Coffee Angst

I have always loved coffee. It is the one pleasure that gets me out of the bed in the morning. That first sip is heaven. The days that I come downstairs when we are out of milk are heartbreaking. For the past ten years I made a a latte for myself every morning with an old Krups espresso maker that my parents bought for me. I had it down to a streamlined system where I could tell by sound when the milk was hot enough. When I got pregnant with Ben I dreaded having to give up my coffee and I researched as many sites as I could that said I could have one cup a day. This all became moot when I was so sick in my first trimester that I had no interest. After I gave birth my taste buds changed somewhat and I had to develop the taste for coffee again. And suddenly, when all was well, the coffee from my trusted Krups started to taste like stale cigarette smoke. I did everything I could think of. I cleaned the machine multiple times, changed grinds, changed brands, all with no success. So I started going to Starbucks. And it was expensive and not great. I did research at Consumer Reports and was told that the Nespresso is the wave of the future. And my parents love theirs. So I got one. And I tried to like it, I really did. The design is cool, it doesn't make a mess and is easy to operate and it makes great crema. But the coffees aren't to my taste. I tried almost every one they make and no go. So I headed back online and did more research. I started considering $500 machines, which is out of my price range. I got caught up in the coffee frenzy. For Christmas Josh go me a new machine that is working out really well so far. It is a Delonghi Retro Pump-Driven Espresso Maker. At first the coffee did not taste great and I again did some research and found out that although we had a burr grinder (recommended for espresso grinds) that the one we had was not grinding it fine enough. So I bought a Baratza Maestro for under $100 and lo and behold they were right. It made a huge difference. Lastly I had to tackle the problem of what coffee to use. For many years I used Peet's Coffee's Major Dickason's, but I was ready for a change. So after I read even more reviews I setlled on trying Lavazza Super Crema, which I really like. If you want to learn more about the art of espresso you should check out this post at the amazing blog not without salt. And if you have any suggestions of coffee brands/makers etc you like please share. Also, if you live in Austin and have any great cafe recommendations please share those as well.