The Bean Vagrant

Happy New Year!

The Winter Hoard 2011 blend has been exceptional, and I have stayed with it as our espresso almost continuously over the last few weeks. Partly because it’s so exciting and unique, partly because it’s THE seasonal blend right now at the roastery and won’t be here for long, and also to learn more. There have been eager requests from some of our guys along the way *I GET Winter Hoard, when are we going to get something new?!*, and I admit, the temptation to keep trying new coffees the whole time is strong! But for me, it’s been another rewarding little journey, patiently sticking with just one great blend for a while again, and observing it from many angles, in an attempt to understand it, and espresso generally, more intimately. I think there’s almost no limit to how much you can learn using just one blend, if you look closely enough. And how much you can miss if you don’t. Even though I often turn coffees inside out searching for stuff, I barely even scratch the surface, to be honest. Espresso’s a devious moving target, and even the same coffee is alive and constantly changing, but at least if you keep this one variable ‘fixed’ for a while, you can look at many things a little more clearly. I’ve said it before …and probably will again!

Just one of the things it has lead to is a current in-depth look at brew temperatures on our machine. Following my taste as I worked with the blend lead me to a place with temperatures that I could hardly believe. Our roaster then kindly re-loaned me his 53mm Scace, and I’m currently logging lots of data in an attempt to more intimately understand how our machine, our set-up, and temperatures generally, perform and affect espresso brewing. I’m also logging things like ambient temps and humidity and roast age simultaneously alongside the Scace readings to try to get a broader picture. And I’m recording, and simulating, various working and environmental scenarios as well. It’s fascinating! Again, despite the lengths to which I am going in doing this, it’s still really only snapshots, relative to how detailed, methodical, and scientific you could be when using the thermofilter …First and foremost there are drinks to make and customers to serve, afterall!

I first borrowed the Scace a couple of years ago, and did quite a lot of readings on our machine back then, but I’m looking at a little more detail this time, being a bit more methodical, and many things have changed since then. One thing I’ve learned is the importance of using a clean Scace on a thoroughly cleaned group! Initially, I thought something was different to the first time I borrowed the device, but thought little of it, and took readings for several days (on clean but not immaculately, freshly, purpose-cleaned groups!), before coming to realise the flow rate had been out from the start (and was worsening), and therefore the readings were inaccurate. I fixed (dismantled and cleaned) the Scace’s flowmeter and filter with 5 amp fuse wire, brushes and PTFE tape, and now I’m confident I’m getting measurements that accurately reflect brewing, and I’m keeping it that way (hence the machine is even cleaner than usual to boot)! But even this error has proved valuable; the data with the clogged flowmeter is interesting and useful in itself…

Taste is what I followed to arrive where I still am with the settings for our PID controlled temps for the blend, even though it seemed crazy, and this is always the most important thing to trust, precisely because it seemed crazy, but wasn’t infact. But the readings from the Scace are interesting and have helped to corroborate and make sense of what I was tasting. There’s always a lot of extraneous noise as well with espresso I think, so having some more ‘definite’ device-measurement of things like temperature (and cross checking of one system against another) can help to put the whole picture together better, and more swiftly, without all the doubt, and adjustment of every variable under the sun!

But can we really trust the readings from even a correctly functioning Scace? Does it really correspond to the brewing temperatures within your cakes of coffee, at your flow rates? I believe some people have compared Scace readings to homemade ’up and over’ thermocouple readings, and found that the results stand up. And even if the results don’t always specifically translate to your shots, they still provide an accurate picture of how the machine’s system works in terms of the temperature of the water delivered, and how various scenarios affect brewing temperatures on the machine, for calibration, and to help build some understanding of your set up. What the actual temp of your actual shots is needs a still more accurate measurement …like the tongue, and the eye?!

There are some things I’m able to take from this now and use generally, with other coffees. Although, as always, it can produce more questions than answers, ultimately.

Nice little (!) old thread on HB for the Scace. And instructions. And related WBC procedures.

Speaking of other coffees, Naturelle’s back right now, and there will be 4 different coffees alternating as the espresso at the cafe over the next week or so; two single estates (Brazilian Samambaia and El Salvadorian La Suiza), and these two blends! Because afterall, just as important as enjoying and experiencing one coffee at length… is trying new ones… and revisiting new crops of old ones!

Some truly stunning V60s at home recently with Finca La Suiza as a filter too. It’s fabulous!

…A ridiculously beautiful picture of Finca Suiza, forwarded to me by our roaster!

I’ve finished selecting coffees for the plan’s newest menu of coffee for cafetieres – this will be available from midweek, this coming week! I’m really happy with this season’s selections:

New Season Coffees for Cafetiere

@the plan   2011-2012   (Trevor’s V-3/1)

Kenyan:      Gatomboya  

Juicy, dark berry-fruit and blackcurrant notes, with citrusy top notes, and a complex, delicate finish. Sweet, syrupy body. From the Nyeri region. I’m excited to be able to offer such a stunning coffee, which epitomises truly great Kenyan coffee. Washed SL28 and SL34 varietals.

El Salvadorian:

…Two very different Single Estate coffees:

1)     Finca Suiza

Beautifully crisp, clean and balanced coffee. Cranberry, currant, cherry and citrus notes. This farm won the prestigious Cup of Excellence competition in El Salvador in 2010, and the exceptional quality of this farm is displayed again by this year’s crop. Washed-process.

2)     Cajamarca Farm

Deep, soft, red and dark fruit, Cola, and red liquorice bootlace flavours! A wonderfully produced, remarkably clean-tasting, natural-process microlot via Graciano Cruz’s Hi-U designer coffee project. Bourbon varietals. Located in Najapa, San Salvador, El Salvador.

Ethiopian Blend:     Habesha

Ethiopian specialty grade coffee. This coffee is all about sweetness, fruit, and the essence of great Ethiopian coffees this season. Named after the old English word for Ethiopia: Habesha.

Indian:     Monsooned Malabar

The coffee is taken to the coast at Malabar for drying, acquiring a unique aged taste. Very low acidity, with a spicy, musky, woody flavour. From Faiz Moosakutty’s Bibi Plantation in Sunticoppa, Southern India.

Decaf:     Available on request

Premium Arabicas …Ethically traded …Traceable to origin

…Freshly craft-roasted by James’s Gourmet Coffee

As usual, the first few on the menu are the ones which have changed, and are the newest most awesome coffees, whilst there are also a couple further down the list which remain available throughout the year. I have to admit, I’ve taken off the Dark Roast blend (even though it was a good one). I know some people like it (mostly with cream and sugar?), and I was happy enough to offer it as a contrast to the other coffees with more vibrant, coveted, origin flavours, for those who wanted it. But maybe customers are now coming to us seeking the more interesting, lighter roasted, crisp, juicy, speciality coffees. Either way, the dark roast simply wasn’t selling much (… and does anyone really want to drink coffee that’s less than fresh?), to the point where it is just not worth keeping it. This suggests more people might be ‘getting’ what it’s all about, and enjoying better coffee, which makes me optimistic!

At home, with all the coffees above, I have been experimenting with a slightly courser grind, and shorter bloom and brew times with my V60s lately, with some  great results. Much crisper, brighter, more balanced, and with better, more controlled shaping of the bloom and grounds in the cone. Pouring kettle temp of 95-96C. Continuous pouring method. V60 01 and 02.

Whilst my new TCA5 syphon on the other hand remains wonderfully challenging and labour and time intensive!

Winter Hoard 2011 is still my selection of choice for espresso at the cafe right now, whilst it’s still around! …along with some Naturelle and Formula 6, here and there, to mix things up a bit!

I’m always researching coffee techniques, experimenting, practicing, fine tuning, re-evaluating, and trying new things. With espresso, at work, over the last few days, I have once again been flirting with nutation! I vowed not to after the last time …but the temptation is too much!  Some people say ‘nutation’ is an inaccurate word for the technique. Some people say it is a redistribution technique, rather than a tamping technique. But it is a technique which can have dramatic, and positive effects. Often it is used to fix issues with channelling. I infrequently suffer from (obvious) channelling on our set-up, and rather for me, it’s about experimenting with more even extraction, blonding, brew time, and controlling flow rate better. Some people report noticing little difference when using the method. Which always surprises me. On our set-up, the results can be immense (too immense!?). And contrary to what some people report, the main issue with using it for me has been the consistency. But the favorable results are so tantalising as to once again make me investigate it further… There are many variations on how to execute nutation as part of your technique, so I’m trying a few things to see if I can find a permanent ‘fit’, that is consistently better than my current, established technique. Luckily, I already own and use a US curve tamper! Nutation Nutation Nutation.

Just brewed and enjoyed a fabulous v60 of the stunning Kenyan Gatomboya 2011. A bit late in the day (even for me!), but well worth it. I’m lucky enough to be able to include this as one of my new selections for the latest upcoming ‘New Season coffees for French Press‘ menu for the plan. This will be released in a couple of weeks! You can read more about this coffee here and here (bearing in mind this information is from different roasters), and view the Nyeri region where the Gatomboya mill is located on the satellite map here. I’ll provide some brief finalised notes to accompany our Gatomboya when we release it …but for the meantime, it is crisp, complex, delicate, dark-berried and citrusy, but also sweet and remarkably syrupy! Classic great Kenyan. I’ll also be including two very different coffees from El Salvador!

The Italian division of Grazia Magazine came in today taking few snaps and having a quick chat as part of a feature …which was another a nice surprise! And it’s also nice when Italians enjoy the espresso, as they did, especially because it’s not so much ‘Italian style espresso’, in the strictest sense, so I’m often unsure how it will be received, even when I’m happy with it.

Winter Hoard 2011 is on. Such an exciting espresso blend.

A somewhat unsettling week coffee-wise at times so far though, but a great day today, and I’m reminded that ’tis the season to be …restful. With a little helping hand to accelerate things, the window finally opened up, and we enter that period where the coffee shines its brightest, and the light starts flooding in from here until it begins to close again! I am making careful moves, as always, to try to compensate for seasonal influences, and keep this window open as long as possible, and as often as possible, much as it ever tries to be ephemeral.

Few days in London last week, and visited a few cafes on the outer reaches of the radar – didn’t make special trips out of the way this time, just tried places on the list that were fairly near wherever we happened to be at the time, so was expecting more mixed results. Tapped and Packed (Tottenham Court Road), London Review Book Shop, Wild and Wood, and Beas St Pauls. Also arrived at the church on Fleet Street on Saturday …only to realise Flat Cap aren’t there Saturdays! Tapped and Packed was a particular highlight.

New members of the team continue to progress really well, at various differing levels, and it’s great to see the time invested in training (not to mention the raw materials expended), beginning to pay off, as folks concentrate on developing the techniques, and they move forward with guided practice, and begin to prepare drinks for customers, after those first few weeks. It’s a stickler though, trying to convey the many differentiating features of artisan coffee (balancing the need to generate the understanding, without saying too much), when it’s all new to people, and when the interest isn’t necessarily there… Often, sadly, it’s even clear that there’s the impression that the whole concept is just something I’ve cooked-up to make things sound good! Which is a shame. Only to be expected though, especially in this setting, and all part of the job. Usually, in fact, it takes many months before things start to click, and baristas actually begin to get a more sincere impression and appreciation of the craft, and what they’re working with. Then things can really take-off, potentially. Some never get that far of course, there’s often the plateau… but to be fair to us all, that plateau’s still pretty high, and it’s easy to forget just how far everyone’s come …but with coffee, we can always go further!

I’m currently sampling and shortlisting the new coffees for the latest up-coming seasonal coffees for french press menu for the plan, to appear soon. I decided we had to go the extra mile, and will be including a fantastic Kenyan coffee as part of this!

Also, I’m considering another mod to the ol’ Anfim…

Outside chance …but if you do happen to be travelling with Air Canada in January, look out for these pictures of the plan cafe and a mention of us amongst recommended cafes around the world, in their EnRoute magazine. Nice surprise!

In other news, The Winter Hoard 2011 has finally landed! It really IS what it says on the label (a description that makes me smile, for all the right reasons)! This consists of three fantastic coffees: Ethiopian Operation Cherry Red dry processed coffee from the Dara area of Sidamo, Kenyan Kayu peaberry, and Finca Suiza estate (El Salvadorian cup of excellence winner 2010). It’s hard not to be just a little TOO excited by coffee like this!

…And other new things arrive for me as well. Lots to play with!

Lovely write-up by Marcela on InterCardiff online magazine this week – thanks!

Formula 6 espresso is back at the cafe for a few days!! Some really tasty shots to see us through a fearsomely busy week. So fresh (my bags have gone from their lowest to highest elevation..! ), with Las Nubes from Guatemala really shining through in the current blend for me.

At home, Kenyan Gatomboya Cooperative is a total joy!

The Hoard approaches……!!!

I had a play with some of the most exciting espresso I’ve tried for a while last week… This was blind, but I knew what one of its components must be… However, this is still under wraps, and still being fine-tuned by Peter and co at the roastery, but it is approaching very fast from the horizon – to appear soon!! JGC’s seasonal house classic, Formula 6, sounds like a great blend right now to me, and is approaching even faster – it will be on for the first time in quite a long time later this week at the cafe. A happy coincidence is that my selections for our espresso over the next few weeks will exhibit flavours with much more of an autumn/winter vibe, although that’s not something I’ll emphasise too much, for fear of giving the wrong impression of seasonality in coffee!

I’m currently in the usual cycle of making coffee to the best of my ability (however well or poorly), often feeling that it could be much better than it is, then (re) reading and researching the techniques, blogs, articles and forums, etc, and trying to put some of this information and theory into practice, by making yet more coffee (at work and at home), tasting, again, rethinking, again, and thereby gradually trying to learn and understand a little more about the many interrelated aspects of the craft. Sometimes this process leads to a sense of genuine progress and improvements being achieved …whilst sometimes it seems merely Samsara-like. A more scientific approach would probably help here, but when most of each working day is given to more straightforward preparation and service, rather than more structured investigation, that avenue is usually snatched rather than fully explored.

Obviously, the more you taste and experience as a barista, the higher your expectations become, over time, and I guess it is possible to be unfairly critical of your efforts (especially if you measure what you taste against occasional experiences of the very best). But if you know the bar can potentially be raised… the temptation is there, and should not be ignored, regardless of any amount of wonderful feedback generally.

It’s really that classic issue of repeatability and consistency that interests me most at present. It’s not (quite so much) about how to dial in a coffee (or even fine tune it) so that it tastes good (or great) to my taste at a certain (approximate) recipe. Rather it’s how to best repeat and sustain that same taste and extraction (mainly with espresso, but also with brewed coffee at home) from drink to drink, and throughout the working day in a commercial environment, as various factors and variables change (aside from the usual basic constant adjustments one makes to attempt to maintain parameters) – and about an attempt to better understand the many interrelated factors which affect this.

Some of the things I’ve happened to look at in recent weeks as just part of this continual process are linked below, although they are a fairly random and only loosely related selection (some not even very current), that are listed together only because one thing lead to another… and because I like to mention things on the blog occasionally that I’ve found interesting, incase it helps others to find them as well:     

Grind not Dose (one of Those mammoth forum threads that is packed with interesting stuff, and which can lead in all sorts of directions)

Some Aspects of Espresso Extraction (one of Those classic papers which I’ve read previously, but have revisited this week)

TTL David Walsh (a wonderful talk about grinding, grinders, and wet grinding. Oh, grinders! A ‘unhappy marriage’ indeed! I really think they are one of our very Biggest impediments) 

I spent an hour or so last week on the espresso machine with Finca La Malacara, briefly looking at a few things that often crop up and intrigue me generally with espresso, on our machinery, rather than specifically with this (delicious) coffee, as such. I wanted to swing the balance in a slightly different direction, back away from instrument measurement and from maintaining fixed recipes. I left my scales in the box, and largely ignored shot time, during pours. Instead I looked more at other aspects like grind and dose (volume, and approximated weight), and visual measurements like cone shape, flow rate and colour.

I value scales a lot, as well as other pieces of kit that we can utilise to measure things, create recipes, and improve our understanding and repeatability. But it’s all too easy to become over reliant or over-focussed on these tools, and recipes, and then they can become counterproductive. An ‘ideal’ recipe (which I also value), is just that – an ideal rather than a constant that works in any circumstance. You can make the same recipe (dose and shot weight, time and temperature) at different times and end up with a very different cup, because there are many other variables involved that such recipes overlook. Whereas juggling some of the parameters away from the ideal recipe as conditions alter can result in a better shot, albeit perhaps less great than the ideal, but the best available under the circumstances. This scenario is probably accentuated when using a grinder like the Anfim Super.

So sometimes it’s good to look at things from a different perspective …before putting it all back together. For instance, the last couple of weeks have seen me get my thermometer back out at home, only to end up trusting it more than I should have, and spoiling several brews, before eventually realising that its originally quite rapid response time seemed to have slowed so much as to be of almost no use at all. Technology can fail or be imprecise, and even accurate kit and seemingly precise recipes don’t necessarily produce repeatability in themselves, let alone as variables change. So other things should always remain at the top of the toolbox.

So, bearing that philosophy in mind, what do I do? I’ve just ordered upgrades to my gadgets, naturally! What I hope will be a much higher quality, more accurate and precise set of scales (and more expensive!), with better load cells, for dose and shot weights, and an ultra-rapid response miniature needle probe thermocouple thermometer and meter for brew water temperatures for home brewing. I think there’s some logic there somewhere! All tools are good – but if you’re going to measure stuff, do it as accurately as you can afford, and try to utilise all your different ways of evaluating things together in a balanced way.

Also, that espresso type that lives in the region of a 100% brew ratio is something I have mixed feelings about. I don’t think it’s always necessarily the best way to represent really nice beans, but it’s undeniably alluring and super delicious when done properly, and sometimes sincere interest in it from others becomes impossible to ignore. But when achieving a favorable extraction hints at a scenario of pushing the grind towards the sort of dose weight and volume that can probably only possibly be contained in an elusive 5.3cm vessel that ships only at 60 USD (?!), things are easier!

And a big shout to our team, a really lovely bunch, many new, who are progressing handsomely, at many various levels.

I have a bag of the newest (released!) arrival at the roastery that I am eagerly anticipating for my days off at home this week: Kenyan Kayu washed Peaberry. The talk is of clean lemon citrus, blackcurrant, orange, and all things epitomising great Kenyan coffee!!! We know the Cooperative, how many farmers make up its members, the regional district, where the wet mill is, the altitudes, varietals, and the processing,  …but what’s REALLY fun, as I’ve just discovered, is this time we can also actually SEE the collection center and surrounding countryside on a satellite map - this makes traceability feel really tangible! Well, I found it quite exciting, anyway! Can’t wait to try it.

I’m training, training, training at the cafe right now. Lots of new staff, and great (even good) coffee doesn’t ‘just happen’. Many have a long way to go (as do I, don’t we all?!), but the training is in-depth, and the monitoring and guidance is full-time, 5-6 days per week (not just the result of a brief visit from a trainer). Therefore all our baristas  can take the opportunity, run with it, and potentially gradually develop real pride, expertise and passion for their work. Failing that, a high level of basic proficiency is trained as standard and is in place before anyone makes drinks for our customers, and everyone knows what to aim for as they move forward! There will be a natural variance in skill levels, because baristas can potentially develop their knowledge of the craft over many years, but not all baristas seek to progress to that level of professionalism.

Naturelle has been stripped back a little to its juiciest, purest form, and is due out soon (perhaps more of a calculated move, than a seasonal one?). Las Nubes will return next week too, before my holiday. Then Naturelle all the way through, before new espressos arrive from the horizon in October!”

Over the last several weeks at the cafe, I’ve been alternating just two different coffees for espresso. These coffees have been one seasonal blend, Caffe Naturelle (currently featuring coffees from Brazil, Guatemala, and Ethiopia), and one single estate, Finca Las Nubes (Guatemalan washed red catuai varietal). This has partly been because these are currently my two favorite coffees for espresso at our roaster, and partly because I have once again felt the desire to focus on fewer coffees for a while, in an attempt to observe them more closely, fine tune techniques, represent the coffees better, and learn more! I will continue to use these for the next few weeks …and then new things will begin to appear!

Both these coffees are just my thing. Clean, juicy, citrusy and fruity, in different ways and degrees – perfect for the summer too! The punchy yet soft orangey citrus of the Las Nubes, along with its other notes, is stunning. I had to do quite a lot of work at one stage to get this coffee to where I like it best, but have been rewarded. I’m brewing it at about a 57% brew ratio, ideally.

I had another brief visit to London recently. I usually only get the chance to visit once or twice a year, and whenever I’m there I try to visit some of the top artisan coffee shops – some new ones, and maybe some that I’ve been to previously as well. The scene is flourishing in London, and while there used to be just a small handful of places of note a few years ago, there are now amazing places opening up regularly. You still have to know where to go though! Please, if you like coffee, and are visiting London – make the effort to check some of the top places out – you’ll rarely be disappointed – and hopefully very much the opposite! On the Great Coffee Links on the main page of my blog, there’s the London Coffee Map, and the London’s Best Coffee App for IPhone and Android to help you find the right places. This time I visited Nude’s newest shop in the square, and Notes Music and Coffee. Great stuff!

Over the last 9 months or so as we have moved through winter and summer, I think I can say I’ve been making some connections with various subtler aspects of seasonality, particularly with espresso, in relation to issues I was aware of theoretically, but haven’t been able to observe to this extent before. The effects on flavour of seasons both in terms of our seasons here, and, very differently, those of the coffees, dictated by origin, in terms of changes over the duration of their stay.

The Pages on the blog tend to be fairly fixed entries, but these are occasionally updated, modified, or even rewritten as things change, or as I reassess how best to convey the topics…

Nice mention on Stephen Nottingham’s local food blog recently. Looks like a fascinating and extensive blog – great to have people in the area doing stuff like this.

And …There’s a new coffee in at the JGC roastery, which I’m pretty excited about …Kenya Kayu! Can’t wait!

A recent visit to London naturally meant some visits to some hot coffee spots. 3 cafes; 3 different roasters, 3 different machines, 3 different tastes, 3 different experiences and expressions of coffee, all great …of course! The Espresso Room (love to Leah!), St Ali, and back once again to Monmouth Covent Garden (especially impressive this time, though not necessarily more so than the others). Levels of balance, smoothness and sweetness that were pretty impeccable, from my standpoint at least. Such brief visits relatively, but inspiring, and so valuable for some taste recalibration too! If I could spend longer in London…

At the cafe, you may notice I have just one primary coffee for espresso for a little while (well, mostly!). Not out of boredom, or for lazy ease of use. There are lights that can be shone in corners and crannies, things that can perhaps be gained in this way that could otherwise pass one by. It’s curious, useful, and fascinating, as ever.

A few of my pours from today:

Are they as good as they should be? Rarely. The window from where the best things emerge can seem wonderfully brief, and keeping it open as often as possible is the trick. This is part of the fun …part of the quest!