Monday 12 November 2012

old style, great taste: hand brewed coffee for a change


If you have never tasted Tim Horton's coffee, you cannot possibly know what I am about to write here. No, don't stop reading though, I'll try to explain to you in a few words what this is all about: Tim Horton's is a coffee chain from Canada with more than 3000 stores nationwide. Canadians stop by and have a "large single single" or a "large triple milk" to indicate their preference of size and amounts of sugar and cream. First comes the size, then the sugar (single) and then the cream (single). Ordering at Tim Horton's is just as confusing as ordering at Starbucks if you do not have a preference yet, afterwards, it's very easy.


Thousands of Canadians get their cup of "Tims" on a daily basis. I would suggest not drinking more than one large cup a day, because the amount of caffeine is extremely high, thus, not good for your health. Alternatively you can order steeped tea (also fabulous) or a decaf.
Since coffee habits are quite different in Italy (I have already written a bit about it), Tim Horton's coffee is nowhere to be found around here. Thank goodness, my friends from across the pond send me cans of Tims on a regular basis. About once a week I enjoy a small pot of Tim Horton's coffee - and I always brew by hand.


To handbrew your cup of delicious coffee, you do not need to travel to Canada, almost any kind of coffee works, I do recommend, however, not to use the fine grind. Real Italian espresso coffee is not as tasty brewed by hand. The rule is: the coarser, the better.
Since filtered or drip brewed coffee is not as stylish these days and those who do drink it, usually prepare it with the help of electric coffee makers, I would like to explain to you how to make a lovely brewed filter coffee. Here is what you do:

- boil water in a kettle
- place a paper coffee filter in a manual drip coffee filter (mine is a ceramic one)
- spoon in the coffee (I always use one spoonful more than the amount of cups I get)
- once the water is boiling, take it off the stove and wait two minutes, never use the boiling water    
  as it will burn the coffee
- now slowly pour water over the coffee in circling motions, fill the ceramic filter to the top
- wait until all the water has dripped
- pour water over the coffee, again do it in circling motions, make sure the water pushes down
  most of coffee from the edges of the filter
- when all the water has dripped through and your can is full, your coffee is done.



Put your caramel cappuccino and vanilla soy chai latte apart for a moment and try a hand brewed coffee for a different taste... oh, and don't forget to let me know what you think!

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