MatthewG, a fellow CoffeeSnob sent me nearly 20 kilos of his own green beans a while back to add to our beans for the big roast-up at Fiori Coffee. This brought our total of beans to roast up to over 55kg - which looks like it might be just enough, in fact we may even have to get more beans to use on the day of the crop for the 'cafe'.
So far we have pre-sold over 38kg of coffee (roasted weight) - which is getting close to my estimate of 47kg as the roasted weight of the green beans we have on hand.
This is spectacular and I would like to thank everyone who has contributed - Tasha at the Autism Association is very excited at how this is working as a fundraiser.
I'm about to order a big box of bags to pack the coffee into once it is roasted and Kamran at Fiori has offered some Coffee sacks for me to auction off online which should cover the cost of the bags.
The big roasting day approaches (May 7) and in the next week I'll be collating all my orders but I know that we have one order already for $585 worth of coffee, which as a single purchase is amazing.
Going well so far! looking forward to the end result.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
The Crusty Jug Cafe
Remember the Crusty Jug Cafe?
Well there was a query as to whether they were using Griffiths or 5 Senses. I can confirm that they do NOT use 5 Senses and the latest reports from my spies confirm sightings of Griffiths Coffee and not just Griffiths Coffee cups. I reckon Dean at 5 Senses will be mightily relieved to hear it though. If I were a roaster I'd hate to think a cafe was giving my beans a bad reputation.
I'm thinking of buying the cafe in question 2 or 3 smaller jugs and sending them in with a copy of the photo - too subtle do you think?
Well there was a query as to whether they were using Griffiths or 5 Senses. I can confirm that they do NOT use 5 Senses and the latest reports from my spies confirm sightings of Griffiths Coffee and not just Griffiths Coffee cups. I reckon Dean at 5 Senses will be mightily relieved to hear it though. If I were a roaster I'd hate to think a cafe was giving my beans a bad reputation.
I'm thinking of buying the cafe in question 2 or 3 smaller jugs and sending them in with a copy of the photo - too subtle do you think?
3-Way Cupping
In a test of my roasting ability and palate I am going to be roasting and cupping three exceptional beans:
I only have 250g of the JBM because it was $98 a kilo, so I bought just a very small parcel so that I can say that I've tried it - and because I want to see how it stacks up against two other great coffees. I have 5 days off coming up and I think I'll roast 250 grams of each coffee on the same day and then cup them all.
Any volunteers to help assess them?
- Honduran 'Barrios Estate' Pacamara,
- PNG PSC-AA from Chimbu; and
- Jamaican Blue Mountain Mavis Bank Estate.
I only have 250g of the JBM because it was $98 a kilo, so I bought just a very small parcel so that I can say that I've tried it - and because I want to see how it stacks up against two other great coffees. I have 5 days off coming up and I think I'll roast 250 grams of each coffee on the same day and then cup them all.
Any volunteers to help assess them?
Monday, April 23, 2007
5 Senses - Part Three
This post in the 5 Senses saga is really just about Ben Bicknell, so in one respect it’s not about 5 Senses at all but about the head of the WA Barista Academy.
We didn’t know that Ben was going to be there on Friday until Terry (a coffee snob of note) overheard someone ordering spittoons at a catering supply store and mentioned they were for 5 Senses.
Terry put the beans together and asked the bloke if this was for the Coffee Snobs visit. Turns out it was Ben, getting some of the stuff together. Terry and I both considered that the degree of preparation that 5 Senses were putting into this boded well for the day – and we were not wrong.
It was Ben who prepared the coffees for us to cup – pretty awesome really to have the man from WABA making coffee for us!
Ben started out at Gloria Jeans (as far as I know), then met Corey (when he had Core Espresso) and Dean. His passion and enthusiasm for coffee led eventually to him taking on the WABA role under the auspices of 5 Senses.
Anyone who attended the WA Barista Championships earlier in the year can attest to his organisational skills and he is a driving force in promoting specialty coffee in the local media and has won a lot of respect for this role.
There seems to be a strong relationship forming between people in Perth who are passionate about coffee and it is not surprising to run into the same people again and again at different events, but it was great to catch up with Ben again and learn a little more. Of course it was Ben who was looking over my shoulder when I broke the Synesso so I wonder if I can blame that on him?
We didn’t know that Ben was going to be there on Friday until Terry (a coffee snob of note) overheard someone ordering spittoons at a catering supply store and mentioned they were for 5 Senses.
Terry put the beans together and asked the bloke if this was for the Coffee Snobs visit. Turns out it was Ben, getting some of the stuff together. Terry and I both considered that the degree of preparation that 5 Senses were putting into this boded well for the day – and we were not wrong.
It was Ben who prepared the coffees for us to cup – pretty awesome really to have the man from WABA making coffee for us!
Ben started out at Gloria Jeans (as far as I know), then met Corey (when he had Core Espresso) and Dean. His passion and enthusiasm for coffee led eventually to him taking on the WABA role under the auspices of 5 Senses.
Anyone who attended the WA Barista Championships earlier in the year can attest to his organisational skills and he is a driving force in promoting specialty coffee in the local media and has won a lot of respect for this role.
There seems to be a strong relationship forming between people in Perth who are passionate about coffee and it is not surprising to run into the same people again and again at different events, but it was great to catch up with Ben again and learn a little more. Of course it was Ben who was looking over my shoulder when I broke the Synesso so I wonder if I can blame that on him?
Sunday, April 22, 2007
5 Senses - Part Two
Well the bottle of port and I never made it together last night, I figured that mixing it with a headache might not necessarily work for me.
I have had some extra thinking time though, so here is part two.
Extraordinary People.
The key is Extraordinary People.
And for a moment let me expand outside 5 Senses - I'm pretty sure that the best
coffee in Perth is being roasted by extraordinary people and this is based on my contact with Kamran, Louise and Justin at Fiori and with those we met on Friday at 5 Senses (Dean, Jay, Ash, Emma and Rich - I know there were more staff there but my memory seems somewhat limited this morning so I apologise if I missed you!).
I think that from a technical perspective it would be possible for many people to learn how to roast coffee - but like cafe owners, if the roaster does not really care about the coffee, then the final product might be technically adequate but lacking any distinction.
Dean started his business (it seems to me) because he loved the coffee in Chimbu province and he loved the people and the situation in which it was produced. The vision required to take it from that point to the amazing business that 5 Senses has become is significant and watching the interaction of the staff at 5 Senses you can see the passion that each person has for their part of the business.
When you extrapolate this throughout their daily activities what you have is more than just a coffee roastery but a place where people share a common passion and communicate that to others - in this case through the coffee itself.
As a consumer I can attest to an end result that is outstanding. I spent two years after starting work in the Perth CBD moving around from cafe to cafe seeking good coffee. When I finally found coffee that I thought was great it turned out to be 5 Senses and my interest in the coffee and the company started there.
Friday's visit was a bit of a pilgrimage in a sense, a journey to the place that sparked my interest if great coffee. After learning a little about 5 Senses coffee I was inspired to learn more about coffee and discovered home coffee roasting, CoffeeSnobs and a whole community of people for whom coffee is more than just a warm drink.
Coffee as a commodity has an incredible market impact, but beyond the value of the commodity there is another value in coffee as something that transcends borders and ties growers and consumers together - understanding this dynamic is for me as important as understanding the chemistry of coffee.
I like the idea of Fair Trade, but on Friday I heard from Dean as I had from Kamran of a better way of fairly trading coffee that relies on a relationship between the grower and the roaster and that human connection rather than a certification process has a quality that I am much more comfortable with.
I've blogged about 'Relationship Coffee" before, and the two roasters that I admire most also happen to subscribe to this buying method, and in Dean's case it was the genesis of his roastery.
I've been lucky to be welcomed into a coffee world by people that I admire and respect, and to be able to learn from both Dean at 5 Senses and Kamran at Fiori is a real privilege for someone who really just indulges in coffee as a hobby.
I'm planning on a barista course in the next few months to hone my skills at home - although I managed to break the Synesso Sabre on Friday (actually I think it just popped a circuit breaker) so I'll have to be careful with the ones at Epic.
Best of all on Friday was being able to spend some time with my fellow coffee snobs. We are all from such very different backgrounds but it was very a relaxed afternoon and I was pleased to be able to share the fun of it with this group. So thanks guys for coming along, and thank you to Dean and all the crew at 5 Senses for your warm and generous welcome.
I managed to obtain a few of the PNG PSC-AA beans before we left and I'll be roasting these shortly, but I also have a few of the Pacamara beans from Barrios coffee in Honduras through Kam at Fiori. Both of these beans are the relationship coffees I mentioned earlier and I am going to do a roast that combines both of these.
Both are superb on their own, but I have a hunch. . .
I have had some extra thinking time though, so here is part two.
Extraordinary People.
The key is Extraordinary People.
And for a moment let me expand outside 5 Senses - I'm pretty sure that the best
coffee in Perth is being roasted by extraordinary people and this is based on my contact with Kamran, Louise and Justin at Fiori and with those we met on Friday at 5 Senses (Dean, Jay, Ash, Emma and Rich - I know there were more staff there but my memory seems somewhat limited this morning so I apologise if I missed you!).I think that from a technical perspective it would be possible for many people to learn how to roast coffee - but like cafe owners, if the roaster does not really care about the coffee, then the final product might be technically adequate but lacking any distinction.
Dean started his business (it seems to me) because he loved the coffee in Chimbu province and he loved the people and the situation in which it was produced. The vision required to take it from that point to the amazing business that 5 Senses has become is significant and watching the interaction of the staff at 5 Senses you can see the passion that each person has for their part of the business.
When you extrapolate this throughout their daily activities what you have is more than just a coffee roastery but a place where people share a common passion and communicate that to others - in this case through the coffee itself.
As a consumer I can attest to an end result that is outstanding. I spent two years after starting work in the Perth CBD moving around from cafe to cafe seeking good coffee. When I finally found coffee that I thought was great it turned out to be 5 Senses and my interest in the coffee and the company started there.
Friday's visit was a bit of a pilgrimage in a sense, a journey to the place that sparked my interest if great coffee. After learning a little about 5 Senses coffee I was inspired to learn more about coffee and discovered home coffee roasting, CoffeeSnobs and a whole community of people for whom coffee is more than just a warm drink.
Coffee as a commodity has an incredible market impact, but beyond the value of the commodity there is another value in coffee as something that transcends borders and ties growers and consumers together - understanding this dynamic is for me as important as understanding the chemistry of coffee.
I like the idea of Fair Trade, but on Friday I heard from Dean as I had from Kamran of a better way of fairly trading coffee that relies on a relationship between the grower and the roaster and that human connection rather than a certification process has a quality that I am much more comfortable with.
I've blogged about 'Relationship Coffee" before, and the two roasters that I admire most also happen to subscribe to this buying method, and in Dean's case it was the genesis of his roastery.I've been lucky to be welcomed into a coffee world by people that I admire and respect, and to be able to learn from both Dean at 5 Senses and Kamran at Fiori is a real privilege for someone who really just indulges in coffee as a hobby.
I'm planning on a barista course in the next few months to hone my skills at home - although I managed to break the Synesso Sabre on Friday (actually I think it just popped a circuit breaker) so I'll have to be careful with the ones at Epic.
Best of all on Friday was being able to spend some time with my fellow coffee snobs. We are all from such very different backgrounds but it was very a relaxed afternoon and I was pleased to be able to share the fun of it with this group. So thanks guys for coming along, and thank you to Dean and all the crew at 5 Senses for your warm and generous welcome.
I managed to obtain a few of the PNG PSC-AA beans before we left and I'll be roasting these shortly, but I also have a few of the Pacamara beans from Barrios coffee in Honduras through Kam at Fiori. Both of these beans are the relationship coffees I mentioned earlier and I am going to do a roast that combines both of these.
Both are superb on their own, but I have a hunch. . .
Saturday, April 21, 2007
5 Senses - Part One
I crashed into bed at 6pm after I got home last night and did not get around to writing the first installment like I had hoped too.
However. . .
The 5 Senses tour was amazing, and I think I want to break it up into sections to help distill some of my thoughts not just about the day itself but also the implications of the 5-Senses business model, and more importantly the people that are 5 Senses.
This first part will be just a brief outline of our tour - and I'll get into some of the thinking a little later (after port has been served).
While I write this I am sipping a flat white made with the Capricorn Estate, which has followed a ristretto of the same. This is the first Australian coffee that I have enjoyed - most I have thought lacked significantly in one area or another and the deficiencies have been too hard to repair by blending. This one though is something else and that seems to be the way at 5 Senses, seeking out the 'something else beans' and playing with them to see where they fit on the coffee spectrum.
5 Senses is located in a light industrial area in Rockingham in an old series of sheds with just a small sign at the top of the shed to indicate that this is the place where magic happens.
Dean Gallagher started the company out of love for a coffee he found in Chimbu province in Papua New Guinea and after bringing back small amounts for friends and family (and get this fellow CoffeeSnobs - Dean started off as a home roaster!).
Dean also believed that the Papuan community he had been working with had something special in its small plots of coffee and that it was worth more than the few cents per kilogram they were receiving.
The end result is that Dean has a relationship with the local community and buys their coffee at a fair price. The community now has its own coffee mill and part of the purchase price of the coffee goes directly to financing community projects such as a hydro-electric generator and a new school building.
At the roasting end, I can confirm that Dean's PNG PSC-A is indeed something special and to consider that it was the reason for starting 5 Senses its legendary status is well deserved. PSC stand for 'Premium Smallholder Coffee' and in the PNG grading system coffee is usually Estate or PSC grown. Smallholder is about right, with some growers just having 5 or 6 trees of their own to harvest each year - the one cash crop in an otherwise subsistence lifestyle.
The PSC-A is also the reason that 5-Senses has a business ethic that sees the full path of the bean from the grower to the cup and it is a testament to Dean and his staff that this is carried through with passion and compassion.
Our tour commenced with introductions, and for the first time in my life I not only knew
everybody there but remembered their names - which if you know my record on placing faces to names is quite an achievement. We had nine in our group and Dean commenced by telling us a little about the roastery and why he has a passion for coffee before taking us around and introducing us to the roaster.
True to my word I restrained myself from diving headlong into the beans, although I will confess to loving caresses of several single origins of note as we took in the sights, sounds and aromas.
It's funny to think that some people might walk into the shed and see racks with sacks and a big red machine in the other corner, but I (and I think all those in our group) seem to get tunnel
vision of a sort that focuses on the sacks of green beans and the chamber in which they can reach their full potential.
Dean has an amazing collection of single origin coffees and I probably could spend weeks just looking at, feeling the beans and asking questions about each of them - just seeing the range in one place and learning a little about some of them was a great start.
We watched a roast of PNG AA - beans as large as peanuts, almost like Maragogipe beans and then went back to the cupping room to try some contrasting brews and to learn (for me at least) a new cupping technique.
The tour finished with an amazingly generous sample bag of 5 Senses goodies which has certainly whet my appetite for more and I think I'd like to go down again to learn more. I am constantly discovering how little I know about coffee - and loving the fact that I have still more to learn.
I'll continue with my (hopefully) deeper thoughts later - after the boys are quietly asleep, and a glass of port has put me in a more contemplative place. I must say this though, I can already see a strong link between quality and ethics and I believe that we now have the potential to see a shift in the coffee industry that is driven along a broad front that include people in each stage from the crop to the cup.
However. . .
The 5 Senses tour was amazing, and I think I want to break it up into sections to help distill some of my thoughts not just about the day itself but also the implications of the 5-Senses business model, and more importantly the people that are 5 Senses.
This first part will be just a brief outline of our tour - and I'll get into some of the thinking a little later (after port has been served).While I write this I am sipping a flat white made with the Capricorn Estate, which has followed a ristretto of the same. This is the first Australian coffee that I have enjoyed - most I have thought lacked significantly in one area or another and the deficiencies have been too hard to repair by blending. This one though is something else and that seems to be the way at 5 Senses, seeking out the 'something else beans' and playing with them to see where they fit on the coffee spectrum.
5 Senses is located in a light industrial area in Rockingham in an old series of sheds with just a small sign at the top of the shed to indicate that this is the place where magic happens.
Dean Gallagher started the company out of love for a coffee he found in Chimbu province in Papua New Guinea and after bringing back small amounts for friends and family (and get this fellow CoffeeSnobs - Dean started off as a home roaster!).
Dean also believed that the Papuan community he had been working with had something special in its small plots of coffee and that it was worth more than the few cents per kilogram they were receiving.
The end result is that Dean has a relationship with the local community and buys their coffee at a fair price. The community now has its own coffee mill and part of the purchase price of the coffee goes directly to financing community projects such as a hydro-electric generator and a new school building.At the roasting end, I can confirm that Dean's PNG PSC-A is indeed something special and to consider that it was the reason for starting 5 Senses its legendary status is well deserved. PSC stand for 'Premium Smallholder Coffee' and in the PNG grading system coffee is usually Estate or PSC grown. Smallholder is about right, with some growers just having 5 or 6 trees of their own to harvest each year - the one cash crop in an otherwise subsistence lifestyle.
The PSC-A is also the reason that 5-Senses has a business ethic that sees the full path of the bean from the grower to the cup and it is a testament to Dean and his staff that this is carried through with passion and compassion.
Our tour commenced with introductions, and for the first time in my life I not only knew
everybody there but remembered their names - which if you know my record on placing faces to names is quite an achievement. We had nine in our group and Dean commenced by telling us a little about the roastery and why he has a passion for coffee before taking us around and introducing us to the roaster.True to my word I restrained myself from diving headlong into the beans, although I will confess to loving caresses of several single origins of note as we took in the sights, sounds and aromas.
It's funny to think that some people might walk into the shed and see racks with sacks and a big red machine in the other corner, but I (and I think all those in our group) seem to get tunnel
vision of a sort that focuses on the sacks of green beans and the chamber in which they can reach their full potential.Dean has an amazing collection of single origin coffees and I probably could spend weeks just looking at, feeling the beans and asking questions about each of them - just seeing the range in one place and learning a little about some of them was a great start.
We watched a roast of PNG AA - beans as large as peanuts, almost like Maragogipe beans and then went back to the cupping room to try some contrasting brews and to learn (for me at least) a new cupping technique.
The tour finished with an amazingly generous sample bag of 5 Senses goodies which has certainly whet my appetite for more and I think I'd like to go down again to learn more. I am constantly discovering how little I know about coffee - and loving the fact that I have still more to learn.
I'll continue with my (hopefully) deeper thoughts later - after the boys are quietly asleep, and a glass of port has put me in a more contemplative place. I must say this though, I can already see a strong link between quality and ethics and I believe that we now have the potential to see a shift in the coffee industry that is driven along a broad front that include people in each stage from the crop to the cup.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Chai Tea at Tiger Tiger
Review contributed by Prakash
Tea: Spiced Chai
Ingredients: Sri Lanka Tea, spices (hand ground from whole spices at Fiori)
Producer: Fiori Coffee, West perth
Cafe: Tiger Tiger, Murray Mews, Murray Street, Perth
After hearing and reading about Tiger, Tiger courtesy of Grendel of course, I just had to accompany him on a foray to check it out for myself. Stepping into the alleyway, I was visited with a huge wave of nostalgia. The setting and ambiance of the café was reminiscent of familiar haunts in Singapore which have no doubt disappeared today. The mismatched painted timber furniture and crockery immediately made me feel at home.
Grendel and I were there for lunch but I was more interested in sampling the Chai. In my opinion, making a good pot of Chai is a creative experience all of its own. It seems to defy much of the usual recommendations for a good cup of tea. A good pot of Chai or spiced tea depends on a variety of variables which include the range and amount of spices used, how the Chai is steeped and individual tastes.
We were ushered to a table by the owner herself, Claire. Claire also brought over Chai and took charge. Hot milk (not boiling, around 65 to 70 degrees Celsius is recommended) was poured directly into the teapot and three cubes of sugar stirred in. Having lived in India for a time, Claire knew best. For the uninitiated, the flavour of the complex blend of spices is best released and experienced by lots of milk and a great deal of sweetness. Patience in steeping is crucial. I would wait for a good five minutes or more for the full flavour of the Chai to infuse the milk. Grendel can attest to the difference a couple of minutes make in this process because he sampled some of the Chai at two minutes and then at five minutes after the milk was poured into the pot. The richness in the aroma and flavour certainly came into its own.
The Chai we drank had a smooth texture and the taste of cinnamon, star anise and cloves came through delightfully. I have not had a good cup of Chai since I left Singapore, until now that is. The only thing which would have enhanced this experience further would have been a teaspoonful of condensed milk added to the pot. I give this '5-leaves' on my tea rating scale.
Easily the best Chai I’ve drunk in a long while.
Tea: Spiced Chai
Ingredients: Sri Lanka Tea, spices (hand ground from whole spices at Fiori)
Producer: Fiori Coffee, West perth
Cafe: Tiger Tiger, Murray Mews, Murray Street, Perth
After hearing and reading about Tiger, Tiger courtesy of Grendel of course, I just had to accompany him on a foray to check it out for myself. Stepping into the alleyway, I was visited with a huge wave of nostalgia. The setting and ambiance of the café was reminiscent of familiar haunts in Singapore which have no doubt disappeared today. The mismatched painted timber furniture and crockery immediately made me feel at home.
Grendel and I were there for lunch but I was more interested in sampling the Chai. In my opinion, making a good pot of Chai is a creative experience all of its own. It seems to defy much of the usual recommendations for a good cup of tea. A good pot of Chai or spiced tea depends on a variety of variables which include the range and amount of spices used, how the Chai is steeped and individual tastes.
We were ushered to a table by the owner herself, Claire. Claire also brought over Chai and took charge. Hot milk (not boiling, around 65 to 70 degrees Celsius is recommended) was poured directly into the teapot and three cubes of sugar stirred in. Having lived in India for a time, Claire knew best. For the uninitiated, the flavour of the complex blend of spices is best released and experienced by lots of milk and a great deal of sweetness. Patience in steeping is crucial. I would wait for a good five minutes or more for the full flavour of the Chai to infuse the milk. Grendel can attest to the difference a couple of minutes make in this process because he sampled some of the Chai at two minutes and then at five minutes after the milk was poured into the pot. The richness in the aroma and flavour certainly came into its own.
The Chai we drank had a smooth texture and the taste of cinnamon, star anise and cloves came through delightfully. I have not had a good cup of Chai since I left Singapore, until now that is. The only thing which would have enhanced this experience further would have been a teaspoonful of condensed milk added to the pot. I give this '5-leaves' on my tea rating scale.
Easily the best Chai I’ve drunk in a long while.
The Gap
An 8-day gap in blogging in not optimal, but lately work and health have conspired to drain me of energy so that by the time I arrive home I can't even look at the computer. I finally got around to visiting the doctor yesterday and ended up with some antibiotics that will hopefully take care of the fatigue-ee thing draining all my energy.
This doesn't help the load at work though becasue the agreement we are trying to negotiate between the state and federal governments is now in the 'money' phase, which is you might expect the least amicable of phases. Everyone is very polite but there is always tension.
Epic's double ristrettos have been kick starting me in the morning, and the flat whites from Pranzo keeping me going, but by midday all I want to do is go home and sleep.
Tomorrow however is a half day - I'll work till 11 am then meet up with Hamo and head on down to Rockingham for the long awaited tour of the 5-Senses coffee roastery.
I'll be taking the camera - and I'm tempted to take a notebook so that I don't miss the salient points for later blogging.
We have 11 local coffee snobs heading down there and it should be a great afternoon out. To many people a coffee roastery might seem a lot like a warehouse with a roaster, but to me it is more like a mint, and like Scrooge McDuck I always have an overwhelming urge to throw myself onto the bags of loot and laugh like a maniac. I will resist that urge however - I'd hate to taint the coffee!
Look out for the big post about 5-Senses on the weekend though!
This doesn't help the load at work though becasue the agreement we are trying to negotiate between the state and federal governments is now in the 'money' phase, which is you might expect the least amicable of phases. Everyone is very polite but there is always tension.
Epic's double ristrettos have been kick starting me in the morning, and the flat whites from Pranzo keeping me going, but by midday all I want to do is go home and sleep.
Tomorrow however is a half day - I'll work till 11 am then meet up with Hamo and head on down to Rockingham for the long awaited tour of the 5-Senses coffee roastery.
I'll be taking the camera - and I'm tempted to take a notebook so that I don't miss the salient points for later blogging.
We have 11 local coffee snobs heading down there and it should be a great afternoon out. To many people a coffee roastery might seem a lot like a warehouse with a roaster, but to me it is more like a mint, and like Scrooge McDuck I always have an overwhelming urge to throw myself onto the bags of loot and laugh like a maniac. I will resist that urge however - I'd hate to taint the coffee!
Look out for the big post about 5-Senses on the weekend though!
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
@ Pranzo - Barrios Estate Coffee (Fiori Coffee)
Bean: Barrios Estate, Marcala, Honduras (Pacamara beans)
Roaster: Fiori Coffee, West perth
Date Roasted: April 5
Date Sampled: April 11
Cafe: Pranzo, Colin Street, West Perth
I stopped by Pranzo this morning because I had heard that Pete had bought a few kilos of the Honduran Coffee from Barrios Estate that Kamran roasted last Thursday.
Roaster: Fiori Coffee, West perth
Date Roasted: April 5
Date Sampled: April 11
Cafe: Pranzo, Colin Street, West Perth
I stopped by Pranzo this morning because I had heard that Pete had bought a few kilos of the Honduran Coffee from Barrios Estate that Kamran roasted last Thursday.I tried it as a ristretto and as a flat white and was impressed with its qualities as a single origin in both. As a ristretto it hard an inviting warmth and pleasant acidity with no bitterness and a cedery quality. It cut through the milk superbly in a flat white and really added some tones that I have not encountered before - more choccy fudge flavours than anything and quite sweet (I added no sugar to either).
Pete is sourcing a second grinder and will offer this alongside the Mocha blend he is currently using from Fiori.
It is great to see another cafe working hard on their coffee - and particularly a single origin estate coffee with a known provenance. Having learned a lot more about this coffee on Saturday, and having tried it immediately after roasting on Thursday, on Saturday night and again today I am impressed with its qualities and I think that this has opened up a whole new world on Honduran coffee for me.
My previous experiences with Honduran beans have not been terribly exciting, but this coffee is really something else and I managed to get a small sample of green beans to roast myself (Not that Kamran isn't doing a terrific job with it but I do love to play!).
This morning's coffee's at Pranzo indicated that Pete and his staff are also having a bit of a play and their continuing focus on coffee quality is great to see. I'll also confess to a Pumpkin muffin (Jan's Wednesday special) which along with the apple and rhubarb muffins are really at the pinnacle of Perth Muffinism (if you are a muffin devotee that is).
Oddly I would not have picked rhubarb as a muffin ingredient but it works. The pumpkin one that I had this morning went really well with the Barrios coffee with the nuttiness of the muffin nicely complimenting the warm tones of the coffee.
Does it sound like I enjoyed my morning coffee today?
:)
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Zambian Lupili Estate - Cupping Notes
On monday Kamran and I roasted the Zambian Lupili Estate that was donated by CoffeeSnobs as the main fundraising coffee for the coffee drive. My intent had been to blend it with a little Tiger Mountain and some Ethiopian Yirgachef. Having cupped this though I think that it doesn't need any help at all so we are going to roast it as a single origin.
This is my first large scale roast and it is a real pleasure to be working with a quality estate coffee and a professional master roaster. Needless to say my learning curve of late has been steep!
My cupping notes for the Lupili Estate AA - 2006
Dry - Bright floral notes, honeysuckle and citrus blossoms with some underlying cooked beef tones.
Wet, 1st minute - Muting of the brighter notes, more earthiness and a little chocolate.
Wet, 4th minute - Beefiness returns, but smoother and with some spice.
Taste - The coffee is bright, but pleasantly so - there is a good level of acidity that supports the floral notes - again citrus blossoms came to mind. There is also an earthiness beneath these of the type you would normally associate with an African coffee but it does not dominate.
Overall I think this will do well as a single origin in a plunger and it should translate well to espresso. It is quite smooth and I think my preference would be as a morning coffee but it would suit all day long. I think this would really shine served with a citrus tart or perhaps with a pecan and maple slice.
This is my first large scale roast and it is a real pleasure to be working with a quality estate coffee and a professional master roaster. Needless to say my learning curve of late has been steep!
My cupping notes for the Lupili Estate AA - 2006
Dry - Bright floral notes, honeysuckle and citrus blossoms with some underlying cooked beef tones.
Wet, 1st minute - Muting of the brighter notes, more earthiness and a little chocolate.
Wet, 4th minute - Beefiness returns, but smoother and with some spice.
Taste - The coffee is bright, but pleasantly so - there is a good level of acidity that supports the floral notes - again citrus blossoms came to mind. There is also an earthiness beneath these of the type you would normally associate with an African coffee but it does not dominate.
Overall I think this will do well as a single origin in a plunger and it should translate well to espresso. It is quite smooth and I think my preference would be as a morning coffee but it would suit all day long. I think this would really shine served with a citrus tart or perhaps with a pecan and maple slice.
Saturday, April 07, 2007
It Matters
From time to time people ask why I bother. Is a good cup of coffee really worth all the hassle?Tonight brought it all home for me - tonight was the real reason why it matters, why you should demand quality and why it is important to know about the coffee we drink.
Fiori Coffee in West Perth sent an invitation out to their mailing list to come along to their roastery and hear from a coffee grower from Honduras and get his perspective of drinking coffee, growing coffee and the profound relationship that exists between the cup and the crop.
Gerardo Barrios now lives and works in Australia, but he is a 7th generation coffee grower and his family has grown coffee in Honduras for over 150 years.
Gerardo represents the new face of what we could call 'Relationship Coffee' which is in my opinion a significant step beyond 'Certified' programs such as Fair Trade, Organic etc.
The building of relationships between growers and roasters offers a unique opportunity for growers to sell directly to roasters and for roasters to ensure a supply of high quality coffee to an agreed standard.
Gerardo started importing his family's coffee into Australia to help out at a time when world coffee prices were low, and when Honduran coffee was less well known and growers suffered a price penalty as a result.
Low prices don't just create hardship for the grower. Each grower employs people to grow and plant the seedlings, care for the coffee plants and harvest and process the coffee cherries. This is not high paying work, and many of the employees on a coffee plantation are already among the poorest of the poor. The lifespan for some workers is only 50 years, and for the men who carry the heavy sacks of coffee, their later years are beset by chronic back problems as you would expect. Gerardo's family have introduced sacks that can only hold 20 kilograms of coffee to quite literally 'lighten the load' for these workers.
Low prices can mean that it is uneconomical for a grower to harvest as it costs more to harvest than they will receive for the coffee. This can have an impact at the local level and also on the regional and national level in countries like Honduras. In between the grower and the cafe the coffee will have been processed by hand several times, from harvesting to sorting and after bagging it may pass through several intermediaries, each one adding their 'cut' to the final cost of the roasted bean.
Every time you drink a cup of coffee, you are knowingly or not, participating in a process that often started with people who had very little and who get very little of the price that you paid for that cup of coffee.
Fair Trade is one effort to redress this balance, but like many 'certification' programs th
ere are barriers and bureaucracies and in the end it depends on the value of the branding, which while it might give some assurance of cash flow, does not necessarily mean that the coffee will be any good. This can hurt the branding and create an assumption that you might buy fair trade solely to support growers rather than because of the quality of the coffee. Organic certification has a similar problem and also comes with a certification system that costs the growers some of the income they can often not afford to spend just to be able to use a label.To put this into context, the coffee grower may not be able to process their own crop, so it will be sold for a few cents per kilo to a 'Coyote', a middleman who on-sells the coffee to a mill. The 'Coyote' will squeeze the grower as much as they can to increase their margin, the mill will squeeze the Coyote and so on. Of course the large buyers, the import and export cartels play a very big role in determining the price and by the time the green beans arrive in Australia a lot of the hard dealing has already gone on.
For a small grower, producing a quality coffee, it can be almost impossible to break through all of this and to sell the coffee at a fair price to someone who will appreciate its value and respect the coffee, and the people who produced it.
That is where a small artisan roaster like Fiori comes in. Kamran met Gerardo and over a number of years has developed a relationship of mutual trust and respect, the result of this is that Kamran has access to an outstanding central American coffee and Gerardo is able to ensure that the money for that coffee is able to be returned to where it is needed.
In turn, Fiori coffee is rapidly building on its already outstanding reputation for quality, with an equally outstanding reputation for ethical business dealing and for supporting good business and practices among growers that extend to fair wages for those who work on the coffee plantations and supporting the education and health needs of the workers.
The two leading coffee roasters in Perth have both shown this concern and it is an outstanding feature of their business. Thankfully many Perth coffee drinkers, first captured by the quality of the coffee are also tuning in the the more important message of the part they play as individuals in supporting all the hands who planted, picked, sorted and carried the coffee from the plantation to the cup.
Honduras is but one of many coffee growing countries that depend on the annual coffee crop. As the second most valuable commodity after oil, coffee has a significance in the global economy and an impact that reaches far beyond the microfoam on your morning flat white.Yes, we want to be able to enjoy the good things in life - and coffee is certainly one of those, but our enjoyment should not be at the expense of others. I'll take that a little further and suggest that our coffee drinking should in fact contribute to the welfare of others. If you care about coffee then you should care about where it comes from and learn about those whose hands are the first to pluck this treasure from the tree.
I'm a consumer, not a coffee industry person. As a consumer however I can make choices and to echo Gerardo Barrios, while I may not be able to change the world, I can change my world.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
The Last Supper
As Easter approaches my thoughts turn to the interpretation of events at the last supper and how that time has indeed stirred the grounds and muddied the coffee of history. Also it's time to rip off the Da Vinci Code AND the gospel of Judas because it just hasn't been done enough.
The Ancient and Noble Order of the Coffee Snob has long guarded the secret of the true last supper when the one truth was revealed to the disciples of the first Barista.
It was he who gave them the miracle at Canaan where he turned the water into coffee and ground fresh Arabica beans at the tomb of Lazarus to wake the dead.
At the mount by the sea of Galilee he took 5 ristretto and 3 biscotto and with them served 5000.
The time of betrayal was near, when one of his own would turn from the true path, abandon the precepts that the holy one had taught and seek to rise above his brethren and sisteren.
They were the disciples, the chosen ones, these were they who had answered the call and sought out the righteous path of coffee making so that they might bring joy to all the nations.
And these were they - first there was Simon, the one they called Simon for it was his name.
Next there was his brother, also called Simon due to a disagreement between their parents.
Then there were James and John, sons of Zebedee (or at least Zebedee thought they were his sons, really they were the sons of one of the many milkmen of Judea which perhaps goes some way to explaining their talent with milk texturing).
There was Thomas, built like a tank, Phillipa the first female barista, Bart, Simon, Simone, Simeon, Simon the Zealot and Judas who among them all was the best at pulling a 'God Shot'.
Now the wine merchants of those parts were unhappy with the Holy One for he had led many from the wine shops into the cafes of righteousness and their business models were in tatters. They conspired with the Romans saying
The Romans relieved not to have to lay siege yet again during the long hot Judean summer to quell a rebellious population agreed to the wine merchants demands that the Holy one and his disciples must be dispersed. The Romans had already recognised the potential of cafes as places of ferment and philosophy and approved of neither (the first was a risk to Rome and the second was Greek to them).
The Holy one had sent two disciples ahead to prepare a nice al fresco area for supper and to roast the sacred beans for the evening sharing.
In a coincidence that shall be explained fully a little later, Judas had been sent to the potter's field to purchase some small bowls for practicing latte art, but these were not ready and his return was delayed.
When he arrived all were seated for the supper and Simon brother of Simon who was known as Simon angrily asked Judas "Why are you so delayed, we are in need of coffee".
Judas sighed the sigh well known to all who follow the barista path, the sigh of long suffering, silent, so as not to be heard by the customer, but forceful so that some of the inner angst was spent into the air. He left to prepare the coffee, but for Simon, Brother of Simon who was known as Simon he merely spooned in some dried up grounds from a cup of a roast that was of beans from many nations and poured hot water upon this. He then added some under-stretched, over-steamed soy. He placed this cup among the others on the tray intending that Simon, Brother of Simon who was known as Simon should not enjoy his coffee that night.
It was Phillipa that was his downfall, she of the dark eyes and wicked rosetta styling wrist flicks. She offered to help, but not knowing of his plan placed the tragic cup before the Holy one who immediately lifted it with his hands and said "this is the stuff of life, this is what we want and need, treasure it, each and every one of you".
At these words he tasted the cup and his brows creased and a fierce look was upon his face.
"Blasphemy! Ignominy! Heresy! Betrayal! Who has done this?"
Judas, with a look of horror on his face fled from the room thinking he would surely be banished.
He ran through the town but at the gates was seized by the angry wine merchants who poured cheap rose into his mouth until at last he led them to the place where the Holy one sat and betrayed him to them.
He then fled the city and returned to the potter's field where he learned the Potter's trade and made goblets, plates, fine tea cups, but never a demitasse or latte bowl. He remembered though the teachings of the Holy first Barista and he passed these to his children and to his children's children each of them a barista in their turn and so on and so forth up unto the present day.
These secrets have been jealously guarded by the descendants of Judas and it is only now that the Ancient and Noble order of the Coffee Snob is revealing the true history of the code of the Barista. It is hoped that the people of the world are now ready for true coffee and to put aside the false coffees that they have worshipped for so long.
The Ancient and Noble Order of the Coffee Snob has long guarded the secret of the true last supper when the one truth was revealed to the disciples of the first Barista.
It was he who gave them the miracle at Canaan where he turned the water into coffee and ground fresh Arabica beans at the tomb of Lazarus to wake the dead.
At the mount by the sea of Galilee he took 5 ristretto and 3 biscotto and with them served 5000.
The time of betrayal was near, when one of his own would turn from the true path, abandon the precepts that the holy one had taught and seek to rise above his brethren and sisteren.
They were the disciples, the chosen ones, these were they who had answered the call and sought out the righteous path of coffee making so that they might bring joy to all the nations.
And these were they - first there was Simon, the one they called Simon for it was his name.
Next there was his brother, also called Simon due to a disagreement between their parents.
Then there were James and John, sons of Zebedee (or at least Zebedee thought they were his sons, really they were the sons of one of the many milkmen of Judea which perhaps goes some way to explaining their talent with milk texturing).
There was Thomas, built like a tank, Phillipa the first female barista, Bart, Simon, Simone, Simeon, Simon the Zealot and Judas who among them all was the best at pulling a 'God Shot'.
Now the wine merchants of those parts were unhappy with the Holy One for he had led many from the wine shops into the cafes of righteousness and their business models were in tatters. They conspired with the Romans saying
"you are as brothers to us, at least in the consumption and appreciation of wine, we don't like your bacon and you don't like our gefilte fish but apart from that there is much we share"
The Romans relieved not to have to lay siege yet again during the long hot Judean summer to quell a rebellious population agreed to the wine merchants demands that the Holy one and his disciples must be dispersed. The Romans had already recognised the potential of cafes as places of ferment and philosophy and approved of neither (the first was a risk to Rome and the second was Greek to them).
The Holy one had sent two disciples ahead to prepare a nice al fresco area for supper and to roast the sacred beans for the evening sharing.
In a coincidence that shall be explained fully a little later, Judas had been sent to the potter's field to purchase some small bowls for practicing latte art, but these were not ready and his return was delayed.
When he arrived all were seated for the supper and Simon brother of Simon who was known as Simon angrily asked Judas "Why are you so delayed, we are in need of coffee".
Judas sighed the sigh well known to all who follow the barista path, the sigh of long suffering, silent, so as not to be heard by the customer, but forceful so that some of the inner angst was spent into the air. He left to prepare the coffee, but for Simon, Brother of Simon who was known as Simon he merely spooned in some dried up grounds from a cup of a roast that was of beans from many nations and poured hot water upon this. He then added some under-stretched, over-steamed soy. He placed this cup among the others on the tray intending that Simon, Brother of Simon who was known as Simon should not enjoy his coffee that night.
It was Phillipa that was his downfall, she of the dark eyes and wicked rosetta styling wrist flicks. She offered to help, but not knowing of his plan placed the tragic cup before the Holy one who immediately lifted it with his hands and said "this is the stuff of life, this is what we want and need, treasure it, each and every one of you".
At these words he tasted the cup and his brows creased and a fierce look was upon his face.
"Blasphemy! Ignominy! Heresy! Betrayal! Who has done this?"
Judas, with a look of horror on his face fled from the room thinking he would surely be banished.
He ran through the town but at the gates was seized by the angry wine merchants who poured cheap rose into his mouth until at last he led them to the place where the Holy one sat and betrayed him to them.
He then fled the city and returned to the potter's field where he learned the Potter's trade and made goblets, plates, fine tea cups, but never a demitasse or latte bowl. He remembered though the teachings of the Holy first Barista and he passed these to his children and to his children's children each of them a barista in their turn and so on and so forth up unto the present day.
These secrets have been jealously guarded by the descendants of Judas and it is only now that the Ancient and Noble order of the Coffee Snob is revealing the true history of the code of the Barista. It is hoped that the people of the world are now ready for true coffee and to put aside the false coffees that they have worshipped for so long.
I have a secret
In fact I have two secrets.
I was at Fiori Coffee yesterday with Kamran trying out his sample roaster to roast a 300g batch of the Zambian Lupili Estate coffee that was donated by Coffee Snobs members for the Autism Association Fundraiser. We want to blend the 30 kg's on the Zambian with one or two other beans in minor quantities but really need to get the measure of the Zambian on its own first.
This process is a lot of fun and yesterday while we were making a pre-roast coffee, another Perth coffee afficianado dropped in to pick up some coffee for home.
This bloke (who shall remain nameless until his plans are made public) is opening a new coffee location in the city and the plan sounds terrific.
I'm looking forward to seeing the place open and operating - but I'll tell no more than that unil I get the green light.
This is the second new cafe news I have heard lately - I've already mentioned the one opening in the Northern suburbs. Both operators are working with a local artisan roaster, both using top end equipment and both have a real passion for coffee. Any business is hard work - and cafes more than most, but these guys are starting from a good place in many ways and I am sure they'll be a great addition to Perth's rapidly improving coffee scene.
I'll tell more when I can!
I was at Fiori Coffee yesterday with Kamran trying out his sample roaster to roast a 300g batch of the Zambian Lupili Estate coffee that was donated by Coffee Snobs members for the Autism Association Fundraiser. We want to blend the 30 kg's on the Zambian with one or two other beans in minor quantities but really need to get the measure of the Zambian on its own first.
This process is a lot of fun and yesterday while we were making a pre-roast coffee, another Perth coffee afficianado dropped in to pick up some coffee for home.
This bloke (who shall remain nameless until his plans are made public) is opening a new coffee location in the city and the plan sounds terrific.
I'm looking forward to seeing the place open and operating - but I'll tell no more than that unil I get the green light.
This is the second new cafe news I have heard lately - I've already mentioned the one opening in the Northern suburbs. Both operators are working with a local artisan roaster, both using top end equipment and both have a real passion for coffee. Any business is hard work - and cafes more than most, but these guys are starting from a good place in many ways and I am sure they'll be a great addition to Perth's rapidly improving coffee scene.
I'll tell more when I can!
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Home Barista Night
A couple of posts ago I mentioned
that Vanessa from Epic had visited up our way and given some of the Northern locals a taste of home barista training.
Well we now have a group of very keen coffee lovers busy practicing their coffee making skills at home.
I didn't take any photos - but one of the other keen home coffee lovers did.
This night was a great way to introduce good technique and basic knowledge and I reckon a few of those who were there on the night will go on to more intensive courses.
I'm having a quiet Sunday today with Mrs Grendel away for the weekend - just me and the two Junior Grendels. Come to think of it - its not at all a quiet Sunday.
I haven't even had the chance to practice my coffee making today - not that I need much practice, but that is as good an excuse as anything!
that Vanessa from Epic had visited up our way and given some of the Northern locals a taste of home barista training.Well we now have a group of very keen coffee lovers busy practicing their coffee making skills at home.
I didn't take any photos - but one of the other keen home coffee lovers did.
This night was a great way to introduce good technique and basic knowledge and I reckon a few of those who were there on the night will go on to more intensive courses.
I'm having a quiet Sunday today with Mrs Grendel away for the weekend - just me and the two Junior Grendels. Come to think of it - its not at all a quiet Sunday.
I haven't even had the chance to practice my coffee making today - not that I need much practice, but that is as good an excuse as anything!
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