How to Start Liking Coffee? A Personalized Guide

You see bustling coffee shops all the time around you. Not only that, but you also notice your acquaintances investing heavily into expensive coffee machines, pods, and whatnot. When you try coffee, it sends shivers down your spine and you wonder what this fuss is all about. Every day you see people sipping on their cup of coffee, you say to yourself, how to start liking coffee?

If you are like me who couldn’t stand the bitterness of coffee at first, don’t worry, you’ve got hope. Today, I’m blogging about coffee and it has become my passion. How could, a person like me who couldn’t stand the smell of coffee, actually start loving it to the extent of writing a blog about it? It’s a valid question, and in this post, I’ll guide you through this transition in my life.

If you need quick answers, just don’t start very strong. Take one step at a time and go for light coffees and add sugar if it seems bitter at first. Don’t worry, eventually, your taste buds will definitely develop a taste for it to the extent that you’ll actually crave having a cup of Joe every morning (not promoting any sort of addiction here, but coffee is just worth it).

Let me quote facts to motivate you further:

“According to a study, people in the US consumed more than 27.16 million 60-kg bags of coffee during the year 2018/2019.”

If coffee would have been really that awful, people would not be consuming it on such a large scale. Moreover, the working population in the US almost can’t live without a nice cup of coffee early in the morning. This provides them the impetus to work throughout the day.

Before we dive into the tips on how to start liking coffee, let’s address the reasons for which some people actually dislike coffee at first.

Reasons Some People Dislike Coffee

There are many reasons why people might not like coffee at first:

The First Cup of Joe

In most cases, people give up on coffee after their first cup because they just didn’t like the bitterness. Why this happens could be because of various reasons.

I remember having my first sip of coffee when I was 12. My elder brother is a coffee aficionado, he used to grind his own beans and brew espresso at home through coffee machines.

One day, when he was having his coffee in the morning, I got curious and asked him if I could have a sip from his cup, he shared it with me. It was the worst thing I had ever tasted as I felt like a bitter acid flowing through my esophagus.

I ended up dreading coffee until years later I had a French Vanilla Latte. Only then did I realize that I had actually missed the much-needed transition. My taste buds were not developed for a black coffee at that time.

No Taste For It

Some aren’t naturally able to develop a taste for coffee. They just can’t stand the smell of it. They could still try the tips I’m going to share below, but their chances of actually liking coffee are slim.

Expenses

Many actually consider drinking coffee as a rich men’s hobby. The truth is far from it, as most people in the US consuming coffee are working class people and fall into the middle class to upper-middle class. Elites also enjoy a cup of Joe, but to classify the drink to be “for the rich” would be a bit of a stretch.

Why You Should Not Give Up On Coffee? (Benefits)

If you just had your cup of coffee and didn’t like it at all. You searched on the internet for “how to start liking coffee” and ended up reading this blog, the fact that you’ve made it this far shows great potential.

There are many reasons for you to not give up on coffee:

Enhances Your Physique

This might sound far-fetched, but having coffee on a regular basis is known to increase adrenaline in your body, this enables you to be more energetic and fit physically.

Improves Mental Health

You must’ve heard about this one already, it keeps you alert and produces nimbleness in your body. Immediately after having a cup of coffee, you’ll notice that your body might start to sweat a bit (a lovely feeling during the winters).

Many people take coffee to stay awake at night to study or for other purposes. I have seen people take cups of coffee and stay awake most of the night studying for their exams.

Helps Lose Weight

Coffee is also known to have properties to increase the rate at which your metabolic system works. You still need to consume it in moderation though, excess of anything is not good (not even coffee).

Reduces Health Risks

When I was reading about coffee, I came across several studies and researches talking about health risks being minimized through the coffee intake. For instance, people who consume coffee daily are less prone to develop kidney issues (need more data on this one though).

How Can I Train Myself to Start Liking Coffee

Yes, you certainly can. Human beings are very adaptive creatures, evolution is what humanity is all about. Our taste buds develop a taste for coffee. You just need to train them for it.

How can you do it? Well, I’ve already shared the first tip with you above, start with the right type of coffee that suits your needs. There are no good or bad coffees, people say if you don’t like coffee, you haven’t had the right one because there simply isn’t such a thing called “bad coffee”.

I kind of agree with it as my personal experience has taught me this. Here are a few tips you can try to train yourself and become a coffee lover:

• Start with less bitter versions of the coffee. A latte could be a good start and work your way towards a shot of espresso.
• Try different brands or brew yourself a cup at home.
• Use excellent quality beans for your coffee (Arabica is the best, learn about types of beans here.)
• You need to give yourself time, it’s not an overnight process, be persistent.
• Learn about coffee, read a blog or two and you’ll start liking the whole industry.

What Is the Best Coffee to Try For the First Time

As mentioned above, if this is your first time, don’t go for a black coffee. Start light and work your way up. I’d recommend you try a latte instead of a macchiato or mocha.

Once you get used to the taste, don’t get stuck and move on to the stronger one, otherwise, you might end up having the same coffee for the rest of your life.

If you ask for my personal recommendation, I would suggest French Vanilla Latte (Tim Hortons preferred). This is how I started my coffee journey and in no time I developed a strong liking for the drink.

Is There a Way To Make Black Coffee Better?

If you’ve seen people having a strong coffee and actually enjoying every bit of it, don’t worry, they were not born like this, they’ve worked their way to the “elite club of people who love strong black coffee.”

Once you start liking your latte, you can work your way towards black coffee. If you think you are ready for a black coffee now, you should brew a fresh cup with high-quality beans. Have it while it’s still hot. Don’t wait for it to get cold, it’ll taste extremely sour.

If you like having achievable goals, make it a point that you’ll have a cup of black coffee and actually enjoy it within six months of trying a cup of coffee. If you are even halfway there, welcome to the coffee lovers’ club.

You’ll need to make a conscious effort to love the black coffee, but once you are there, you won’t be able to live without it. You’ll be discussing and writing about it.

Coffee as a Hobby

Coffee is an excellent hobby and a great conversation starter, especially if you are an introvert. If your boss at work loves coffee, you’ll have a great opportunity to develop a positive rapport with him/her through this common interest.

If you are a book lover, you should definitely have a cup by your side, winters can’t get any better than having a great book to read with a cup of coffee by your side.

Once you start liking coffee, you can even go for a barista course, but that’s getting way ahead of you at this point. Right now, just get up and have a great latte, enjoy every bit of it, and let me know if any of this was helpful to you at all.

Final Words

This was my journey and experience about how to start liking coffee. I hope these tips and tricks would help you become a coffee aficionado in no time. You are reading this, you can pat yourself on the back for having this motivation.

The journey ahead will be fun and soon there’ll come a day that you’d be craving a nice steaming cup of coffee.

Have a great day!