When I tried coffee for the first time, it was love at first sip. My love for this caffeinated drink extends way back to when I was just 6 or 7 years old. I would often sneak sips from my mum’s cup; before I knew it, my love for coffee had become a full-blown obsession by the time I joined high school.

As I’ve gotten older, my love and appreciation for coffee has matured. To me, drinking coffee is an intricate and nuanced experience; the rich aroma, the warm and comforting feeling it offers and the beauty of the ritual of sitting down with a freshly brewed cuppa. What’s there not to love about coffee?

Describing me as a coffee lover would be a bit of an understatement. To me and many other java heads out there, coffee is almost as essential as oxygen. I especially love affordable coffee brands such as Protein Coffee (not sure what protein coffee is, check out this guide)  because it lasts forever, has a whole host of benefits, and it has a great taste.

Before my first cup in the morning, I actually tend to feel woozy. Trying to use my brain is pretty much like trying to operate a rusty and old machine. If I manage to go coffee-free before 10 am, I can almost be sure of a headache, whose intensity gradually increases the longer I go without. Without coffee, I sometimes feel so ineffective, almost as though I’m ill or coming down with something.

Callously, my brain operates so poorly during these instances that I’m not always the best person to interact or reason with. The only thing that can fix me is- you guessed it- a piping cup of Joe.

My friends often describe me as a coffee snob, and rightly so. I like sitting in coffee shops alone or with company, reading the book or working on something. Sure, I could always try drinking herbal tea, but drinking coffee in restaurants designed to serve coffee is something that I derive pleasure in.

My love affair with coffee may be strange to some but probably the best part about it is that coffee has numerous benefits. Coffee can amplify your cognitive function, protect you against the risk of heart diseases, as well as stimulate digestion owing to its supply of antioxidants. 

And that’s not all. This nectar of the gods is so widely available that almost every culture in the world incorporates coffee in meals in one way or another. I have an endless thirst to learn about and master the art of coffee drinking, I’m always researching online and reading things like the coffeeble site to learn all about this wonderful drink, as well as indulge in my fantasy coffee equipment that would enhance the experience (budget willing…)!

If you have always wanted to try coffee, but don’t know where to start, here are 5 things that you should know to get you started:

Coffee is complex

You may or may not be aware of this, but coffee is as complex and multifarious as wine. Like wine, coffee contains numerous neurotransmitters in a single cup serving. Some common transmitters found in both coffee and wines include serotonin and dopamine, which explains why there is always a mood change whenever you drink coffee.

When it comes to wine, the flavor is impacted heavily by the berry and where it is grown. Similarly, the flavor of coffee beans starts with the seeds. The outcome of how coffee tastes can be altered at any stage during the growing, roasting or brewing process, just like wine. 

Coffee is perishable

Although I wish that my coffee would last forever, it is important to know that it is actually perishable. “According to Kate Huber, chief editor at NJGamblingFun, ‘’Stored coffee beans begin to lose their flavor and freshness immediately they are done roasting. As it loses its freshness, the aroma also diminishes. As such, as a rule of thumb, the sooner you use your coffee beans the better’’.

Coffee beans that have been stored properly will last for a good month before losing their flavor and aroma. Ground coffee, alternatively, lasts for approximately one or two weeks because it has a larger surface area than beans. Unroasted beans, on the other hand, can stay fresh for as long as a year.

Coffee’s main villains

Whether you prefer whole beans or ground coffee, you must store your coffee properly for the best results. Coffee’s main villains are excessive moisture, heat, air, and light. As such, you should store your coffee away from these offenders at all times.

You can easily keep these culprits away with proper storage. Once you open a packet of coffee, refrain from leaving the coffee inside the package. Instead, store it in an air-tight container in a cool, dry area.  

There are numerous containers out there that are designed to store coffee, but the best ones even come with handy scoops and an airtight lock. If you have a loved one that loves coffee, gifting them with a stylish airtight storage container can be more appreciated than you think.

Buy the best to enjoy the best coffee

To enjoy the best coffee, you have to buy quality coffee. This means that you will probably have to ditch any pre-ground stale coffee, you know; the type that you get from your local grocery store, in exchange for high-quality beans. 

Most of the coffee that you find at your grocery store has already gone stale even before it is bought let alone brewed. Therefore, if freshness matters to you, it is better to spring for whole beans so that you can grind it just before brewing it.

Coffee is not created equal

You may already know by now, but there are many different varieties of coffee. Each variety has a different color, roast, taste, and quantities of caffeine, which can make the selection process quite complicated for the novice coffee drinker.

There are primarily 2 types of coffee bean species that are grown in the world, namely Arabica coffee and Robusta coffee. The two types are differentiated based on their growing environments, flavor and of course, price. Arabica tends to be sweeter while Robusta is more bitter-like.

Robusta coffee also has higher caffeine content than Arabica. Both these types can be roasted to suit the drinker’s taste. If you prefer, you can also get the blended variety such as Complete Nutrition to enjoy a more complex flavor. 

Final Thoughts

I’ve been asked to detox and quit drinking coffee for a while now. However, that would require days if not weeks of pure agony and more self-control than I can muster. Moreover, I don’t see why I should give it up. Besides celebrities like George Clooney endorse it, so it must be good, right?