So you didn’t mean to, but you’ve become addicted to coffee. It’s okay, it happens to the best of us. And all of us. But despite your constant caffeine craving and the daily (but necessary) $3 expense, you might not be as big of a coffee-know-it-all as you think.
Keep all these things in mind if you want to really have a full-bodied coffee experience.
Try It First
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People take their coffee from the counter, bring it over to the straw-sugar-milk table, and dump in 3 cows’ worth of milk. This makes me want to murder. Maybe it’s okay if you’re at a chain like Starbucks and know exactly how it will taste, but if you’re at a new place, stop. Check yourself.
Try the coffee. I promise it won’t hurt you. See if it needs sugar, milk, or both before you douse it and ruin the hard-earned flavors the coffee shop probably prides itself on.
Coffee tastes different everywhere, give every cup a sip. You might realize how good black coffee tastes, and save yourself from gulping down way too much sugar, sweetener, and milk every day.
Check the Clock
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New studies show that we’ve basically been doing coffee all wrong. Most of us drink it from 8-9 am, which is actually the worst possible time – it doesn’t do diddly-squat.
Our bodies run on a Circadian clock, and because of that, we’re actually pretty awake between 8 and 9, even if your last night’s crusty eyes seem to feel (and look) otherwise. At that time, our body’s cortisol is at its peak and we’re naturally caffeinated.
Our cortisol – or, a stress-related hormone – is low from 9:30-11:30 am, and 1:30-5:30 pm, which means that’s prime coffee time. The caffeine will actually perk you up, so time to shift your coffee run.
There Are No Leftovers
Gif courtesy of Buzzfeed
Time for a little hack, guys. If you have ever made coffee in a coffeepot (these existed before Keurigs, anyone remember?), you’ve had some left over that you pour out because, ew, old coffee.
Don’t get rid of it so fast. Pour your leftover coffee into ice cube trays. Why? Because then when you make iced coffee, instead of filling it with normal ice cubes that’ll melt and leave your drink watery, you put coffee cubes in your coffee. So you coffee while you coffee. When they melt it won’t get watered down. #spoontip FTW.
Quit the Keurig
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First off, K-Cups (and the like) are awful for the environment. K-Cups are basically made of too many materials to efficiently recycle. Even the founder of the Keurig regrets making them.
Plus, there’s mold growing in your hidden water tank that is pretty difficult to flush out, if at all possible, and the K-Cups you buy are packed with stale coffee. If you brewed a pot, you wouldn’t leave it out for more than fifteen minutes. K-Cups sit for quite a while.
And if all that’s not enough, here are a whole bunch of other reasons why the Keurig stinks. Might want to rethink your drink.
Cool It With the Frappuccinos
Gif courtesy of frappuccino.com
Don’t get mad at me, but they’re not coffee. They. Are. Not. They’re just slushies that taste pretty good. But don’t take a sip of your sugar smoothie and pretend you’re really drinking coffee. You’re not.
What you are drinking (at least in the new frappuccinos) is as much sugar as a liter of Coca-Cola. Even if your Java Chip Frapp isn’t as bad in the sugar department, just think about how much sugar you’re taking in and how little coffee. Switch to some dark roast. You (your belt, and your wallet) will thank me.