Let's Talk About Coffee Machines ....

[Aye Capn]

Coffee must be Food of the Gods to you military guys. Love your stories!

[Hank001]

Aye Capn nails it noting:

Coffee must be Food of the Gods to you military guys. Love your stories!

Ambrosia. Nobody sane that I knew of resorted to caffine tablets. They only gave you jitters and plugged you up badly. So if you were not in a position to brew a cuppa, you munched instant coffee. Yet no substitute for a boiling hot cup of Joe. I admit that in the 24 years since I retired I've never had to resort to coffee sans H2O. In place I've lugged around high grade thermos bottles, something you couldn't do in in a fighter cocpkpit or a serious boony crawl where the smell of hot coffee would give your position away.

I don't know about the other services but the US Air Force runs on for the most parts on 3 fuels. Coffee and JP4 and JP8 jet fuels...

[Morkonan]

... They only gave you jitters and plugged you up badly....

The Shakes... Caffeine tabs and other stims, like ephedrine derivatives, dump everything at once. And, when they're gone, you need another or you're going to crash. I got so hyped up on "White Crosses" (ephedrine) one time that my eyeballs shook. (Not abusing them, really, just had to stay up.)

Coffee is smooth, gradual, a cup here and there will do ya. Got the jitters? Eat a cracker or two.

Caffeine is the most "abused" drug there is. It's extremely addictive, but luckily is generally only harmful in large amounts. I'm an addict and my body is fully acclimated to having as little blood in my caffeine system as possible.

Today, I ran out of coffee, so now it's time to go to the grocery store! The idea of being without at least my morning cups is... terrifying. (Was only able to have one and a half cups of coffee this morning, which is about three to four cups worth to normal people.)

[Hank001]

@ Morkonan:
Happy Halloween! Here's a scary image for you:



Booo!

[Morkonan]

@ Morkonan:
Happy Halloween! Here's a scary image for you:
...
Booo!

/twitch

@$%@$ that!

We had the old metal corrugated five-pounds-of-soon-to-be-rectal-devastation cans... Industrial Strength, you could not have used it to clean aircraft aluminum, that's for damn sure. Would definitely eat the heck out of cosmoline, though.

There's a nerve on the right-hand side of my face that still twitches every time I think of that swill...

PS: Elgin Prepares for Halloween (2010) A pumpkin, uniform now complete, who's safety is assured...

[Hank001]

Morkonan:

PS: Elgin Prepares for Halloween (2010) A pumpkin, uniform now complete, who's safety is assured...

I was Frankenstein's Monster at the haunted house for 2 years running. Thanks for the reminder. They got bashed pretty hard during the hurricane.

Back on topic. If and when I score some more Jamaican Blue Mountain I'll share...

[Morkonan]

Morkonan:

PS: Elgin Prepares for Halloween (2010) A pumpkin, uniform now complete, who's safety is assured...

I was Frankenstein's Monster at the haunted house for 2 years running. Thanks for the reminder. They got bashed pretty hard during the hurricane.

Back on topic. If and when I score some more Jamaican Blue Mountain I'll share...

We used to run a Halloween "Haunted House," too. And, to keep it "On Topic," yes, we had a boatload of coffee, since most of the show went on until 11pm or so. Fun times, but darn tiring. It takes a LOT of effort give "100 %" for every group coming through. Coffee was absolutely required.

A short article on "How coffee influenced the course of history." I'm sure there are plenty of similar articles out there, including articles on coffee's less palatable step-brother, tea. (Sure to get a rise out of a certain segment of the forum population...) Tea is still consumed in the US, of course, both hot and cold versions. For myself, it's "Sweet Tea," which is a cold version served over ice with copious amounts of sugar in it. It is the House Wine of the Southern United States, sometimes not easily available north of the Mason-Dixon Line. And, curiously enough, rare in Southern Florida, which is mostly Canadian, anyway, for half the year.

[Hank001]

Morkonan points out:

Tea is still consumed in the US, of course, both hot and cold versions.

Well thanks to the 'Merican need to resort to stimulants to keep up with the pace of life coffee is the drug of choice here. Can you imagine this country all pausing at 4pm for a mass coffee break? With 4 time zones?

If you reach back in time, we might very well have. England sort of killed that when it levied that tax on tea and started us saying "No taxation without representation". Which led to the first Cosplay and steeping Boston Harbor with Indian Pekoe.

Now as opposed to the rather blood soaked history of tea:

The History of Coffee

[BugMeister]

mine's a Tassimo - makes an excellent Americano Grande
a dash of cream or milk and brown sugar in the cup before starting up..
- sprinkle a little of the sugar on the top for a delicious brew..

[Hank001]

BugMeister said:

mine's a Tassimo

Good one! My Hamilton Beach is a Tassimo style, but not as bulky as the Bosh machines.

Not to advert: Just to show you my machine

[Morkonan]

...Which led to the first Cosplay and steeping Boston Harbor with Indian Pekoe. ...

Lolz.. I had a vision of people dressed up as Anime characters and in "Furry" suits, storming grand Age of Sail ships and tossing crates overboard, all while pausing for "selfies."

In the article I linked, one of the reasons that Americans focused a bit more on coffee may have been directly tied to the whole issue of the Tea Tax and Boston Tea Party. So, coffee is, in a way, an example of "Murican Patriotism."

...brown sugar in the cup...

GACK! "Brown Sugar?" In Coffee? Well, I guess I can't complain, since I am now addicted to this stuff: Natural Bliss Coffeemate Creamer. It's cream, sugar and vanilla for the one I like. A little of that makes for a nice cup. Though, I used to be a die-hard "black" coffee drinker for decades. (Probably why I hated that Choc-Full-O-Friggin-Nutz coffee. Though, a healthy dose of pesticide wouldn't make it potable...)

Early morning coffee-drinker pro-tip - Put whatever you like in your coffee in the cup, first. Then, pour the coffee from about a foot up, like the Eastern "Pulled Tea." Let it hit the cup, mix with the flavorings/additives and properly aerate. This will bring out all the flavor, yield an even mix, and give you a nice little bit of head on the surface with plenty of aromatics. And, no dirty spoons. I haven't used a coffee spoon/stirrer in decades, either.

[Aye Capn]

Thank goodness caffeine crack isn't technically a drug but a dietary supplement! Chock-Full-o-Nuts has a purpose after all ...

(Legal or not coffee crack can't possibly be safe, can it?)

[Hank001]

Aye Capn says:

Chock-Full-o-Nuts has a purpose after all

I think whoever invented inhalable caffine has missed a point or two about why we're COFFEE freaks. The smell of freshly ground coffee... The steam from the coffeemaker filling the room with the aroma... That sniff of your freshly filled cup. That first sip of... (*) (×) oops gotta go.

[Morkonan]

Thank goodness caffeine crack isn't technically a drug but a dietary supplement!

This is getting out of hand. You know, it's illegal to concentrate and ingest/imbibe or inhale products in order to produce altered physiological states or to get "high." Why? Originally, laws against this originated to deal with issues surrounding people "huffing" noxious chemicals, like paint or gasoline or the nitrous oxide present as a propellant in whipped cream canisters. Those are legal chemical compounds when used for their intended purpose. But, they were being abused and we had to get something on the books to help protect people or to respond to the problems this use caused.

BUT, now, manufacturers can simply concentrate legal chemical additives for achieving something of the same purpose? These "energy drinks" and products are not healthy and are being abused, IMO. They present a situation where if the abuse of these legal compounds by manufacturers to produce possibly dangerous products is not put in check, someone is going to have to come up with new laws that add more regulatory issues for traditional food products.

These manufacturers are producing drug-like products, IMO. All of these "energy drink" companies need a serious looking-at...

Chock-Full-o-Nuts has a purpose after all ..

Mix half a pound of Chock-Full-O-Nuts with three gallons of water and you get a very nice wire-wheel and hubcap cleaner. Don't get it on the paint, though, and it isn't suitable for "coated wheels." Use a safe, non-corrosive, cleaner for those...

(I just had an idea! Yes, surprising... But, anyway, I wonder what would happen if I sprinkled Choc-Full-O-Nuts grounds around a big anthill? And then filmed it! Would the ants go into turbo mode? Or, would they die horribly, as i suspect? And, if they did not see it as a possible food item, wtf does that say about Choc-Full-O-Friggin-Nuts? )

[Aye Capn]

"We filled him with Chock-Full-o-Nuts and powered his behind, and when we touched the powder off the gator lost his mind."

The true story of the Battle of New Orleans!

[Morkonan]

"We filled him with Chock-Full-o-Nuts and powered his behind, and when we touched the powder off the gator lost his mind."

The true story of the Battle of New Orleans!

Lol.. I had a vision of either a famous painting of that battle or a scene in an old movie of it. Either way, both featured a Choc-Full-O-Nuts can, prominently.


This just in: Guardian: Which produces the best coffee?

Interesting info about the "Bialetti" group, who makes that little stovetop "moka" pot I had mentioned having used years ago, but didn't know who made it or what sort of pot it was.

Anyway, to avoid clickbaiting the forum, the answer is - Coffee over filter. Its a very popular option in the US, probably the most popular even with the advent of "pods." Though, the machines aren't as elegant looking as that ceramic mug-topper thingie in the pic. But, they heat the water and dribble it over the collected grounds and filter in the same way, with less effort.

[Aye Capn]

"Prepare to fire on the upward roll, lads ... For England! For Queen and Country! ... FIRE!"

*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*

"INCOMING! It's canister shot, sir. They're aiming for our sails!"

"Is it ..."

"Aye, Chock Full-o-Nuts."

"STRIKE THE COLORS! ABANDON SHIP!"

[Hank001]

Aye Capn:

"STRIKE THE COLORS! ABANDON SHIP!"

[Morkonan]

"Damn the Choc-Full-O-Nuts, full speed ahead! Time and coffee wait for no man! I have not yet begun to have my morning cup!"

"But, sir - This is a delicatessen."

"There is but one cup between a sailor and death! We have met the baristas and they are ours!"

"Sir? Maybe I should call someone...

"Praise the coffee and pass the mugs! You may fire when ready, Mr. Gridley."

"Sir! I really..."

"Paint and coffee! That coffee machine may not work, but it will not rust!"

"Somebody call someone..."

[Aye Capn]

A direct hit on the exhaust port by a can of Chock Full o' Nuts will start a chain reaction ...