Going to Portland made me very sad about the lack of selection of good coffee houses in San Jose, and a big emphasis on good. Our first stop was to a new shop called Barista, but unfortunately they are closed on Sundays. It looked to be a really small shop. I was jealous of the fact that they had, not one, but TWO cute two-group espresso machines: a little Synesso (which is what my family's shop has) and a La Marzocco.
They also had some other great looking equipment like a siphon bar, which I have never had a cup of coffee from.
It really was a shame that they were closed because they looked be serving coffee from Intelligentsia and Olympia (Oly), which I have never heard of before. These two coffees would have been a nice change to try, since almost every other place we went to serves Stumptown Coffee. Speaking of Stumptown, that was actually our first stop, since it was in our hotel lobby. More to come!
After 10 long hours, Carla and I made it to Portland at nearly midnight. Our friends from Verve and Zoka did not make it to the semifinals, but Sara Peterson from The Abbey did! This is her first time competing and she has less 
than one year of coffee experience; what a great accomplishment for her! We got to see a glimpse of her performance on Saturday, and she said she felt really good about it afterward. I believe her exact words were "bomb diggity".
At the competitions, they have what is called the 4th Machine, an espresso machine dedicated to roasters and coffee houses showcasing their coffee in designated time slots. They offer esspressos, macchiatos, and cappuccinos absolutely free! All day, everyday. I got to try a macchiato from Ecco Caffe and it was delicious!After hours of people competing and a day of waiting, it was finally time for the 6 finalists to be announced.
Sara patiently waits
for her results.In no particular order, congratulations to:
Ryan Wilbur (Intelligentsia)
Devin Pedde (Intelligentsia)
Mark Marquard (Kaldi's Coffee)
Scott Lucey (Alterra Coffee)
Mike Phillips (Intelligentsia)
Nick Griffith (Intelligentsia)Too bad there are no girls in the mix; it looks like team Intelli is working their way to the top as only one competitor from their shop didn't make it to the next round! They will be competing for the last time in the USBC tomorrow morning; unfortunately, the time springs forward tonight. (No partying tonight for them!)
More to come after tomorrow's results! And of course, you can check out more pictures and information at the USBC website.
Today marks day one of the 2009 United States Barista Championship. It is too bad my sister and I won't be able to make it to Portland till tomorrow night; we'll be missing all of round one and two. Hopefully, our friends Sara Peterson from the Abbey, Jared Truby from Verve, and Robbie Brit from Zoka make it to the semifinals and finals so we can watch them compete! You can check out what's going on up in Portland here and here.
The United States Barista Championship is this weekend and is being held in Portland, Oregon!
Me: Let's go to Portland
My sister (Carla): Okay!
Me: No, really. I'm serious.
Carla: Me too!
We are broke, but for the sake of coffee, we'll scrap every penny we have, even if it will involve sleeping uncomfortably in a Mazda 3 and several packed lunches of chips, fruit, and water. But it will all be worth the days surrounded by coffee culture and of course Portland's green scenery.
Here is a quick rundown of how the competition goes.
Each competitor gets 15 minutes to serve four judges each a single espresso, single cappuccino, and a signature espresso-based drink - one that they created on their own. These are the Sensory Judges, in which they judge based on the appearance of the drink, taste, mouth feel, color, texture, etc. There are also two Technical Judges, who look at the waste of coffee and milk, how consistent the barista is, their cleanliness, consistent extraction of their espresso shots, and how well they clean up after they finish serving the judges. On top of this, there is also a Head Judge.
The competition is based on how the drinks taste, but a barista's score also greatly depends on his/her presentation: whether or not their drinks have any spills on them, whether or not they served the judges water, how well they talk about their coffee and signature beverage. They are essentially servers.
Along with the competition, Carla and I are going to scope out the marvelous coffee scene. (We have a list of shops we must stop by before we leave.) And, whats a coffee event without a little get-together? Yes. We baristas like to party.
As featured in
Barista Magazine.
I took this opportunity to buy some coffee to take back home (and I just have to say that Stumptown has the coolest packaging for their whole beans).
Our next stop was to a garage that got turned into a cafe: Crema.
rather than being stuck on their computers. :)
The cups were bigger than average.
heap one!) Aside from the Ace Hotel being an awesome building with its antique architecture and vintage cabin-like feel, they have a Stumptown attached to the lobby. This is heaven: starting your day off with a great coffee by just walking downstairs while you're still in your jammies. The shot of Hairbender I had was the second best shot I had from our trip. On top of that, they use one of my favorite espresso machine, a La Marzocco Mistral. Although I have never actually worked on one, I just like the way the look because it reminds me of something futuristic like the Jetsons!
Going to Portland made me very sad about the lack of selection of good coffee houses in San Jose, and a big emphasis on good. Our first stop was to a new shop called Barista, but unfortunately they are closed on Sundays. It looked to be a really small shop. I was jealous of the fact that they had, not one, but TWO cute two-group espresso machines: a little Synesso (which is what my family's shop has) and a La Marzocco.
It really was a shame that they were closed because they looked be serving coffee from Intelligentsia and Olympia (Oly), which I have never heard of before. These two coffees would have been a nice change to try, since almost every other place we went to serves Stumptown Coffee. Speaking of Stumptown, that was actually our first stop, since it was in our hotel lobby. More to come!
This is probably the best party idea ever.
than one year of coffee experience; what a great accomplishment for her! We got to see a glimpse of her performance on Saturday, and she said she felt really good about it afterward. I believe her exact words were "bomb diggity".
Today marks day one of the 2009 United States Barista Championship. It is too bad my sister and I won't be able to make it to Portland till tomorrow night; we'll be missing all of round one and two. Hopefully, our friends Sara Peterson from the Abbey, Jared Truby from Verve, and Robbie Brit from Zoka make it to the semifinals and finals so we can watch them compete! You can check out what's going on up in Portland here and here.