MarkPrince Moderator Joined: 19 Dec 2001 Posts: 5,427 Location: Vancouver, BC Expertise: Professional
Espresso: KvdW Speedster Grinder: Compak K10 WBC Vac Pot: A bit too many Drip: Clive Coffee Drip Stand Roaster: Hario Glass Retro Roaster
Posted Wed Aug 10, 2005, 6:17pm Subject: Re: CG Podcast 013 - Heap o' News Segment, Tasting CoffeeEmergency Coffee
BlacklandCoffee Said:
And if locally roasted beans is the way to go... we're probably not going to be enjoying the coffee you're reviewing anyway. It's still useful to hear the reviews though. They point out the nuances and subtleties to look for in good coffee.
Sorry, I wasn't more clear on that. Most of the coffees coming up in the next few weeks are from roasters around the US. But I'd also like to feature some local roasters in Vancouver the people have never heard of. We often hear the names JJ and (now) Artigiano tossed around. I'm as much a culprit of that as others, but lately I'm thinking maybe it's time to give exposure to some of the others. The next time some coffee heavyweights visit town, I want more options on where to take them.
There's a few specifically that I've been told about or visited in the last few weeks that show some real promise.
But.. the tastings in the next few weeks on the CG podcast will be mostly US based roasteries, and what I'm really looking forward to - CoE coffees from some of them.
PaulTheRoaster Senior Member Joined: 2 Aug 2005 Posts: 341 Location: Champaign, Illinois, USA Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Faema C84 A/1, Eterna leva... Grinder: Compak K6, Solis Classic Drip: French Press, Swiss Gold... Roaster: RK drum
Posted Thu Aug 11, 2005, 10:17pm Subject: Re: CG Podcast 013 - Heap o' News Segment, Tasting CoffeeEmergency Coffee
I really like the podcast and the coffee review was a nice addition. How about a review of green espresso blends? I don't go through coffee quickly enough to justify spending $10+/lb + s/h on mail-order roasted coffee, so I order unroasted green espresso blends, and plan to until I am far enough along that I feel I can mix my own blends. There is no quality coffee roasted in this town, unfortunately. Maybe you could also do a segment on how to create a blend for espresso?
(I've only listened to the last 3 podcasts, so I apologize if this has been covered.)
Mini-Rant: I am a bit sick & tired of all the ranting about *$. It is one thing when, for example, people in Lakeview, Chicago go to a *$ instead of to Intelligentsia, but where I live, *$ coffee is actually much better than the coffee at nearly all their competitors. At least *$ is consistent and the coffee hasn't been sitting there burning for an hour. Moreover, the unground coffee hasn't been sitting in an open bin for two months. As for atmosphere--nearly all the coffeeshops here and in many other parts of the continent are dominated by people chatting on AIM on their laptops with headphones in their ears. At *$ you have to pay to use the WiFi, so people might occasionally talk. Yet you hear a lot of people ranting about how gross/expensive/sterile *$ coffee is and pondering why the "uneducated" masses go there. If you've never tried a real coffee or espresso from a real coffee shop like Intelligentsia, then *$ might seem pretty good. I mean, suppose you are a dedicated *$ consumer, but you have a little bit of curiousity and occasionally you buy coffee elsewhere. The odds are pretty high that the coffee you get at some random indie coffee shop is worse. And *$ is certainly a much better employer than 95% of indie coffee shops. The 3rd wave has a long way to go. Indie coffee shops should compete on quality and train their employees to make coffee properly.
End of rant. This is actually my first post in the forums, so go easy :) I didn't mean this to come out so strong.
Anyways, I'm getting a Rancilio Rocky & Silvia from an ad in the forums shortly, which I am very excited about. In a month I will probably laugh at how much time I spend trying various tricks to get my steam machine to make something I can enjoy.
MarkPrince Moderator Joined: 19 Dec 2001 Posts: 5,427 Location: Vancouver, BC Expertise: Professional
Espresso: KvdW Speedster Grinder: Compak K10 WBC Vac Pot: A bit too many Drip: Clive Coffee Drip Stand Roaster: Hario Glass Retro Roaster
Posted Thu Aug 11, 2005, 10:56pm Subject: Re: CG Podcast 013 - Heap o' News Segment, Tasting CoffeeEmergency Coffee
Hi Paul, and welcome, and great first post!
On the bash starbucks issue. I generally don't like the bashing of starbucks just for the sake of doing it either. But in a way, I guess I'm perceived as a hypocrite to some because occasionally, I'll say some negative things about them.
The thing is, when I do have negative things or critical comments about them, I try to back it up with a meaty discussion about actual things; or I focus on specific issues or problems (like the transition to super automatics) and present arguements why this is not a good thing where quality is concerned.
That said, I'm considering an "appreciation of Starbucks" podcast at some point. I give full props to them for essentially creating this entire industry of specialty espresso that has really saturated the PNW, and to a lesser extent, all of North America.
PaulTheRoaster Senior Member Joined: 2 Aug 2005 Posts: 341 Location: Champaign, Illinois, USA Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Faema C84 A/1, Eterna leva... Grinder: Compak K6, Solis Classic Drip: French Press, Swiss Gold... Roaster: RK drum
Posted Fri Aug 12, 2005, 12:07am Subject: Re: CG Podcast 013 - Heap o' News Segment, Tasting CoffeeEmergency Coffee
Hi Mark, The problem with a rant is that it is not a precise weapon. It was more or less directed at everyone who likes coffee and also everyone who doesn't. It's just become more of a pet peeve over the years as people conflate coffee quality with whether or not a coffee shop is "independent". Usually independence is measured by the number of tattoos, piercings, etc. on the owner, and whether smoking is allowed. (Here I am talking about the coffee shops in the college town I used to live in.) Maybe I'm just jealous of people who have access to a good coffee shop staffed with good baristi. There are so few of them.
Anyways, thanks for a great web site. I fancied myself a coffee snob a year ago for roasting my own and having a really bad burr grinder, and I stumbled across CoffeeGeek and thought the people behind it had absolutely lost their marbles, but I became more and more intrigued ... and now I am losing mine. My girlfriend is at least supportive. (She actually joined me on a tour of Intelligentsia's roastery--and enjoyed it--last weekend.)
I suspect that's how most newbies start walking down the primrose path.
I have another segment idea (then I'll lurk some more :) ): successful coffeeshop interventions. I was a bit inspired by your bit on restaurant coffee. Maybe there are other war stories of people who approached approachable coffee shop managers and got things done. There's a new coffee shop that opened here, and the management seems to care about quality, but they just aren't educated. (Although they beat the pants off the local competition.) I'm trying to get up the nerve to make some recommendations. (Well--maybe after a bit of practice when I get my Silvia, so I'm not just reciting the hundreds of weg pages I've been reading on the matter.)
jakethecoffeelover Senior Member Joined: 3 Mar 2005 Posts: 1,036 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Expertise: Pro Barista
Espresso: Gaggia Espresso Grinder: Mazzer Super Jolly... Vac Pot: Perhaps in the future... Drip: Insulated Bodum Kenya FP Roaster: Hearthware iRoast
Posted Sat Aug 13, 2005, 12:21am Subject: Re: CG Podcast 013 - Heap o' News Segment, Tasting CoffeeEmergency Coffee
Bravo, Mark. I have to say that the coffee tasting bit is something I've been waiting for for a long time. You should do it every week with a new coffee. It doesn't matter if you've had it before or not, I"d love to hear other peoples' opinions on coffees. Maybe I can send you some of my "iRoast results" at the end of the month... :P I've been doing a little research instead of mainly random blending like I did before.
Posted Tue Aug 16, 2005, 2:26pm Subject: Re: CG Podcast 013 - Heap o' News Segment, Tasting CoffeeEmergency Coffee
PaulTheRoaster Said:
.....I have another segment idea (then I'll lurk some more :) ): successful coffeeshop interventions. I was a bit inspired by your bit on restaurant coffee. Maybe there are other war stories of people who approached approachable coffee shop managers and got things done. There's a new coffee shop that opened here, and the management seems to care about quality, but they just aren't educated. (Although they beat the pants off the local competition.) I'm trying to get up the nerve to make some recommendations. (Well--maybe after a bit of practice when I get my Silvia, so I'm not just reciting the hundreds of weg pages I've been reading on the matter.)
I would have to agree with Paul. There have been several threads regarding this issue and it seems to really push buttons. Bottom line is that if the coffee consumer community is going to change things for the better, then they need to have a somewhat united front. Roundtable? Best appoaches? Definite Don'ts?
I actually enjoyed the coffee tasting segment. Not only is it enjoyable to hear the various desciptions that are used but makes the process more accessable to the "newbies" (he raises his hand) and lets us think, "hell, I could do that!" Maybe have some topic of discussion going on at the same time if it comes across as too dry by itself.
Great job btw.
There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy. William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), "Hamlet", Act 1 scene 5
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