We went from something as simple as… a cup of coffee with no other distinction than being black or complemented with sugar, milk or half and half, to a new patchworked world of coffee for blooming connoisseur happy to pay three times the price for a little recognition for their new status. I personally have never liked the fast dripped beverage, making it weak, as the quality, or the lack of it, made it bitter and prone to create urinary urges, generally at the wrong time.
Fast processing made it that way with artificial drying and hasty roasting. I always believed that the cheap drip coffee had more caffeine effect than the European steamed coffee method. And now we read that the good ol’ cup-a- joe has between 115 and 175 milligrams of caffeine for a 7 oz cup, compare to 100 mg for an espresso serving. The brewed coffee, which can be French press made, contain between 80 and 135 mg for a similar cup.
We went from such a cheap hot drink to a mass marketing, labeling the steamed high pressure coffee as a sort of upper class beverage. Italians, and they are not alone, would never understand that good coffee would need to be served in such big cups and cost as much as we pay here. Better than that, they would have a fit, if they had to wait that long to get a cup being served as we do here so patiently… not! Coffee machines are ahead there of what we have here.
What we call barista here with one more class etiquette, is simply a professional bar employee in Italian, really meaning bartender serving any drinks including... coffee. Some of the espresso barmaids or barmen have been handing out more than a million of these small cups, or larger ones topped with frothed milk. Here, in a fast pace living, it seems that coffee drinking got people slowing down, small sips at a time… although still hurrying up for a hamburger and fries gulp fest. Nevertheless, the slow coffee pace didn’t alter the bad habit of using plastic or treated cardboard cups, as it seems that some consumers have the urge to carry that drink to sip while walking and driving, spilling out their way to the land of distracted and stained drivers. Half of the cups are being drank lukewarm if not cold. What a treat for three and half bucks!
Starbucks did an ever dominating job at marketing the reinvented American coffee, although their way and in the mix, decided to start a new lingo now followed religiously by millions of customer asking for a “tall” cup and to receive a short container. Strange world! The next size is a “Grande” meaning tall in Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. Same name, different sizes! Now, the real tall cup is called “Venti”, meaning twenty in Italian, suggesting the 20 fl. oz. liquid content of the cup. Why not “Dodici” for the twelve oz. and “Sedici” for the sixteen oz.?
We are also using French to order a redefined brew. “Café au lait” is now a drip coffee with hot milk, a far cry from the steamed French roast coffee and milk consumed in France. This drink is also called “Misto” at Starbucks, meaning mixture in Italian or mixed in Portuguese. One would have to assume which misto it is. After all, I wish we would become even more international in our coffee denomination. It might help the population to learn words of emerging worlds. “Qahwa Haleeb” is an Arabic “café au lait” with the powder-like bean grind sticking at the bottom of the cup, if one is paying attention.
Back to known territory with the “cappuccino” served with more milk foam than a classic “caffe latte”, which simply mean coffee-milk or… “café au lait”. Confused yet? The ‘cappuccino” name came from the resemblance of the drink - mind you, served in a porcelain cup - with monks of the Friars Minor Capuchin order, characterized with the top of their head shaved, exposing their white skin in contrast with their plain brown tunic. ...Completely lost the meaning when served in a “to go” cup and covered with a plastic top!
Northern Italians order a “cappuccio”, integral translation of headgear, and end up receiving an “espresso”. A “macchiato” is an “espresso” with a dash of hot foamy milk and a “marocchino” is a small “cappuccino” with some cocoa powder. A “cappuccino d’orzo” is a coffee substitute made from barley. Probably what people were drinking during WW2.
A dash of French vanilla does not mean much as France do not produce the spice. Although, saying vanilla from Madagascar is a little better but should be called Madagascar-Bourbon as the popular name for the Planifolia variety growing in Madagascar, which was a French territory till 1958. This Country is the biggest producer of this tasty bean, although its origin is from Mexico where it was discovered by the Spanish and baptized “Vainilla” for little pod. The plant producing the beans is a variety of orchid, as what the vanilla history is not as… vanilla as some people would think, but in any case, certainly not French.
A smidge of nutmeg is also of interest as this nut can transport you to the “Lala” land, although it would require absorbing 5 or more teaspoons of this ground nut to have any psychedelic effect. The problem is that you might have the hangover of your life after dizziness, nausea and paranoia as a few of the side effects. A smidge is good!
When you dab the cocoa powder in your preferred personalized drink, remember that chocolate was discovered at the same time vanilla was by Hernan Cortez’s army in the 1520ies, as for the coffee, it was first used in Ethiopia during the ninth century. The name Mocha used to qualify a coffee quality is a sea port in Yemen, from which coffee was exported to Europe under the lead of Marco Polo. The history of the nutmeg consumption is even older and could have been an incense used by Roman priests and certainly as a spice during medieval times.
One suggestion, try some “chai” tea with espresso and you will have an even older beverage to talk about. Chai means tea in Hindi. Yet more ancient history there! Bunn is not only the family name of the company's founder producing the famous coffee drip machines but is also the name of the coffee bean in Arabic and other Eastern African languages... I wish my name was Gold!
Nevertheless, beside history, fun facts and lingo, a new generation a coffee shop was born in the USA with a friendlier trend allowing anyone to enjoy coffee and life at one's pace. Some shops are better than others and personally, I would favor small businesses as they need all the support we can give. I have found my spot in Indianapolis: BJava, owned by one of the most knowledgeable and coffee passionate person I have met so far and BJ's coffee is one of the very best I have been drinking.
And maybe this is the sign of renewed passion with wonderful smell and taste over money making with no odor!
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