Every morning, I wake up and pour a cup of coffee. I never used to be a coffee drinker as I started drinking coffee regularly two years ago. As I was looking for a fun summer job before I head back to college, I decided to apply to a coffee chain in my area called Caribou Coffee. I had a friend who worked for this company and absolutely loved it. I applied in March 2016 during my spring break and I was hired on the spot. I started last May and have been working for a month and I can easily say this is my favorite job I have ever had.

I love being surrounded by the smell of coffee. I also love being able to get a free drink on my shift. It allows me to be creative and combine different flavors for something new. I also like recommending drinks to customers. I recommended a kind of iced coffee for someone and she came back later in the week to get what I made for her. I didn’t even remember her, but she knew me by name. That was pretty cool.

Besides just talking about how I endlessly love my coworkers and brewing coffee, I’m going to talk about coffee drinks in case you’re a newbie to drinking coffee and tea. So here it goes the ultimate beginners guide to coffee.

Americano: 

Literally just hot water and espresso and that’s it. Personally it’s a little too acidic for me. I like having a cup of coffee but just pure hot water and espresso.. it’s not for me. However, it’s one of the easiest drinks to make.

Latte: 

Steamed espresso and milk. It’s a coffee drink with a little bit more flavor than just drinking plain coffee. It also has froth to it which comes from steaming the milk. I will have a hot latte every once in a while, but not all the time.

Cappuccino:

A cappuccino is similar to a latte instead it has less milk and more froth. Personally I don’t order cappuccinos because I feel like it’s not worth it to get less milk and more froth, but hey everyone has a preference.

Iced Coffee 

Caribou calls their iced coffee cold press. It’s grinded differently than regular coffee and chilled. It’s so refreshing though! It’s also something I recommend for customers daily because it’s different than having coffee hot.

Also when it comes to caffeine, lighter roast has more than darker roast. That’s too bad because I love darker roasts, but I also want more caffeine. I constantly learn more about coffee every time I show up to work. It’s cool being able to know more about my favorite drink I have every morning. So now when you go into a coffee shop and you’re hit with the smells of beans, chocolate, and fresh baked goods, you’ll know some of the special drinks that are made daily. You won’t be a newbie and you will be able to find your drink; mine is an iced coffee with a full shot of vanilla topped with vanilla soy milk. yum.