31-1 Sunday
Today we went to on a coffee tour in Heredia (about an hour away). I can't think of anything better, except possibly a wine tour (if they have those). It was pretty fancy! We arrived, looked through the shop which had coffee, chocolates, and plenty of touristy souvenirs. Then at 11 we started our hour long tour through some coffee plants to different stations, where actual coffee pickers and planters would describe the process. I learned so much, too much! They spoke English and Espanol, because most of our group was older, white folks. We walked around for about a half hour, as they told us the best conditions to grow the coffee, the best way and time to pick it, how they process/roast it in the plant, and then how to make the best cup! This is where I really was paying attention, as I know preparation is the most important part. Apparently, everyone should have a french press. Do we have one? We must get one immediately.
Rule #1: NO boiling water, as this ruins the flavor. Also, this can be responsible for headaches and stomach pains. Very interesting! I had no idea. I must be an amateur or something.
Actually this might have been the only rule I learned. Or the most important. Well, I guess I did learn kind of a life coffee motto or secret formula or something:
"Even color = even roast = even flavor" Aha!
Also, coffee is like popcorn when they roast it! It crackles and pops, and is oily. They say, the more oily the stronger flavor. And I got to try the red fruit (looks like cherries) that grow with the coffee plant, or maybe are the coffee bean covers. Apparently they're huge laxatives (gross), but that makes sense (TMI, sorry). The fruit was pretty not good, though, I don't know why Don Jorge was so excited about it. It's more like a sour cucumber than a fruit.
They put on a 15 minute play for us, after to preparation demonstration. I taped it all! As a matter of fact, I've just been taping away over here, and it's rather addicting. I think I'm getting quite good. I'm working on being a little sneakier though, because when my companeros notice that I'm taping them they all have the same reaction: the girls giggle and turn away, and the guys look at me like what the heck are you doing. It's entertaining to bop in on someone's convo with my camera, but I'm sure that the producing company would like a little more to work with than 3 blank stares and 7 ducking, embarassed faces.
Ahh, my life sure is difficult :)
After all this touring, we got to sample chocolate and the coffee, and it was very heavenly. They have so many different kind of chocolate! Plain chocolate, with nuts, with fruit...yum! I'm sure they have stuff like that at World Market though. We also got lunch there, and I had the best pinapple I've had yet! Also, tomato and carrot soup, vegetables, and olive oil sauce. I know that sounds weird, but it's my kind of food. I'm loving it here! I can't decide if I'm going to gain or lose ten pounds! I mean, we run every day, and it' s great because it's so hilly (or maybe mountainous) here. But at the same time, I've been eating galletas and helado...not to mention all the healthy food is fried. So I'm not sure. My body is probably really confused. No honestly overall I think it's a pretty good, healthy mix. I'm not too worried.
The point is, going on a coffee tour is really cool. Another awesome thing about the coffee at Cafe Britt is that there is no taste or quality different between ground and whole bean coffee. They have engineered their bags so that they have minimum oxygen entry potential (that's not what they said, they have a better way of putting it). But the point is, it doesn't matter what type, because both are exposed to the least amount of oxygen possible, and both will last up to about a year, unopened. If opened, the guide said about a month. I'm not sure if this means anything to you guys, but I thought it was very profound. You see, I really appreciate a nice quality coffee bag.
Thus concludes the coffee adventure today.
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