Coffee whore

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Hi guys, I see we have a section for one of my other favorite thing. I see a lot of names being thrown around like "Black Dog" and "Tatuaje" coffee's and I am wondering if anyone here has the luxury of having an artesian roaster in their town? Even if you have tried some other awesome artesian coffees from a family owned roaster?

So I have this coffee shop near my apartment called Boulevard Coffee Roasting Co. which is owned by my friend Cliff. I am lucky enough to visit the roasting plant while they roast and get my hands on some hot beans, it is so great to smell the fresh beans being roasted the building fills with smoke that smells divine, its like smoking a great cigar... So this company offers some great coffee's from all around the world and some interesting blends. My favorite blend of theirs is Midnight oil, which happens to be so popular they have trouble keeping it in stock.

Disclaimer: As the tittle states I am kinda whoring this company but a short story of my coffee experience might explain my elegance, I started drinking starbucks espresso and the difference between these two brands is you can actually taste the coffee the nuttiness of their italian espresso blend that they use in their shop to the extremely unique and powerful taste of their Java bean. So in short where starbucks opened the door they slung me into the world of great coffees roasted fresh. The smell of the roasting process did I mention the smell it is heavenly.

 

[Greg]

I want to meet a hot lady coffee whore, because I have a bag or two of Blackdog for her.

BTW, would you like to do a trade? Brian of Blackdog is every much the artisan that you describe, and I know from experience that his roasting technique rivals the very best anywhere.

So, let's do a trade, I would like to try some other coffees, and you can see what Blackdog is all about. Just go to the website blackdogcoffee.net and pick your roast, then we can work something out.

 

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Hi Greg, I also would like to meet a hot lady coffee whore.... but most of the women I know like that overpriced whole bean folgers known as gevalia...

I didn't mean to come off as if the other companies are less, Cliff is an eccentric guy, He been modifying his custom roaster since the beginning most small artisan roaster use a drum roaster which if not watched carefully will provide an uneven roast where as the device Cliff has designed roasts very evenly time after time.

I would like to try some of the black dog to see what its all about also as I too do like to try new things like last week if you would have told me Rwandan beans are great I would not have known but the other day I had the luck of picking up some freshly roasted Rwandan and wow it has flavor....

Greg i will pm you with details on the trade and we will go from their thanks.

 

[Greg]

Cool, Bro. I didn't think you were putting anyone down, I was just agreeing that artisan coffee roasters are where it's at, and would also like to try some others too.

Thanks for agreeing to the trade, I look forward to it.

 

[SkinsFanLarry]

Just keep in mind my friend....Greg won't play fair!

 

[Robinsond]

I do enjoy black dog, as well as some local roasts. There is a coffee shop near campus (~5 min walk) that roasts the beans fresh there. They also sell bagels and always have a ton of fresh coffee choices hot on Saturdays. Whenever I'm looking for a change, I pick up a pound of different coffee from them (Of course ground coarse for my Bodum FP). I'm particularly fond of their Kenya AA coffee. I find myself being a bigger fan of African coffee's as opposed to coffees from other places.

The place is called Uncommon Grounds, not sure if it's a chain, but either way, they brew a nice cup of joe!

-Dave

 

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Thanks for the warning Larry.

Robin I find myself to like the richer soiled coffees such as the african beans, if you want a change try some ethiopian its picked and dried with the fruit on so it has a sweet smell to it but still very strong great desert coffee.

 

[AlohaStyle]

There is a ton of great coffee in the Pacific Northwest... I love the small local owned shops that take great pride in their work. That's great you have a friend that works hard at his craft and enjoys what he does!

With that said, it's kind of cool that my company's warehouse is right in between the main Starbucks roasting plant and their warehouse. They roast their coffee in a huge warehouse and then ship out the coffee from the warehouse to the stores. It is incredible when they are roasting because you can smell coffee from over a mile away driving to the office. Even if you're not a Starbucks fan, it is incredible.

My coworkers told me that years ago they used to have overstock sales that were open to the public to sell mugs, coffee and all kinds of stuff they had before they came the huge corporation they are now. So I stopped at their roasting plant to check if they still did this and it was like trying to get into Fort Knox!?! Needless to say, they don't have any sales anymore.

 

[Robinsond]

Thanks for the warning Larry.

Robin I find myself to like the richer soiled coffees such as the african beans, if you want a change try some ethiopian its picked and dried with the fruit on so it has a sweet smell to it but still very strong great desert coffee.

Hey thanks for the suggestion brother! My mother is a fan of Ethiopian coffee, so that's what I usually drink when I'm home. I got my "coffee bug" from Ethiopian when I first started drinking the miracle juice.

 

[Clint]

There's a great place in Santa Cruz that roasts there in the shop. I keep meaning to order more from them, but haven't in a while...I should see if they're still online and do so.

Anyway, great shop, great coffee!

 

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Starbucks is like the dark sith of the coffee world giving up some of what helped get to where their at, they seem to be all about PR and advertising and not about the coffee.

the thing I like the most about ethiopian is its not as harsh and bitter as some of the really dark coffees like french roast but is more potent in the caffeine relm than some of the harsher coffees.

The one thing I don't like about california is all the laws, my local guy has to use an after burner on his roaster to burn the smoke a second time to produce less smoke. so about 10 years ago they used to take this little 5lb capacity roaster up to their retail shop and they would have a "see how we roast coffee" day and roast fresh coffee right on the street, they cant do it anymore because they would have to have the fire marshal and permits and all this crap all for a little smoke and hot air....

Just remembering something Cliff told me about coffees. I asked what roast he would suggest to me and he says "do you drink with milk" I said "most of the time" then he goes on to explain that "the way I look at is there is a battle of two acidic flavors you have the acid from the coffee and the lactic acid of the milk so if you drink coffee with milk you want something with higher acidity so you can actually taste the coffee and not let get overwhelmed with a milk taste". It went something like that.

How many of you guys drink espresso and do you ever drink just a straight cup of espresso no milk maybe a little sugar?

 

[Alwayslit]

Love espresso, love Kona, and have a local roaster called Mayorga. They have some very good coffee.

 

[Soundwave13]

Love my coffee - no real good roasters local that I know of. The last one went out of business some years ago. I love Black Dog & Killer Beans & would love to expand my horizons. The Peabury & Nicaraguan blends have really been to my tastes lately.

I know I'm in the minority, but I reject the idea that good coffee must be served black. I'll drink a few sips black so I can enjoy the earthy nuttiness... But I can't get away from adding a bit of light cream & raw sugar. I don't do it to 'mask' any flavors, I believe it adds to the flavors just as the right recipe and ingredients serve to complete a gourmet dinner.

 

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I know I'm in the minority, but I reject the idea that good coffee must be served black. I'll drink a few sips black so I can enjoy the earthy nuttiness... But I can't get away from adding a bit of light cream & raw sugar. I don't do it to 'mask' any flavors, I believe it adds to the flavors just as the right recipe and ingredients serve to complete a gourmet dinner.

Don't get me wrong Soundwave I am not that much of a purist. I do like to get back to the basics every once in a while and try things "the way the where meant to be" as I did this morning with my espresso just plain with a teaspoon of sugar. Every other morning its espresso, sugar, frothed milk and maybe some creamer. The point though is like a gourmet dinner if you add too much of something its like pouring a cup of salt on a prime rib who would do that... so when you add to much sweetness and milk and whipped cream you get a starbucks drink you can barely taste the coffee and feel like you have eaten afterwards.

 

[terrantheman]

Black dog is really good stuff for sure! I've got some buddies that will send me a few pounds of there homeroasts that are phenominal! Nothing like fresh roasted coffee. In Chicago we have a place that does some great stuff they're called Intelligentsia and they'll buy auction lots of coffee from organic growers from around the world and it's like butter baby!

 

[smokinghole]

I've got a pretty decent roaster here called St Thomas Roasters. I'm fond of tanzanian peaberry in a light to medium roast.

 

[Ed Monton]

I find it hard to shell out $9 for 1/2 a pound of coffee. Maybe I am cheap. Is it just me?

 

[smokinghole]

$9 for a half pound it getting up there. I get mine for a deal at $12 (sarcasm) and I still hate paying it but I'd rather pay that then by some stale coffee.

 

[Ed Monton]

Are you saying my Folger's is stale?:laugh:

$9 for a half pound it getting up there. I get mine for a deal at $12 (sarcasm) and I still hate paying it but I'd rather pay that then by some stale coffee.

 

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Lately I don't pay much for my coffee... The list price is $13 a pound but I get a better rate at the back of the shop... Folgers doesn't get stale it has the freshness seal...