20 Things You Know If You Love Coffee

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If you love coffee, you probably don't need anyone to explain why. You know the smell, the anticipation, the first glorious mouthful in the morning and the feeling that somehow the day has just become a little more manageable.

Coffee isn't just a drink. For many of us, it's a ritual, a comfort, a social occasion and, occasionally, the only thing standing between us and a day that really shouldn't have started yet!

Coffee drinker T-shirt...

So here are 20 things you know if you love coffee...

1. The first coffee of the day is different from every other coffee.
There may be another ten cups later, but that first one is special. It is the official signal that the day has begun.

2. You can smell coffee before you can see it.
And somehow the smell alone can improve your mood.

3. "I'll just have one" is rarely a reliable statement.
One coffee has a remarkable tendency to become two. Or three. Or another one because somebody has just put the kettle on.

4. Cold coffee isn't necessarily bad - but it wasn't supposed to be cold.
You got distracted. You forgot about it. You found it half an hour later. You still drank it.

5. There is always a favourite mug.
You may have a cupboard full of mugs, but somehow there is one that feels right. And heaven help anyone who uses it without asking.

Best coffee drinker mug...

6. You know that instant coffee and freshly ground coffee are not quite the same thing.

There is nothing wrong with instant coffee when you need it, but freshly ground beans are a different experience altogether.

7. The sound of a coffee machine can be strangely reassuring.
Grinding, brewing, dripping or bubbling - whatever the sound, you know something good is about to happen.

8. You can have a perfectly good day ruined by discovering you've run out of coffee.
Finding an empty coffee jar when you were expecting another cup is a particularly unpleasant surprise.

9. Coffee shops somehow make coffee taste different.
Perhaps it's the atmosphere. Perhaps it's the smell. Perhaps it's simply the fact that someone else has made it for you.

10. You have opinions about milk.
Too much, too little, hot, cold, foamy or none at all. Coffee drinkers can have surprisingly strong views on the subject.

Life's too short for crap coffee t-shirt...

11. You have opinions about sugar.

One spoonful? Two? None? And don't assume that everyone wants their coffee prepared the same way you do.

12. You have probably tried to identify the smell of someone else's coffee while walking past them.
Especially if you're walking somewhere early in the morning and haven't had yours yet.

13. A biscuit can improve a coffee. A coffee can improve a biscuit.
This is not a scientific fact, but it should be.

14. There is such a thing as the "wrong" cup of coffee at the wrong time.
A coffee that is too strong, too weak, too cold or simply not what you were expecting can be surprisingly disappointing.

15. You can recognise the sound of someone making coffee from another room.
You may not even realise you're listening for it. But you know exactly what's happening.

Coffee Barista Apron to Personalise...

16. Coffee is sometimes an excuse to stop what you're doing for five minutes.

And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. Put the kettle on, make the coffee and take a little break.

17. "Decaf" can be fighting words in certain circumstances.
There are times when caffeine isn't merely desirable. It is part of the plan.

18. A good coffee on holiday somehow tastes even better.
Perhaps it's the surroundings. Perhaps it's the sunshine. Or perhaps everything tastes better when you're not at work.

19. You don't necessarily need to be tired to want coffee.
Sometimes you're wide awake and still fancy a coffee. The desire doesn't always require an explanation.

20. You don't need a reason to have another coffee.
Sometimes the answer to the question, "Would you like a coffee?" is simply "Yes."

Obsessive Coffee Drinker Mug...

So, if you recognised yourself in several of these, you're probably a coffee lover. And if you recognised yourself in all twenty...

Put the kettle on. ☕