Entry 18: Personal Favorite - Antivan Drip Coffee

Well, last Thursday, I had intended to post an eloquent entry full of information and tricks for seamlessly transitioning your kitchen to a castle of vegan sustainability. But it turns out taking a large topic and breaking it down into bite-sized chunks is more difficult than I initially thought. And frankly I have only been at this vegan, blogging lifestyle for less than a year, so I think it is fair to say I am still in need of some practice for consistency. In the midst of realizing this late one night last week, I also realized I needed some coffee.

So today, we are going to brew some hot and delicious Antivan drip coffee! Mmm, coffee. Coffee is as essential as lyrium here at Skyhold but not always made well. And depending on how you prepare your coffee, or where you spend coin to obtain it, you may not be getting the best brew possible. A clean, quick Antivan drip is fast, easy, cheap (in the long run), and delicious to the last drop!


So why Antiva? Well, you have this little comic I found awhile ago on Pinterest, by Shinga, to thank for that:

The more I think about coffee and Antivan culture, the more realistic the connection becomes.


My rogue partner over the years has created and perfected a seamless and efficient brewing method that certainly saves us quite a bit of coin. Every penny counts after all when you have to save to fill that hole in the wall.

I do not usually like to list products I use because I believe many of the recipes I share can be made by commonly owned kitchen tools. But we are passionate about coffee and we want to share that passion with you, so I have included a list of products used in this blog with links to where you can find them.


First up, make sure your materials are clean and your beans fresh! You will need: filters, kettle, scale, and your coffee beans, shown here in my partner's air-tight vault made specially for coffee beans.

My kettle isn't so clean on the outside, but it's always sparkling on the inside. I told you I was a mage, right?

We buy whole beans in bulk and store them in an air-tight vault. Buying whole beans and grinding them at home you can ensure a fresh flavor and aroma every brew.

And now for the filter-holder and carafe:

Yes, we make our coffee in a giant Slim Jim mug. 

But before you start measuring your beans, make sure whatever you are use to drink your coffee from is clean. My Templar and I have been through a lot together so it has some wear. It shows some stains and scars that may never fade. But that is not a valid reason for me to leave it to an oily fate. A clean coffee thermos matters because taste matters.

If you are curious why I call my tumbler my 'Templar', check
out my post on Instagram.

This is after a solid eight rounds of serious scrubbing.

Coffee leaves behind oils that accumulate over time. And over that time they can have a drastic effect on the taste of your freshly made coffee as well as leave an oder behind. Coffee tastes its best when brewed slowly and drunk from a warm, clean vessel.

Now on to the brewing! The basics steps are:

Measure 30 grams of beans on your scale, then ground. If you are making two cups, measure 60 grams. For us that means setting the timer to grind for 15 seconds. For two cups, we grind beans for 30 seconds.

Fold the filter to fit the filter holder.

Boil water. Remove kettle from heat...

And pour water into filter and carafe. Make sure the filter is completely soaked.

Set your kettle back on the stove, on a cool burner. Do not place it on the hot burner. Never pour boiling water over your grounds. Dump the hot water out of the carafe into the sink. Then add coffee grounds to filter, set on carafe and place the whole thing on your scale, then zero-out scale.

Pour 60 grams (120 grams for 2 cups) of hot - not boiling - water over the center of the grounds for about 30 seconds, allow to drain into carafe.

Then pour water over the center of the grounds until scale total reads 350 grams (700 for two cups, you will fill the filter almost completely with water).

Ignore the numbers pictured on our scale, we forgot to zero it out.

Allow water to drain until dripping lightly.

Remove filter from carafe and promptly place in your filter and grounds into your compost bin.

Call me an odd nug, but I think coffee is beautiful in all its forms.

If you do not have compost services in your area, contact your local Ban about that.

Pour brewed coffee into your clean tumbler or favorite coffee mug and enjoy!

Or doll up with sweeters and milks... If you're into that. This mage is hardcore and enjoys her coffee as black as the Void.


Common Coffee Missteps:

Pre-ground coffee is a waste fore it perishes far too quickly. And freezing your beans, whole or ground, isn't a good idea either. If you need to freeze coffee, freeze it whole bean and do not grind it until it is completely thawed to room temperature. (These two tips go together because my well-meaning grandmother - who may as well be the Dowager of the family - once sent us a bag a ground coffee that had been previously frozen. It was easily the worst cup on coffee I had ever had. And I've had coffee in the field deep in the Hinterlands!)

Do not pour boiling water over your grounds. Do not pour boiling water over your grounds. DO NOT pour boiling water over your grounds. Allow the water in your whistling kettle to cool slightly, for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Pouring boiling water over your coffee grounds will burn your coffee and leech away the flavor like an Arcane Horror sucking away your life. Do not pour boiling water over your grounds.

An air-tight container and a good quality grinder make all the difference. If you are not able to obtain a fancy grinder, clean the grinder you use regularly (remember the oils thing? Coffee in all its forms leaves an oily film behind.) And an opaque, airtight container helps your whole beans stay fresher for longer.


If you are curious why we have all the expensive coffee equipment but lack a proper carafe, there's a rather dull explanation for that.

I broke our last two carafes and the giant Slim Jim mug is the only thing we are left large enough to hold two servings of coffee. It does the trick. And has a unique charm to it.

I hope you pick up your favorite flavor of beans and give this method a try, and then try it again, and again until you get that perfect brew that lifts your spirits as well as refills your mana and stamina bars!

Product list:
Bialetti Tea Kettle
Salter Ultra Thin Glass Kitchen Scale (we have an older model, link to the newer model)
Friis 16-Ounce Coffee Vault
Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder
Melitta Pour Over Coffee Cone Brewer and Filters (just about any kind of generic filters will do)

We used to have the Melitta Cone Filter Coffeemaker kit but if you are really into the Slim Jim mug, you can find it here. Be careful though, pouring with it takes practice.


Like what you are reading? Great! Come back for a new entry on September 13. And have a look at my previous entries for other recipes and Dragon Age-related trivia and oddities!

Have any friendly suggestions or cool ideas? Want me to veganize your favorite recipe? Please feel free to comment below. You can also email me at foodsofthedas@gmail.com, message me at AGSamuels on Reddit, or tweet me at @FoodsofThedas on Twitter. You can also follow me on Instagram, @gourmetveganthedas.

If you try out any of my recipes, please share a picture on social media and use the hashtag (#)gourmetveganthedas.

Walk always in the Maker's light.

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Image Source:

Art of Shinga: https://artofshinga.tumblr.com/
Art of Shinga, Noli has coffee for the first time: https://artofshinga.tumblr.com/post/162806625492/noli-has-coffee-for-the-first-time

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