffee to the point that I'd really rather drink it without, I had to go and try a honey latte at Spitfire in New Orleans (iced, at the time, since it was, oh, about 5000 degrees out), and pretty much my fate was sealed right then and there.

Yes, it tastes just as good hot. Try it, but don't say I didn't warn you!

Three on a Saturday

Lattes, that is. I mean, how else are you supposed to celebrate the weekend?

Excuse me while I run off and start organizing the closets.

Happy Sunday

Today is my day of rest: a day to relax, drink warm coffee, eat delicious food, and snuggle with my cats.

I hope, wherever you are, that you can find some time to do the same.

A Helpful Tip

Coffee the way I used to make it: coffee first, milk second. 

Something new I learned: if you want the beautiful, I-just-ordered-this-in-Italy-and-it-tastes-like-heaven gradient from dark to light in your coffee with milk, it's actually fairly simple: just add the milk to the cup first, and then pour the coffee in slowly and carefully. Done!

The way  my coffee looks now. 

Also, this makes sure you won't have the dreaded brown foam problem; your foam will stay white exactly the way you wanted it to.

Oh no! Brown foam! Better drink this one quickly. 

As I'm fairly certain this was a problem that was keeping you up at night, I'll accept your thanks pre-emptively. You're welcome. No more boring monochromatic coffee with brown foam for you! Also, I must take a moment to put in a good word for my new favorite 'coffee mugs' the Bodum Pavina double wall 12 ounce glasses - they're just unreal. Super thin glass, beautifully clear, gorgeous and great insulation to boot. Also fairly fragile, as the reviews state, but I'm just going to enjoy the heck out of them until they break.

In addition, on weekends when I'm feeling all decadent and crazy (ok, just last weekend, but both days, ok?) I've been tipping a few drops of vanilla extract (the real thing) into my latte. And I finally understood why people would drink a vanilla latte! Not that Starbucks powdered mess, but lovely real vanilla. Mmmm. You're welcome again. Now go try it.

Five Things That Are Underrated

1. Winter light and shorter days. I don't know why, but I'm getting a real kick out of our slightly changing seasons here. It's nice to see the longer shadows on the pavement, and being outside at five in the evening means magical light.

2. Unexpected warm breezes. I was in a Bart station a few days ago, and it might sound weird, but the approaching train made me feel like I was back on an island somewhere. So I closed my eyes and just enjoyed it.

3. People who are quirky. Give me someone who's passionate on a subject I've never even heard of, and I'm fascinated. I love it when you feel like you've pegged someone as a normal nine to fiver and then you find out that they cultivate bonsai religiously. Or they've written three books on vampires that haven't been published yet. (Watch out, Twilight!)

4. Good smells. Our local supermarket smells like cinnamon in the entryway right now (probably to manipulate us into a holiday spirit so we buy more groceries, but, whatever).

5. Abandoned evidence of a good time. The scene on this table made me take a picture. What a lovely setting for a good cup of coffee with a friend. I imagine they only talked of poetry and friends they had in common.

So, what about you? Something you love that no one else appreciates?

If I printed this . . . .

. . . it would use a lot of ink.

Thank you digital!

The Siphon Bar

This is a view of the siphon bar at Blue Bottle Coffee at the San Francisco Mint. You can read about the multi-step process of preparation here. Click 'view steps'. Please. I think my favorite quote is this: "think about the coffee grounds as a school of fish which desires to stay together. So don't cut into the mass of coffee with your paddle."

Also, "we love the effulgent and kaleidoscopic changeability of a well-made siphon pot."

Well said, Blue Bottle. Well said.

At the cafe

I love Blue Bottle. Makes the coffee snob in me extremely happy.

Coffee Update

Breaking News, coming to you live from San Francisco:

I still love coffee.

I'll be giving you further updates as the story progresses.