My coffee consumption did not really change much during the pandemic. I have two to three cups a day. Sometimes, I will have a fourth in the mid to later afternoon depending on workload and how sleepy or Zoom fatigued I am feeling.
Because of the pandemic, I am home much more often. So, almost all of the coffee I drank from March through August was made at home in our Keurig. Most of the pods were either Kirkland’s Breakfast Blend, Pacific Bold, or Caribou’s Medium Blend bought in 100 K-Cup boxes. I like to keep the cost per serving around 35 cents per serving. In my non-scientific study, these are the best value in terms of taste and cost per serving. I always have some Cameron’s Jamaica Blue Mountain Blend (50 cents per serving) because it is a richer and better tasting brew.
From the start of the fall semester on August 28 through the week before Thanksgiving, I was on campus on Mondays and Wednesdays mornings for 8 and 9 am classes. About half the time, I did go to my office for to join an online meeting or just to spend some time in my campus office as a change of venue. The change of venue also provided a change of coffee machines. I have a Nespresso machine in my office.
On the way in to teach, I make a 12 ounce coffee in my Yeti (yeah, I am kinda predictable) tumbler. In more normal times, I would take a second serving into the classroom. These days, I stopped doing that because it was too complicated being masked and having to tend to students in the classroom and those participating online. So, when these morning classes ended, I was ready for that second cup of coffee. Hence, going to my campus office and my Nespresso machine waiting for me there worked out quite well.
By the end of October when the pandemic numbers were again rising, I was more interested in getting home after teaching and minimizing the number of people I would be in contact with. On one of these days, I wanted a second cup of coffee. Well, I had parked my car in a lot near a Starbuck’s so, I stopped in and got usual: a Grande Americano. I went to the car and drove home. I reached for the coffee about five minutes into the drive, took a sip, and thought, “Wow… this is so good. It tastes so much better than what I have been drinking.” So, much richer and tastier.
Before the Pandemic, one out of twenty cups I drank was a Starbuck’s Grande Americano. I don’t recall the quality being that much different from the coffee from my two machines. But, I hadn’t been to Starbuck’s for eight months. The difference was marked and amazing. My theory for why is simple, and I believe spot-on. My home Keurig and office Nespresso machines were about $120 a piece. A quick Google search revealed that the exclusive espresso machines in Starbuck’s stores made by the Swiss based Thermoplan cost about $18,000. $18,000? My guess was $5,000. I think this explains the difference in the quality and why they charge me $3.50 for the Grande Americano at Starbuck’s versus my 35 cents a cup at home.
Is this but one example of the pandemic making me appreciate and enjoying these small, everyday experiences I was simply taking for granted before this year? I am going to answer yes, even though it involved an $18,000 coffee maker…
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