Quitting Café When You’re Cuban: My First Drip Coffee Maker

Have you ever felt like making a change in a certain part of your life? That while the majority of other things were going well, one area needed a massive correction? That was me a few months ago with my nutrition – my water intake, specifically – and so, I made a course correction. I quit coffee. I’m Cuban and I quit coffee.

To be Cuban and quit coffee feels completely unnatural. To explain this feeling, take into account that I was given café con leche as a kid… in a bottle. It’s that serious. When I told my mom that I had put my American coffee maker in storage (Cubans drink espresso, but I typically brew what Cubans call “Café Americano” and add low fat milk, no sugar), she totally freaked out. My brother had the same reaction, almost as if it was a personal assault! “There’s water in coffee!”, they reasoned. “Coffee doesn’t make you fat!”, they objected. I was shocked, maybe even a little insulted, but held fast to my organic teas and water. I knew what my body needed, and cultural norms aside, it did not need coffee.

My First Single Cup Coffee Maker: Brim Size-Wise Maker

The primary reason I quit coffee for a short time (about 2 months) was because I felt my consumption had become too much. I’m a busy mom and usually doing three things at once. Since my husband isn’t a regular coffee drinker, I would make a whole pot of coffee… and drink it all! It gradually happened, adding one cup at a time, until I was drinking coffee all day long just to sustain myself. AND! I wasn’t drinking any water at all. That was the biggest issue. So I cut it out.

After about 60 days, I felt better and more balanced. But I missed the taste and fragrance of brewed coffee. After all, I’m Cuban. I love coffee. That’s when Brim contacted me about the release of their Size-Wise Programmable Coffee Station (remember, “Fill it to the rim with Brim”?!) and I wondered if this single cup coffee maker was the solution that I’m looking for. Big thanks to Brim for sponsoring this post and bringing coffee back into this Cuban’s life.

Brim: Brew Your Coffee, Your Way

I had never seriously considered a single cup maker because of the outrageous costs of the cups, let alone the cost of the machine itself. I appreciate the price point of the Brim machine (available at Walmart) and also the fact that I can use the ground coffee that I want.

The real selling feature of the Brim is the ability to brew a single cup AND a full pot in the same machine. It actually has three size options: cup, tall mug (or a 6 in max travel cup) and carafe. This is perfect for when my coffee loving Cubans come into town. I also love that I don’t have to buy speciality cups. The Brim coffee maker works with my standard coffee grounds. Just fill the filter up according to the directions, using more or less to your palate.

My mom and brother were right: coffee is not the issue. Being so busy that I lose focus on my overall health is the issue. I’m back to being a normal crazy Cuban, loving on my cafe Americano while also drinking plenty of water. I love my Brim machine for keeping my consumption in check, while allowing me to brew a large pot when needed.

Do you have a single cup drip coffee machine? Does it help you stick to a certain amount of coffee each day?