For many people the word “latte” practically means life itself. For coffee lovers, the latte is a magical thing that one must experience to appreciate. Around the world the latte has taken a variety of forms and one can find all sorts of variations on the theme including chai lattes and even pumpkin spice lattes. Who knew that espresso and steamed milk could be oh so good?

If you appreciate a good latte, then you probably have already fantasized about the idea of having a lattes in your own home. There are several reasons that having your own latte maker is a rather attractive option.

One key reason that you should have lattes at home is the convenience. Who wants to run out to a coffee shop every single time you want a latte? Most people are simply too busy to keep running out of the house to get their favorite cup of coffee. This can be inconvenient even if you have a coffee shop right across the stress or even downstairs. Having your own espresso machine let’s you make your own latte whenever you feel like it, period.

If you love lattés, then you also know how expensive they can be, especially if you drink a lot of them. Add up what some of us pay for lattes in a given year, and we could practically pay for a cheap new car. With this in mind, an espresso machine may not seem like such a bad idea in the least.

While the price tag on a decent espresso machine may seem a little high, there are a few factors that one must consider. Once you’ve purchased an espresso machine, it belongs to you, forever. This means espresso and lattes whenever you like, of course. Secondly, the money that you will save per latte is potentially substantial. Over the course of a year, you could easily pay back whatever money you spent on an espresso machine. This means that the second year and every other year after that you are basically having your espressos and lattés for free. Let’s face it… free is very, very good.

Having your own espresso machine means that you have the ability to drink lattes whenever you like. This means you can try recipes you’ve seen, play with the balance of ingredients, or even try and develop something new. You simply can’t do that when you are buying your lattes at a coffee shop.

Having an idea of what is going into your latte is a pretty big deal, especially if you are dieting. Knowing exactly how much fat and calories you are consuming is no small issue. You may have seen new reports and investigations outlining the simply amazing levels of calories that some coffee drinks can have at coffee shops, in particular the large chains. If you are making your own lattes at home this isn’t an issue.

When all the variables and factors are added up, its tough not to buy an espresso machine so that you can make your own latte. You will end up with a higher quality beverage that you can consume anytime you want. Best of all your cost, when averaged out over time, will drop from dollars per serving to practically zero. That makes being able to make your own lattes at home a winning concept.

There are several reasons why coffee lovers should switch to fair trade and organic coffees. Fair Trade coffee is also called equal exchange coffee. When a coffee is labeled as coming from Fair Trade, this means that the coffee was bought under fair conditions. To be certified by the TransFair USA, a coffee importer must meet strict international criteria. Some of these criteria include: buying from small farmers included in the International Fair Trade Coffee Register; providing credit to farmers; and agreeing to develop long-term relationships with Fair Trade coffee distributors. Meanwhile, an organic coffee is a coffee which has been grown organically. This means that it was grown without the use of fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. Growing coffee organically is one way to help protect the environment. Because most organic coffees are shade-grown coffees, many forests are preserved, thus preserving the habitats of many animals especially the birds. Also, because organic coffee is chemical-free, they are good for our health. However, many coffee lovers are hesitant to try Fair Trade and organic coffees because of the notion that they are more expensive. Comparing the pros and cons, it is still a good decision to switch to Fair Trade and organic coffees.

If you’re like the majority of Americans, a cup of coffee is part of your morning routine. You probably know all about how to make the perfect coffee drink. However, there’s a good chance you don’t know the ten coffee facts listed below. Keep reading to educate yourself about that caffeinated beverage you know and love.
1.) Joe
Ever wonder where the expression “a cup of Joe” came from? It actually dates to World War II, when American soldiers were known to drink large amounts of coffee. The servicemen, also called G.I. Joes, became synonymous with the drink.
2.) Trade in your daily coffee for a week at the beach.
Lots of people have pricey coffee habits. If you buy one basic, brewed coffee every weekday morning, you’ll spend about $360 a year. For expensive lattes, which cost about $5 each, your yearly total will be about $1300. That money could go toward a vacation.
3.) When brewing, never boil.
The coffee that you purchase or make at home is always steaming hot at first. However, it is never boiling. That’s because boiling coffee results in an unappealing, cooked taste. All commercial coffeemakers heat the brewing water to just under the boiling point.
4.) Americans have nothing on the Fins.
Coffee drinking is big in the United States, with more than half of adults drinking at least one cup each day. That isn’t nearly as impressive as statistics in other countries. Finland drinks the most coffee; there, consumption averages to five cups each day for every adult!
5.) Go light for extra kick.
Most people think that dark-roasted coffees contain the most caffeine. This isn’t true. In fact, the lightest roasts have the most caffeine. Lighter roasts aren’t subjected to high heat for very long amounts of time, and heat is what breaks down caffeine molecules.
6.) Coffee plants age well.
The average coffee shrub lives to be 70 years old! A plant starts producing viable berries when it’s about five years old. From then on, coffee plants continually make new berries until they reach old age.
7.) The more beans the better.
Actually, more beans are required in many cases. It takes about 40 coffee beans to make just one shot of espresso! When you consider that each bean was picked from its berry by hand, dried, roasted, packaged, and ground, a lot of time went into that little drink!
8.) Ground isn’t always good.
Don’t buy your coffee in ground form if you have the means to grind it yourself. Many companies add chicory or ground peas to coffee grinds to reduce costs.
9.) Coffee can lead to sports bans.
In the Olympics and other high-profile events, drinking too many cups of coffee in a row could get you banned from competition. The high caffeine content is considered a performance enhancer.

Try Panache Coffee.