Signature Blend Delivers a Quality that Endures

Having pulled yet another one of my well-known all-nighters last night I have decided to stay up for the day and retire early tonight. I have to work on Saturday with a long-standing client of mine and have some appointments tomorrow (Friday) that I very much want to keep, not to mention some laundry that I am planning on doing this morning. So I decided that now would finally be the time that I sampled some coffee that I had almost completely forgotten about. The coffee in question had been lying dormant in the back of my freezer for at least a year now. It was given to me the last time I visited Destination Cafe, a time that seems ages ago. The coffee might even be two years old now (it seems to me that I got the coffee from then-day manager Jeff Taylor, who passed away at far too young an age in 2009.

A biodegradable brown paper bag held more than 300 grams of none-too-fresh Signature coffee, a blend unique to Destination Cafe. (The blend in question is a mixture of Peruvian, Ethiopian and Sumatran coffee -- the exact proportions of each are a trade secret.) Nevertheless, I was not unduly alarmed. Having become inured to drinking coffee that is neither freshly roasted or ground, I decided that I would give it a try. (Waste not, want not, say I.) Taking an empty can of Nabob that as I recall held yet another batch of Destination Cafe coffee, I carefully poured the contents of the bag into it, managing a minimum of spillage. Then I took out a clean tablespoon and proceeded to add three well-rounded helpings of the blend to my aging Black and Decker coffee maker. Then came the water, clean and cold and fresh from the tap. My coffeemaker tends to produce a little less coffee than the amount of water I pour into it warrants, so I added a half cup more of water, just in case.

I like my coffee with milk and sugar. Stirring a large mug filled to the brim with coffee, I carefully observed the colour and general look of the coffee, finding it more than acceptable. Filled with anticipation, I took the coffee over to the computer and began to write this post. The coffee in question is very smooth, quite mild in fact. It lacks the boldness and complex presence of truly fresh coffee, but compares extremely well with over-the-counter brands that I am accustomed to drinking. Not bad for a coffee that is at least a year old and has been sitting in the freezer ever since!