Cupcakes and Counter Culture

Hello ERACE IE, long time no blog.  Emily here, Chris only managed to get as far as a title for this installment!  A few weeks ago, on the 12th of October, we gathered at my house to celebrate The Maestro’s birthday.  I ordered some delicious Counter Culture (we wanted to try an East Coast Roaster) for the occasion – Espresso Aficionado and Finca Mauritania.  We had a delightful time brewing up some Aeropress and espresso, eating cupcakes (Chris ate seven), and drinking the DELICIOUS Coffee Porter Sarah brought.  Thanks to all who showed up!

 Above: Justin with Finca Mauritania and Chris Drinking it from MM Mug circa ‘88 )

Shots With Heather, Cups with Mike, and, oh yeah, Don’t Let Jon take Your Picture.

On August 6th fifteen revolutionaries gathered not in a rec-room per se , but in a warehouse. Not to teach, but to learn. Not to talk, but to listen. We gathered in Upland, in a haven of green beans and fresh roasted goodness (for now we’ll ignore the occasional “snicker-doodle” bags of flavored coffee) — to learn the art of espresso extraction, the nuances of Milk texturing and free pour Latte Art, and to practice taste bud acrobatics in the gastronomic gymnasium of “the cupping table”. Some were more experienced than others, but all were eager, and as Mike Perry guided us around his roasteria a kind of expectation and wonderment spread through our collective mind– coffee could introduce us to culinary and cultural adventures previously reserved exclusively, in our minds anyway, to the likes of Anthony Bourdain.

New club member and coffee enthusiast Frankee Torres came with a few coffee friends from the OC.

We cupped four coffees with Mike Perry including La Esmeralda and a Sumatra that tasted like vegetables (in a surprisingly good way) .

We learned about Latte Art and Espresso Extraction from Heather Perry.

We learned not to ask Jon Dodson to take our picture.

Until next time…

…VIVA LA REVOLUCIÓN!!!!!!!

Colston Collection

There is an Inland Empire coffee nerd that needs our assistants and support. He goes by the alias SlawJava . He needs to go to Seattle. If you are willing to donate some money to send this person to compete in a Latte Art competition at this years Coffee Fest in Seattle, please contact either Emily Hartop or Chris Cayford in person or e-mail the club at EraceIE@Gmail.com…

…VIVA LA REVOLUCIÓN!!!!!!!

Coffee Klatch

As I sit here drinking my cup of delicious Klatch coffee I often wonder about the things of this world. I wonder how the Sistine Chapel was painted and why people freely choose not to eat meat. But I digress, for this blog post is not about the things I deem fit but about the wonderful coffee we all got to share last Wednesday and our spectacular host that evening. So let’s delve into the coffee world for a spill…

The night started later than our usual meetings, which are typically at 5, and it ended a little earlier than most meetings, which is anywhere from 10 to 2 a.m. But this had to be one the best meetings we’ve had in a long time and it was more fun than a Barrel of monkeys, which if anyone has tried is disturbingly fun. We all sat around a gigantic marble table while our host Mike Perry, owner and roaster of Coffee Klatch, gave us a great presentation on how coffee is grown, processed, roasted, and eventually sipped by loyal customers. Here are some shots of Mike in action:

If these pictures don’t make sense, don’t worry, we had no clue what he was doing either… Just kidding, in fact Mike was showing us how to properly smell the coffee and get a good sip for our cupping demonstration.  He showed us how to score the coffee and give it some good descriptors so that we could accurately interpret the coffee for ourselves. We all had these really cool cupping forms which he got from The Coffee Geek and they were extremely easy to use. After the presentation we all got to go to the next room and take a stab at cupping coffee.

This was really a great experience and we all had an absolute blast doing it. Here is a quick explanation of how the whole process works.

Tools of the Trade

• First pour the grinds into one of the cups

• Shake and smell the coffee to rate the fragrance

• Then you pour hot water until it reaches the brim of the cup

• Fill your spoon glass a little more than halfway so you don’t cross contaminate flavors

• Take a spoon and push some of the top layer  away to get the full aroma

• Scoop off the top layer and dispose

• Take your spoon and fill it halfway and suck in the coffee, which gets it all around your mouth

• Enjoy and rate the taste, aroma, acidity, mouth feel and anything else you’d like to add

That pretty much sums up what we got to do on Wednesday. It was a real treat to have Mike with us and he was a great host, speaker/presenter, and an all around nice guy. Everyone out there should check out his coffee and pick up a pound or two for yourselves. His website’s store is located right here Klatch Coffee Webstore. But heck if your in the area why not stop by his store in Rancho Cucamonga or San Dimas and get to see the coffee up close and in person. His coffee definitely gets our seal of approval and we think anyone out there who enjoys a good cup of java should check it out.

With that said, we will see ya next week kids.

Bon Soir Mon Amis.

P.S. For all of you who care about the matter, most, if not all, of Mikes Coffee’s are either Fair or Direct trade which gives a good wage to the farmer and provides them with adequate living standards and plenty to eat. It’s just the right thing to do.

Meeting #4

On the eve of Monday, June 9th, a polka-dotted invitation was sent to a couple dozen coffee fanatics; on Wednesday, June 11th, a handful of those fanatics gathered in a cozy pool-side rec hall; and drank a crazy amount of coffee…

…and that’s as far as the Maestro got in his blog post…so here I go again, picking up his slack p

Thanks to everyone who stopped by last Wednesday to participate in an insane amount of Blue Bottle espresso tasting!  We tried the four espresso blends offered by Blue Bottle, and Mike Colston brought some beans as well!  We didn’t even get to the Urth Cafe beans!  I never thought there could be such a thing as too much coffee…

Some highlights, you ask?  Well with two espresso machines, two grinders, and a refrigerator all plugged into the same outlet we managed to trip the breaker about half a dozen times.  This resulted in significant delays and some rather innovative grinding of the Finca Matalapa from the ceiling fan outlet:

Technical difficulties resolved, we had some satisfied revolutionaries:

Mike Colston poured me a BEAUTIFUL capp with my homemade almond milk:

And Chris showed us all that he really is the ultimate fashion guru:

If you are interested, I have included the descriptions of the Blue Bottle blends from their website, along with ERACE tasting notes for your perusal.  Verdict on the Blue Bottle?  The Temescal was the hands-down favorite, but the roastings as a whole were something of a let-down.  We are taking suggestions for the next espresso blend tasting–just email with ideas (emhartop@gmail.com).  Also email if you are not yet part of our mailing list–you will receive updates on meetings, etc.–and lastly, be sure to email if you are interested in our first ever ERACE field trip taking place this Wednesday, June 18th!!

Espresso Temescal 

If we were to commission a sonnet for one of our blends, the Espresso Temescal would be the hands-down choice for this honor. It is complex, poetic, finicky – if you make coffee in your garrett, loft studio, Pied-a-terre, atelier…this is your blend. A medium roast that is a fairly intricate blend of coffees from Sumatra, Costa Rica, Mexico and Ethiopia, the Espresso Temescal reigns supreme in the Mokka pot. It also pulls a fascinating shot on a lot of espresso machines. 

ERACE notes: buttery aftertaste; some plums, berries, raisins, and overripe cherries; almond and cocoa undertones; very finicky (every shot seemed fascinatingly different!)

Hayes Valley Espresso 

This espresso is quite a departure for us here at the BBCC, but it’s working out quite spectacularly on the majestic La Marzocco at our Kiosk on Linden Street. As opposed to the other espressi we offer, this is more of an – American-style – espresso – darker, lower-toned, no brightness, plenty of chocolate – thick and rich at 192 degrees at the portafilter – with an engaging complexity as a straight shot. The shots are gorgeous: achingly heavy with voluptuous red-brown crema, and the silky, somewhat dangerous-looking viscosity of a power-steering stop-leak product cone used on our coffee roaster’s (now departed) heroically battered 1983 Peugeot. In milk, it tastes like chocolate ovaltine, and holds its own from the daintiest 3oz Macciato to our towering 12oz caffee latte. 

ERACE Notes: Creamy consistency, a hint of red wine + chocolate, touch of spice, Milk Chocolate and Malty–much like Ovaltine or Whoppers

Retrofit Espresso 

Named after the upcoming terrorist-proofing of the bay Bridge Bart tube, this espresso is a sweet and simple delight. Not particularly demanding of the barista, the retrofit is a balanced and mild espresso: the most Italian tasting of any we currently serve. We serve this coffee every Tuesday and Saturday in our little kiosk at the west side of the Ferry Building. Generally, we serve on day four or five, up-dose moderately, and pull one ounce doubles at a leisurely 30 seconds. This is not an espresso for big milk drinks. Lovers of tall milky drinks might scratch their heads in disappointed confusion wondering where their coffee is. But if you know that a macchiato does not have carmel in it, this could be your espresso. 

ERACE Notes: Creamy with a caramel finish, pear (or so Chris claimed–but when we brought pears back and sampled them we decided he was crazy!), dark chocolate, nuttiness (walnuts?), balanced

Roman Espresso 

A bit of a hothouse flower, the Roman Espresso can turn on you in an instant if one of a dozen or so brewing parameters are not to its liking. Generally, it likes lower brewing temperatures (approximately 184 at the portafilter), and slower extraction times. In the right machine, it is a crema bomb, pouring oceans of the red/brown frothy stuff into your unsuspecting demitasse. When all is well, the result is a sweet, carmelly, fruity medium-bodied espresso that takes modest amounts of milk in the most delightful way. As pleasant as it is, after a couple of years of tweaking and fine-tuning, it doesn’t much resemble the espresso enjoyed in Rome any more, but we’re not about to shell out another twelve bucks for a new rubber stamp when we have a perfectly good one right here. 

ERACE Notes: Like a cherry cordial, very smooth, plum, like a salsa dance on the tongue (Haha, there he goes again…), citrus, fruity, tastes like Italian orange soft drink

VIVA LA REVOLUCIÓN, MIS AMIGOS!

ERACE MEETING #3

Fellow revolutionaries–I bring you the much anticipated blog of last week’s meeting! Enjoy!

The third meeting of ERACE, IE was quite a success. We had a number of members stop by (Thanks Jason, Cliff, Laura, Sarah, William, Mac, Simon, Kurt, Jim, and Jeff!–and of course Chris and Justin!) over the course of the evening. It was great to see so many of you! The focus of the evening was on Caffe Luxxe espresso blends (aka renamed Espresso Vivace blends). We had both the A Cappela (Dolce) blend and the Tetra Rossa (Vita) blend:

Both blends were fantastic (I’m a huge Vivace fan, though, so I needed no convincing!). We tried straight shots, capps, Aero-pressed, and used a Vacu-pot. Unfortunately, the second tasting of the evening was supposed to be Urth Cafe’s two espresso blends–but we had been duped into buying OLD beans (long story). I have since had a word with Urth Cafe and I received some very fresh, very tasty smelling beans that we will try THIS week!

The pours were fantastic, but by far the highlight of the evening was the debut of a future espresso SUPERSTAR…here he is beaming with pride over his very first pour… Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…William!!!

Yes, this young man actually handpulled a couple of very nice pours on the Gaggia. Not only did he pull the shots:

But he hand-tamped them as well:

Look for him in regional competitions starting Spring of 2021! He’s shooting for the WBC by 2025, we wish him the best of luck–he’s off to a great start!

The rest of the evening was filled with the usual fiddling about with our machines and grinders, and things got really interesting when Chris attempted some blind portafilter improvisation:

We all hope he gets a blind disk soon so we aren’t subjected to an evening full of portafilter abuse again in the future! )

Well I’ll keep this blog short–but please stop by this week for the meeting! We are starting at 5:00 pm when we will begin with the Blue Bottle blends. We will also sample the Urth Cafe blends and discuss the upcoming field trip! Simon and Justin highly recommend stopping by:

VIVA LA REVOLUCIÓN, MIS AMIGOS!

Jason and Kid O’s

The third installment of the Intelli espressos–Organic “Kid O’s”.  Member Jason Grafft and I pulled some shots this evening (the Maestro eventually stopped by and gave it a go as well).  Jason pulled some great shots, but one really fabulous one, take a look:

 

STOKED!!!!!

Espresso Stoke–got it?

If you do–pass it along!  Share your pictures and stories with us (just email)!  I’ll start:

Today Justin and I pulled some fabulous shots of Intelligentsia’s Black Cat (the conventionally grown blend), here’s a little sample of what we were getting:

See those stripes?  See that viscosity?  I feel so proud (especially because this particular pull was Justin’s)! Anyhow, my moment of triumph actually came when I frothed up some homemade almond milk for a Machaccino (my beverage of choice–more volume than a macchiato but not nearly big enough to be called a cappuccino).  It was as if the planets were aligned–I pulled a great shot, frothed up some liquid velvet, and started to pour…

Now I know it’s not quite a “heart”–but it is at least a blob that vaguely resembles something sort of close to maybe being a little bit like one, possibly.  I was stoked.  It gives me hope for my future almond milk endeavors.  Thanks for listening, and feel welcome to share the stoke when you get it!  :o)

Pictures!

I begged and pleaded with The Maestro for e-permission to upload pictures of this Wednesday’s festivities.  Finally, he relented!  So, without further adieu, here they are!  

Jason with his “Iced Capp”– ouch…

Black Cat–Organic Single Origin Version

Can you smell the fresh ground beans? Mmmmmm.

The Maestro explaining flat v. convex tampers to Chin.

Simon of The Maestro’s “Simon says…” conversations. Also a supporter of the Unicorn Cafe.

Billy and his fluffy puppy (neither of them espresso drinkers, the horror!)

Delicious. Simply delicious.

The videographer and the chemist (Justin and Drew).

Roastmaster General Cliff! One of the coolest people I’ve met in a long time!

 

Week 2–The Revolution Continues

A handful of revolutionaries gathered for the second time this last Wednesday to revel in the many sights and smells of lovingly crafted espresso. Member Jason Grafft was kind enough to contribute a bag of Intelligentsia’s Black Cat (single origin organic, not to be confused with the conventionally grown Black Cat espresso blend). He, unfortunately, had time for but a single hastily pulled shot before scampering off to be a responsible member of RCC’s faculty for the evening. The rest of us enjoyed an evening full of Black Cat creations and great conversation with fellow revolutionaries. Some highlights included The Maestro’s first ever hand-pulled shot, a short visit by Billy’s puppy (okay well it was a highlight for me), some homemade almond milk that actually frothed (highlight for the non-dairy folks, all two of us), an influx of UCR scientists (Shoutout to Chin, Simon, and Drew!), radio show host and Roastmaster General Cliff Young’s contribution (including some wines from John Alan and great conversation, thanks Cliff!), and, of course, espresso to last us well into the evening. Much of the evening was captured by amateur photographer Me on my new camera (things will be improving in the coming weeks on that front). Some video-journaling was also done by amateur videographer Justin, and clips may become available soon! Please remember that our next meeting will be Wednesday, June 4th. We will probably start earlier (3:00 pm or so) but will undoubtedly pull shots until well into the night. If you need directions to this week’s meeting location stop by Goodwin’s and chat with Chris, or feel free to send me an email at emhartop@gmail.com. Until then, stay safe and don’t do drugs (except caffeine).

VIVA LA REVOLUCIÓN, MIS AMIGOS!