Caught in the closed fist of the bean.
February 22, 2017 2:27 PM   Subscribe

This is Coffee, Comforting video for uneasy times.
posted by hot_monster (15 comments total) 12 users marked this as a favorite
 
The first time my roommates and I saw this, we immediately scrambled to see if we could find a Coffee Brewing Institute approved coffee measure, fearing that if we were not using one standard CBI approved measure of coffee per cup, we'd earn the scorn of the narrator. "Is this coffee? Well, no!" And then there would be nothing left but bitterness.
posted by phooky at 2:41 PM on February 22, 2017 [8 favorites]


I've always dreamed of having a soundtrack like that one follow me through life.
posted by los pantalones del muerte at 2:50 PM on February 22, 2017 [1 favorite]


Was anyone else expecting a Dale Cooper Seal Of Approval at the end?
posted by zamboni at 4:13 PM on February 22, 2017


They make their coffee too weak.
posted by D.C. at 5:26 PM on February 22, 2017


Boy, talk about nostalgia (for the period and the process shown at the start, not for the coffee, which was usually terrible back then)! That close-up of a cup of black coffee near the end reminded me of one of my favorite scenes in cinema, from Godard’s Two or Three Things I Know About Her—you can see a still and the voiceover dialogue here. Thanks for the post!
posted by languagehat at 5:35 PM on February 22, 2017


they used boiling water?! why are they scalding their coffee?

all the methods they showed looked awful. Maybe I have bad percolator memories from huge tin urns, but anything that boils my coffee can't be ideal.
posted by jb at 6:07 PM on February 22, 2017


Except the Turkish coffee, that looked delicious (of course).
posted by jb at 6:08 PM on February 22, 2017


It was the soap that got to me. I never did the percolator thing - just moka pot and French press and now the divinely easy aeropress. What is this "soap"?
posted by nat at 6:22 PM on February 22, 2017 [1 favorite]


Also watching a video about coffee while you are suffering from insomnia is a weird experience. I think I'm getting sympathetic insomnia now from how many cups they suggest- breakfast, morning, lunch, dinner, after dinner. Hey why not 3am too? It's not like you'd be asleep then.
posted by nat at 6:25 PM on February 22, 2017 [1 favorite]


This is coffee.

[Flashing background in parts]
posted by ursus_comiter at 7:44 PM on February 22, 2017


I don't like coffee, but I enjoyed the rich, smooth earnestness of that video.
posted by bryon at 2:33 AM on February 23, 2017 [1 favorite]


What's fascinating about this short is that it's structurally identical to industry-produced "scientific" films from the 1950s and 1960s which sell a product under the guise of education in science. The narrative tools from thats genre make their way into this coffee film--bland, non-interrupting background melodies that create a light and friendly atmosphere; a passive-voice narration ("the coffee is measured and placed in the pot") that removes the subject and emphasizes scientific objectivity; and, above all, an attention to scientific precision and rigorous industry-approved standards ("one level CBI measure per cup") . By the 1970s, this approach had vanished, to be replaced by commercials with professional actors and dramatic scripts that are closer in style and format to the TV dramas they interrupt.

The fifties and early sixties were the era of the egghead, with an enthusiasm for nuclear energy, rocket science, and the glowing possibilities of scientific achievement that made its way into Madison Avenue and the typical household. Twenty years later, nada. The country had moved on.
posted by Gordion Knott at 3:31 AM on February 23, 2017 [5 favorites]


That was a great video. Thanks for posting.

I love coffee. I love the smell of grinding beans. I go nuts over the aroma of the coffee while brewing. I love that combo taste/aroma sensation in a cup. But I can't drink the stuff. When I dare to try, it causes some really weird reactions that makes me feel miserable for hours after drinking - eg: shakes, sweating, constant yawning, sleepiness. It's just coffee that does that, not tea, colas or any other beverage that contains caffeine. Anyone else have that problem? I never got an answer as to why coffee does that to me.

But I do have my tea, and I love it.
posted by james33 at 9:48 AM on February 23, 2017 [1 favorite]


This is coffee [auto-play sound].
posted by grobstein at 12:10 PM on February 23, 2017


On the same channel is this - which probably belongs in a political thread - but jimmeny christmas.... is it relevant
posted by Gyre,Gimble,Wabe, Esq. at 6:24 PM on February 23, 2017


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