Just story : all the way through.

Topic : Just Glasses ,not Just Glasses.

Story by : dr.loft

all the way through, today I want to talk about story “just glasses, not just glasses”. But glasses today are not translated as spectacle, but glasses that are really glasses ,like a water glasses.

 

The glasses I will talk about today are specialty glasses. I didn't think there would be glasses that expensive for sale in my life, and there are people who buy them. And I also (mad) bought it. And I'm still wondering, what kind of glass is that expensive? But it made me think of something, so I wanted to tell you about it.

 

Let me explain. A few days ago, my patient (K'Peera) brought a basket of coffee (similar to a basket of betel nut & Piper betel from my grandmother) full of drip coffee beans of several varieties, and had a strange coffee making device to come to do lab together.

 

Because I'm crazy about coffee already (actually I'm crazy about everything, crazy about listening to music, crazy about audio system, crazy about craft beer, and crazy about coffee). But even though I'm crazy about this breed, I don't like to take risks.

 

So I hold the motto "follow the adults, the dogs won't bite." I always choose to ask the experts who have been through trial and error before, so that I don't have to make mistakes myself. (Because I don't have money to waste playing with trial and error that much. But if I'm sure it's really good, I'll buy it without hesitation.)

 

K’ Peera told me that he wanted to try a new way of making coffee, and he thought that specialty plastic dripper would help to bring out the best flavors of the coffee. He told me that he had been researching specialty glasses for a while, and he had found a few that he thought would be a good fit for our lab.

 

I was skeptical at first, but I was also intrigued. I had never heard of specialty plastic dripper before, and I was curious to see if they would make a difference in the taste of the coffee.

 

P'Peera brought the specialty glasses to the lab, and we started testing them out. We tried different types of coffee, and we used different brewing methods.

 

I was amazed at the difference that the specialty plastic dripper made. The coffee tasted richer and more complex. The flavors were more pronounced, and the aromas were more intense.

 

I was so impressed that I decided to buy a set of specialty glasses for myself. I'm still experimenting with them, but I'm already convinced that they're worth the investment.

 

I think that specialty glasses are a great way to improve the taste of coffee. They're not cheap, but they're worth the money if you're serious about coffee.

 

I'm excited to see what else I can do with specialty glasses. I'm planning on trying different types of coffee, and I'm also going to experiment with different brewing methods. I'm sure that I'll be able to discover even more ways to enjoy coffee with specialty glasses.

 

Starting in the industry

The first who opened my world and led me on this path is P'Nik (Supatra Coffee Special, Roi Et). He made me start to learn about coffee, from learning about the personality of coffee from different varieties, the flavors of different roasts, and the brewing methods. I started from the bear-shaped kindergarten toy, which is the Nespresso capsule coffee.

 

Kindergarten coffee

When I started opening the world of making coffee at home with Nespresso, I proudly displayed it to show off my childishness. I invited anyone who came over to press it and told them stories about it with pride. (I thought to myself, "I'm the real deal...555" I'm embarrassed by my past self, who knew little but acted big.) If someone who had already been through (Nespresso) before saw it, they would probably just smile awkwardly and not want to teach me anything, because it's too newbie coffee. They would probably just let me study on my own.

 

Elementary school coffee

After a while, I tried to find a way to drink coffee that I could choose the beans myself, instead of just drinking the pre-made flavor in the capsules. So I started to know Mokka pod. I struggled with it for a long time because no matter what I did, it was bitter and hard to swallow. But I still got the moment of "I chose the beans myself." How the taste is, that's another story.

 

High school coffee Barista

P'Nik saw that I was drinking coffee (packets) in capsules, so he was merciful. Especially when he saw me boiling Mokka pod to drink, he felt pity, so he opened my eyes by introducing me to the Aram manual coffee maker to try. It could be said that it opened up my world of espresso to another level (like college, right?). Because I never knew that being a barista making coffee for myself could be so easy. And I often take it up the mountain to travel. When there is a Khatin-season, I always bring this barista set to offer to the monks. Because it is small, portable, and can go anywhere. How good would it be to have a barista serving us coffee on top of a mountain where there is no electricity?

 

University coffee Barista

When I started to know espresso, I studied further and found out that the hardest and most delicious thing is to pour water into the drip cone. When we look at a barista pouring coffee, we often think, "It's just pouring water into a cone, what's the big deal?" And the coffee will be so bad, it will probably be thin (think like someone who doesn't know).

Then, I started to enter the world of drip-coffee. As usual, with my limited knowledge, I went to buy a dripper for 300 baht, a grinder for a 800 baht, and a kettle to boil with an electric stove (I don't understand what temperature control is). Because in my mind, it's just a dripper cone, a grinder is a grinder, they're all the same. Why do you have to use a good one?

 

But when I drip myself, it's not delicious. I also thought that it wasn't delicious like that. It's thin and bland. I just did it casually. And I thought that people who drip are bragging. But I didn't give up the idea. I went to try specialty coffee drip from a world-famous brand (Starduck). They let us sit at the bar and open the beans jar to smell them. They asked us what kind of aroma and flavor we like (it looks very serious). They dripped it and told stories until it was finished. But that's all. I just held the pot and sat down. I just took a few sips and left it there as a souvenir. And I thought that "people who drip are bragging." It turns out that I was in the wrong place.

 

When P'Nik saw my drip tools, he had to explain to me that they were not the same. I still argued with him that "just a ceramic dripper, a dripper is a dripper, what's the big deal?" until he gave me his to try. Holy Shit!!, it’s so different. Then he taught me how to drip, how to control the grind size, how to choose water, how to control the water temperature, how to pours water, how to fix over-extracted or under-extracted coffee, and how to choose coffee beans. Wow, it's so complicated, but I already love it.

 

Then he brought 1zpresso Jx-pro, Commandente C40, and Kinu M47 grinders to try. We wanted to see if the taste would be the same. We tested the same type of coffee beans, ground them with different grinders, and dripped them on different types of drippers. We also tried adjusting the grind size. I had a kakkak (crappy) brand dripper for 300 baht, as well as a kadou and a lilli. Oh, they're not the same. The V-60 shape has a different flavor, and the lilli with a cut bottom has a different flavor. My dripper had a crappy flavor because of its quality.

 

I was mistaken to think that they were the same. Not only that, I also got to know the Nische Zero, a one-single dose cup electric grinder from England. It was another gift from P'Nik, who ordered it from England for 34,000 baht. That's enough for the tools of a home barista.

 

from the 20 baht per cup capsule coffee and the 4,000 baht Nespresso machine, I was able to (once) drink it. I just kept eating it because I had never experienced real coffee. Once I got to know it, the total cost was probably over half a hundred thousand. (If you count the coffee beans, it would probably be over one hundred thousand.)

 

The equipment I use now includes the Nische zero, the 1zpresso Jx-plus, the kadou, the Commandant (which I donated to the monks), the lilli, and the Aram. The rest is just finding beans. The main ones are from P'Nat at Talad Thai (nath-hardmade), Wela Cafe' (near my home), Maneepruk (a bit difficult to buy), Santipanich, doi pakgud, and Preeda. Most of them come from patients who stop by to bring them to me, and then I go to find them to buy and eat myself.

 

The beauty of coffee culture

It's beautiful, you know. To like something good and recommend it to others is a kind of merit. If you don't like a place or it's not the real thing like you hope, it's better to go there once or twice (to give a chance) and tell the others do not make a mistake like you did.

 

It's like the eyewear industry. There are both real and fake. Some (coffee shop) are test good, small and quiet shops. Some are famous, big shops but nothing. It takes direct experience to understand. All of this is a matter of giving value to the test of each person.

 

If you tell this story to people who drink coffee in packets or cans (like me in the past), they probably won't understand. And ask you like a “Do you really have to go that far? Because for some people, coffee is "bitter and doesn't make you sleepy." If it's bitter and doesn't make you sleepy, that's coffee. The slogan is like "bitter, strong to the heart.”

 

But if you say that coffee is sweet like squeezed berries, has the smell of fruits, flowers, and all kinds of smells, they will be confused. How is that possible? I used to be confused too. Now I'm not confused anymore because I've tried it and had the experience. It's not a fantasy.

 

But there are also some cheaters who use a cheating method by spraying scent into the drip coffee. Customers like the smell of peaches, spray peaches in but nothing good test inside. Then mark up and sell at a high price like good beans with natural fragrance. To be honest, this kind of behavior exists in every industry. It's like "selling zinc for the price of tiles."

 

Master's Degree Coffee

The story seemed to be over, but I still managed to find a way to spend more money. A few days ago, P'Pira brought a basket of coffee and took out the Coffee Consulate RS-16, which looked like a rough plastic cup that didn't seem to have any power. And if I looked at it with my eyes, if someone sold it to me for 100 baht, I would still think hard, I didn't know where to put it.

But it's incredible, that stupid-looking plastic cup is 6,000 baht. Ohh..My goodness, what is it so expensive just for plastic cup dripper? And this dripper doesn't even need a paper filter. Then the powder will not fall into the pot, will it? P'Pira said to try it.

 

The method is very simple. Use 16 g. of grind coffee beans, find the right number. Use hot water at 96 degrees Celsius, bloom with hot water 30 ml for 30 seconds, then pour it all out 240 ml. No techniques, just wait, delicious, done. It's that simple.

 

Then what is it? This plastic cup that doesn't seem to have anything to make something difficult into something simple like this? And he dared to set this price.

 

Coffee Consulate RS16

After I knew, he took it back. The work came to me because I was labeled. I couldn't find it in Thailand. I had to order it from Germany. I couldn't order it, so I asked the same adult I've been following for many years. "Brother Nick,Do you knows this dripper? And could you Order it for me, please?” P'Nick replied, “Dr.Loft, do you want it? I have one. I'll send it right away." Oh, why is life so easy like this? This time it's over with the thief to steal love from someone 555. But I got the glass version. Now we have to be careful not to break it because this one costs 162 euros, import price + tax. I don't know how much the price of this stupid-looking (but so smart in real) glass will be.

 

Now, let's get to the way of thinking that came up.

I'm the kind of person who can't bring myself to buy a new phone. I'm still using a iPhone 7 Plus (lower 8 generation from now) that I've had repaired twice because I still can't find a reason to buy a 15 Pro Max (I feel like I'd be better off buying Bitcoin). I only use it to answer calls, reply to Line messages, browse Facebook, and take pictures of my glasses (which the 7 Plus can also do). But I never post my photos on my personal Facebook, so I just can't do it. But I bought an iMac, MacBook, and Apple TV without a second thought because I use them to type documents, create websites, write on my blog, read books, edit photos, listen to music, and so on. They all have a purpose.

 

Back to the 6,000 baht cup. It's also hard to justify for someone who doesn't drink coffee, or doesn't enjoy coffee that much, or only drinks it when they're sleepy. They'll just order a black coffee with one cream and one sugar. If that's the case, they probably won't buy this cup because they could buy coffee packets for years with that money.

 

But if you sell it to someone who loves, understands, and appreciates it, they'll pay any price. Because the value of aesthetics varies from person to person.

 

So ,there is no such thing as cheap or expensive in this world. It depends on who give values for what. Someone who likes Buddha statues will pay for any price. Someone who likes paintings will pay any price. Someone who likes expensive cars will pay any price. Someone who likes coffee will pay any price and for spectacle, too.

 

Optometry is the same. Our work is a type of craft. We produce a piece of equipment that is worn on the face, and it creates a new look and vision for the patient (which we call glasses). It's another experience that only the wearer will understand what they're seeing, how they're seeing it, and how they feel about what they're seeing. So It is also about the experience of wearing them. Only the wearer can understand how the glasses change their vision and how they feel about what they see.

 

Some people value vision, while others don't. Some people just want to see, and they don't care about aesthetics. They'll put up with heavy glasses, uncomfortable glasses, glasses that slide down their nose, glasses that are loose, bendable, or easily distorted. As long as they can see better than with their naked eyes, they're fine. This is a matter of taste, but some people need their glasses to look good, be comfortable, and complement their look. They don't just want any old glasses.

 

In the coffee industry, there are a lot of myths and truths. It's up to our own personal experience or the experience of those close to us to prove what's true. Once we know, we can tell others. If it's good, we'll tell them to go try it. If it's bad, we'll tell them not to waste their money. The same is true for the eyewear industry.

 

It's not difficult to find new customers. Just offer good promotions, sell them at a low price, and make yourself look reliable (from look seller to doctor look). But it's more difficult to make them come back. It depends on the experience you give them. If it's a good experience, they'll tell others about it. If it's a bad experience, they'll tell others about that too.

 

That's all I have to say for now. If you're a coffee lover and you happen to pass by Loft, please come and exchange experiences with me. I'm always welcome because I want to learn too.

 

I hope this was informative and entertaining, at least a little bit.

See you next time,Goodbye.

Dr. Loft

link : for your research

https://www.facebook.com/supatra.cafe

https://www.facebook.com/CoffeeConsulate

https://www.facebook.com/aramsoulcraft

https://www.facebook.com/nathheartmade

https://www.facebook.com/Rasakhabu

https://www.facebook.com/GemforestCoffee

#SpecialtyCoffee #CoffeeConsulateRS16 #Aram #NicheZero #Optometrist #ทัศนมาตร