After the amazing Coffee Alison I had in Portland at Besaw Restaurant, I was on the hunt for replicating that coffee again. Coffee Alison was just the name the restaurant had for it but it was coffee with milk, chocolate, hazelnut and a touch of cinnamon on top and it was amazing!
We were standing in PDX waiting for our flight and I decided to stop at Starbucks for a drink.
This happens to me every time I go to Starbucks. I stand in line and stare blankly, not having a clue what anything on the menu means. This is why I always wind up ordering a Green Tea Frappuccino. I mean come on, it’s clearly just green tea ice cream, and obviously a delicious choice for someone who never drinks coffee. By the way, no that’s not a Paleo menu option. :p But after having that amazing coffee at Besaw’s I really wanted to see if it was just that coffee or if for some reason I didn’t dislike the taste of all coffee anymore.
So I’m standing in line and realize I have no idea what anything means, cue Twitter.
I was given a quick lesson on a few coffee details when we took a trip to Intelligentsia with Bob & Michelle so I had already committed to memory that espresso was like a strong coffee shot and I already knew I didn’t like that. Plus we had plenty of time before it was our turn to order so I randomly started googling the difference between latte, mocha, cappuccino, macchiato…oh the list goes on.
When I hit mocha=chocolate, that’s when the search stopped. Then to determine if I wanted it hot, iced, as a frap, whip or no whip, what kind of milk, any added flavors, OMG the freaking choices…they could make a person go mad!
Before I could make up my mind, or really research all the differences, it was my turn to order so I just went easy: Caffe Mocha…done and done!
When we came home Jeff saw this fun little Venn Diagram on Google+. This would have definitely come in handy while we were waiting in line, but either way, I’ve got it now! :)
Do you drink coffee? How do you take it?
I LOVE the venn diagram! I wonder if I can create a math problem out of that to use this fall . . . . We are such geeks, right?!?! Ha!
I enjoy one americano every morning. I like the flavor and the touch of caffeine is nice . . . but if I don’t have one, it’s no big deal. :)
Isn’t it awesome!! I can totally see it being used in Pre-Calc with the entire section on Venn Diagrams….it’s funny how you can’t turn that teacher brain off because when I saw it that’s the first thing I thought, how to use this in a classroom ;)
Marla!! I am always happy to offer coffee assistance. The first 5 years of my professional life were dedicated to the not-so-glamorous side of the retail coffee business.
For a home version of what you had at the coffeeshop, might I suggest:
- instant espresso powder (also Starbucks Via would work well for this)
- dissolve that into hot milk (almond milk would totes work!)
- and then melt in some nutella!
Bonus points if you go get yourself a frothing wand for the milk ;) They’re about $20.
Awesome Tara! Thanks!! :) I don’t know all the coffee lingo or I’d better be able to explain the contraption we just bought to be able to make coffee at home. It’s a hand grinder of some sort…OH! but I know we do have a frothing wand because we use that to make matcha tea! One step in the right direction.
Now you see why when I get drinks I order a water ;)
At home, I drink french-pressed dark roasted Sumatra – it tastes like a dark, rich, unsweetened chocolate. Yes, I drink my coffee black – nothing to interfere with the taste!
At Starbucks, I order a tall quad Americano, room at the top – this gives me a coffee that’s almost dark enough.
When I’m feeling decadent, I’ll order a tall quad caffe latte, whole milk, extra hot, and then I’ll add a little raw sugar and cinnamon to it.
The barista almost cut me off one time when I ordered 8 shots of espresso, straight up. That was after a WordCamp, and the look on my face when I snarled “you’d better not get between me and what I need right now” convinced him to hand it over ;-)
haha…that’s awesome Rebecca! Jeff has been liking it black and after tasting a bit it hasn’t been that bad. I can’t take that espresso tho, waaaaay too strong for me :p
I was always wondering what this green thing that you order at Starbucks is :D
Btw. I like the diagram too… Now I know what I order, hehe.
Pretty helpful isn’t it! :) We even ordered matcha green tea so I could make it at home, but I’ve yet to try to recreate it. Soon though, after my birthday and my sugar fast ends. ;)