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Chi-Town
Written by Letoto on Oct 6th, 2009
This past weekend, after already spending time in Seattle for Coffee Fest, I found myself northwest of Louisville once more. This time, I was a mere five hours away in the Windy City. What's a coffee nut to do, you ask? Why, head on over to Intelligentsia's Millennium Park Coffeebar, of course!
It was there that I enjoyed three delicious, demitasse lick-worthy offerings: A single-origin Kurimi espresso, a Kurimi machiato, and a Black Cat espresso. Jeff, the barista directly responsible for my pleased palate, was very humble and gracious when I offered my appreciation of his skill. The Mazzers and Synesso he used are no mean pieces of espresso equipment, but it still takes a very skilled barista to pull -- pun intended -- what he did.
I also picked up a pound of their Guatemala Huehuetenango La Maravilla. I asked if they had any of the espresso roast that Billy Wilson had used in winning the NWRBC, but sadly, they did not. Oh well. I also managed to convince Lauren that she needed to purchase a pound of their Kenya Ndaroini, with the promise that I'd brew some of it in a syphon. I think we all win with that, don't you?
It was there that I enjoyed three delicious, demitasse lick-worthy offerings: A single-origin Kurimi espresso, a Kurimi machiato, and a Black Cat espresso. Jeff, the barista directly responsible for my pleased palate, was very humble and gracious when I offered my appreciation of his skill. The Mazzers and Synesso he used are no mean pieces of espresso equipment, but it still takes a very skilled barista to pull -- pun intended -- what he did.
I also picked up a pound of their Guatemala Huehuetenango La Maravilla. I asked if they had any of the espresso roast that Billy Wilson had used in winning the NWRBC, but sadly, they did not. Oh well. I also managed to convince Lauren that she needed to purchase a pound of their Kenya Ndaroini, with the promise that I'd brew some of it in a syphon. I think we all win with that, don't you?
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Hario's stainless steel water kettle, the V60 Buono, has been spotted popping up in coffee houses and the kitchens of baristas for some time now. A detailed search on the web will reveal, for the moment at least, that the Buono seems to be widely accepted as the most useful pouring kettle available. What makes this kettle so popular amongst pour-over enthusiasts? Several reasons stand out.
First, the thin pouring spout enables greater pouring precision as well as a slower, more consistent and controlled rate of pour, both of which are very helpful in achieving a precise, prolonged extraction.
Second, the stainless steel construction and large 1 liter capacity contribute toward keeping up the brew temperature for the duration of the entire brew cycle.
Third, the ergonomics involved in the design of the kettle help to make using it much easier. This may not seem like much, but if you're brewing large batches of coffee and pouring for three or more minutes per batch, doing several batches of coffee will quickly become a chore if your kettle doesn't cooperate with you.
Combine all of these facets with the fact that the Buono is manufactured by Hario, a very popular name in the coffee-brewing community, and the kettle's popularity is easily understood. For best results, combine the Buono with a V60 Dripper or Chemex to get a truly exceptional cup of coffee. -
The Fretta Iced Coffee Brewer is Hario's answer to brewing the perfect cup of iced coffee. Hario has combined their famous V60 brewer with a decanter and plastic diffuser to assure that the coffee is quickly cooled by hitting ice immediately after the brewing process. This quick heat transition is important in conserving the flavor of the coffee. The Fretta comes with 10 size 02 paper filters. We recommend that you purchase extra filters as well. To do this select filters as an add-on from the options on the right or go to our Hario 02 filter listing. Also recommend is a pouring kettle. We offer both the Hario Buono Kettle as well as the Kalita Wave Pot Kettle in the drop-down menu on the right.
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For most companies it's hard to find motivation for pushing out new products if you find yourself on top already. This is not, however, the case with La Marzocco. The Italian based espresso machine manufacturer continues to push the envelop when it comes to innovations in espresso machine technology. The newest line from La Marzocco continues their progression in the specific areas of temperature stability and pressure profiling. We've discussed the Strada Electronic Paddle version in detail in our Strada EP blog post and listing for the 2 Group Strada EP. The Strada Mechanical Paddle employs technology similar to the Mechanical Paddles on other La Marzocco models but with a few new features including individual pressure gauges, digital PID control, and dedicated group boilers.
