Thank you for a super interesting read! I’m coffee obsessed - recently devoured James Hoffman’s World Atlas of Coffee which I’d highly recommend. I used to not ‘see the point’ in decaf coffee either, until I learned that during pregnancy, caffeine’s metabolite, paraxanthine, crosses the placenta and can cause babies to be born small for age (similar to alcohol and smoking during pregnancy) which persists later in life, causing children not to reach their full growth potential in adulthood. This obviously has knock on effects for brain development etc (I work in nutrition research). When I learned this, I was grateful that good decaf coffee exists, and can be quite delicious, even. Thought you might find this as interesting as I did!
I had NO idea of link between caffeine and pregnancy, so thank you. I suspect it isn't too widely known. And World Atlas of Coffe also unfamiliar - so two good tips!
The mention of Bradley Cooper is leading me to think about perfect pairings--- coffee with brownies or cheesecake, coffee with martini or whisky, coffee with chilli or tomato sauce?
Limiting the enjoyment of coffee to the effects of caffeine strikes me as drinking fine wine for the alcohol. After my morning double espresso caffelatte I drink water-processed decaf because too much caffeine makes me jittery. Not all decaf is made from Robusta.
Thank you for both these observations! I'm glad to be corrected on Robusta not being the only coffee for decaf because it did seem puzzling. But I took it as correct as it was one of Seattle's original coffee roasters who informed me, too persuasively, perhaps, as I clearly didn't check him out further. You're right, too, about the importance of flavour. But once you have become an addict of anything, which I certainly have become of caffeine, your daily fix becomes almost paramount. Without the caffeine keeping migraine at bay, no amount of complexity of flavour is going to provide all I demand from my morning coffee. I should give myself a blind tasting on both to see how discerning is my tongue. On a slightly sideways matter, while decaf coffee may now be of a quality that can stand alongside regular, have you found a non-alcoholic wine that can pass a blind tasting against wines containing alcohol? It hasn't yet been accomplished, in my view, with non-alcoholic gin where the alcohol of course provides an effect but removed completely alters flavour.
I need that jolt of caffeine to clear the cobwebs in my brain, though certainly they’re not as dire as your aura. But I do enjoy the flavor of roasted coffee beans too, so if I make myself a second (or third) cup later in the day, it’s usually decaf from freshly ground beans or a Nespresso pod, to avoid extra jitters.
The taste from caffeine in coffee is not nearly as prominent as that of alcohol in wine (or gin, for that matter). Removing caffeine does change the flavor profile In coffee slightly but alcohol is responsible for body as well as flavor. De-alcoholized wines use sugar and acidity to create a palatable balance, so it’s a very different taste experience. De-alcoholized beverages always work better in cocktails, if one must.
Your comment that alcohol adds body was eye opening. You nail the problem in the way I've never managed: It's the elusive 'thinness' in the mouth as much as lack of flavour depth of non-alcoholic spirits that makes them such a disappointment.
Last week the papers were raving about taurine being a (youth-anizer is *not* the word...) miracle anti-aging chemical, so perhaps your Red Bulls weren't the toxic chemical sludge you feared! My god do they taste awful though.
In Italy you can buy squares of dark chocolate with liquid espresso inside; I used to take them with me travelling when I wasn't confident in finding coffee.
Must look into taurine further...I thought it was directed at improving car engine performance. Which I suppise might apply to ageing. Chocolate espresso-ed sounds far more attractive.
Thank you for a super interesting read! I’m coffee obsessed - recently devoured James Hoffman’s World Atlas of Coffee which I’d highly recommend. I used to not ‘see the point’ in decaf coffee either, until I learned that during pregnancy, caffeine’s metabolite, paraxanthine, crosses the placenta and can cause babies to be born small for age (similar to alcohol and smoking during pregnancy) which persists later in life, causing children not to reach their full growth potential in adulthood. This obviously has knock on effects for brain development etc (I work in nutrition research). When I learned this, I was grateful that good decaf coffee exists, and can be quite delicious, even. Thought you might find this as interesting as I did!
I had NO idea of link between caffeine and pregnancy, so thank you. I suspect it isn't too widely known. And World Atlas of Coffe also unfamiliar - so two good tips!
The mention of Bradley Cooper is leading me to think about perfect pairings--- coffee with brownies or cheesecake, coffee with martini or whisky, coffee with chilli or tomato sauce?
I'm right with you until coffee with tomato sauce...
I don't drink coffee, but this was fascinating - and than you for the recipe as I'm still searching for the perfect version of just this!
Fingers crossed it turns out to be as 'perfect' as you hope! I have fun asking if people can guess what the secret ingredient is. They haven't yet.
Limiting the enjoyment of coffee to the effects of caffeine strikes me as drinking fine wine for the alcohol. After my morning double espresso caffelatte I drink water-processed decaf because too much caffeine makes me jittery. Not all decaf is made from Robusta.
Thank you for both these observations! I'm glad to be corrected on Robusta not being the only coffee for decaf because it did seem puzzling. But I took it as correct as it was one of Seattle's original coffee roasters who informed me, too persuasively, perhaps, as I clearly didn't check him out further. You're right, too, about the importance of flavour. But once you have become an addict of anything, which I certainly have become of caffeine, your daily fix becomes almost paramount. Without the caffeine keeping migraine at bay, no amount of complexity of flavour is going to provide all I demand from my morning coffee. I should give myself a blind tasting on both to see how discerning is my tongue. On a slightly sideways matter, while decaf coffee may now be of a quality that can stand alongside regular, have you found a non-alcoholic wine that can pass a blind tasting against wines containing alcohol? It hasn't yet been accomplished, in my view, with non-alcoholic gin where the alcohol of course provides an effect but removed completely alters flavour.
I need that jolt of caffeine to clear the cobwebs in my brain, though certainly they’re not as dire as your aura. But I do enjoy the flavor of roasted coffee beans too, so if I make myself a second (or third) cup later in the day, it’s usually decaf from freshly ground beans or a Nespresso pod, to avoid extra jitters.
The taste from caffeine in coffee is not nearly as prominent as that of alcohol in wine (or gin, for that matter). Removing caffeine does change the flavor profile In coffee slightly but alcohol is responsible for body as well as flavor. De-alcoholized wines use sugar and acidity to create a palatable balance, so it’s a very different taste experience. De-alcoholized beverages always work better in cocktails, if one must.
Similarly, I like decaf espresso as a macchiato.
Your comment that alcohol adds body was eye opening. You nail the problem in the way I've never managed: It's the elusive 'thinness' in the mouth as much as lack of flavour depth of non-alcoholic spirits that makes them such a disappointment.
Last week the papers were raving about taurine being a (youth-anizer is *not* the word...) miracle anti-aging chemical, so perhaps your Red Bulls weren't the toxic chemical sludge you feared! My god do they taste awful though.
In Italy you can buy squares of dark chocolate with liquid espresso inside; I used to take them with me travelling when I wasn't confident in finding coffee.
Must look into taurine further...I thought it was directed at improving car engine performance. Which I suppise might apply to ageing. Chocolate espresso-ed sounds far more attractive.