A coffee love affair

I love coffee.

My love affair has been a long one – I’ve been blogging about coffee since 2006! (Here’s my first post about coffee.)

Over the years, my tastes in coffee have changed.

I started by loving dark rich deep brews. Now I love lighter premium brews.

My local favorite coffees are from Corvus Coffee Roasters, based in Denver, Colorado.

My out-of-town favorite coffees are from Onyx Coffee Lab, based in Northwest Arkansas. (I discovered them because my daughter attended John Brown University in Siloam Springs, not far from the Onyx flagship store in Rogers.)

Both produce roasted beans that are so good that I wake up in the middle of the night thinking about how nice it will be to wake up later, when the alarm goes off.

One of their keys to success is that they don’t over-roast their beans.

A side bonus is that they are much farther along the social responsibility scale than the national chains… you can typically find out who grew the beans you’re consuming. As Corvus describes it, they produce “Relationship Coffees.”

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My brewing methods have also changed. I used a coffee press for the bulk of my coffee-drinking life. In February 2023, I switched to the Simply Good Coffee brewer. I haven’t looked back. It essentially brews pour-over coffee as easily as a standard coffee maker. And it’s a lot cheaper than similar models from more well-known brands.

The resulting brewed coffee is excellent.

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Bonus Material:

1. No discussion of Denver coffee would be complete without mentioning my friends Erin and Ty, who run Flipside Coffee. Due to unforeseen circumstances, they are currently looking for a new home to serve their coffee. But when they’re back in the game, you’ll get delicious coffee – and pastries – served with a wonderful smile.
2. If you’re in Dallas, grab some beans – or a cup – from Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters. My sister Sharon turned me on to their beans – nice.
3. Like anything that involves taste, your experience may be different than mine. My friend Bob loves brews from Khaladi Coffee Roasters. I don’t. And he’s not fond of Corvus.
4. Because I don’t have the budget to consume excellent coffee all the time, some days I brew and drink Trader Joe’s Light Roast Ground Coffee. (Be sure to sprinkle a few grains of salt on the grounds before brewing.) This makes good coffee taste even better – the contrast makes me appreciate delicious coffee even more.
5. I’m too lazy to grind beans every morning. I grind the beans from a package all at once. Here’s why.

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So go forth and consume some dark hot liquid.