Speaking of Coffee

 I have mentioned on occasion that I really like coffee, especially espresso.  Hence, I have a 20 year old Krups espresso machine.  I also have a French Press, a stove top espresso machine,  and a standard drip coffee maker.  As a special treat, I occasionally purchase a "black eye" at a coffee shop.  A black eye is two shots of espresso and then fill the rest of the cup with cafe Americano.  Did I say I like coffee?

Elle Reynolds has a piece at The Federalist that tells us How To Stop Spending Your Money At Starbucks And Get Better Coffee.

The first thing she suggests is that you invest in an espresso machine. The math is compelling, as it would pay for itself isice of a year. It is also true that your coffee tastes better when you freshly grind it.

Yes, owning an espresso maker is extravagant. But so is dropping five or six dollars on a mediocre frappuccino that’s mostly ice, especially if you do so regularly. If you spend $5 on coffee every morning before work, that’s $25 in a week and around $100 in a month. In a year, you’ve spent over $1,200 on coffee, and that’s not even counting weekends. Not every espresso maker is equal, but you can get a good-quality machine for between $150 and $300. That’s paid for itself in a few months if you’re a daily drinker. Plus, you don’t have to deal with a long morning drive-thru line, or have to worry about the barista using too much sugar or too little cream.

She also suggests that if possible you find a local coffee shop. We are fortunate to have two in our suburb and of course there are several around NC State. Reynolds points out that while Starbucks provides consistent quality, they can not provide the best quality, nor can they provide that uniqueness that local shops can bring.

But prioritizing consistency can sometimes force a business to use a lower-quality product that’s more widely available. According to their website, Starbucks buys 3 percent of the world’s coffee. If you’re a corporation buying 3 percent of the world’s coffee supply, it’s statistically impossible for all of your coffee to fall into the top 1 percent on the quality spectrum. But if you buy the top 1 percent and then supplement it with a slightly lower-quality product, your quality won’t be consistent across storefronts.

That doesn’t mean Starbucks’ quality is bad, but it also won’t have the originality of lots of local places. The family-owned store can select its signature beans and roasts with more creativity and intentionality than store managers taking directions from corporate. As a result, local places will often take more pride in their product and treat it as art, offering a signature drink or detailing designs in the coffee foam.

Finally, Reynolds suggests that one also should consider where their coffee money is going. It used to be that the money spent on things like cell phones and coffee went to the company and to the shareholders. Now, in the age of "woke" it goes to Leftist causes. I have switched to Patriot Mobil for my cell phone, and I buy Black Rifle Coffee at least once a month. They are small things, but every dollar not paid to a "woke" corporation is a good thing.