Coffee and I go waaaaaay back. I grew up in a household where I had no set time for bed and no restrictions on what I read or watched on TV. I could also eat and drink what I liked (I was not allowed to drink, let’s say, whiskey or beer openly, but when I’d admit taking a nip here or there I was not punished). I would start my day with a cup of coffee — even in first grade (my grandmother thought coffee, cream and sugar were ‘health foods.’) My free-style childhood and almost constant high approval ratings by my parents and live-in grandmother have contributed to some character “flaws” to be sure (a famous L.A. psychic looked at my palm once and proclaimed: “I see…Buckingham Palace!”) and my early coffee consumption no doubt made me what I am today: a man immune to the effects of caffeine.
Still, I love the scents and flavors of coffee: fresh coffee beans, roasting coffee beans (an aroma you can easily experience in Seattle), brewing coffee, percolating coffee, espresso, coffee in chocolates, ice cream, cakes, cookies and custards. I never thought I would like the scent of coffee on my person. The idea of wearing a coffee perfume made me queasy, until I sampled Thierry Mugler’s A*Men Pure Coffee. Almost as much as I detest A*Men, I enjoy A*Men Pure Coffee…
I recently came across two books on hygiene and body culture: Douglas Mackaman's 