Cafe Crusade

November, Part 1 (the jam)

2008-11-15T13:16:00.000-08:00

So, today was the fall/winter Midwest Barista Jam. Held at the wonderful roasting faculties of The Roasterie, in Kansas City, Missouri.
Nothing better than an early morning, hour and a half drive to get coffee! Maytag and his lady friend set off at 7 am, which is early in college times. Drive wasn't bad at all, lots of discussing about the new Dragonball live action movie that will be coming out sometime next year, that took up most of the drive there. Then, there it was. Just off southwest boulevard on 27th street, The Roasterie.
We got there a bit early so we sat down in the new cafe section of the warehouse, which is brand new. It's very well equipped. It has a two group La Marzocco GS3 for latte drinks, a Clover and various other brewers. They had a single group GS3 on display, along with other cool things on the counter, like; several trays of roasted and unroasted beans. One group showing the progression of the roast from green to past the 2nd crack. And, another group of beans showing different qualities of beans.
After about 20 minutes it was time to begin. We started off the Espresso Extraction class that was being run by David Herman, the head roaster at the Roasterie. He showed us some very interesting things. Including tasting what over-extracted, under-extracted and perfect shots all tasted like(done with their Super Tuscan Espersso). And, two different shots of their Colombian Pilolito Estate, one shot as a light roast, and one as a dark roast. I was really surprised on how the light roasted Colombian tasted as an espresso. This was my first taste of a single origin espresso, and it was very bright and floral, almost having an Ethiopian yirgecheffe citrus-ness to it.
Next, we went on the the cupping class that was being help by the green buyer Norm Kilmon (one of the founders of the company, along with C.E.O. Danny Edwards). What Norm had set up in the cupping room were three different types of Sumatran coffee. One being just a straight non-sorted batch. It was very, very earthy in flavor and in the nose. But, as it cooled some very nutty flavors started to come out, almost a cashew taste. The next cup was a Sumatran that had been "Double Picked" (sorted twice for defects). This was my favorite out of the three. It was very fruity in the nose, this was also reflected in the taste. Had a very strong fruit flavor, almost as bright as an African coffee. The flavor almost a really dark cherry, but there was a hint of nut flavor on the back of the tongue. The third cup was "Triple Picked", and had almost no flavor or nose. After it cooled it did develop a sourness to it, much like an under extracted espresso would have.
The final class of the day was a latte art demonstration run by John. It was a lot like the other latte art class they have two or three jams ago. Covered the "physics" behind steaming the milk and the pouring of the milk into the cup. Taught us how to do a heart and the ever popular Rosetta. This class was followed by the Latte Art Throwdown! Pretty much just bratwurst, beer and latte art. Fun times!

Keep checking back, my friend Barry and I have a tour of the Boulevard Brewery scheduled in a couple of weeks, and we will crack open out first bottle of Bully's "Saison with George Brett" their limited Smokestack Series beer!

Again, even longer over due.

2008-09-17T21:44:00.000-07:00

Okay, this time I promise to try and post at least once a month.

This post I would like to talk about something different than coffee. Recently I turned twenty-one, and I have started to explore the realms of alcohol in depth. I have had some wines, and have tasted some beers that I really like so far. Mainly I have fallen in love with Pinot Grigio and Shiraz wine varietals. Also, I have found my favorite brewer so far, Boulevard Beer out of Kansas City MO.
Now keep in mind, my experience with alcohol is fairly limited. My pre-twenty one drinks were mostly just cheep beer and wine that I would "sample" at some parties at school. At these gatherings there is clearly a lowered interest in the quality of the beverage of choice (since most is consumed at a rate that taste become irrelevant). I remember trying some cheap wine-coolers and cheap wine. The flavors were alright, but nothing to set my buds alight with joy. These first little tastes of "girly" drinks sparked my interest in wines. Early on I tried a glass of Cabernet-Sauvignon, I don't remember the grower or price of the bottle, but I do remember not liking it very much. Very bitter, and oily, not something that I would consider a good quality in a drink. I've also had a glass of Merlot to which I tasted much of the same unpleasant notes; oily, thick, bitter, and buttery. The same night I sipped on the glass of Merlot, I was introduced to the Pinot, Pinot Grigio to be precise. I was infatuated with this wine. I've had glasses from two different vineyards, the first I cannot recall the name, but the second I know was based out of Pennsylvania.
With the Pinot, I thought white wines would be the only wines for me, however, I would come to see this was not the case. My mother handed me an article from a magazine of hers which has some of the best wines under ten dollars. So, I examined it and decided to go to the local grocery store and see what they had. I looked and decided to try a red wine. On the list they had a Shiraz from Little Penguin (based out of Australia). I bought it, took it home and poured my first glass. My first attempts at red wines the weren't best I could have had. So, I was timid to try this new red in my glass. Alas, to my surprise this red was not bitter, not oily, or anything else that displeased my palate! I was sweet, deep, rich, had very distinct dark red cherry flavors and even had a hint of a rich dark chocolate (something I've only tasted in coffee and dark beers)! I intend to further explore the flavors of wine, and someday I hope to take a class to further my understanding of the vinting process.
Now on to the second half of my adventure into alcohol. Going back to the parties I've been to in college, the drinks I have had might now have had the highest quality. I've consumed BudLight, Miller Light, and maybe a few others I don't recall. All which turned me off to beer. These cheap corporate beers all had one defining characteristic that turned me off to beer at first. The nasty aftertaste, which resembled something like a loaf of moist soggy bread sitting on the back of your tongue. Not pleasant at all. It wasn't until I was at another party, where one of my friends was drinking this beer in a strange bottle, which looked sort of like an old medicine bottle. This beer was the Jamaican Red Stripe. I had a sip and lo and behold no bready aftertaste! My interest in beer was rekindled, if a beer could exist and not have a grody aftertaste, there was hope that beer could be like my favorite beverage; coffee.
So, where do I begin my search for my favorite beer? I had no idea. It wasn't until I was playing a show at a bar in Independence, Missouri I would find my compass. My friend Josh was drinking a bottle of Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat. I asked for a sip, which he obliged. And, I was impressed, a lot. This was even better than the taste of Red Stripe that I had! But, a sip can only linger in your mind for so long. It wouldn't be until I bought my first six pack Boulevard Wheat that I would fully come to love this beer. With this six pack, I was able to delve into the bottle completely and get a full palate's worth of flavor. This beer is amazing. It's even complex! Also something I didn't know a beer could be! A very bright and pleasant beer, with very notable citrus notes. Sort of like the rind of an orange or lemon. Very tasty.
Boulevard Beer has made a very good impression with their Unfiltered Wheat, but what secured my taste for Boulevard was their Bully! Porter. I was wanting to try something different, so I bought a six pack of this porter one night while at the store. At first this beer was a little overwhelming. Probably because I had never tried a darker full flavored beer. But, after some time, I have grown to LOVE this beer. Its deep and rich, and almost coffee like in flavor. This is going to be my new default beer of choice.
I encourage all of you (if of age) to try the drinks that I have discovered and judge them for your self. I also want your help. If you have any drinks that you love, be it wine, coffee, or beer. Tell me about them so I can try them! This is a crusade for quality! I want to expand my pallet in any way possible. Sit back, Drink, Relax!

Again, long over due.

2007-05-08T15:35:00.000-07:00

Well, alot has happened since the last post, much like the last. First off, Maytag and I went to the Midwest Barista Jam on April 15 at the Roasterie's main warehouse. It was a great experience. They covered the marketing behind signature drinks, roasting(with a tour by Norm Kilmon) and cupping, and finally brewing techniques (and they had a Clover!).

Jason from the Roasterie and Anthony from Monin presented the marketing presentation. It was very interesting, and displayed alot behind the ideas of signature drinks. We were given a free container of Caffetto espresso cleaner, which was nice. Next was the roasting and cupping presentation by Norm Kilmon. The Roasterie has 4 pretty good sized air roasters, the biggest being able to roast a whopping 300lbs of coffee. Cupping was by far my favorite. We got the basics of how to cup, Aroma, Fragrance and Taste. We cupped three origins, Panama, Sumatra and Ethiopian Yirqicheffe. The first two were nice and bold, but when I got to the Ethiopian coffee I was blown away. Finally the brewing techniques, we had two people from Clover. Let me tell you, the Clover machine is AMAZING. Just watching it work was a sight to see. The coffee it produced was very clean and flavorful. The second half of the presentation I thought was a little boring, the other member from Clover went though the process of brewing a proper shot of espresso. This for me was a little redundant since I've worked at a cafe before, but the other girl in the group was very interested the whole deal. Overall it was a very great experience and I do plan to attend the next Jam.

I've also started a adventure into home roasting. I found my parents old, Westbend Poppery II. So far I've only roasted some Yirqucheffe. My result are going pretty well. Next I plan on ordering some Brazilian green and practicing on going to Vienna roasts. I also want to explore making some espresso blends. Should be fun!

And, whats this blog without a cafe to critique! Black River Espresso on 69hwy in Excelsior Springs Missouri, my home town (and hopefully my next place of employment). The cafe has a great location on the highway, perfect for grabbing a cup on the way out of town. Inside is nice, they have several tables and three really big chairs with a coffee table, very nice. Their prices are very reasonable and affordable. The espresso they have is a little bitter for my taste, but still a good blend that makes a good macchiato, and any other espresso based drink. The owner Phil is very knowledgeable about coffee, he has been helping me a little bit with the whole home roasting thing. Telling me what origins would be good for specific roast levels. Overall Black River is a very good coffee house, tasty blend comfy chairs, friendly people and lots of caffeine.
Final Rating: 4 Shots out of 5

A Month In.

2007-03-23T14:01:00.000-07:00

Wow, one month has passed since I made my first post. I didn't even realize it when I signed in. I have been to a few new Cafes since the first post. First one is Hazel's Coffee in St. Joesph MO. Going in I had high expectations from hearing that they roast their own coffees. Sadly, Maytag and I were very, very disappointed. As you walk in, to the right is their giant commercial roaster, it looks rather nice. I ordered they typical double macchaito and a vanilla latte. First sign of terror was when she tried to correct me on the pronunciation of macchaito. Her version was (ma-cha-toe), the true pronunciation is (ma-ki-atto). Then I watched their "barista" make the drinks. This was also painful, he didn't tamp properly, and he made the macchaito in a 12oz cup more like a latte. The latte he made was done with the same lack of skill on the tamp. When it was done the latte was more like a gas station cappuccino then a latte. The macchaito was overly bitter, to the point where I couldn't even tell if the bitterness was due to over extraction (very possible due to poor tamp) or over roasting causing the beans to burn. Overall I give Hazel's Coffee a 1/5. Not an enjoyable experience. Maytag and I left mad.

The next few coffee houses we visited were in Kearney, Missouri. The first was The International Beanery. Cute name, nice location in Kearney just off the main drag. Nice set-up on the inside. I got a single shot of espresso and a cup of the blend that they had on drip. The espresso was ok, nothing special a little bitter probably due to an unskilled barista. The drip coffee was thin and woody, tasted more like Folgers than anything you'd expect at a coffee house. Not a bad experience at the Beanery, just nothing super fantastic. 2/5
The second coffee house we visited in Kearney was Mojo's Coffee, just off 92 hwy as you come into town. This is the prime example of a Mom and Pop Shop, (or a Sid and Nancy Shop). Owned by a husband and wife, the shop is very small a few tables and quite quaint. The barista who was on duty was the Pop of the shop. I ordered a double shot of espresso. It was good, not overly bitter, and left a very pleasant after-taste. He gave us the shots on the house since he was closing early when we were there. He was knowledgeable about coffee and very friendly and talkative. Overall 3/5.

Finally for this entry, we have Espresso Dell'Anatra at I-35 and Cheauteaux Twy. This place is in the middle of a shopping center just off I-35, inside its very nice. Leather chairs and a couch with a coffee table. They have tall tables and short table spread throughout the establishment. The bar is set up so you can watch the barista at work, everything is in plain view. They have a wide selection of teas, coffee, and accessories on a cabinet against one wall. They have a huge menu, from all the espresso classics to their house specialties. The barista on deck was Mike, very friendly and knowledgeable. First off I ordered a double macchaito, it was amazing. Very sweet and rich, with great chocolate undertones. The richness and sweetness comes from the Shatto Milk Co. Half and Half he uses to mark the espresso, superb. Then I ordered a vanilla latte, but was coaxed into trying a molasses latte. It too was excellent. Very sweet and rich, a nice signature seasonal drink. At first it smells as if it could be an alcoholic beverage, but when you sip it the taste is quite different. This has indeed been the best coffee house that I've found aside from the Roasterie. 5 out of 5 in my book. Great espresso, great barista, great layout and an overall great experience. I will most defiantly make sure to frequent this cafe more often.
Espresso Rip out.
Keep caffeinated.

The Start of the Crusade.

2007-02-23T20:28:00.000-08:00

As I sit here in the Roasterie Cafe, on the 6200 block of Brookside Blvd. in downtown Kansas City, I feel as though I am in Camelot. After having downed one Double Macchatio, on seven dollar mexican hot chocolate and currently sipping on a cup of Jasmine green tea, I feel as though I should expand my pallet of Coffees and Teas from area coffee houses. Hence forth, me and my companion Maytag (otherwise known as Nathan, long story on the nickname) shall set forth upon a crusade to find the best coffees and teas in KC. The Roasterie Cafe shall be our standard. I'm sure there are better actual coffee roasters in the world, but I feel the need to respect the locals. Join us on this beany journey (cheesy I know).