I hemmed, and I hawed. I peered at the little laminated cards typed in a retro font. Hmm... "milk chocolate, allspice, and dried fruit"? Or maybe "complex ... notes of lemon peel ... orchid aroma." Do I want a sweet finish? Or would I rather something full of body, and herbal? And what the heck do orchids taste like?

Turns out, I love the way orchids taste. And the Ethiopia Yirgacheffe is now tops on my list. No longer do I roll my eyes when a customer quibbles between Latin American and Indonesian beans: I know that anything from the Sidamo region is sweet, light, complex, a delightful drink for summer, and the coffee from Guatemala has a cinnamony richness that's perfect for a rainy fall day.

Pooh-poohing chardonnay and preferring zinfandel over syrah is so late 90s. Today's hip imbibers are tasting coffee, not wine, and discovering a whole new palate. Tropical fruits. Jasmine. Apricot. Dark cherries. Lemongrass. Chocolate, toffee, spice of every sort. Coffee that tastes like strawberries? Until you've discovered the many notes of a truly great café, please put your "Gourmet" badge back on the rack. Coffee is the new tasting ... what's in your cup?