Coffee, Coffee, Coffee: Part II

 

I’ve blogged about my love of coffee before.

You can read about it here and here.

Well, let me tell you…I still love coffee.

 

 

I have taken my usual Americano and branched out a bit with different flavorings offered over the holiday season.  We all know coffee shop drinks can be a PPV-bomb so that is why I tend to stick to my Americanos.  Plus, they are much cheaper ($$) than a latte or a mocha.  If you don’t want to give up your yummy coffee shop drink, then don’t.  Life is too short for bad coffee!

I get cold really easily so this time of year I want to drink even more coffee just for the warmth.  Since I received several Dutch Bros gift cards for my birthday, thank you awesome family and friends, I have been going to the coffee shop A LOT.  Most of the time I just get my usual Americano with three Splenda and a little bit of cream, however, occasionally it is fun to shake this up a bit.

 

I am a special order gal.  I am sure the staff loves me at Starbucks.  My order covers each of the boxes on the side of the cup.  The poor new gal the other day was a great sport.  I sure gave her a learning experience for how to type in special orders! 

 

Some new flavors I have tried.

Egg Nog: I have not tried many of the holiday drinks at Dutch Bros but this time of year I love to replace my “little bit of cream” with “little bit of egg nog.”  I am not sure what it is but the creamy egg nog and the mix of coffee and nog taste divine.  I am thinking I might pick up some egg nog creamer at the store and see if I can get the same effect at home.  Egg nog isn’t PPV friendly.  But boy is it yummy! I haven't tried this drink iced and I think I'll keep it that way.  Some drinks are better hot vs. cold.  If they really do add a little egg nog, which is always a gamble, the NI on 1/4 cup egg nog is 3 PPVS.  I count this drink at 3 PPVs.

Pumpkin Spice: I recently joined the Pumpkin Spice craze (PSL anyone) earlier this year.  I know in the past I have tried pumpkin pie coffee and didn’t like it.  However, the Pumpkin Spice syrup at Starbucks is very different.  While it isn’t very pumpkin-y (right Dawny) I enjoy the taste.  My coworker works part-time at Starbucks and told me to start with a few pumps as it is super sweet, and also a PPV-bomb.  For me, I enjoy two pumps of Pumpkin Spice, three Splenda, and a little cream.  The NI on two pumps is 1 PPV and I add 1 PPV for the cream.  I count this drink as 2 PPV.

Gingerbread: The verdict is still out on this one.  I went to Starbucks a few days ago and learned they were out of Pumpkin Spice syrup.  I asked if their Gingerbread Latte was made with Gingerbread syrup and it was.  So I just replaced my two pumps of PS and had Gingerbread.  I actually went for three pumps.  It was….okay.  I had my drink iced as I was headed to work but I would like to try this hot and see if I like it better.  Also maybe just two pumps next time.  I’m not sure this will be a new holiday favorite.  That would be fine as Starbucks costs me more $$ than Dutch Bros for the same Americano drink.  Sticking to the same guidence as above, I count this drink at 2 PPVs.  **Edited to add: I did try the gingerbread version as a hot drink and it is quite tasty**

The next time you are at a coffee shop, I urge you to step out of your comfort zone.  I read a lot of blogs with a lot of great drink suggestions.  In most places if you don’t like your drink they will re-make it for you.  What have you got to lose?  Only a few bucks.