10 Coffee Resolutions That You Can Keep in 2022

Ready or not, 2022 is here. As is tradition at the beginning of a new year, many folks are using the opportunity to set some goals or make some changes – big or small – to their lives. For coffee lovers, this could be travelling to Italy for a sip of espresso at an authentic café or something as simple as attempting latte art at home. Espresso Canada put together a list of 10 possible new year’s resolutions for coffee lovers that might appeal to you.

Cut the sugar

If you're looking to be a little healthier in 2022, one of the easiest things you can do is ditch the extra additives in your coffee. Cream and sugar adds unnecessary calories, and the artificial ingredients don't help either. In our experience, the simplest way to cut sugar is cold turkey. The first few cups may taste overly bitter, but it won’t be long before you’ll never dream of going back. You’ll start having a greater appreciation for the rich flavour profile of your coffee beans and your espresso’s silky crema.

Make coffee at home, save money

 Are you the type of person who stops at a coffeehouse every morning before work? If so, there’s a simple way to improve your finances: make coffee at home. While you probably don’t think twice of spending $3 for a coffee at Tim’s or $5 for a latte at Starbucks, this can add up very quickly, and before you know it you have spent thousands of dollars in one year for a coffee.

Believe it or not, superautomatic espresso machines pay for themselves! Many people think that investing in a machine is really cost prohibitive but if you sit down and do the math, you will be pleasantly surprised. Making a coffee with a superautomatic espresso machine at home costs about 12 cents per cup. 

Here is an infographic of how much it costs in the long run to have a superautomatic espresso machine versus a capsule system like a Keurig or Nespresso versus going to the coffee shop daily.

Drink more coffee with friends

 Aside from the benefits of the beverage itself, the whole ritual of drinking coffee with your friends helps you free your mind, ease your stress, and soak up positive vibes. Few things are as pleasant and comfortable getting together with friends for a nice cup of coffee or cappuccino. Your problems drift right away. Believe it or not, that experience is more than just a cultural ritual – there are real emotional, psychological benefits to getting coffee with friends.

 We know the physiological benefits of coffee are that it wakes you up in the morning, improves cognitive abilities, gives you energy, and can even care for your liver. But what about the social component to drinking coffee? The ritual of drinking coffee is a therapeutic exercise in “being here.” Nothing else matters and you can allow yourself to simply enjoy the beverage, the conversation, the person or people you’re with, and the laughter. In this fast-paced world we live in, make a resolution to take the time to sit down with a friend and chat over a cup of coffee — no phones or no distractions.

Learn how to do latte art

 One of the most pleasant sights in all of espresso is a frothy cappuccino or creamy latte topped with gorgeous art. The quality of your latte art all varies depending on your experience level, the type of milk you use, how you froth said milk, and which wand you use for this caffeine wizardry.

You can be your own barista and try latte art with a manual wand on your machine, like the one on the Philips Saeco 4300 Series Classic Milk Foamer. Creating this impressive latte art will add a personalized flair to your drink and impress all of your friends and family. All you need is milk and a stainless steel frothing pitcher.

Once you’re done making latte art for the day, don’t forget to clean your panarello thoroughly to avoid sour milk and clogged tubes. Keep in mind you must use food safe and machine safe grade products to complete this maintenance task.

Try a new blend of coffee beans

 Easy, right? Maybe. Coffee beans vary so widely between different roasting styles, delicious aromas, and plentiful flavour notes that trying a new coffee can be equal parts exciting and intimidating. If you know what flavours you like: medium or dark roast, you can likely pick a  flavour within that same bracket might help you explore new flavours without straying too far from your favourite cup.

Espresso Canada roasts five blends of coffee in-house with flavours ranging from balanced and silky, like our Miscela Bar blend, to a pleasurable hint of bitterness, which can be found in Miscela Extra Bar. Alternatively, our 100% Arabica beans are roasted on the lightest roast with the medium dark range. This 100% Arabica produces an espresso with clean crisp finish.

Repurpose coffee grounds

Coffee grounds have many practical uses around the home and garden and can even help spruce up your beauty routine. After emptying your drag drawer, store your coffee grounds in a clean mason jar and find new ways to repurpose them using one of these ideas. From creating a body scrub to fertilizing your plants and getting rid of odours, there are so many great and innovative ways to reduce waste:

• The caffeine and antioxidants in coffee grounds may help combat cellulite, under-eye circles and other signs of aging skin.
• Coffee grounds are also packed with nutrients that can nourish plants and deter pests in your garden.
• Furthermore, their abrasiveness makes them a great cleaning scrub around the house.

 We’re so glad that superautomatic espresso machines can do their part to help the environment, unlike the pod systems (Nespresso, K-Cups) that create an enormous amount of waste each year in Canada.

 

Support local

 Remember how nice it used to be going into a store where people really knew their stuff and they care about providing good service to friends and neighbours? Well, that still exists, and Espresso Canada is one of those places.

We’re a small business located in Windsor, Ontario that is run by owner and operator, Luciano Iarusso, with help from his family. Luciano has over 35-years of experience in the espresso industry, and has committed a lifetime to learning about espresso. He wants to share his knowledge and love for espresso with coffee lovers in Canada. All products are packed by Luciano with intense care and your safety in mind.

 When you buy from Espresso Canada, you’re not only getting competitive pricing and support from an authorized sales and service representative, but also 35-years of expertise of espresso machines and coffee.

 Supporting local isn’t a new idea, but it’s worth repeating and trying to make a conscious effort to support local businesses, when possible. When you buy something from Amazon that you could have purchased at home here in Canada, you may save a couple of dollars, but you miss out on that hometown service and you make it harder for local businesses to stay afloat. If we don’t support our local businesses, the only stores left will be big box stores and online retailers. Let’s work together so this doesn’t happen. Support local businesses in 2022.

Sip and savour it

We’re all in a rush, and every year, every day, every hour seems to go by quicker and quicker. Of course, it’s hard to fit everything we have to do into the course of a day or a week, but just having a busy schedule shouldn’t mean that rest time and reflection aren’t priorities. If you are the eat-lunch-at-your-desk type and find that you’re scrambling all day to accomplish all your to-dos, try to find at least 15 minutes every week to just sit and enjoy a coffee or cappuccino without any other distractions.

 This means not drinking your cappuccino in the car, not guzzling it in between taps on the keyboard all day, and actually tasting it and experiencing the sensory pleasures that a good cup of coffee can offer. After all, if the world or your job collapses because you took 15 minutes for yourself, then something seems pretty wrong, don’t you think?

Ditch the takeaway cup

If you are a daily takeaway coffee or cappuccino drinker, you’re probably piling up on your single use coffee cup quota if you don’t have a reusable one. One simple easy gesture for the planet that is within everyone’s reach is a reusable coffee cup, make the effort and make yourself feel good.

Don’t quit coffee!

 “I should stop drinking so much coffee, it’s probably not good for me,” said a bunch of people who were wrong.

 Believe it or not, coffee has health benefits. A cup in the morning gets that frontal lobe firing, boosts memory and mood, and helps you keep your brain active, which is linked to a longer, healthier life. Plus, coffee improves health of certain organs and reduces health risks.

 Here are a few of the perks (pun intended):

• Boost antioxidants.Coffee beans (especially those grown organically in small farms, such as ours) are rich in antioxidants. Among other things, antioxidants help your body reduce hidden inflammation, which is linked to pain and many forms of disease.
• Cut disease risk.Studies show that your daily morning coffee may help reduce the risk of diseases including Parkinson’s, heart disease, and liver disorders.
• Keep your brain firing. Coffee can be good for your brain. That morning cup not only gives you a surge of energy, it improves mental performance. And in the long term, coffee has been shown to reduce the risk of developing memory diseases such as Alzheimer’s and dementia.
• Aid weight loss and maintenance. The caffeine in coffee boosts your metabolic rate, meaning it helps your body burn more calories. Some people drink it before a workout to increase their calorie burn.

So here are a list of resolutions for coffee lovers.  They may seem basic but you know these are some resolutions you can actually keep.  Coffee is such an integral part of our day and lives so be sure to consider it when setting yourself up for 2022.  

Stay caffeinated, stay safe and stay healthy.  If we can help you with any of your coffee needs, please feel free to contact us.