Ah, the glorious rosetta, perfectly poured and beautifully adorning your cappuccino. It is a sight to behold, and something even more enjoyable to sip. Micro foamed milk perfectly incorporated with the crema from a shot of espresso, visually stunning to the point that you pause and admire before putting the cup to your lips.
I had my first at Rohs Street Cafe in Clifton back on December 1, 2007. Incidentally, it was also the day I first met my wife. You could say it was a day that changed my life in more ways than one!
But there is one place in Cincinnati that you are certain NOT to find latte art: Starbucks.
I am grateful for Starbucks, I really am. It was the Green Mermaid who delivered me from truck stop coffee and those gas station french vanilla lattes I used to drink. Between the years 2000 and 2008 I easily frequented Starbucks in 38 or more states and regularly brewed their coffee at home. I was certifiably hooked.
They are the specialty coffee gateway drug and the reason for much of the successful rise of specialty coffee in America. I owe a lot to the Green Mermaid, so please do not mistake what I am about to say as Starbucks bashing.
Today, things have changed, and the Starbucks that many of us fell in love with in the 90s has since been replaced by a coffee version of the Golden Arches. Yes, Starbucks has been McDonaldized.
Gone are the days of real barista grinding, tamping and pulling shots for your drink. about it. When was the last time you heard those all too familiar sounds going on at the espresso bar? If you think it was recently, then you have not been paying attention.
For the past several years, Starbucks employees “pull shots” of espresso by pressing a button. That is it. Place shot glass under porta filter, press button, wait. The machine does all of the work, on the inside, where you can’t even see it happening. Fully automatic. No skills involved, unless you count applying your index finger to a button a skill. No need to dial in your grind, weigh out your grounds, apply the perfect amount of pressure to your tamp, or carefully monitor the time of your extraction. How wonderful!
Being a barista at Starbucks used to mean learning marketable coffee industry skills that you could carry with you to other jobs. You had to know what you were doing because making espresso drinks can be extremely unpredictable and challenging. There was a sense of pride in being the barista behind the bar pulling your shots and making your drinks because it really did take skills that took months, even years, to learn well.
This is what we fell in love with. Real people making our drinks. It was personal; it was intimate, and we felt connected.
But the company that brought the term Barista to America have essentially taken all of the baristas skills, once celebrated, out of their stores. All in the name of progress. All in the name of “specialty” coffee. Well, I gotta tell you, there is little of anything “special” left to what ends up in your cups these days. At this point, excellent branding is carrying the day, not drink quality. In fact, I would go as far to say that, if you walked into an independent cafe you had never heard of before and got the same quality latte, that you would think twice about going back for another $4.00+ drink.
I could say more, but I think you get the point. So, here’s my question… with so many legit cafes around town, why are so many folks still going for the siren call of the Mermaid? If McDonalds has taught us anything, it is that Americans are addicted to convenience and predictability to the point that we will give up quality in order to stay in our cars and have something easy. Sad but true.
If you want to enjoy a great cappuccino and experience latte art in Cincinnati, check out Rohs Street Cafe in Clifton, Collective Espresso in OTR, Corner Bloc Coffee in Price Hill , Dojo Gelato at Findlay Market and even Coffee Emporium downtown.
Praise for Our New Colombian Pedregal Lot 172
The Colombian Pedregal Lot 172 has been getting some really nice reviews since we introduced it. This past week we did a pastors conference and it was the most ordered coffee out of the three that we offered. If you have not tried it, be sure to get some. Here is what one of our customers in Rochester, NY had to say after getting their first bag this past week:
We just finished our first cup of Pedregal–it is absolutely fantastic! Taking a sip of your coffee is every bit as satisfying as taking a sip of fine wine. It was so exciting to smell it brewing and to anticipate that first sip! Sooooo wonderful!” ~Julie and Eric
Saying Goodbye to Guatemala
It has been a good run, but the Guatemala Ixil A’achimbal has officially left the building. It was definitely one of the high points of the past season, a great coffee that was super fun to roast and brew. I know some of you will be sad to see it go (Laura), but the best part about it is that we can now make room for the new Rwanda Abakundakawa which we will introduce in the next few weeks. So, if you have any Guatemala left, enjoy the last few brews. And if you are looking for a replacement coffee, I suggest ether the Nicaragua or the Colombia.
In 2010 I got the chance to speak in five Nicaraguan schools and look into the faces of little girls and boys like these. Faces that beamed with promise and potential if only they could be given the chance of a better life.
This is Jorge’s story, and we have decided we want to help him and others like him take that leap with the hopes of them becoming nation-changing young men and women. The rescued becoming rescuers in a nation desperate for a generation of young people to rise above the cycle of poverty they have been born into.
