Category: coffee (Page 1 of 4)

CVILLE-NOV-2007-6364, originally uploaded by minhi.

Friday is cupcake day at the Mudhouse–which is a coffee house on the downtown mall. I think it’s the best of the coffee houses there, and surprisingly there is no Starbucks on the mall.

Yes, that little bit of frosting is shaped like a chilli pepper because there is cayenne pepper in the chocolate frosting. I’ve had a spicy hot chocolate before (Jacque Torres, NYC, Dumbo location), and it’s good. It tastes like chocolate with a chaser of spiciness, wierd, but interesting and good.

I like the coffee better at Shenadoah Joe’s but the Mudhouse coffee is very respectable.

One as a cappucino (quad in fact), which was a little light.  The chocolate-flavor did not stand up quite as much as i would’ve liked it too. 

The second as a straight espresso (ristretto double), was also a little thin.  It didn’t have quite the mouth feel and body that i like, it wasn’t bad but i want something a little richer, a little more honey-like on the tongue, but the flavor did linger for a long time. 

Maybe it’s due to the slightly lighter roast, i’ll try one of the darker roasts next time.

It’s odd that i grew up in Richmond, yet i spent so little time visit Charlottesville. I guess going to school 60 miles in the opposite direction in Williamsburg turned me into a W&M person instead of a UVA person.

Recently I’ve found a reason to be in Charlottesville more often and someone introduced me to Shenandoah Joes. Good coffee, roaster on-site and not all that expensive either. I didn’t realize that the prices were by the pound (dumb i know, but a lot of places sell 12 oz bags). I bought 2 bags and there’s no way i’ll finish them in their peak. The La Minita is what you’d expect, bright (but less so then some blends) with a roast that looks a little darker to me. The Long Frog i can’t really compare, good cocoa flavors, not much tobacco or smokiness. It’s got good lasting power on the tongue/palate. When i pulled it at home at 5 days off roast the crema was thick and held well after 60 seconds. The flecking and tiger striping is not quite as nice as the Counter Culture Toscana, it also doesn’t have the same sheen either.

I really like this place, good quality coffee without too much flash. It’s a modest space in a strip mall location. They close early (7pm i think) and aren’t open Sundays. The roast day is Thursday and Fridays there’s usually a special blend available. They serve drip pot coffee, as well as single brew cups using the porcelain pour-over filters for slightly more cost. Their espresso pulls are also competent with a nice and friendly staff.

espressoblends http://www.flickr.com/photos/minhi/320670301/
(espressoblends)
“espresso aida” by minhi

After a few weeks of travel it’s back to my Solis SL-70 and some espresso. The options in Asia were a little weak so it’s been awhile since i’ve had anything good. I found this blend at Murky Coffee ($20 for a 12oz bag). It’s a custom blend they created for the South East Regional Barista Competition [yes such a thing exists, and i’m glad it does].

It’s an all middle america blend and i wish i knew that when i bought it. It’s a pretty good espresso, but it’s very hard to pull on my machine. When you nail it, it really represents middle america, bright, fruity and clean finish. In fact the finish is so clean it almost pulls the finish off the back of your tongue. It’s unique for sure, i’ve never had something so bright and clean. But you really need strong temperature stability in your machine. On the machines they have at the shop I’m sure it’s no problem but on my machine it’s not forgiving enough–bad shots come out sour.

The other minus, and something the murky guy’s admit to is that it does not work in milk. As a cap, latte or even a americano with milk it’s too sour. It doesn’t have enough back-bone to hold up with a lot of milk.

It’s nice to try something different, if only to understand what won’t work in my machine but i went back to the Toscano blend for my next bag. It’s also a lot cheaper! If you want to try it out you can also get them from Counter Culture Coffee online. The Aida blend is a limited edition one so at least try it for yourself.

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Originally uploaded by minhi.

well a little sloppy but it’s hard to pour latte art in a macchiato, you’ve got so little time to pour so you really have to pay attention. i think this is pretty good considering how little milk this is–less then 1 oz!

fresh delivery from caffe fresco
Originally uploaded by minhi.

i ran out of espresso early this week and my order from Caffe Fresco finally got here! woohoo! I think Tony overstuffed the bags as they’re extra full.

This is 3rd day off roast (roasted monday) and it was a super syrupy short ristretto. I’m going to coarse up the grind as this was barely over an ounce! But it was super sweet and full bodied. I can’t wait for my after dinner latte, this Ambrosia blend is great in milk.

But I have to finish the bag fast enough to enjoy the Red Star Blend i ordered too!

bodum-espresso1.jpg
Originally uploaded by minhi.

an espresso macchiato in the bodum pavina small glass.

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Originally uploaded by minhi.

the tip of the heart is not quite formed right and the edges are a little soft and it’s not quite centered, but gosh darn it, this does look like a heart!

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Originally uploaded by minhi.

Ok i don’t know what this one looks like, maybe a phoenix rising from the ashes? a not so formed rosetta or a distorted leaf?

well it looks cool. though it didn’t taste that good for some reason…

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Originally uploaded by minhi.

here are a few shots of my feeble attempts at latte art. this is the first thing i ever poured that looked like something. I think it’s an apple 🙂