Monday, February 23, 2009

An Interview With Isaiah


Brian: So how did it go in Chicago?

Isaiah: Um, these are serious questions.

B: Did you win?

I: No.

B:  What happened?

I:  I was a point short of the finals.

B:  Do you think you should've won?

I:  I think I should've made it to the finals.

B:  Why do you think you didn't?

I:  I don't like where this is going.

B:  Ok, what about the article in Barista Magazine this month?

I:  It was nice to have my name in the magazine two months in a row.

B:  Did you think it was curious that Derek's picture was in there and you won the competition?

I:  ... no comment.

B:  You pointed out to me earlier that an extraordinary number of competition winners are from Intelligentsia these days.  Do you think that is because their coffee is better or maybe because their baristas are better?

I:  Oh man, no.  I love what Intelli has done for our industry.  Dealing with farm direct.  But I've got to be honest.  I've tried their coffee on numerous occasions.  I don't think it's bad.  But I don't think it's all what it's hyped up to be.  I think a name will carry you far in this industry.

B:  Hmm.  The USBC is coming up in Portland in a couple weeks.  Do you think you'll have a chance against some of these bigger name shops?

I:  ......... (laughing) If I'm on my game, we might be able to make the top 25.  Top 10... good luck.

B:  Our flight leaves before the finals.

I:  What are you trying to communicate to me with this statement?

B:  I'm doing the interview here.  Did you see the article in Imbibe this month about Topeca Coffee?

I:  Yeah.  It's good to see Tulsa getting on the map of coffee these days.

B:  Yes.  I'm glad Topeca opened the door for good coffee in Tulsa, aren't you?

I:  Amen.

B:  When are we going to do another podcast?  The people call.

I:  Right after Portland.

B:  Sheesh.  Do you have any ideas to change the way you're doing things in order to win next time?

I:  Tell them I work for Intelligentsia?  And get a faux-hawk mullet and tattoos.

B:  Oh no.  Well, good luck.

posted by Brian at 10:20 AM 3 comments delicious digg

Friday, February 20, 2009

CoffeeFest Chicago

Isaiah and Garth (the newest member of the DoubleShot fam) set off yesterday to attend CoffeeFest in Chicago.  Isaiah will be competing in day two of the Latte Art Competition on Saturday.

Realistically, Isaiah has masterful control of the milk and he doesn't tend to fold under pressure so I believe he'll pour like a champ.  It's really up to the judges after that.  Can he win and bring home the 5 G's?  You know he can. 

WCD, baby.

Good luck Isaiah!

posted by Brian at 4:07 AM 1 comments delicious digg

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Costa Rica Pictures


I spent last week in Costa Rica, and as you can imagine it was beautiful.  And I took pictures.  Each time I go to origin I learn more about coffee.  I have more questions than answers, it seems.  But the more questions I ask, the more things come together.  Maybe it doesn't make any difference to the end-quality of coffee in your cup, for me to understand processes of which I have no control.  But to me it's important to know what affects the taste of coffee.

Anyway, if you're interested, you can look at the pictures of my trip to Costa Rica.  I visited Hacienda La Minita and Hacienda Rio Negro.  I'd never been to Rio Negro before, and I really enjoyed that part of the trip.  To find the pictures, go to the PROPAGANDA page of the DoubleShot site:  http://www.doubleshotcoffee.com/Propaganda.html
(While you're there, watch the new video starring Tommy Wazelle as himself.)
Scroll down and click on "Origin Trips."  Then you'll see the links to pictures of each of my trips.  If you missed Colombia, it's there.  But the latest set is under Costa Rica '09.

posted by Brian at 10:29 AM 1 comments delicious digg

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Sample Roaster!



I bought myself a Christmas present, and it's just now arrived at the DoubleShot. It's a 2-barrel sample roaster. I've been looking for one for months (possibly years), and finally the right opportunity came along.

Many thanks to Dan at Roasters Exchange in Oklahoma City. This thing is a beauty. It's a Jabez Burns. I got the big roaster, my 15 kilo Vittoria, from Roasters Exchange over 5 years ago and it's been a reliable, excellent roaster. So I felt confident buying this roaster from Dan as well.
Good sample roasters are hard to come by and it was a long journey to find this one. I went and picked it up on Monday and I'm pretty excited about firing it up.
I looked up the Patent numbers on the USPTO site and found the original filings with drawings and descriptions. The drums for this thing were designed in 1909 and the entirety of the roaster was redesigned in 1925. Therefore, I suspect it was built in the mid-20s. It looks so good because Roasters Exchange restored it.

A bit about Jabez Burns.
It's a company that was started by the man (Jabez Burns). Burns invented this style of roaster, which is the type that is used by almost all coffee roasters today. He began producing them in 1864, and the company is still producing roasters today, after being swallowed up by the behemoth, Probat. Jabez was born in London and moved to New York when he was 18. The guy was an inventor and wily business man. Burns started a publication associated with his business in 1878, called The Spice Mill. I'm not sure what all he wrote about, but in reading Mark Pendergrast's account in "Uncommon Grounds," it sounds like his opinions in the trade journal got him in some hot water. Some quotes:
"Coffee, you develop, and by skill and judgment change from caterpillar to a butterfly, as it were-- you bring out a hidden treasure."
"The very best coffee in the market may be made insipid trash for the want of sufficient roasting."
I like this guy.
Other stuff mentioned in Pendergrast's book that Jabez Burns purportedly wrote were not so... agreeable. He stated that women shouldn't be in the workplace. And worse, he thought coffee should be mixed with chicory. Ugh.

Regardless, he made some fan-damn-tastic coffee roasters. And now we have one. What's it for?
Well, when we're looking for great coffees, brokers and importers send us 1/2 pound samples to try. We have to roast them and cup them. The roaster we've been using for samples has been unreliable, inconsistent, and it doesn't produce the same profile that the Vittoria does. This roaster will produce a more consistent roast, more efficiently, and it will mimic much more closely the flavors we'll achieve in the production roaster. So it's for sampling. We've wondered how many great coffees we've missed out on over the years because we thought a coffee was bad, when it really was a bad roast. For example, I almost didn't buy the Guatemala Villaure. But I asked for a roasted sample and it was outstanding. We won't have this problem any more because of our new, true blue, 2-barrel Jabez Burns.

It's really something. You might not think so, but it is. A lot of roasters our size don't have professional sample roasters because they're so hard to come by and they're really expensive. From what I understand, even the micro-roaster of the year (according to Roast Magazine) doesn't have a sample roaster.
This is the big time.

posted by Brian at 3:04 PM 5 comments delicious digg