Ria Han posted a video advert for “Benson’s Coffee,” which she made for a class, here — one of the amusing things about it is how many non-coffee-drinkers play their parts so well! Serve it up, Ria. Thanks!
Author Archives: nb
stumptown at the ace hotel
top: the eminent Italian writer Paolo Lagazzi, visiting from Milan, amused to find so many camerados for his hat. It makes me want to take down my dusty black fedora…
what latte looks like
thanks to Clay Andres for these great photos of El Salvador Tablon El Naranjo. Note the billowing volcano/orchid blossom effect in the lower photo. perfect for Sunday morning!
romford
On old maps, this part of town is named Romford. The name R o m f o r d R o a s t will start appearing on bags of Zero Prophet Coffee sometime soon. The LLC will have the same name, but the product, roasted in a repurposed old pole barn, will proudly announce its local identity.
This is the month for miscellaneous commentary on the bean at ZPC, but the news about coffee hasn’t really been so great lately, especially not for the consumer looking for some reliable, affordable, top-grade Brazilian or Colombian coffee. Supply is unreliable, prices are up, etc. On the other hand, Papua New Guinea coffees have been superb lately; the coffees I’ve had recently from Rwanda and Burundi have been really, really good; and the beans from Guatemala and El Salvador continue to amaze. And here’s another name you know but may need to start associating with kick-ass brew: Oaxaca.
moto•head / la colombe
It often seems that few places retain their sense of what made them cool & quality at the outset, when they hit the big time and start opening branches in Kharkov and Chelyabinsk. La Colombe in Philadelphia is one of the few. Their cappuccino is world-class. Here’s Gianni (moto•head), in the original cafe just off Rittenhouse Square just the other day — which is fitting, because he’s another who’s kept his original sense of cool, from Castrovillari through many changes. We owe him huge thanks for showing us the coffee back in the day & now again. Alla salute!
A clear path to the bar!
pack carefully
When you hit the road for a week, how much of your coffee apparatus do you bring with you? What was once a quandary or vexation is actually a simply solved practical matter, with every room/house coming with its own Proctor-Silex basket-filter item (always looks like 1983), which couldn’t work, except it does (just don’t try to mess with it till it’s finished with its business). At least, P-S is the company that seized Dukes County. When the ground beans brought from home run out, consider getting some beans roasted by Chilmark Coffee Company (you can find them at the Beetlebung farm stand a mile out of Chilmark on Middle Road, which is a great place to visit anyway). The labels will make you smile and coffee will go great with your calamari.
Hm, come to think of it, you might want to bring one of those miniature silo grinders on your trip. Also, you probably know this already, but if you need a cappuccino in Vineyard Haven, you’ll be mad stoked to discover Beetlebung.
