Coffee

[91104]

Am I in a minority by not really liking Coffee and failing to see the attraction of the stuff?
When I was a kid growing up in the 80/90s Coffee seemed to be a choice between Nescafé and Maxwell House and if you wanted one when out and about a greasy spoon cafe would knock you one up in a polystyrene cup and charge about 20p for it. I certainly don’t remember Starbucks/Costa etc being a thing. Nowadays people seem obsessed by Coffee and it seems some can’t function without a Coffee or can’t be seen in public without a Coffee cup welded to their hand. Personally I wouldn’t even know what to order if I went into a branch of Starbucks as just asking for some Nescafé Gold Blend would probably have me laughed out of there.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Am I in a minority by not really liking Coffee and failing to see the attraction of the stuff?

Yes. You're possibly in the minority, but reckon there'll be fair few out there that don't ever bother with coffee.

Presume you drink tea instead?

 

[nlogax]

Personally I wouldn’t even know what to order if I went into a branch of Starbucks as just asking for some Nescafé Gold Blend would probably have me laughed out of there.

You can go into many of these places and just order 'a cup of coffee'. Or at a push an Americano. The only decisions you'll generally have to make are if you want small, medium or large and if you want milk in it. Whether that coffee is worth the couple of quid it costs... that's down to personal opinion.

 

[SuspectUsual]

I blame Friends for popularising drinking coffee as a lifestyle choice

 

[birchesgreen]

In Starbucks they have a filter coffee option, its the best one to be honest (and the cheapest!)

 

[Crossover]

I'm not a coffee drinker either - don't mind the smell though, but dislike the taste

I do drink tea, however (usually when in the office, occasionally elsewhere)

 

[Bletchleyite]

In Starbucks they have a filter coffee option, its the best one to be honest (and the cheapest!)

Half the time they don't have it, and they no longer seem to offer you an Americano at the same price if they don't. Bait and switch in my book, it's putting me right off them.

Both Pret and Tim Hortons will put filter on if you request it in my experience, even if you have to wait a short while for the first cup's worth to come through.

 

[J-2739]

Coffee is a boring drink for me. I've just never got into that habit. However, it makes for a really cool painting material!

Tea is king.

 

[Iskra]

I blame Friends for popularising drinking coffee as a lifestyle choice

You could argue that that lifestyle started as far back as the Enlightenment in England when coffee houses became influential here, hundreds of years ago.

The World Wars probably did as much to spread coffee culture. The story behind the Americano is that it’s named after GI’s in Italy during the war as they couldn’t handle espresso and wanted it watered down.

I think coffee culture also has as much to do with the decline in the acceptability of daytime alcohol consumption. I remember in the 90’s my dad and his workplace colleagues would deem a lunchtime pint perfectly acceptable, whereas nowadays that’s considered a lot less acceptable.

I don’t see why some commentators get riled up against it though, it’s a simple choice and there’s a lot worse habits out there in terms of their impact on society.

 

[PeterY]

I'm not a coffee drinker either - don't mind the smell though, but dislike the taste

I do drink tea, however (usually when in the office, occasionally elsewhere)

I'm not a coffee drinker either. IMO I think expensive coffee shops are a bit of a rip off.

I love tea though.

 

[baz962]

I have the pret subscription so decent return and I like the coffee. At home I rarely drink coffee , but I do like a barista made coffee and generally prefer it to tea when out and mainly like tea in a proper mug from a cafe.

 

[Mojo]

I despise coffee and despise coffee culture.

Dave Gorman did a good skit a few years ago on how coffee has ruined tea:

 

[Richardr]

They've been going for a while - Lloyd's was a coffee house where insurers used to meet, and that was the 1680's.

 

[birchesgreen]

Half the time they don't have it, and they no longer seem to offer you an Americano at the same price if they don't. Bait and switch in my book, it's putting me right off them.

Both Pret and Tim Hortons will put filter on if you request it in my experience, even if you have to wait a short while for the first cup's worth to come through.

The one i go to always has it, though i must just be lucky.

A lot of people don't like coffee because basic coffee can be a bit bland, and stuff like lattes and flat whites need to be done well or they can be awful (and few people can do them well!)

At home i have a cafetiere, i always go for flavoured ground coffees, hazelenut and vanilla especially.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

Coffee tastes bitter, yu k, milkshake is best.

 

[nlogax]

Coffee tastes bitter, yu k, milkshake is best.

Doesn't really give me the hot caffeiney kick I need..

 

[Broucek]

I hate coffee. But my Dr told me to cut down on sugar so I started drinking espresso instead. It's a good pick-me-up and the taste is over fast!

 

[Magdalia]

I'm not a coffee drinker either - don't mind the smell though, but dislike the taste

I'm there too.

When I was a kid growing up in the 80/90s Coffee seemed to be a choice between Nescafé and Maxwell House

People I know who like coffee say that's not the place to start.

Coffee makes me think of Baldrick in the trenches.

 

[cb a1]

I'm in my mid 50s. I've had one full cup of coffee*, made a couple of years ago by a good friend who is a professional roaster and barista - was probably an excellent cup of coffee but it was just warm flavoured water to me. Haven't bothered trying a second cup. *had sips of other people's coffee over the years just to see if it ever appealed but never has done yet.
Doing better on the tea side of things. I've probably had maybe half a dozen cups of tea in my life. Also warm flavoured water, but I was trying to be polite in the company I was in at the time (and one time when I was really feeling the cold on a mountainside).
On the whole, I just stick to water. If I'm going to have flavoured water, I much prefer it to be cold and tasting of beer.

 

[Russel]

I'm sure there has been a similar thread to this recently, can't find it now though.

I think the instant coffee of the 80's and 90's is a part of the reason a lot of people assume they don't like coffee, a cup of instant coffee and even the most basic of americano cannot be compared, they are totally different drinks, they just happen to share the same name.

Instant is nasty.

If anyone wants to learn more about the technical side of coffee, have a look on YouTube for James Hoffmann.

 

[Cross City]

I like both but coffee is better than tea. Neither are my drink of choice though and I don't drink that many hot drinks.

No idea how people get through 4-12 cups a day, it's like water doesn't exist fore these people.

The weird Yorkshire Tea fetishisation that goes on too is also weird. It's the same floor sweepings and dust that goes into any other mass produced tea bag. Do yourself a favour and get some loose leaf Assam and a strainer (better for having no single use stuff either).

 

[nlogax]

Instant is nasty.

It is horrific stuff. I've met people who think a jar of Mellow Birds is as good as it gets. While 'each to their own' that's as far removed from coffee as it's possible to get without breaking some sort of product description law.

 

[birchesgreen]

The weird Yorkshire Tea fetishisation that goes on too is also weird. It's the same floor sweepings and dust that goes into any other mass produced tea bag. Do yourself a favour and get some loose leaf Assam and a strainer (better for having no single use stuff either).

Ah Assam tea, now yer talking!

 

[cjmillsnun]

I blame Friends for popularising drinking coffee as a lifestyle choice

I’ve been a coffee drinker for much longer than that.

 

[birchesgreen]

I’ve been a coffee drinker for much longer than that.

There wasn't really a coffee shop culture until the late 90s when chains like Coffee Republic, Costa and later Starbucks started spreading. I'm not sure if Friends had that much cultural impact on it though.

 

[52290]

People I know who like coffee say that's not the place to start.

Coffee makes me think of Baldrick in the trenches.

I don't drink tea although many years ago as an office junior I used to brew a lot of it for my co-workers. Watching Baldrick brew coffee reminded me of my tea brewing techniques.

 

[FrodshamJnct]

Very much a coffee drinker here. I use a moka pot at home and then make a cremina (sugar and the first few drops of brewed coffee). Cheap, relatively quick, and very tasty. Beaten only by an after-dinner Irish coffee!

 

[DarloRich]

I don't like but drink Coffee from time to time. I drink it for the caffeines.

Tea is nicer and more civilised.

 

[AM9]

In my teens I drank both tea and instant coffee. Usually Maxwell house, I found Nescafe more bitter. By my '40s I'd fallen out of the habit but frequent business visit's to Rome on business where in meetings and even after a canteen lunch, really good espresso was served, and I had a far better experience of coffee.
These days after a meal out I normally order a single espresso which rounds the pallette off well. I now have a Dualit coffee machine at home, cost £50 from Hotel Chocolat and it uses Nespresso capsules so they are available everywhere in many strengths and blends and frequently discounted. I do still drink tea though and rarely ha e more than 2 coffees per day. Then there's free Coffee at Waitrose just around the corner which to me is a good rounded flavour.
I do understand those that don't like coffee taste or smell, my wife sees to that!

 

[DarloRich]

The weird Yorkshire Tea fetishisation that goes on too is also weird. It's the same floor sweepings and dust that goes into any other mass produced tea bag.

Woah. Woah. WOAH!

There is a world of difference between Yorkshire Tea and PG Pi$$/Tetley.