One of my favorite drinks is milk. I didn't even realize this until my wife brought home a glass bottle of Jersey Cow Whole Milk. After shaking the bottle to make sure the cream had mixed in with the rest of the milk, I poured myself a glass. Thick and white with a smell of almost sweetness. It was amazing stuff.
I have always enjoyed milk but I grew up on the 2% or less variety and it only seemed like a friendly companion to a bowl of cereal. Drinking a glass on its own always seemed a bit lacking, a little watered down. What I didn't know is that the modern, standard glass of milk is not the same type of milk my grandparents were drinking or even my mom. She talked about cream on the top of her glass of milk and I could only picture the little plastic cups for coffee on the table at Denny's.
Over and over I am pleasantly surprised when we buy or make something as close to untouched as possible. (I'm avoiding the word natural to steer away from a hippy or organic conversation). The experience is akin to when I listen to a beloved album on a pair of high quality speakers. It always feels as though I am listening for the first time. "Oh, the drummer is creating a sound on the bell of the cymbal." "The voice has a gravelly quality on the low end of that line." "Do you hear the way his fingers drag along the string?"
Food and drink is the same way. Leslie, my wife, sometimes makes butter from scratch. I put it on my bread and think, "have I ever had butter before?"
We buy a bar of simple dark chocolate, anticipating a candy bar I brace myself for a sugar load and, instead, encounter a firm base of dark chocolate with subtle notes of botanical and fruity flavors.
We buy eggs from a neighbor farm and I am blinded by yellow when I crack them into the pan.
Or I pour a glass of milk and enjoy its creamy goodness.