BEST COFFEE

[Acid, Bitter and Sad]

http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/16/ristretto-tokyo-coffee/

[docintheory]

http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2...-tokyo-coffee/

I hear Bear-Pond espresso has become a pilgrimage for coffee in Japan:

http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/16/ristretto-bear-pond-espresso-how-much-sexy/?scp=1&sq=bear%20pond&st=Search

[Acid, Bitter and Sad]

re Bear Pond, it has indeed, for me. To get the real deal, only go to the main original shop in Shimokitazawa, 'cos that's where the owner pulls his shots, and only at certain hours of the day.

[docintheory]

I've heard the owner only pulls shots at certain times of the day, due to inconsistencies in the electrical grid - fear that it may infringe on creating the 'perfect' shot every pull. That's devotion.

[volta]

ugh, do they all have to be hipsters? bear pond perhaps..

[Chinorlz]

good coffee places worth noting in japan?

theetruscan.. chinorlz.. t-bone?

Honored that you'd ask me as my coffee knowledge is vastly exceeded by the likes of theetruscan and t-bone :)

I didn't know about Bear Pond but the more I read about it the more fascinating it is. I just love stories about people taking a full 90 degree turn from what their life path was previously and diving headfirst into something that they are absolutely passionate about and doing it beautifully.

The photos I've seen online are incredible.

The more I read, the more I wonder if I'm even able to personally pull a decent espresso shot. I think to get a baseline, i need to taste an espresso at a place that does it "right." Here in Houston, only two places are considered decent with one being Greenway and the other is Catalina. I've yet to go to Greenway but I think I need to to taste a well made espresso. At home, i feel like my espressos have a base acidity/sourness that I don't think is right and I don't taste as much of the deeper/chocolatey notes when i sip the espresso directly.

Today I made an ersatz version of the Bear Pond "dirty" and it was surprisingly delicious. The cold milk with one espresso mixed and a second shot floated definitely had near-chocolate milk flavors overall that were really lovely.

I recently picked up a bottomless portafilter which has really changed my process and given me a better view of what I'm doing right and wrong. The overall tamping process that i was using on my stock portafilter (single shot basket) was subpar and also now that i was able to compare the single shot vs double shot basket size I understand why my cappuccinos tasted more watered down to me before I switched. My cappuccinos have gotten exponentially richer (and I'm burning through more beans than before too ).

Would love to hear some recs for improvement of home espresso technique from the pros here. I've just got a V1 Silvia with a mini Mazzer using local roaster Amaya's beans. Been temperature surfing the Silvia after I let it warm up for 1-2 hrs. I've been thinking about improving my game with a double boiler Expobar with PIDs for better control.

At the recs of this thread, I also recently picked up the Kone and it definitely has a stronger product than using the Chemex filters. Still on the fence as to if I actually like that better... the paper filters give a crisper drip coffee to me. Of course the Kone is going to generate more fines and a harsher/stronger coffee... just not sure if I like that. It was worth a try though at $50.

[Chinorlz]

Pulled from a random blog online, but this is just plain beautiful. The approach that Katsuyuki-san has to his art is lovely. The dedication and the perfection in imperfection and the celebration of that precision/imprecision just makes me smile.

Bear Pond

(sorry I couldn't figure out how to embed the vimeo video)

[theetruscan]

At the recs of this thread, I also recently picked up the Kone and it definitely has a stronger product than using the Chemex filters. Still on the fence as to if I actually like that better... the paper filters give a crisper drip coffee to me. Of course the Kone is going to generate more fines and a harsher/stronger coffee... just not sure if I like that. It was worth a try though at $50.

I've settled on most often using Bonmac paper filters in a chemex, washed with water before making. That way the papery taste is removed, and you get the nicely clear coffee you get with a paper filter.

I definitely use the Kone sometimes when I'm feeling more like a "strong" cup of coffee, but it's rare. When I coarsen the grind a fair bit, the kone gets cleaner, but I'm just so fucking lazy...

[Chinorlz]

cool. I may try those Bonmacs then when I run out of my chemex filters just to give it a go.

lately I've just been using the filters for my iced coffee... cold brew two french press pots worth of coffee overnight and then filter the pressed cold brew through the chemex for a really crisp and clean iced coffee.

[Acid, Bitter and Sad]

ugh, do they all have to be hipsters? bear pond perhaps..

Checkout the kissatens..

[docintheory]

I am going to Boston for a few days for a class in the next couple of weeks. Won't have much time to explore the city, but can anyone recommend a good, local coffee establishment that I should/must visit? I'll mostly be around the Brookline-Longwood area.

[Chinorlz]

Not sure what local independent roasters are out there in the Boston/Cambridge area... but (dare I utter it) the Starbucks on Newbury is one of the locations where they use a Clover and have better beans than your regular Starbucks.

[mike]

anybody have any experience with the vibiemme domobar or the izzo alex?

[CityHunter]

My LA Coffee shop list:

(Downtown)
Demitasse
Handsome Roasters
Cafe Dulce
Spring for Coffee
Coffee Bar

(Westside)
Cafe Tomo
Balconi

[Magic1]

nice list man.

the no free wi-fi is annoying at some of these places...also what's with never getting a french roast? seems like everythign is south american or african?

I haven't tried demitasse or coffeebar, will certainly check them out.

jones coffee is phenomenal. not a third wave coffee bar or anything, just upstanding coffee that's been made well for years. certainly worth checking out. I think they have a westside location, but I haven't been.