Gobble gobble! The guys discuss coffee traditions, seasonal roasts, Starbucks’ Thanksgiving and Fall blends, how commercialism in America ignores a perfectly good holiday, and offer first impressions of the — get this — a car espresso maker. Happy Turkey Day everyone!

Starbucks Thanksgiving Blend

ThanksgivingCoffee.com is a coffee roaster around since 1972!

How Starbucks’ Thanksgiving roast became a tradition

Lots of people don’t know about Fall Blend

Watch: Meet the man who makes Starbucks’ Thanksgiving Blend possible

The 12V portable espresso machine, Handpresso

Joe and Eric are back in action to talk about LEGO coffeemakers, R2-D2 coffeemakers, Houndstooth coffee house in Austin, Texas, and more. Ask yourself the question: How often should everyone clean your coffee mug? The guys answer this and more on today’s episode.

Chemex coffeemakers

AeroPress coffeemaker

LEGO coffeemaker

Steampunk coffeemaker search on Pinterest

Butter beer from Harry Potter stories

Soylent

seanwes conference

Houndstooth Coffee

Why is carbonated water or club soda sometimes served with an espresso?

‘It's okay to never clean your coffee mug’ - NYMag

Joe and Eric find the time to sit down over not one but two cups of coffee and a bottle of Soylent. Joe experimented on himself when Soylent was on sale. Thrasher coffee supplied several roasts for the guys to taste test, so they analyze two Ethiopians. Then, Joe and Eric highlight some of Alec Baldwin’s interview with Howard Schults, the CEO of Starbucks.

Soylent, a beverage we keep talking about that doesn’t contain coffee

Starbucks’ Howard Schultz Doesn't Sleep — But Don't Blame the Coffee

Video: Coffee Snobs — Funny or Die

Eric and Joe discuss three things: Left Hand Brewing Company craft beer (our first “craft brew” tate test on the show), how genetics and caffeine influence our caffeine intake, and whether a taste test can prove that people prefer cheap coffee over gourmet coffee, like — ahem — Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts. Listen, drink and enjoy!

Left Hand Brewing Co.

Milk Stout - Left Hand Brewing Co.

[Milk Stout Nitro - Left Hand Brewing Co.](Milk Stout - Left Hand Brewing Co. http://lefthandbrewing.com/beers/milk-stout-nitro/)

Study Suggests You Can Blame Your Coffee Habits On Your Parents

Coffee taste test finds 67% of people prefer the cheap stuff

Eric and Joe discuss some naming conventions: why are we calling cold brew and iced coffee the same things? Speaking of which, iced coffee has taken a back seat to cold brew over 2016. And in other news, the world’s first cup of joe that’s 80 times stronger than the rest of them is available in Australia, and Coca Cola is getting into the bottled coffee business. Listen, drink and enjoy!

Iced coffee is taking a back seat to cold brew

World’s strongest coffee is here and it’s caffeine levels are scarily high

Previous discussion of pumpkin spice latte: episode #39: ‘There’s Chemicals in My Chemicals’

Coca-Cola is getting into the bottled coffee business

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Eric and Joe are back at their desks and this time sipping something from fresh coffee cups. They discuss Tim Hawkins’ complicated mug and the plain-jane white mug from Publix and why it’s special to Joe. Topics of the week: a green tea alternative to coffee that won’t leave you feeling the jitters, Soylent’s new Coffiest (?!) and a worthy mention of the book ‘The Supper of the Lamb’. Listen, drink and enjoy! Van Halen.

Tim Hawkins’ logo
Van Halen - Best band logos
Classic Thunderbird car logo
Tim Hawkins ‘complicated coffee’ mug
Article: If coffee makes you jittery, there’s a green alternative
Article: Coffiest, Soylent's New Coffee Shake, Is surprisingly almost good
Film: Soylent Green (1973)
Soylent: ‘Food, intelligently designed’
Coffiest: ‘A balanced breakfast and your morning cup of coffee’
Book: The Supper of the Lamb

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Eric and Joe answer a listener’s feedback about Stevia and artificial sweeteners, take apart new research that suggests used coffee grounds repel mosquitos, and discuss how much coffee they’re kids are allowed to drink.

Stevia: Maybe Not So Sweet (article)
About Stevia on Wikipedia
Why I Quit Stevia (article)
Wait a second. Can coffee grounds repel mosquitos? (article)
He burns coffee grounds in his backyard. The reason? Genius! (article & video)
When is it okay for kids to start drinking coffee? (article)
Why is it bad for children to drink coffee? (article)(take with a grain of salt)

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Joe realised that while he was warming up to cold brew that the rest of the world was as well. The guys discuss their growing appreciation for this beverage and how it’s popping up in grocery stores and coffee shops. There’s some unexpected benefits that cold brew has to offer, so you might want to make it at home.

Cold brew is not just for snobs anymore
Dunkin Donuts will started selling cold brew coffee next week

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Cold brew is in season, and there’s a good chance that your local grocere is selling the products we discuss. Joe brewed his own with a French press. Together, the guys taste test Joe’s along with Stōk and Rebbl branded brews. Are you better off making your own? How hard is it to craft cold brew? Is it easier and affordable to buy it at the store? Answers to thease questions in today’s show.

Cold brew in review:
Stōk Cold-Brew
Rebbl’s Maca Cold-Brew
Starbucks’ shows off their cold brew
Chameleon Cold Brew: ‘Made for Makers’

Cold brew related:
Top Brew #26, one of the last times we discussed cold brew
Our cold brew recipe (short article)(please pay no mind to the ice in the photo)
The coffee beans Joe used for his cold brew: Pioneer, by Thrasher Coffee
The type of French press Joe uses to make cold brew

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Joe and Eric explain why they missed an episode two weeks ago. On vacation at Saint Simons Island, Joe picked up some not-so good craft coffee. How do you know the good from the bad? Also, the guys chat about the Porlex JP-30 hand grinder, and the pros and cons of using this manual approach to your daily grind.

Saint Simons Island
Porlex JP-30 Stainless Steel Coffee Grinder
That time we previously discussed hand grinders on the show, #46: ‘The Coffee Hand Grinder Workout’

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Joe and Eric discuss Joe’s visit at Counter Culture Coffee of Atlanta, and what a coffee tasting is like. Afterwards, they talk about the influence their coffee tastes have made on their peers; how friends and coworkers responded to craft coffee.

Coffee tasting related:
Counter Culture Coffee
CCC’s flavor wheel
New-and-improved SCAA flavor wheel
Watch: How to slurp coffee to taste it better
Watch more: Slurping at SCAA 2012

Related to the main discussion:

The ever dodgy Aeropress Coffee and Espresso Maker (we love)
Angels’ Cup: A Blind Coffee Tasting Club
Hario VDGN-02B V60 Glass Coffee Dripper
Lightsaber Reference: Think Geek
Article: A drinker versus an enthusiast