Robin Donovan

That delightful first cup of coffee isn’t just a sensory wake-up call – it sets the tone for the day ahead; a good cup promises a good day. As any traveler knows, finding a great cup of coffee while on the road can be a challenge. But with the right tools and a little resourcefulness, you can brew a flawless cup of coffee anywhere, whether you wake up in a plush hotel suite or a rugged campsite in the woods.

Just because you are traveling doesn’t mean you have to endure less than stellar coffee. Explore these brewing methods to ensure that every morning, wherever you are, your coffee is nothing short of perfect.

Hotel room brews

These days, it seems every hotel room comes equipped with one of those single-serve, pod-style coffee makers. But pod coffee? No, thank you. Here are a few strategies to rescue you from coffee pod misery.

Compact and easy to pack, a travel-size French press only needs coffee grounds and hot water. Some ingeniously designed travel French presses even serve as your coffee mug, too. You can use the in-room coffee maker or microwave to heat water, snag some hot water from the breakfast area or order some from room service.

Collapsible silicone drippers make for lightweight travel. Use them with your own grounds, and you’ve got your morning ritual covered. Again, the in-room coffee maker or microwave can serve to heat your water, or grab some hot water from the lobby.

Like their pod-reliant counterparts, travel-size drip coffee or espresso makersare compact, electric devices. The difference is that these let you spoon in your favorite espresso grounds. Add water, flip the on switch and watch as hot water slowly percolates through, filling your cup with that rich, familiar flavor.

Campsite java

Out in the wild, away from the convenience of electric kettles and microwaves, brewing coffee still remains a highlight of the morning. Here’s how.

Nothing beats the aroma of coffee brewing in a Moka Pot over a gas-powered camp stove. A Moka Pot is a stovetop coffee maker that relies on heat and pressure to draw out the rich flavors of your ground coffee. The end result is an intense cup, similar in flavor, richness and punch to a classic espresso. It’s simple, efficient and makes a bracing cup of coffee that’s ideal for a brisk morning outdoors.

If you’re traveling light, cowboy coffee may be the answer. To make this rugged concoction, boil water in a pot on a camp stove or over a fire and stir your coffee grounds right into it. Let it steep for several minutes, and then let the grounds settle to the bottom before drinking. It’s rudimentary but gets the job done.

A pour-over cone dripper is a handy, easy-to-pack device and it isn’t just for hotel rooms. It’s also the ideal camping companion – simply place it over your mug, add your preferred coffee grounds and pour hot water for a barista-worthy cup even when you’re miles away from the nearest café. Look for a collapsible silicone version to save space, and be sure to pack some paper filters, too. Or use a perforated metal cone filter that doesn’t require a separate paper filter.

Modern solutions for the nomadic coffee lover

Technology and innovation have blessed us with some nifty solutions for brewing on the go. Here are a few favorite inventions that push the envelope.

Imagine sipping your brew directly from a mug through a straw that filters out the grounds. That’s what you get with the JoGo Straw. It’s lightweight, easy to clean and perfect for the minimalist traveler. And it’s so small, you can easily tuck it into your purse or slide it into a backpack pocket.

The compact and versatile Aeropress coffee maker is durable, portable and makes a fantastic cup of coffee. It’s a cylindrical chamber made air tight with a silicone seal. Coffee grounds steep in hot water inside the chamber and when you’re ready, a plunger forces the water through a filter into your cup. In just a few minutes, you can make a delicious brew that combines the full-bodied flavor you get from a French press, the smoothness you expect from pour-over and the richness of espresso.

Heating water on the go

The common thread in all these methods is the need for hot water. The good news is that there are plenty of easy ways to get hot water when you’re traveling. To start, those pod-style coffee makers you find in so many hotel rooms these days can be repurposed to heat water for your own brewing setup. Of course, if your room has a microwave, you can use that.

If you’ve got access to electricity, you can use a lightweight, travel-sized electric kettle. It’s a game changer for anyone who prioritizes their morning coffee ritual. These nifty devices boil water quickly and shut off automatically once the water boils. Choose a collapsible silicone one for easy packing.

When camping, you can use whatever heating method you’re relying on to cook grilled steaks or fishtacos for dinner. Whether that’s an open fire or a portable gas stove, all you need is a pot to boil water.

Travel-friendly coffee add-ins

While the coffee itself takes center stage, it’s the accompaniments that fine-tune it to personal taste. Here’s how to keep your favorite add-ins close so you don’t have to compromise on the personalized coffee experience you enjoy back home.

Individual creamer packets, whether dairy or non-dairy, are travel-friendly and don’t require refrigeration. They come in various flavors and can easily slip into your bag.

Packets of sugar, honey or stevia take up virtually no space in your luggage, but if you’re staying in a hotel, you can likely grab whatever you need from the coffee bar. If you want to get fancy, make your own coffee syrups and bring them along in silicone squeeze bottles.

When you can’t have your favorite avocado toast with grated egg, add a scoop of protein powder to your coffee. Buy your favorite flavors in individual serving-size packets. It adds creaminess and flavor to your coffee, and also fills you up.

With these tools and tips, the world is your coffee shop. Whether you’re waking up in a plush hotel bed or in a sleeping bag in the wilderness, a quality cup of coffee made just the way you like it is within reach. It might require a bit more effort than your home kitchen setup, but the ritual itself is part of the adventure. So, pack your bags – and your coffee gear – with confidence. After all, exploring the world shouldn’t mean sacrificing your beloved, first-thing-in-the-morning cup of delicious coffee.

Robin Donovan is the author of more than 40 cookbooks, including the bestselling Campfire Cuisine, Ramen Obsession and Ramen for Beginners. A food writer, recipe developer and food photographer, she is the creator behind the food blog All Ways Delicious, where she shares easy recipes for the best dishes from around the world.

It’s still Pride Month, so here’s a roundup of some of my favorite LGBTQ+-themed movies, from the many that I’ve reviewed in the past 20 years or so. But don’t think of them just as Pride watching; all of these titles — each of them, at their hearts, about love — make for great viewing, any time.

“Beginners” (2011, rated R). The late Christopher Plummer won his only Oscar for this wise, wistful comedy about a man who comes out as gay just a few years before his death, and about his son (Ewan McGregor) coming to terms with his father’s loss. Its gentle message is that we’re all beginners at love — and all we can do is believe in it. (Streaming on Prime Video)

“Blue Is the Warmest Color” (2013, rated NC-17). Yes, it’s long (watch it when you have three hours), but this French film about a young woman named Adèle (Adèle Exarchopoulos) embarking on her first romance is both sensual — the women’s bodies are lit like sculptures — and moving. Adèle has a way of gazing at the world as if it’s full of possibility; she’s not yet a fully formed person, but an intriguing beginning. (AMC+)

“Brokeback Mountain” (2005, rated R). Ang Lee’s film, based on Annie Proulx’s short novel, broke all of our hearts back in 2005, with Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal as a pair of cowboys in 1960s Wyoming who know that their love is forbidden. Its central image couldn’t be more prosaic — two worn-soft Western shirts, hanging together — but its impact is huge; this movie stays with you after you’ve seen it, like a haunting love song. (Peacock)

“Call Me By Your Name” (2017, rated R). Quick, name a movie as gorgeously swoony as this one. I’ll wait. Directed by Luca Guadagnino and masterfully adapted by the great James Ivory from André Aciman’s novel, this coming-of-age story is set in an exquisite villa in 1980s Italy, with Timothée Chalamet as a young man dazzled by new feelings of love and longing. (Prime Video)

“Carol” (2015, rated R). I stand corrected: Todd Haynes’ glorious period drama is as swoony as movies get; this 1950s-set movie looks like a Hopper painting come to life. Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara play forbidden lovers who find themselves falling deeply in love in a story that’s sad, poignant and the tiniest bit hopeful. But “Carol” is less about story than mood — and that mood is perfection. (Netflix, Hulu)

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“Disobedience” (2018, rated R). A passionate, unexpected love triangle, this vivid drama is set in a conservative Orthodox community in London, to which Ronit (Rachel Weisz) returns home after years away — to find that the woman she once loved (Rachel McAdams) is now married to a man (Alessandra Nivola). Weisz and McAdams find an electric connection, but this film has a generosity of spirit toward all three of its central characters; you leave it believing that their stories continue, somewhere. (Prime Video)

“A Fantastic Woman” (2017, rated R). Winner of the 2018 Academy Award for best foreign language film, this Chilean drama is an eloquent tale of love, heartbreak and hope. Marina (Daniela Vega), a trans woman, struggles to cope with life after the loss of her beloved Orlando (Francisco Reyes), a kind man who was a safe haven for Marina in an often unwelcoming world. Filled with unexpected beauty, the film becomes a quiet triumph over adversity, and an object lesson in adjusting to life’s empty spaces. (Peacock)

“Grandma” (2015, rated R). Lily Tomlin brings light and laughter to every film she’s in, but I especially loved her in this 2015 road comedy. She plays Elle, a gruff, misanthropic grandmother who doesn’t want to admit that she’s in mourning for her longtime partner, who died 18 months previously; instead, she channels that love into helping her granddaughter (Julia Garner). It’s a short, tart film — and an unexpectedly sweet one. (Prime Video)

“The Half of It” (2020, rated PG-13). Alice Wu’s charmer of a rom-com dropped on Netflix just at the beginning of the pandemic, and I suspect it made a lot of us happier. In a high school spin on “Cyrano de Bergerac,” teen Ellie (Leah Lewis) is in love with popular Aster (Alexxis Lemire), a situation complicated by the fact that amiable jock Paul (Daniel Diemer) has hired Ellie to write love letters to Aster on his behalf. It’s a story that worked more than a century ago, when “Cyrano” was new, and it works now; “The Half of It” is funny, poignant, and ultimately a joy. (Netflix)

“The Kids Are All Right” (2010, rated R). Annette Bening and Julianne Moore play a longtime lesbian couple in Lisa Cholodenko’s delightful comedy/drama about a family, in which a teen daughter (Mia Wasikowska) suddenly decides she wants to contact, for the first time, her biological father/sperm donor (Mark Ruffalo). Disruption in the family ensues, but you never doubt that all will be well; these actors are all so very good at creating an atmosphere of love. (Prime Video)

“Love Is Strange” (2014, rated R). A pair of New Yorkers, Ben (John Lithgow) and George (Alfred Molina), are finally able to marry after being together 39 years — but quickly find that, for real estate reasons, they will have to live apart. Ira Sachs’ film shows us, artfully, what years of love look like, and Lithgow and Molina barely need words to convey their characters’ bond; you sense that neither of these men is complete without the other. A lovely, touching film. (Peacock)

“Moonlight” (2016, rated R). Barry Jenkins’ beautifully poetic film about a gay Black man’s coming of age won the Academy Award for best picture in 2017; it’s less a standard narrative than a collection of moments and impressions, unfolding in three acts over two decades, that leaves its central character and its viewers moved and changed. Watching it (and listening to Nicholas Britell’s mesmerizing score) feels like spending time inside someone else’s dreams, and waking up understanding better who they are. (Max, Hulu)

“Pariah” (2011, rated R). Dee Rees’ accomplished debut film is the story of a 17-year-old Brooklyn girl named Alike (Adepero Oduye) who knows that she’s gay, but doesn’t know how to tell her family. It’s not an easy journey, and doesn’t have a textbook happy ending, but the film’s emotional impact is remarkable as you suddenly realize that this sad-eyed young woman has become a quiet tower of strength before our eyes. (Prime Video)

“Portrait of a Lady on Fire” (2019, rated R). This one, from French filmmaker Céline Sciamma, is another gorgeous swooner; not much happens, but everything happens. Two women meet, on an island in 1770 Brittany: an artist, Marianne (Noémie Merlant), is hired to paint a portrait of Héloïse (Adèle Haenel); they gaze at each other for a long time, then fall in love. “Do all lovers,” wonders Héloïse in a passionate moment, “feel as though they’re inventing something?” It’s a beautiful, bittersweet celebration of passion and art. (Hulu)

Taylor Zakhar Perez, left, and Nicholas Galitzine in “Red, White & Royal Blue.” (Jonathan Prime/Prime Video/TNS)

“Red, White & Royal Blue” (2023, rated R). Casey McQuiston’s 2019 novel, in which two of the most famous young men in the world (the king of England’s grandson and the president of the United States’ son) meet and fall in love, is happily ever after all the way. This is frothy rom-com pleasure, right down to the enormous wedding cake that topples on our heroes, because of course it does. (Prime Video)

“A Single Man” (2009, rated R). Tom Ford’s lovely, tragic drama, based on Christopher Isherwood’s novel, has a devastating premise: It takes place over one day in the life of George (Colin Firth), a middle-aged professor in 1962 whose partner Jim (Matthew Goode) has recently died. Jim’s family didn’t invite George to the funeral, and he can’t publicly mourn. It’s an unremarkable day, but Firth uncannily shows us the carefully controlled grief that George can’t bring to the surface. He goes quietly through the motions of his life, as if he’s fading away. (Netflix)

©2024 The Seattle Times. Visit seattletimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

 

The first time Sarah and Joseph Stanoch hosted a “Hot Ones”-inspired party in 2017, they debunked the theory that milk is the best way to extinguish a spicy mouth.

After watching one of their friends chug a gallon over the sink and then proceed to puke, the couple was grateful they stuck to beer.

“I used to work at Anheuser Busch, so we actually had the party in my office on a Saturday, and it was just four of us, but they had a bar in the office with unlimited beer, and I feel like light beer really helps with the heat,” Sarah said. “Milk is clearly not the way to go, and water just exacerbates it because it swirls the heat around your mouth.”

“Hot Ones” is a popular YouTube series that host Sean Evans started in 2015. He interviews celebrities while they eat their way through chicken wings with 10 increasingly hotter sauces. Evans uses hot sauce as a way to disarm his guests, asking them more personal questions as the spice level heats up. And Colorado’s had a few features in the lineup over the years, including Boulder-based Seed Ranch Flavor Co.’s Hot Thai Green sauce in season 11, Fort Collins-based Burns & McCoy Exhorresco sauce in season 7 and Mezcaline Oaxacan sauce in season 18, as well as Denver-based Sauce Leopard’s The Seventh Reaper sauce.

Joseph and Sarah Stanoch’s hot sauce collection at their home in Denver on Friday, June 21, 2024. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

During that time, hot sauce culture has become its own beast. Evans’ painful interviews have inspired masochists like the Stanochs, to convince their own friends to gather around a table and cry, sweat, vomit and suffer together. Baere Brewing Co. in Denver even hosted its own hot wing challenge on June 22, using the “Hot Ones” sauce kit.

“My husband and I are big heat thrill seekers, but it’s just a fun summer activity to get to know your friends more that’s pretty low budget,” Sarah said. “And hey, you get to reuse the sauces after.”

For the Stanochs’ second “Hot Ones” party in February 2022, Sarah decided to challenge herself and go without any liquid relief. She was inspired by the singer Lorde’s impressive interview. “I was so proud of myself but then of course, the next day, my esophagus was just on fire,” she said.

“Hot Ones” premiered its 24th season at the end of May, and after watching it the other day, Sarah has a new idea in her back pocket. “If I do it a third time, I think I’ll try using ice cream to help with heat after watching Will Smith on the new season,” she said.

But it’ll be a while before the next party, since “I’m pregnant right now, and that’s probably not good for the baby,” she laughed.

For your own “Hot Ones” party, here are some tips from the fire-breathing experts:

How to convince your friends

Not everyone has to be a hot sauce connoisseur to join in on the searing fun. The Stanochs bribed eight of their friends with a pony keg of Oskar Blues pilsner, and even made seitan wings for the vegetarian attendees. Four of the six guests completed all 10 of the wings, and two folded at sauce No. 8. “We made bets beforehand, trying to guess who was most likely to rub their eyes,  who would drink the most beer, who was most likely to finish or vomit,” Sarah said.

Lexi Omholt and her fiancé, Jack Verschleiser, on the other hand, just moved to Denver a month ago, and used the “Hot Ones” challenge as a way to get to know their new next door neighbors. The couple are longtime fans of the YouTube series and just the other week bought the official “Hot Ones” kit (a full 10-pack is $120) with the lineup of sauces featured in season 23.

Their next-door neighbors in Denver’s Highland neighborhood, Courtney Peter and Hayden Davis, were over for an introductory dinner when they spotted the kit. The group decided to spice up their second double date and attempt “the gauntlet,” Omholt said.

“It wasn’t your typical formal dinner party with the four of us practically dying in their kitchen,” Omholt said. “We spent two hours together, crying, bonding, and getting closer.”

The couple now plans to reuse the kit, and this time they’ll get to know the whole neighborhood at the upcoming block party. “I don’t know if I’ll be passing around Da Bomb, though,” Omholt said.

Give fair warning for Da Bomb

The main reason to secure an official “Hot Ones” sauce kit is to ensure a taste of Da Bomb, which is the only sauce that has consistently remained in every season’s lineup because of its ferocity. Da Bomb, which hails from Kansas City, is made with habanero peppers and chipotle puree. Actor Jason Sudeikis, a Kansas City native, called it a “disgusting sauce that hurts your mouth,” last season.

“Hot Ones” uses the Scoville scale to measure the spice level, and Da Bomb measures 135,600 Scoville Heat Units. Da Bomb is strategically placed at No. 8 in the lineup to make the final two sauces manageable.

Meghan Keelean and Austin Thornburg hosted eight of their friends at Thornburg’s apartment in Washington Park last year. “It was a mix of people that I know are die-hard fans of hot sauce and spicy food, and people that just like to go to parties,” Thornburg said.

“Consent was king. No one had to eat the wings if they didn’t want to,” he added.

Out of the eight attendees, two folded ahead of Da Bomb “because they knew what was coming next,” Thornburg said.

Thornburg has always sought out spice, ordering El Jefe wings from Fire On The Mountain by choice and eating raw hot peppers straight from the garden. But even Da Bomb gave him pause. “As somebody that has an entire side of his refrigerator dedicated to hot sauces, it’s not great,” Thornburg said. “It’s extremely hot but doesn’t taste very good. I’ve tasted the full line of three or four seasons worth of the show and Da Bomb is always markedly hotter in the lineup.”

Keelean, who is more reluctant when it comes to spicy food, made it all the way through the lineup, even Da Bomb, but not without heading to the sink to pour milk over her tongue. “You just have to ride it out,” she said. “At one point, I just went outside and breathed in the cool air.”

Make your own wings

Thornburg has hosted two “Hot Ones” parties and cooked his own wings both times. Both were during cold weather so people could find some relief outside. Most recently, he grilled 100 wings, seasoned them with salt and pepper and sauced them as they went. “It’s best to pre-cook the wings and let them cool down, so they don’t break the sauces when you toss them,” he said. “And only toss as many wings as will be eaten. You don’t need extra Da Bomb pieces.”

Thornburg offered to-go boxes for the leftover wings, and let each of his guests take home their favorite sauce from the “Hot Ones” kit.

Offer a variety of quick relief methods

While milk is the obvious choice – and the one most often featured on the show – it’s not the only one. Gordon Ramsay famously brought Pepto Bismol, donuts, lime and lemon juice and a whole bag of tricks to his interview.

“It honestly wouldn’t have occurred to me to have any sort of relief if I didn’t watch the show,” Thornburg said. For his “Hot Ones” party, he made horchata and virgin pina colada mix for the table. There were also some cheese and crackers, plus a gallon of milk, which they ran out of towards the end. Instead of drinking it, Keelean preferred swishing it around in her mouth.

“The prize was an ice cream cake,” Thornburg said.

Others, like the Stanochs, made sure to have wet wipes to avoid any hot-sauce-in-the-eye incidents.

Get the scoop on your friends, like host Sean Evans

Nils Thorson invited three friends to attempt the “Hot Ones” challenge” during the pandemic to pass the time. “Maybe if I had asked them to do the same thing today, their answers would be a little bit different,” Nils said. “But it’s not like you’re going to consume Da Bomb once a week after this, so we were able to check that off the box.”

His wife, Olivia, who has a degree in broadcast journalism, decided to act as host Sean Evans and ask the group surprising questions while they suffered their way through each wing. They filmed it and posted it on YouTube, so they could show other friends and family stuck inside.

“When we host something, we don’t half-ass it,” Nils said. “We hosted a Harry Potter party a couple of years ago and sorted people by house. …If we’re going to do something, we go all out anyway, so if I’m going to ask my friends to come over, and I know there’s a guarantee of pain, then I want to bring as much fun, intrigue and excitement to the experience as I can. “

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The official “Hot Ones” kits don’t come with question prompts, but they should. Olivia called each of the participants’ wives to get some out-of-left-field prompts for her questions, like a story about how one husband rang up a huge bill calling the Miss Cleo Psychic Hotline one summer when he was younger and had to paint houses to pay for it.

While trying to just catch a breath after Da Bomb, she asked them what their favorite things about their wives were.

“Truly taking on the format of the show allowed us to get to know each other more vulnerably and deeply,” Olivia said. “We got to develop the friendship in a new way by asking surprising questions and also watching how people react.”