My local spot
I'm a pretty lucky guy. From my room in UBC's Tec de Monterrey house, I can walk to a bus loop in ten minutes. At this bus loop, I can catch the 99 B-Line, which is always at the loop (it runs more often than Calgary's C-Train) and in twenty minutes, be at the corner of Broadway and Granville. Two blocks from there, I can be at Brad's Wicked Cafe, home of an incredible selection of Intelligentsia coffees and a very cool atmosphere. Five blocks from there, I can be at Alistair's Elysian Room, home of highly consistent excellent espresso and other drinks. Everything there is très stylish, serving many of their drinks in glassware, and some in the Bodum Pavina series of double walled, mouthblown, borosilicate glasses. But I digress.
One thing I must admit is my almost blind admiration for any shot pulled at Elysian. I've discussed this with Nick, one of the most excellent baristas there, and I attribute this to coming back from Calgary. Anything tastes good compared to what I can get in Calgary. Nick says this attitude will wear off soon, very soon, and I kind of hope so, because I hate not having a sufficiently trained or adjusted palate to be critical about the shots I get. Even if I keep my criticisms to myself. Mind you, I think the shots I have been getting there have been very nice (intense, rich and bittersweet chocolate, especially at the finish, a rarity with most espresso).
I've been told to check out a few other shops around, despite my satisfaction with sticking with the Elysian Room. Prado, on Commercial is one I want to check out, if not for espresso, but the decor. The pictures on Coffeegeek make it seem like quite the place. As well, I met Robert from coffeegeek (dasein), and he insisted I pay a visit to JJ Bean on Main and 14th. Apparently the set up is awe inspiring - two 3 group Lineas, 2 Mazzer majors and 2 Roburs. That's what I'm talking about.
Currently, I've been pressing Kenyan AA from Hines, which is quite nice, and I'm still going on the Intelligentsias left over from my cupping session. Alex acquired some of the new Palomino Espresso blend from JJ as well, so we pressed some last night, to quite positive results. For my tastes, it's slightly rounded, a good sign from an espresso blend, but it means a less distinctive cup from the press.
Until next time,
Peter
PS. This is where I live
One thing I must admit is my almost blind admiration for any shot pulled at Elysian. I've discussed this with Nick, one of the most excellent baristas there, and I attribute this to coming back from Calgary. Anything tastes good compared to what I can get in Calgary. Nick says this attitude will wear off soon, very soon, and I kind of hope so, because I hate not having a sufficiently trained or adjusted palate to be critical about the shots I get. Even if I keep my criticisms to myself. Mind you, I think the shots I have been getting there have been very nice (intense, rich and bittersweet chocolate, especially at the finish, a rarity with most espresso).
I've been told to check out a few other shops around, despite my satisfaction with sticking with the Elysian Room. Prado, on Commercial is one I want to check out, if not for espresso, but the decor. The pictures on Coffeegeek make it seem like quite the place. As well, I met Robert from coffeegeek (dasein), and he insisted I pay a visit to JJ Bean on Main and 14th. Apparently the set up is awe inspiring - two 3 group Lineas, 2 Mazzer majors and 2 Roburs. That's what I'm talking about.
Currently, I've been pressing Kenyan AA from Hines, which is quite nice, and I'm still going on the Intelligentsias left over from my cupping session. Alex acquired some of the new Palomino Espresso blend from JJ as well, so we pressed some last night, to quite positive results. For my tastes, it's slightly rounded, a good sign from an espresso blend, but it means a less distinctive cup from the press.
Until next time,
Peter
PS. This is where I live
posted by Peter at 10:11
1 Comments:
Nice!!
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