fincawhd's Coffee Blog

Beehouse is a Japanese company that is perhaps best known for their ergonomic ceramic teapots. They also make ceramic coffee drippers, in a small and a large size. The drippers are wedge shaped and have two small holes in the bottom. The small takes #1 or #2 filters, while the larger model takes a #2 or #4. I use the large for 750 mL batches, and like the small at around 200-250 mL.

Natural coffees can be funky, as can Sumatras. So one might expect a naturally-processed Sumatra to be particuarly funky. It might be, but the one I have from PT's is remarkably clean.

The West Bean is a micro-roaster located in San Diego, CA, that in a sense aligns itself more with the older- than the newer-school West Coast roasters. More like old-time Peet's or Starbucks than Ritual or Four Barrel. That is, the roasts that I've sampled are medium-dark, more dark than medium.

I currently have a one-pound bag of their Honduras Capucas in my pantry.

Bypass brewing is when part of the brewing water does not go through the coffee itself. The technique should be familiar to anyone who has ever owned an Aeropress, since the included instructions describe the process: one brews a concentrate which is then diluted. While I don't like bypass brewing so extreme as the standard (which is actually nonstandard!) Aeropress technique, I do appreciate more subtle uses of the technique.

This morning I brewed up PT's Bolivia, which is still tasting great even though it's fairly old in coffee time.

Tonx Coffee is headed by a couple of long-time coffee professionals. They're currently based in Los Angeles, and their goal is to locate small lots of very good coffee, quickly construct a good roast profile, and ship the beans out fresh to their subscribers. They offer a 6 oz biweekly and a 12 oz biweekly plan, in either regular or decaf.

Mountain Air Roasting is a small-batch roaster located in Asheville, North Carolina. They offer a quality product at a nice price point. In fact, if you order a six-pack of their beans, the price per bag is only a little more than $8. Purchased a la carte, each bag runs $12 for 12 oz., which makes me nostalgic for 2010, when that price-point was almost the industry standard.

I'm ready to say that PT's is my favorite ROASTe roaster. If Ecco were still offered, my answer would be different, but of those roasters currently offered, PT's delights me most. I've ordered "light" roasts from them, but they seem more like medium roasts to me. What acidity there is is subdued, and tones of sugar and nut abound. Their Burundi tasted like maple-nut cereal to me, and their current Bolivian offering tastes like Honey-Nut Cheerios. 

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Which is not to say coffee as a treatment, but treatment for coffee. Being over-coffeed, that is.

These days I generally limit myself to one diner mug's worth of coffee in the morning. When I skip coffee, I don't have headaches, presumably because I don't drink much. My body doesn't crave the caffeine--coffee's a luxury, not a necessity in this respect.

I once was addicted to caffeine, however, and would get these insistent headaches if I ever skipped a day. Like an attention-starved child, coffee would demand my attention via headaches.

I'm fortunate enough to live in a city where the highest quality coffee is a short drive away. Portland roasters, San Francisco roasters, Los Angeles roasters...they're all here, and fresh.

I nonetheless like to order coffee online for the same reasons that I prefer Netflix to the brick-and-mortar operations. Choice and convenience.

Shipping prices, however, can make online shopping a bit more impractical. Do I want to pay $9 to have a single bag of coffee shipped? This is the question that Intelligentsia's shipping policy asks.

Ethiopian Ardi is an award-winning naturally processed coffee from the Sidamo region that placed 1st in East Africa's Taste of Harvest competition. It was until recently offered by PT's, Coava, Madcap, and Klatch. AJ's coffee still has a stash available, and I suspect that others do too.

I went through my bag of PT's interpretation pretty quickly. I used about 2 cups of it in an ice cream recipe, and its distinctive flavor rang clearly through all the milk, cream, and sugar.

Rusty's is a celebrated farm in Ka'u, the southern tip of Hawaii. They have won state-wide cupping contests, and were behind one barista's recent win at the US Barista championship. 

In addition to their classic roasts, they offer limited editions that use unusual processing techniques. I've tried their standard beans before, and not always Rusty's own interpretation. Klatch Coffee and Terroir both roast Rusty's according to their own profile.

This past week I've been working with Rusty's Medium Roast, a bean that ROASTe has long offered.

Mocha Java is the oldest known coffee blend. Traditionally, Mocha--a coffee from what is today Yemen--is cut with a coffee from Java. The goal was and still is a gestalt between the fruit-forward berriness of the Mocha and the bodacious earthiness of the Java. Modern interpretations care less about origin than about achieving that gestalt. Often the wild fruitiness comes from a naturally processed Ethiopian, the earthiness from a Sumatra.

Sumatran coffees are sometimes naturally processed, sometimes aged, but are most often encounted in semi-washed form. The paper surrounding the seed is left on, and both are allowed to dry somewhat. Once done, the seed turns a unique shade of green. The process is rather quick, allowing farmers to finish their crop before the rains intervene. Process is inextricably linked to terroir.

David Lebovitz was a pasty chef under Alice Waters, and has written a number of entertaining and informative food books. He also maintains an excellent eponymous blog.

One of his more popular books is "The Perfect Scoop," which has recipes for ice cream, gelato, sorbets, and other treats.

Coava is a high-quality roasterie located in Portland, OR. In a city known for its coffee culture, Coava stands out for its quick ascendancy to respectability. Its baristas have done very well in barista competitions, their coffees have been highly scored by Coffee Review, and I can personally attest to their beans' deliciousness.

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On an assuming stretch of Spring St. in Downtown Los Angeles is Spring for Coffee. It's a tiny shop with a small stand-up bar, perhaps 7 feet long, and a couple of small tables outside. A writer for a men's rag, GQ I believe, recently named Los Angeles his best smelling city--not for any elegance, but for the sheer variety and intensity of its smells. In one day you can get a hit of the sea-salty, the foresty, and the asphalty. Downtown is certainly odorous. 

I am the new and, until quite recently, perplexed owner of a vacuum pot of uncertain vintage. It's an old--who knows how old--tabletop Cona. It was a curiosity that I took home from one of the seemingly perpetual garage sales that grace my neighborhood. Garage sales are so common here, I sometimes feel like there's simply one garage sale that changes not its character, just its location. 

If form should follow function, then my current bottle of maple syrup is a study in good design. It is a slender flask of glass, slender enough to hold captive in one's breast pocket for the occasional discreet swig. Or, for those as thirsty as I am, not so occasional: pancakes distract, and I prefer my pork savory rather than sweet. Which is all to say that, to my palette, maple syrup is best as a straight shot, no chaser.