Day 1, morning ritual deconstructed

May Day. (Yes, this is a belated post). I started with a baseline reference of my tried and true: the straight Americano, no sugar, no dairy. Espresso and water. Glorified coffee, to some. More expensive than drip, to all. I started taking mine half-caff a year ago so that I could have the super size without all the jolt. I love the morning ritual of the big coffee lasting until lunch but as years pass I find all that caffeine to be a bit too heavy. I still crave a little kick, just not that hard. The flavor has never seemed unacceptably far off from the full-caff anyway.

The Americano is a highly enjoyable drink, slightly cleaner than just coffee, I think. The crema on the top makes the first few sips pure heaven. You don't get that with plain drip. As a bonus, it is also flexible. If I want a stronger flavor I just ask for less water (a.k.a. "more room"). If I want a longer sipping experience, fill it to the top, please. Either way, I am getting all the bean nectar that I paid for.

That is my baseline. I can drink it every day. My new drink should be that good or better.

Onto a sidebar discussion:

When I visited New Zealand last year I quickly discovered that an Americano was commonly called a "long black." But I could not tell that from the first coffee menu I read. All I could discern was that there was no Americano on the menu. I kinda expected that, of course. A slight snicker from the barista when I timidly floated a call for an Americano and the fact that she made the drink without needing a definition quickly tipped me off that I had something to learn. Either that drink concept was foreign to them but commonly asked for by American tourists or they had their own name for it and understood the variations from around the world. Silly American. There was no "caffe New Zealander" on the menu. Naturally it would not be that simple. Rather than ask what the translation was--if there was one at all--I decided to figure it out for myself. So right there was a little instance of seeking a beverage adventure way back then before this current quest. It was probably unconsciously prompted by being on a larger, very, very cool vacation adventure. The long black on the menus everywhere were suspicious partly because there was always a sibling drink called a "short black" to be found with it. I eventually ordered a long black, pretending to be a pro, and watched the preparation. The riddle was solved. Long black is indeed the parity to Americano.

The national rugby team of New Zealand is the All Blacks. The New Zealand people wear a lot of black clothes, they really do. The coffee drink names are indeed quite fitting. And, by the way, a short black is on par with a regular espresso.

A little Googling after my trip revealed that a proper long black is made stronger than a typical Americano. It may also be made with what are called "ristretto" shots. A ristretto is a short espresso shot with less steam passed through the grounds--something around half the amount. Basically, start the shot and pull the little glass before the normal amount is reached (30-45 ml vs. 60 for a double shot). You get the very best love that the beans have to give, so the idea goes.

Unfortunately, all the Starbucks baristas I have asked back here have never heard of such a thing but they can easily do it when you explain it to them. Maybe it was the New Zealand water or better coffee (or maybe it was just being on vacation in such a fantastic place such that even burnt Maxwell House would taste divine) but I must say the long black tasted a tad better than my beloved Americano here in the States, even when I have it stronger than normal. I wanted to start a popular movement and ask for long blacks instead of Americanos when I visit Starbucks. The problem (there may be a few) is that asking for a "long black" here kinda sounds like, well, let's just say something that you could expect associated with "adult entertainment." Cue that funky 70's music, Mr. L.D. Silver, and pour me some of that espresso and hot water, please.