Killer Pot O’ Coffee
I’m still taking heat from Starbuck’s Nation for bashing their fall-release of VIA instant coffee. Some say I had a bad batch, some say I just hold a grudge against Howard Schultz, Starbucks’ owner and the A-hole who sent the Sonics and Durant off to OK City. I just don’t like coffee that tastes like bacon, alright.
Well, to make things even I have to pimp a Starbuck’s product, that being the Barista French Press. This thing is full metal, dishwasher safe, and it’s a godsend on backpacking trips into trout and steelhead country.
This post came to mind a couple weeks ago with I was on the water with Jed Fitzpatrick who runs the rivers of western Montana, meaning the Clark Fork, Bitterroot, Rock Creek and Blackfoot. He spends a lot of time on the Big Hole and Beaverhead, too, and that’s where I met him, on the Beav for a big night of swilling beers and a following day of morning headache madness followed by a float down the Miracle Mile and a Half.
I was delinquent in packing gear for the trip. I threw a sleeping bag in the back of my truck, I tossed in my rod, waders, boots and fanny pack, I set the camera gear in the back seat, and I filled the cooler with, like 48 Rainiers. Food. Um, forgot it.
That’s where Jed came into play. He’d just got off the Big Hole the day prior and still had a cooler full of the good stuff that his clients hadn’t eaten. He built great a.m. sandwiches on bagels and then he whipped out a little coffee percolator and said, “There’s not much but I can make you some.”
Don’t get me wrong: I appreciated my seven sips and it tasted like heaven, but there just wasn’t enough to go around. Jed said, “It’s just too small,” referring of course to the coffee percolator. “And,” he added, “it’s fragile. You can’t really pack this around with you.”
So, this post is for Jed because I told him that morning what he need to get and that item is Starbucks’ Barista French Press, which is made of all metal, it’s dishwasher safe, and it makes plenty of go-juice for two people and enough for four to have real cups of coffee in the a.m.
Unfortunately, I think these things are hard to come by and I don’t think Starbucks even sells them anymore. I checked and couldn’t find them. Also checked eBay and couldn’t locate the exact item. Maybe you’re better than me at chasing down rare, quality product. Give it a go and if you can find this model buy it. I’ve taken this on bull trout and steelhead trips to British Columbia; I’ve chased steelhead on the Grande Ronde with it; I’ve hiked into Montana’s hinterland with it; and I’ve let it bang around the back of the truck for weeks. Bomber. Still brews the money pot of coffee. And you know how valuable that is after a big Friday night.
Anway, I still hate you Howard, but this is a good product and you ought to bring it back … just like the Sonics you son …