my friend james traded his fancy-schmancy old-timey french brewer for his newly completely customized,bejeweled, napoleon bonaparte-themed tamper from espressopartsNW.
will be available to drool over on the OMG section of sprudge.com soon, i'm sure.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
pourover geekout
My dear coffee-geekin' friend james came over to my new apartment the other day for a "mid 19th century french vs. 2010 japanese" pourover contest. He had discovered an incredible french brewer, the likes of which i had never seen in an antique shop in seattle. the guy who sold it to him said that it was most definitely a tea pot. however, we were convinced otherwise.
We didnt know how it worked. we were just going on a whim. we ground the coffee coarse. and thought that it would not slip through the holes in the middle "pourover" chamber into the bottom of the pot.
little did we know that the pot was meant to hold the grounds and be the brewer, while the middle cyclinder, which we thought was the filter was actually a dispersion method for making sure that the hot water went over the coffee grounds evenly.
there was this nifty little doodad in the bottom of the pot, which held back the grounds whilst you poured out your brewed coffee into your cup.
the brew that we made using our hypothesis took 7 minutes to brew and tasted awful. overextracted mess. i really wanted to know where we went wrong, but first i had to school James on my bad-ass hario pourover method, ala Scott Rao.
I have been perfecting my method after reading "everything but espresso" by Scott Rao and also writing the methodology for "manual brewing" for Training and Education @ B&B. Every brew i have made, i have put through the Extract MoJo and it gets a "good score" every time. I'm sure it needs work. there is always room for improvement, But since James just started working at a new job that requires the ability to make Bad-ass pourover coffee, I thought that i owed him a tutorial
note the cellphone as a timer.
the end
ps. for some eye candy
http://vimeo.com/11181154
We didnt know how it worked. we were just going on a whim. we ground the coffee coarse. and thought that it would not slip through the holes in the middle "pourover" chamber into the bottom of the pot.
little did we know that the pot was meant to hold the grounds and be the brewer, while the middle cyclinder, which we thought was the filter was actually a dispersion method for making sure that the hot water went over the coffee grounds evenly.
there was this nifty little doodad in the bottom of the pot, which held back the grounds whilst you poured out your brewed coffee into your cup.
the brew that we made using our hypothesis took 7 minutes to brew and tasted awful. overextracted mess. i really wanted to know where we went wrong, but first i had to school James on my bad-ass hario pourover method, ala Scott Rao.
I have been perfecting my method after reading "everything but espresso" by Scott Rao and also writing the methodology for "manual brewing" for Training and Education @ B&B. Every brew i have made, i have put through the Extract MoJo and it gets a "good score" every time. I'm sure it needs work. there is always room for improvement, But since James just started working at a new job that requires the ability to make Bad-ass pourover coffee, I thought that i owed him a tutorial
note the cellphone as a timer.
the end
ps. for some eye candy
http://vimeo.com/11181154
Saturday, May 29, 2010
coffee comraderie
so i just wanted to put in this little note about my thoughts on comraderie in the coffee industry.
there is none.
why so competitive, people?
a customer ( an annoying one, but that's besides the point), asked if it was true that there is a lot of in-fighting in the coffee business. i couldnt say that it was not true. it's sad.
yesterday, i was coffeegeeking at a local competitor's shop with a fellow barista. we tried to make some plans to get together and make some coffee science experiments happen. unfortunately, because the two businesses we work for are competitors, neither of us could invite the other to use the facilities at the roasting works at either place. that was just annoying.
it seems like it isnt the baristas who are the source of this industry wide rivalry/in-fighting, but the coffee roasters/shop owners/industry professionals who are making it so evident.
i think that the only way that we will really accomplish any real comraderie is if these shop owners and higher-ups each take the high ground and open up their doors to each other.
in pittsburgh, i think that this was beginning to happen to some extent. there was sharing of resources between shop owners. there was definite comraderie amongst the baristas, for sure.
i just want everyone to TRULY get over themselves and realize that our purose, besides making money, is to educate the public about coffee and in turn educate growers about what the consumers want.
ps. read sprudge.com
there is none.
why so competitive, people?
a customer ( an annoying one, but that's besides the point), asked if it was true that there is a lot of in-fighting in the coffee business. i couldnt say that it was not true. it's sad.
yesterday, i was coffeegeeking at a local competitor's shop with a fellow barista. we tried to make some plans to get together and make some coffee science experiments happen. unfortunately, because the two businesses we work for are competitors, neither of us could invite the other to use the facilities at the roasting works at either place. that was just annoying.
it seems like it isnt the baristas who are the source of this industry wide rivalry/in-fighting, but the coffee roasters/shop owners/industry professionals who are making it so evident.
i think that the only way that we will really accomplish any real comraderie is if these shop owners and higher-ups each take the high ground and open up their doors to each other.
in pittsburgh, i think that this was beginning to happen to some extent. there was sharing of resources between shop owners. there was definite comraderie amongst the baristas, for sure.
i just want everyone to TRULY get over themselves and realize that our purose, besides making money, is to educate the public about coffee and in turn educate growers about what the consumers want.
ps. read sprudge.com
Monday, April 19, 2010
michael phillips. yes. chris baca. yes.
hi.
so yesterday was the final for the USBC (united states barista competition). michael phillips, from intelligentsia coffee & tea took first place (most deservedly) and chris baca from verve coffee took second.
i am so inspired by these two baristas. they bring so much passion, knowledge and "can-do" attitude to the barista competitions. Both were thoroughly engaging as far as their desire to educated the judges and their audience about the coffees that they were using. Both did a most beautiful presentation, from table cloths to the way their drinks looked. Michael's was supremely technical, showcasing three different coffees three different ways, in his sig drink, espresso and capps, plus his sig drink was three different vessels with the three espressos pulled the different ways. he used different dose, volume and length of extraction with all three coffees. and explained WHY he pulled each coffee differently. so impressive.
Chris Baca, pulled of a very calculated performance, making his sig drink first, which looked gorgeous. he also engaged the judges by making two extra sig drinks, one for himself and one for the head judge and demonstrated how he wanted the judges to drink his beverage. and each judge did EXACTLY as he did. not only did he engage each judge but he also had a great story about his coffee and where is comes from. it wasnt that his presentation had alot of "flash" because it didnt, if you dont count the flourescent pink details throughout his place setting. he just expertly pulled off his performance. there were no glitches. it was very natural. it seemed to me as though it was an accurate portrayal of the experience that you may get if you were to walk into the verve coffee bar in santa cruz, and have the pleasure of having him serve you coffee.
on the interwebs:
http://www.justin.tv/usbcscaa/b/262428774#r=Lc0KgXk~&s=07
just saying... inspiring
so yesterday was the final for the USBC (united states barista competition). michael phillips, from intelligentsia coffee & tea took first place (most deservedly) and chris baca from verve coffee took second.
i am so inspired by these two baristas. they bring so much passion, knowledge and "can-do" attitude to the barista competitions. Both were thoroughly engaging as far as their desire to educated the judges and their audience about the coffees that they were using. Both did a most beautiful presentation, from table cloths to the way their drinks looked. Michael's was supremely technical, showcasing three different coffees three different ways, in his sig drink, espresso and capps, plus his sig drink was three different vessels with the three espressos pulled the different ways. he used different dose, volume and length of extraction with all three coffees. and explained WHY he pulled each coffee differently. so impressive.
Chris Baca, pulled of a very calculated performance, making his sig drink first, which looked gorgeous. he also engaged the judges by making two extra sig drinks, one for himself and one for the head judge and demonstrated how he wanted the judges to drink his beverage. and each judge did EXACTLY as he did. not only did he engage each judge but he also had a great story about his coffee and where is comes from. it wasnt that his presentation had alot of "flash" because it didnt, if you dont count the flourescent pink details throughout his place setting. he just expertly pulled off his performance. there were no glitches. it was very natural. it seemed to me as though it was an accurate portrayal of the experience that you may get if you were to walk into the verve coffee bar in santa cruz, and have the pleasure of having him serve you coffee.
on the interwebs:
http://www.justin.tv/usbcscaa/b/262428774#r=Lc0KgXk~&s=07
just saying... inspiring
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
holy shizzles.
so. long overdue update.
new job: retail trainer for Batdorf & Bronson, Olympia retail.
cool? yes.
starting to see some results from my overly passionate nature rubbing off on my minions. i kid about "the minions" part.
i spend alot of time zoning out and daydreaming about the future of my own professional life and the future of coffee. i have alot of ideas of the things i want to do with my life and the knowledge that has been imparted unto me by some of my coffee heroes.
some of my new ideas:
coffee shop opening within the next year.
selling french press cozies to pay for it.
making "barista butter: it's the balm!" to also pay for my coffee shop.
working a little more on sig drinks for next year's nwbc. i think that if you can at least make it to the finals in this region, that you have a good chance at nationals. so i've got my fingers crossed that i will do well and the secret to doing well, is knowing the coffee, knowing the routine and practice, practice practice.
i'll keep you posted but i think that something involving an alternative brewing method in addition to 'spro. but i'm not sure what that will look like, taste like etc. i basically want to engage the judges in all of the sensory perception that is possible. i want to show them my passion through my ability to demonstrate how well i know the coffee that i'm working with.
i tried some square mile coffee the other day and i would like to formulate something close to that, a 50/50 blend of a pulped natural and a natural. just what do i try is the question. a pulped natural would really add to the crema of the spro, but having something really dynamic flavor wise would be excellent. just how do i accomplish that bomb, dynamic flavor without overwhelming the palate with too much fruity-ness.
???
so.... until next time....
new job: retail trainer for Batdorf & Bronson, Olympia retail.
cool? yes.
starting to see some results from my overly passionate nature rubbing off on my minions. i kid about "the minions" part.
i spend alot of time zoning out and daydreaming about the future of my own professional life and the future of coffee. i have alot of ideas of the things i want to do with my life and the knowledge that has been imparted unto me by some of my coffee heroes.
some of my new ideas:
coffee shop opening within the next year.
selling french press cozies to pay for it.
making "barista butter: it's the balm!" to also pay for my coffee shop.
working a little more on sig drinks for next year's nwbc. i think that if you can at least make it to the finals in this region, that you have a good chance at nationals. so i've got my fingers crossed that i will do well and the secret to doing well, is knowing the coffee, knowing the routine and practice, practice practice.
i'll keep you posted but i think that something involving an alternative brewing method in addition to 'spro. but i'm not sure what that will look like, taste like etc. i basically want to engage the judges in all of the sensory perception that is possible. i want to show them my passion through my ability to demonstrate how well i know the coffee that i'm working with.
i tried some square mile coffee the other day and i would like to formulate something close to that, a 50/50 blend of a pulped natural and a natural. just what do i try is the question. a pulped natural would really add to the crema of the spro, but having something really dynamic flavor wise would be excellent. just how do i accomplish that bomb, dynamic flavor without overwhelming the palate with too much fruity-ness.
???
so.... until next time....
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