When I was growing up, I always woke up to the wonderful smell of coffee. My Mom and Dad perked some every morning. They drank a brand called Eight O'Clock. They didn't let us drink it though, I don't think I really knew why since I didn't understand about caffeine, it was just an adult thing. I was allowed a sip once or twice and I was surprised about how bad it tasted when it smelled so good. I didn't have to taste it but about twice to know I didn't want any of it.
When I was forty I went back out into the 8 to 5 working world after 10 years of working on my own. The building I worked in was right across the street from a locally owned coffee shop. About that time, the fun flavored coffees had become all the rage and eventually, after wandering over for the homemade pastries a few times, I tried a vanilla coffee. Of course with the nice vanilla flavor and tons of sugar, I then found it quite delightful ! So started my journey of learning to like coffee.
Three years into my job, I decided on a life adventure and moved half a country away, to San Antonio, Texas. I transferred to my company's location there. I worked in a building that ran 24/7, so there was ALWAYS free regular coffee in the breakroom. That is where I eventually started drinking some daily, since it was free and always ready..... and the rest as they say, is history. I now drink some almost every day. I do take spells where I don't, but I always come back to it before too long.
This is one of my fun mugs. It's a McCoy and although I am not really into the rustic look in many things, I do love some good pottery things.
My current favorite coffee is this Amaretto flavor from Cameron's Brand. I have always loved the Amaretto flavor, almond if you will and I was happy to find this not too long ago. Years ago I had found a brand online from a company called Black Mountain. I had never had amaretto and had tried it on a whim. I loved it, but eventually I believe they sold their brand to someone else and now as far as I can tell online, it doesn't exist anymore. Since then, from time to time I would see amaretto from some other company, but it was never very good. I even bought an expensive brand one time, thinking if it cost that much it had to be good... .right?? ...ummm... no. I was already familiar with the Cameron brand in general though, so when I saw this amaretto flavor on Amazon, I took a chance and tried it and I am not sorry I did. It is currently my favorite coffee. It is not a strong over powering amaretto flavor, but enough you can tell it is there. I do drink mine black.
I had already been drinking the Cameron brand from my local supermarket. From time to time I try something different and had come across this a couple of years ago. It was not expensive as supermarket coffee goes, so I didn't have high expectations of it, however I was happily surprised that I thought it made a very decent cup of coffee. It says a Kona Blend. Real pure Kona is the best EVER coffee and amazingly expensive, so of course anything in the market here that has Kona on it is just a blend of some kind. Still, for a regular cup of coffee, to my tastes, it is a good choice.
Another pottery mug. 🙂
So now that you've seen my regulars, below is my favorite specialty coffee. I rarely drink this in the mornings, although, this morning I decided to have some, or should I say, this afternoon ! Since it is cloudy outside it seems like perpetual morning here and since I didn't get up till mid-morning, it still feels early to me.... anyway..... I came across this Barnie's Cafe Mocha Truffle. At the time I bought it on a whim, I was not familiar with this brand. It was on the bottom shelf where it could be easily passed over, but I somehow saw it and tried it along with their morning blend and I really liked them both, so as long as I could find it here, their morning blend was my "go to" for plain coffee and the Mocha was for special times. Since then that store no longer carries this brand and neither does anyone else around here. I only have it at this time, because one of my nieces and I were talking at a family gathering one time and we somehow got on coffee and in that conversation we talked about our favorites and I told her about this one that I couldn't find anymore. Not long after the covid shut down started, I received a care package and in it was a bag of my precious Mocha coffee ! My niece lives in another town and she had found it there and sent me a bag ! Since then she has sent me 2 more !! ... happy sigh..... I feel SO loved ! She said it was to help me get through the isolation.....LOL !!
I rarely drink coffee in the evening, but on the rare occasion that I want a cup, this is what I have if it is here.
I have lots of different mugs and this one was my fav to drink out of for the longest time. I found it at a store called Tuesday Morning and it was called a cocktail mug. I gave one to my Mom at the time and it has been her favorite since then. She has broken a few, so I did have to buy more one time and was lucky to find them on Amazon. I bought her a few extra.... just in case. 😂
Most of the time I am a leisurely "sipper", so in a mug, it can go cold before I finish and have to be re-poured. I use to remedy this by having a mug warmer at my desk to sit my mug on to keep it from going cold and it worked great, but the last one broke and I have not had the opportunity to replace it yet, so for now I mostly use this small thermos which keeps it hot for hours ! It has worked out well, but is not very eye appealing like my fun mugs are.
One time I found these lovely Chantal cappuccino mugs. Their finish was so smooth and I loved their shape, but alas, they are not good for "sippers" because the top opening is too large and lets all the heat out really fast. I found that they make great soup, macaroni, anything bowls and since they have handles, they are great to use while watching TV or whatever. They are my favorite BOWLS now. I was very happy to figure that out, because I love the way they look and now I get to use them a lot..... just not for coffee. 🙂
I had no idea I would make this post this long....really. If you got this far and are still with me, I hope you have a very happy day.
Yay for Saturdays..... now where is my coffee ???
Love ya !
Jacey
I had a nylon/plastic mug that I used for ever, had a set of six, eventually fell off to just two, and then they just became so worn I had to go for a newer thermos type for my coffee. Like you I am a coffee sipper, it takes me a couple of hours to drink a cup so I never really got into the collect coffee mugs.
My favorite brand of coffee used to be Kaladi Brothers Trieste, but the company owner became a victim of covid-19 madness, closed his shops only sold via online. They did offer free shipping through the Post Office, but the post office does not provide street delivery where I live, and UPS/FedX was as expensive to ship as the coffee was to buy.
His shops are re-open now, but we have not been back to them yet. We found a new coffee from an Alaska roaster called Black Satin, which is a dark roast coffee. Pretty tasty and our new favorite. So one business lost us, another gained our business.
I've rarely been in the market for a mug, but over time I have bought one here or there on a whim or someone has given me one along the way. I don't really care for them to be too heavy. Early on, I never thought about drinking out of a travel mug type thing like this thermos while I was at home and enjoyed choosing from the small assortment of mugs that I have. Alas, hot coffee is more important than the looks of the mug it is in.... therefore my thermos.
I wouldn't have had a travel thermos here before a few years ago, but when my company moved us into a new building 5 or 6 years ago, they no longer wanted us using anything that didn't have a lid at our desk. That caused me to purchase a couple of these nice thermal travel .... things. 🙂
That covid sure has made a mess of many things. I know that was terrible when it first happened that your favorite coffee was no longer there, but glad you were able to find something that you like as well. I know it was hard for businesses to know what to do. It must have been awful to feel they had to shut down.
It is good to have choices !
Yes it is, I hate to think of things we have no real choice in, and the narrowing of choice in the stores and market. I really do not think stores should be allowed to have store brands, they undercut and out shelf the other products and then we have fewer and fewer choices.
I like shopping in stores, but we are a cluster of small towns and small cities and even before Amazon, there were many things you couldn't find around here..... still, much more back then than now ! I love supporting my local community, but if they don't have what I want or need, how can I?
Yeah that is a problem for us small town people. I do use Amazon on occasion. If a small store has what I need even with the free shipping from Amazon I will pay the little extra cost to buy local.
I understand. I do think it is a good thing to help the local businesses in small communities when you can.
We learn more and more about you in your articles, @jacey.boldart!
Upped and rehived! 😍
Thank you !
It is fun to read about things in other people's lives.
I meant to put the LOH blinky banner on the bottom, but forgot. I think I need to go find that thing and add it.
I love coffee and drink about a pot a day! Pre-COVID, my home is frequently visited by friends who are mostly coffee drinkers as well. They love to hang around the second-floor family room. So I set up a coffee and tea station in the family room, and display the mugs which mostly gifts from them to me... because they know I love to drink coffee. It is great to know you a little more about you from your articles posted here in the Ladies of Hive Community.
Have a wonderful day, dear friend @jacey.boldart 🥰🌺🤙
Oh my ! you have such a lovely assortment of mugs !
That is wonderful that your friends came by to enjoy a happy cup of coffee. I hope one day we get to go back to such things.
Love how you have that coffee station set up.
Hope you have a very wonderful day too !
@silversaver888 you got quiet some mug collection there.
I am awestruck. 🤩
Got to admit that arrangement of the coffee/ tea station is pretty neat.
You must really love your coffee.
Very nice post and I LOVE your mugs.
I do drink some coffee but that's maybe 1 time in a week, if it's even that. I'm really a tea person. And water is something I always have near me.
But just to read your post I made myself a coffee and enjoyed that while reading your blog.
Have a great weekend and take care!
What kind of tea is your favorite? Do you drink the same kind all of the time or do you like different kinds and switch them around?
That made me smile when you said my post caused you to make a cup of coffee. 🙂 💛
I always have my big lidded cup with a straw, full of water all the time. I do drink lots of water during the day.
I hope you have a great weekend too. Stay safe !
I do have a favorite tea, it's called wintertea and it's flavoured with cinnamon and orange with a few other herbs.
I drink many different kinds of tea, but mostly I drink the usual english blend because of the cheap price of that and my budget is not that high. But I really love to switch between flavours.
Ohhhh.... that Wintertea sounds delightful with cinnamon and orange. I love both of those flavors.
I usually have a few teas here, but drink them more in winter. I will fix a hot cup on a cool evening if I am not wanting to have coffee. My whistling kettle sits on my stove all winter, just waiting for me to need a hot drink. 😊
That whistling kettle on the stove sounds so cozy! I can picture that completely in my mind!
We had one long ago, but I had not had one for a very long time. About three years ago I purchased one and I have loved using it. It is more fun than heating water in the microwave. 😄 ... and since it whistles when it's boiling, I can walk away and do other things till it's ready.
Totally agreeing on that. 😊
100% coffee person here as well!
Getting the beans from a local burner how has the choice from different beans
www.brandzaak.nl is the place (yes this is dutch hahaha)
So always fresh stuff indeed!
I have never purchased beans straight from the roaster. I bet that IS really tasty !
@jacey.boldart you have some unique pottery mug collections.
The cocktail mug is my favourite.
I keep breaking them for some reason always. It’s like me and pottery mugs cannot survive together hence I am banned from touching them in my house. 😂
I have been drinking coffee since I can remember.
Totally love your post.
Wish you a happy weekend.
Cheers.
LOL @ "hence I am banned from touching them in my house. 😂"
THAT made me laugh !
Thank you ! Hope your weekend is a pleasant one as well.
I love all kinds of coffee and I tend to gravitate to the darker Roasts ☕️ But my latest taste trial is an Abruzzo Medium. A savory taste with nutty undertones.
I'm not sure exactly what my Work place serves, prob Arabica or Sumatra or both, lol.
Awesome 👍
Hi !
I tried different coffees for the longest time. Loved some, didn't love some and really didn't know why. I love coffee that has a very rich coffee flavor without being bitter. It took me a while to notice the different roasts. For a while I thought the dark roasts were too strong for me, but over the years, I've grown fond of the stronger flavors.
The only thing I have found that I don't love at this time is the ones that have a citrus background. For my tongue, the flavors don't mesh well.
Love the nutty flavors too.
Thanks for stopping bye !
Did I hear Truffles???
I love that as a dessert coffee, and only in the evenings. I love your pottery mugs, they look to be the locally made kind. I have some from when I lived in North Carolina and loved their pottery. I loved the little shops that were actually people garages. Some of my favorite pottery comes from there.
How sweet of your niece!!! I am always afraid that a store brand will stop being stocked just as I form my addiction to it. Ditto with stores that carry a one time supply of it.
My parents drank Eight O'clock coffee too, I am pretty sure it was an A&P brand or maybe that is just where they bought it because they are out of business and I still see the brand around! I love the smell of coffee, it was like a wake-up call, and only my grandpa let me have a cup that was all mile and colored with coffee. I would never tell him it was gross.
This was a fun post! Thanks!
Upped and Reposted
!tip
You may be right about the Eight O'Clock being A&P. Fortunately for anyone that loved it, most of the stores around here still carry it. I drank it for a little while early on, but was too found of trying other kinds on a whim and eventually liked other kinds better.
That WAS so sweet of my niece. She is so very thoughtful and she surprises me occasionally with some little trinket or other thoughtful doodad. She likes to bake a lot, so we have that in common and I have passed over a few of my baking pans to her. Don't faint, I have an amazing amount of bakeware that I've barely used in years, but I still haven't let go of it. I could probably free up one whole closet here if I'd let it go and that doesn't count 7 boxes that are in Mom's attic ! OMGoodness !
99 percent of the time I like my coffee black, although I do enjoy a strong latte occasionally. This Truffle coffee has a chocolate background that is not faint and it tastes like put put cocoa in it. No fakey flavor. I realize it could taste different to someone else, but for me.... It's nearly perfect.
Thanks for coming over and reblogging and tipping and all that there stuff.
{{ hugs }}
Oh!!! You have more than I do, and I know I have too many. I used to bake a lot more, sending in cookies and cakes to school and bringing them into work, but, no more. Well... no more of anything fun right now, right?
I was reading the part of your post where you confess to all that bakeware and one of my daughters, who also loves bakeware said, "Oh, wow! She and I could be friends." Truth. She loves all those special pans and practical ones too. I love baking but, I have come to realize that every roll I own belongs to that.
Le sigh.
Every day off, I make myself do a small project, and the baking cabinet is one of them. (someday, I will have to own it, but, not this day)
Hope you have a great night!
🎁 Hi @jacey.boldart! You have received 0.1 HIVE tip from @dswigle!
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Thank ya !
Oh, that wasn't worth two!! One will do! :))
ha ha.... well... I thought I posted it and then it didn't show and I was like..... what tha???? .... so I did it again ! Now I won't have to say it next time, because I am ahead.
LOL !!!!
Thank ya !!
Now this is what I like to see, although of course my Speciality Coffee is far more special then these - it's Artisan small batch all the way ☕️
Well... give me time ! I haven't tried them ALL yet ! 😃
Thank you ! 💙