FIFA1, part 1

9.3.2014

Every 14 to 21 days, or so, I venture over to Peet's@ Coffee and Tea and get me two pounds of whole bean coffee and sometimes some tea.  Rarely tea, but always coffee.

Over the course of many years of trying their single-origin roasts and blends, I've come up with my own blend and get it most of the time.  It's a pound each of their Italian roast and French roast coffee.  I have them mix the beans and I call the mix the Peet's® Pyrenees Blend.  It's delish.

So I go to re-bean just the other day and place my order:  A pound of French, a pound of Italian, mix 'em up and bag them.  I bring my own bags.

"We're out of French," a counterman I didn't recognize said.  (I go there a lot.  I get to know the employees' faces.)

"Dang," I said.  "Well, Plan B, then.  Do you have Costa Rica?"  I could get a pound of it and enjoy the single-origin beans and get my Pyrenees Blend the next time.

"No Costa Rica either," he said.

"We do have Costa Rica," someone emerging from the back of the store said.  I recognized her.  "It's bagged in the front, there," she pointed.

I went and looked.  Sure enough.  "I'll take this and the Italian, please," I said, handing over the Costa Rica.

Just then, Ez grabbed my arm and said, "Can I have a Mango Tango, please?  Can I have a Mango Tango?  Can I?  Can I?"

"Cut it out, Ez," I said, "Yes, but be quiet a sec."

Ez distracted me just long enough for the new Peet's® guy to dump the Costa Rica out on the already weighed Italian roast.

"Um, did you just start to mix the Costa Rica and the Italian??"  I said.

"Yes."

"That is NOT what I wanted.  And it sounds awful," I said.

But I'm not that kinda guy.  The fuck-you-I'm-not-gonna-buy-that guy.  I shrugged and paid up, hoping for the best.

The next morning I ground up and brewed a pot of FIFA1.  Linkey Loo Robot and I came up with the name, referencing about the only connection between Italy and Costa Rica:  Soccer.

The resulting cup of coffee was not great.

Next week, FIFA1, part 2:  What I'm doing about it.


Tonight - Gino & Carlo.

Kickin' it old-school, in a North Beach divey kinda way.


bye-ee!
whrr ... clik!