In Praise of New Mexico Coffee
Category: Food...
Posted Wednesday, September 03, 2003 at 10:15 PM [GMT-6]

I'm not a pretentious guy. At least, I don't think I am. For instance, were it not in the shop with a broken timing chain, I'd be driving a '94 Plymouth Neon (ha! you didn't remember that Plymouth made a Neon, did you? And have you already forgotten Plymouth, whose company motto was "Striving For Adequacy"?). My new boots are a $60 pair of 10-year old calfskin ropers. My clothes shopping sprees are limited to a twice-yearly jaunt to Mervyn's to buy two pairs of stone-washed Wranglers Levis (see, I don't even know what kind of jeans I wear), and the shirt section of my closet is organized into the formal t-shirt and casual t-shirt categories.

But, if I do lapse into pretentiousness, it might be in the area of coffee, which I take very seriously. Sort of. Well, I know what I like.

And what I like is the coffee that comes from the New Mexico Piņon Coffee Company (hereafter referred to as NMPCC, so I don't have to mess with that tilde thing again), headquartered in Albuquerque. True to its name, the company roasts its coffee along with the nuts from the piņon (dang tilde) tree, which is a type of pine tree found primarily in desert climates. The combination yields a smooth but robust (well, that sounds sorta pretentious, doesn't it?) brew. We order it several pounds at a time, generally as whole beans, because my wife loves operating that cool little burr grinder she bought earlier this year.

They also make a wide variety of flavored coffees, all based on the same combination of bean and nut. I've never been enough of a coffee snob to dismiss flavored coffees, especially those with a chocolate undertone. Those flavors just belong together, somehow.

If you've spent much time in Santa Fe, and had coffee there, it's possible that it came from NMPCC. I wouldn't want to live in Santa Fe (yeah, that's right...it's too pretentious), but I love visiting the city. When we can't be there in person, drinking the coffee is the next best thing. I recommend it.

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Comments

Question for ya, Eric. I tend to like a dark, strong brew (whole bean as well). My coffee supplier of choice is the Diedrich chain, mainly because they have some great stores in Houston, and I like both the Wiener Melange (which they use for espresso) and Black Tiger, both very darkly roasted. Given those preferences, do you think the Traditional Piņon would suit my taste?

Yeah, I know, that's an almost impossible question to answer... I guess I could always order a bag, and if it doesn't suit me, make a gift of it at work. :)

Posted by: kevin whited at September 4, 2003 11:52 AM

Kevin, I would never try to convince someone to switch coffees if they've found something they really like. It's just too subjective.

They do have some dark roasts. Check out the "New Mexico Favorites" page on their website. I like their "Route 66" blend; it can be brewed really strong and it stays smooth.

If nothing else, like you said, you might find some good gift-giving ideas!

Posted by: Eric at September 4, 2003 12:48 PM

Coffee drinking is not a zero-sum game. heh. :) I'm always looking for a good brew, but a good brew to me is a stout one. I'm gonna have to give these guys a try!

Posted by: kevin whited at September 4, 2003 09:35 PM

Kevin, I'll be interested to hear if you find something you like...

Posted by: Eric at September 4, 2003 10:18 PM

I've been buying their coffee for years..and especially sending it, and their gift baskets, to out of state friends. Their Internet ordering is excellent and never a bad experience.

Posted by: Wallace at September 5, 2003 12:16 AM
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