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First unOfficial Attempt at Coffee Cupping

Disclaimers:

I know how cupping should be done; I know that I am supposed to use very small samples of single origin green coffee beans, roasted to order to a light Vienna or half-City roast. I should then grind these to French Press level - not too coarse, not too fine. Then I have to smell it. Then I add boiled water straight on top of the beans, and allow it to cool and for the grinds to settle. After that I break the 'crust' - that is, all the grinds still forming a skin on the surface… Continue

Added by Bel Townsend on May 15, 2008 at 3:57am — 7 Comments

Check Out SCAA 2008-Coffee Kids Photos on Flickr

We had a great time at the 2008 Specialty Coffee Association of America's Conference and Exhibition in Minneapolis, Minn. Check out our Flickr page for images from the weekend. The 20th Anniversary Celebration Dinner went well with almost 300 new and old supporters and members joining us to celebrate 20 years… Continue

Added by Coffee Kids on May 13, 2008 at 3:55pm — No Comments

No Cupping Friday the 16th

Headed to Denver, Colorado to pull a guest barista shift and attend a Q and A session at Metropolis Coffee. 300 W 11th Ave, Denver CO 80204. 303-534-1744. We'll be cupping S.O. coffees from Sumatra, Brazil and Ethiopia, comparing roast degrees and profiles, and geeking on whatever.
Cheers,
Scott

Added by scott@herkimercoffee.com on May 13, 2008 at 10:30am — 2 Comments

Go Here

I will eventually resurrect my dead blog.
When I do...
It'll be here

Added by Nick Griffith on May 13, 2008 at 8:57am — No Comments

2nd Argentinean Barista Championship.

The 2° Argentinean Barista Championship will be held at the Colon Hotel (Carlos Pellegrini 507, Buenos Aires) between the 19th and the 22nd of May (from 14 to 19:30hrs).

If anyone is visiting Buenos Aires, it will be a pleasure to meet you there!

Best regards,
Federico

Added by Fede Cabrera on May 12, 2008 at 5:00am — 9 Comments

Kaffa Cafe, is ready to go!

After years of development of Coffee and Espresso Theorey and their brewing skills, Kaffa Cafe is ready to go for its commercial business.



Where can we go? Many!



Trianing of baristas, cafes, supply of machines and distribution of coffee beans, and so on, as usual. And, we also have something else to do, which are mainly related to coffee.



While it is organized, we have time left, at least for myself to do something else.





What can I do for this… Continue

Added by Peter Tam on May 11, 2008 at 10:43am — No Comments

Starbucks' Slutty Mermaid Making Waves

Looks like the change by Starbucks to revisit their old logo is making some waves, I remember this same issue being a big part of why they changed in the first place. Crazy to me that anyone would find the logo offensive. Link to article on Motherjones ...

Added by Matt Milletto on May 9, 2008 at 3:00pm — 2 Comments

USBC & WBC... where did everyone go?

I just returned from the SCAA meeting in Minneapolis and learned that most of the Europeans have resigned from the WBC Committee and there have been multiple, key resignations from the USBC Committee...

what's happening?

Any help here folks?

best,
Chuck

Added by Chuck Jones on May 9, 2008 at 2:01pm — 7 Comments

Greenwood Phinney Ridge Art Walk Open House

It's Friday, it's nice out and there is lots of art to experience.

Stop by anytime from 2pm to 7pm and cup various coffees, play with the espresso machine or just look around. The cafe will be open until 9pm as well.

On the table:
Rwanda (bourbon),
Ethiopia (Harrar G4),
Yemen Sana'ani,
Brazil (HA, Carmo De Cambara),
Mexico (Chiapas),
Guatemala (Primavera),
El Salvador,
India (Malabar Coast)

Added by scott@herkimercoffee.com on May 9, 2008 at 2:00pm — 1 Comment

Photo's up from the beloved Reg Barber - SCAA/USBC Coverage


Reg Barber, photo maniac and trophy designer, has posted his set of over 1000 photos from this past weekend on his Flickr. Thank you Reg for covering this event in such detail!

Added by Matt Milletto on May 9, 2008 at 12:09pm — No Comments

A General Idea of Coffee Industry in China (chapter 3)

In chapter 2, we talked about the coffee market in Guangzhou. Let's see it again and maybe in a deeper way.



Many cafes are closing and/or transfered, and the market is going down. What do we expect for the future of this market?



Is it going down and down? No, I do not think so.



When people noticed that some or even many cafes are closing, and they would surely stop to invest for more cafes. Some of the capitals will moved to other industries, like real estates,… Continue

Added by Peter Tam on May 9, 2008 at 10:30am — No Comments

Tragic Death of our cafe owner

All,

I have some tragic news.

The owner of RedRock foods and a cafe in queen creek arizona died in a very tragic way just a few days ago.

I worked as a barista at the cafe and roasted for another company in scottsdale not related.



All the Baristas are stunned and are very sad for the loss.

We could not believe it.

The Cafe was a very third wave concept.

We where excited to have a gb5 and fetco in a shop that has only been open 2 and half… Continue

Added by Jason Casale on May 7, 2008 at 1:19pm — 8 Comments

The Coffee Studio.. a pleasant experience.

Drove to Chicago a couple weekends ago. Got lost in the confusion of construction detouring.. but made it none-the-less. The trip presented itself by way of business. I went to train some of the lovely folks at Jesus People U.S.A. on how to properly use their newly acquired espresso machine. J.P.U.S.A. is a wild place... full of characters and crazies. JPUSA is a Christian commune that was founded by some Jesus Hippies back in the day. The own two small towers, now commune residences, and the… Continue

Added by tom on May 6, 2008 at 2:30pm — 4 Comments

Customer Education, is that right?

From time to time, we heard about the topics of "customer education".



Now, let me say something about it.





Are we able to educate the customers? To know this, I would compare coffee with hamburgers. That is the symble of success of Mc Donald (hope the spelling is correct). Is it good? I do not know. But for me, it is not good, simply because I had the better one, much better. But finally, it was replaced by Mac (may I call it like this? Sorry, apple).



We… Continue

Added by Peter Tam on May 6, 2008 at 11:12am — 5 Comments

New Single Origin, Brazil Carmo de Cambara

Brazil Carmo de Cambera

Attributes: (1-10 scale)

Acid: 8,

Body: 7

Texture: vanilla and honey syrup

Flavor: Sweetly citrus like lemonade with a hint of cherry- mostly aromatic similar to cherry pipe tobacco. Malty carmelized ginger root, almost brown sugar molasses. Surprisingly thick in body with a mix of hazelnut and vanilla in a honeylike syrup. The high acid stays perfectly in balance with the sweetness throughout without turning sour.



Special note: Carmo… Continue

Added by scott@herkimercoffee.com on May 6, 2008 at 10:59am — No Comments

New Single Origin, Sumatra Mandheling Takengon, Aceh Region

Sumatra Mandheling Takegnon, Aceh
Attributes: (1-10 scale)
Acid- mild (3)
Body- full (8)
Texture- juicy, softly gritty.
Flavor- Earthen peat, smoky and scotch-like. Aromatic foliage underbrush, like the forest floor. Bittersweet chocolate wrapped in a juicy, mouthwatering cup. Vanilla extract
(light hint of alcohol) on the finish.

Added by scott@herkimercoffee.com on May 6, 2008 at 10:56am — No Comments

USBC Champion Kyle Glanville, Intelligentsia Coffee

Can't tell you how happy I am for Kyle Glanville, the new USBC Champion! Kyle is such a great representative and ambassador for the barista community and the US coffee industry. Big congrats to all six finalists, this comp must go down as the most competitive in US history. Here is the video from the live video blog coverage, thanks to the SCAA blog… Continue

Added by Matt Milletto on May 5, 2008 at 3:00pm — 2 Comments

Kaffa Cafe, a lonely walker on this lonely planet!

For years after I joining the website and forums abroard where we can meet the baristas, home-baristasm, and coffee professionals, we had been still alone for the good coffee and espresso drinks.



In Chinese phrases, we say that it is the coldest when you are at the high level of development. It is what we have to be, and let us be there.





I cannot conclude that the effects for the trainees from other training of baristas, while for us, it is so nice to have more and… Continue

Added by Peter Tam on May 5, 2008 at 1:17pm — 11 Comments

USBC Finalists Announced

Just watched the finalists announcement, here they are:



Nick Griffith, Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea



Pete Licata, PT’s Coffee Roasting Company



Chris Baca, Ritual Coffee Roasters



Heather Perry, Coffee Klatch



Kyle Glanville, Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea



Drew Catlin, Ritual Coffee Roasters



Congratulations to all of the competitors, what an unbelievably tough competition. Best of luck to all the finalists… Continue

Added by Matt Milletto on May 4, 2008 at 5:26pm — No Comments

The real experience for you guys. I got it! Visiting a plantation in Antigua Guatemala.



Hey guys, I guess you haven't heard from me before or know a lot about me, I'm not a barista but a coffee grower and promotor from Guatemala. I had been in this business since I was 18 or so. My family has been in the coffee business for more than 2 generations and I guess the passion goes generation after generation. I had always wanted to share the passion and art of coffee, not as a beverage ONLY but as our culture. We grow in the culture of… Continue

Added by Pablo Castaneda on May 4, 2008 at 1:30pm — 2 Comments

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