Reflections on coffee
Mark Twain once traveled from Sydney to Melbourne by train. Along the way he noticed ads for self-righteous brands of “sheepdip”, a medicinal tar shearers apply to cuts on sheep (some may have experienced self-inflicted cuts during lock-down).
This morning, I found the answer to Twain’s question.
Reaching for the jar into which I store ground coffee, i found only dregs left. Having never been that low before, I hesitated. But after I considered all the different single origin coffee that had many times filled the jar, I mused the thought of the aged blend that might result.
It is not an experiment worth repeating in the absence of “sheepdip”.
Of “sheepdip”, Twain warned his readers:
“It is not good to eat. That is, it is not good to eat except when mixed with railway coffee. It improves railway coffee. Without it railway coffee is too vague. But with it, it is quite assertive and enthusiastic. By itself, railway coffee is too passive, but sheep-dip makes it wake up and get down to business. I wonder where they get railway coffee?”
This morning, I found the answer to Twain’s question.
Reaching for the jar into which I store ground coffee, i found only dregs left. Having never been that low before, I hesitated. But after I considered all the different single origin coffee that had many times filled the jar, I mused the thought of the aged blend that might result.
It is not an experiment worth repeating in the absence of “sheepdip”.
(Image, shadow walking, a puzzle-picture that needs 3 coffees to solve)
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