Thanks for the shoutout, Jason. Coffee forms a major part of our lives, much as tobacco does for those of us on the forum. While there are many who find a cup of Maxwell House fully satisfying as a morning wake up, the subtleties of flavor and fragrance offered by Specialty Coffee bring a distinct pleasure that an ordinary cup simply can't touch. And here's the thing--the cup you enjoyed last week May not be available next week because the individual farmer who produced it and sold it to a particular roaster won't have that same group of beans available until next year--or next month, depending upon what he's growing. Coffee, like tobacco, is an agricultural commodity, but variations according to terroir. and a host of other factors bring out a host of subtleties and delights not imagined by the drinker of generic coffee. (FYI--we have George Howell of Boston to thank for this--the living patron saint of specialty coffees.)
Right now I'm enjoying a cup of Yirgacheffe produced in the Gideo Zone of Ethiopia, and roasted by Mountain Air Roasters in Asheville, NC., while listening to the soundtrack from "Midnight in Paris." Sidney Bechet's "Si Tu Vois Ma Mère" is one of the most moving pieces ever written. What am I smoking, you ask? Is it important? Aye, there's the rub. Well, if the pipe and the tobacco are important, then so is the coffee with which it is consumed.
