jakeliefer Senior Member Joined: 3 Dec 2007 Posts: 27 Location: Beaver Falls, PA Expertise: I live coffee
Posted Thu Aug 7, 2008, 7:20am Subject: Re: Do you dare rate Pittsburgh's coffee bars?
So I was reading this article about the new Cioppino restaurant down at the Cork Factory in the Strip and saw at the end that they'll also be opening up a small market with a deli and espresso bar. I imagine it'll primarily be for the residents of the Cork Factory. Anyone know what they'll be serving?
Posted Thu Aug 7, 2008, 1:55pm Subject: Re: Do you dare rate Pittsburgh's coffee bars?
jakeliefer Said:
So I was reading this article about the new Cioppino restaurant down at the Cork Factory in the Strip and saw at the end that they'll also be opening up a small market with a deli and espresso bar. I imagine it'll primarily be for the residents of the Cork Factory. Anyone know what they'll be serving?
We had a lengthy conversation back in June. He was in the process of compiling a list of potential suppliers, but he indicated he definitely wanted something other than what's being served in 90% of the coffeehouses in town. Could be a national microroaster, could be local. But I liked his his line of questioning - definitely wasn't thinking about it as "just coffee". Hopefully he sticks to that plan. Anyway, it's a good sign.
Flick Senior Member Joined: 2 Aug 2007 Posts: 150 Location: Earth Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Rancillo Silvia Grinder: Pasquini Vac Pot: Yama 3 cup Drip: Bodum French Press, Manual... Roaster: Iroast2
Posted Thu Aug 7, 2008, 9:20pm Subject: Re: Do you dare rate Pittsburgh's coffee bars?
So Tazza D'Oro had their cupping with the Esmeralda today, quite tasty and delicious fruit notes of raspberry, pineapple, grapefruit, passion fruit, and slightly tart but delicious acidity, with various spices of vanilla, cinnamon, and slightly peppercorn, but also sweet with chocolate notes and decent body that wasn't too light. To be honest I would have wished that it be roasted a tiny bit lighter, (But i like my coffees much lighter then most people would, and I don't roast their coffee, so I don't really know how it would hold up, but that's just me) but it certainly wasn't over roasted. And their offering it in french press and Chemex pots, and by the cup. Rich also showed, and was fashionably late, though humble afterwords. Perhaps too humble, especially about his Esmeralda. Duh duh duh duhnnnnn. ;)
Anyways I love how Tazza D'Oro is trying to makes that coffee sing in the cup for brewed coffee. But I also like how their Blue Blend has gotten better recently, since it went though a few months where it was less then stellar for me, kinda bland. Now their Blue Blend is back to a nice smooth chocolaty blend, with nice acidity for espresso and sweeter than their Dancing Goats, much better for straight espresso IMHO, and had an excellent shot of it too.
I honestly thought giving myself 50 minutes from Mt. Lebo to Highland Park at 6pm was enough time. There is no direct route. But it seemed like all I missed were the introductions. As for the humility, it wasn't my show. I figured on being invisible. And TdO's lot 8 has more depth than lot 5 (ours). Lot 5 is still an excellent cup, but it's more muted in some characteristics than the others. We're not promoting it as anything but what it is.
Flick Said:
To be honest I would have wished that it be roasted a tiny bit lighter
Can't speak for Amy or their lot, but last week did a tasting of lot 5 at four levels of roast, each about 15 seconds apart. At the lightest (a minute past first crack, just a hair past city), all the flavors were there, but the cup was very tea-like - the "earl grey" component that people mentioned last night was the predominant note. Great if you love tea, not so much if want a little body in the cup.
The next lightest put the coffee into some sort of limbo. It was a very challenging cup to evaluate. The second darkest of the four (~1:30) had an amazing burst of flavor, but fleeting. And it didn't seem to improve or change much as it cooled, staying firmly in the lemon citrus. The darkest (~1:45) didn't lose all that much to the added roast flavor, and it held up throughout the cup, really delivering fruit as it cooled. That's the one our cuppers liked most. The thing was, we were sold on 1:30 at 3-4 days rest, but from day 5-on, the 1:45 was clearly the better cup. We're still trying to find that sweet spot between those two. And Amy expects B&B to work with her on tweaking theirs if needed as she noted.
I want to go back there and have some in the Chemex. We did our tasting with pourovers, not press, so that also made a significant difference. While I loved the body and the red fruit notes in the first press (higher ratio), the tropical flavors in the second press was amazing to these taste buds.
Flick Said:
Anyways I love how Tazza D'Oro is trying to makes that coffee sing in the cup for brewed coffee.
Amy's the best. Things like her offering cups press brewed at two different strengths after the cupping really helps people understand that small changes in the recipe can mean big changes in the cup. And people GOT IT which was terrific. A lot of wine-tasting type questions. Emily did a terrific job leading the cupping. And the whole TdO crew was very excited about the coffee and the event. Well done.
Flick Senior Member Joined: 2 Aug 2007 Posts: 150 Location: Earth Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Rancillo Silvia Grinder: Pasquini Vac Pot: Yama 3 cup Drip: Bodum French Press, Manual... Roaster: Iroast2
Posted Fri Aug 8, 2008, 9:02am Subject: Re: Do you dare rate Pittsburgh's coffee bars?
. But it seemed like all I missed were the introductions.
Yes, stuff you missed was most likely what knew about that coffee. Also the cupping didn't start promptly at 7, so you pretty much missed nothing, maybe 2 minutes of stuff that you already knew.
Can't speak for Amy or their lot, but last week did a tasting of lot 5 at four levels of roast, each about 15 seconds apart. At the lightest (a minute past first crack, just a hair past city), all the flavors were there, but the cup was very tea-like - the "earl grey" component that people mentioned last night was the predominant note. Great if you love tea, not so much if want a little body in the cup.
Yeah, I know what it can be like to have a coffee that's fairly tea like, and understand how many people dislike those. (personally I'm fine with that) I also realize that getting a superb coffee like the Esmeralda to taste good takes a few roast of trail and error. Tweaking it to get to roast to where it shines in the best possible way, takes A LOT more work. I'm also very curious to see how the roast at Batdorf and Bronson is different, and look forward to see how they continue tweaking it( Both TdO and B&B roast).
Amy's the best. Things like her offering cups press brewed at two different strengths after the cupping really helps people understand that small changes in the recipe can mean big changes in the cup. And people GOT IT which was terrific. A lot of wine-tasting type questions. Emily did a terrific job leading the cupping. And the whole TdO crew was very excited about the coffee and the event. Well done.
Agreed. And a decent amount of people showed up too, many planned but it seems that some were spontaneous, just being there at the right moment(also nice). And definitely the most people at their cupping to date. I think the fact that 1/100 of a pound makes that much difference in the cup of a liter of french press coffee, helps drive home how important the individual shop and barista is to making brewed cup, often left out of the picture by many, claiming espresso to be king. Hmm how many people are trying to get the Esmeralda as espresso, that would be a challenge, or perhaps just a disaster.
Posted Tue Aug 12, 2008, 7:01am Subject: Re: Do you dare rate Pittsburgh's coffee bars?
Anyone been to Arefa Espresso? How is it? I still haven't had a chance to try it but I remember the place being mentioned about 20 or so pages ago on this thread.
The reason I bring it up is that someone came into the shop last week and before I even had a chance to say hello said...
Customer: "I heard this place has the second best coffee in Pittsburgh, next to ours"
Me: "That's cool- thanks for stopping in to give us a try- where is your place?"
Customer: "Arefa, it's in Squirrel Hill"
Me: "Nice, I've heard about that place... but I don't get out much. Who's coffee do you use?"
Customer: "La Prima, who do you use"
Me: "Intelligentsia"
Customer: "I haven't heard of them"
Me: "They do a really good job" (more or less what I said)
Just a funny, random conversation. Need to get out to the Squirrel Hill more often I guess.
jakeliefer Senior Member Joined: 3 Dec 2007 Posts: 27 Location: Beaver Falls, PA Expertise: I live coffee
Posted Thu Aug 14, 2008, 6:43pm Subject: Re: Do you dare rate Pittsburgh's coffee bars?
21streetcoffee Said:
Anyone been to Arefa Espresso? How is it? I still haven't had a chance to try it but I remember the place being mentioned about 20 or so pages ago on this thread.
The reason I bring it up is that someone came into the shop last week and before I even had a chance to say hello said...
I went there a couple weeks back. I had a double shot of espresso, the machine setup was off to the side so I could see everything going on. The espresso prep looked good and the shot came out well. It was a good double shot of espresso. Arefa is a good shop that seems to be concerned with coffee quality, which many shops don't do. However, Arefa being the best shop in the area? Nah.
I think there are several 'best' shops in the area, all which are pushing the boundaries in different areas. Some in community involvement, others in coffee sourcing, others in brew methods, competing, etc. If shops desire to be the best in the area, they're going to have to be better than good, they're going to have to be pushing the limits, both in pittsburgh and globally. And the exciting thing is that there are already several shops in the area doing these things.
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