Note: I don’t suggest the following as everyday fare; coffee’s quite good enough to stand on its own without supplementation, but for festive fare, sometimes a lil “kick” is nice.
Take your favorite bean. I’d suggest a medium to dark roast, but that’s me. When grinding, add ONE of the following to the grinder, per pot of coffee (about 10-12 cups) to the grinder with the coffee beans, then brew as usual:
about 1.5 inch loosely crumbled cinnamon “stick”
a few anise seeds
some small chips off a nutmeg
You may find they add a nice bright note to a cuppa holiday coffee. But do NOT overdo it with the spices. A little goes a long way. And don’t use pre-ground anything when making coffee. Use beans (Christine can tell you how to roast green coffee beans; I’ve not gone that far, yet—and I know, I know: I really ought to try it… maybe in my convection oven? A small batch?). Use un-ground seeds, nuts, etc., when adding spices. Just grind ’em yourself.
Oh, and look for a burr hand grinder at flea markets or wherever. I’ve noticed a distinct flavor quality difference since graduating from electric blade grinders.
Let me know if you have other flavor additions that work for your holiday coffee (wasting whipped cream on pies is a terrible thing to do, for example :-)).
LOL I have to have whipped cream on my coffee ;).