Compak often plays 2nd fiddle to the big dominator in the market, Mazzer (and to some extent recently, Anfim). From what I understand, Compaks weren’t available in the states until a few years ago and therefore, haven’t built up the long-term credibility that Mazzer has. However, as I was looking for a new grinder, Compak [...]

Some people just won’t be into these cups… and I’d recommend that only a select few should buy them. They’re not for majority of the coffeeshops out there. Rather, Terra Keramik cups are for the crazies who can’t fall asleep at night because they’re obsessing about their demitasse thickness in relation to espresso temperature. Or [...]

Throughout my travels, I’ve encountered many different coffeeshops. Each one is unique due to it’s location, owners, and history. Among all these differences there seems to be a common thread of two varying philosophies. One of these groups says, “It’s all about the coffee!” another says, “It’s all about the community!”. This gets worked out [...]

The arrival of ‘15th Ave Coffee & Tea’ has brought Starbucks the most media attention surrounding opening up a shop in years. Here’s a roundup of some of the news, opinions, and reflections from the past week:
Nick Cho, former Murky owner / Barista Competition host, says this Starbucks operation can be positive for Starbucks, but [...]

After several days of hooing and hawwing over what the new Starbucks store would look like, images are now up and the store set to open tomorrow. Josh C managed a sneak peak inside the shop to get a feel for the atmosphere and vibe. Myself, like many others in the industry, felt that Starbucks [...]

Back in April, I wrote about The New Naturals Project, a project that we started with Edwin from Finca Vista Hermosa, Chad from Madcap, and Linus from The Coffee Collective while on the farm. The difference from most naturally processed coffees is that we sorted the beans, sorted them again, and sorted them again. None of [...]

In May I had the opportunity to visit Cafe Myriade in Montreal. I wrote about a drip brewer I’d never seen before, called the Abid. The Abid is a hybrid french-press / pourover, allowing ultimate control of steep time via a piston. The price is $13.50 plus $5 shipping and handling. To purchase, click the [...]

This past Friday, PACA & Voluto Coffee hosted The ‘Sprodown, an event featuring espresso from 11 different roasters, both local and national. We knew it was going to be a good event, but we couldn’t even imagine the overwhelming response we received. In the course of Friday night, somewhere around 60 people showed up for [...]

As more shops and home coffee drinkers come to use single brew manual methods, such as pour over, syphon, and aeropress, repeatability and accuracy become key. One of the easiest and cheapest ways to achieve this consistency is from a digital scale. For awhile, I only had a large scale that would measure in 5 [...]

This past week, Leanna and I went on a 1,400 mile roadtrip around the Northeast, to the Adirondacks, Burlington, Montreal, and Ithaca. Researching shops on CoffeeGeek, there was much talk about Cafe Myriade in Montreal. Started by Anthony Benda, Canadian Barista Finalist, and Scott Rao, of Chemex Trash Talking Fame [oh yah, and he wrote the book [...]