If you truly love coffee and you’ve written Kaldi’s off, don’t!

While I’ve personally been critical of them in the past, I’ve never disliked them as a roaster and it’s time for an update because over the last couple years, as they’ve gotten into direct sourcing of green coffee and consumer education, they’ve raised the bar in regards to what coffee can be in St. Louis. Many of these beans have been fantastic and Kaldi’s regularly hosts educational cuppings and brewing demonstrations in each of their locations to teach you about what the various regions and varietals of coffee taste like, and how to get the most from them at home.

Additionally, each month one of these coffees is part of the Kaldi’s World Tour and in their Crescent location they feature the month’s bean as Toddy cold-brewed iced coffee, a single origin espresso or cappuccino, or brewed with the Clover.  For October the World Tour coffee is the Fair Trade Rwanda COOPAC.  As espresso it’s one of the best single origin shots I’ve ever sampled–having a wonderful body and citrus notes that go beyond the typical lemon and meander into mandarin orange.  I implore you to go get some.

How much is too much?

I’ve taken quite a bit of flack recently for the amount of money I’m willing to pay for coffee.  It seems that much like the Bud Light drinker can’t fathom why anyone would drink a craft beer, so too the Folgers drinker can’t wrap their head around why someone would pay, say, $40 for a pound of coffee.  Unquestionably my favorite person to have this argument with is the guy that gulps down a couple 20oz bottles of Mountain Dew each day, but what’s especially odd is that even amongst people who take their food seriously (that’s you!), I take a lot more shit for this than I’d have ever expected.  Further confusing me is that some of this is dished out by people whom I know frequent coffee shops daily rather than brewing their coffee at home.

Breaking it down

The accepted standard for a brewed cup of coffee in the United States, as defined by the Specialty Coffee Association of America, is 6oz of water to 10g of coffee.  In fairness, that’s not much coffee.  Like most people, I drink more, and I also like it stronger which means I brew my morning cup with 22g of beans to 12oz of water (though I weigh the water too).

Therefore, for a $40/lb coffee:

• 1lb is approximately 453.59g
• 453.59g yields me 20 approximately 12oz brewed cups of coffee
• $2 per cup

So the next time you’re passing up a $16/lb coffee on the basis that it’s too pricey, consider this: it’s an 80 cent 12oz cup and, by volume, that’s less than Mr. Mountain Dew’s $1.50 for 20oz.

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Two Unrelated Points About Coffee

Here’s what Intelligentsia has to say about the coffee..

Extremely fruit-forward and sincere. Peach nectar precedes a honeyed mouthfeel and an extended flavor of grape, lime and nectarine. A finish of cacao and walnut frame the experience.

Get it while it’s fresh…and sorry I didn’t mention it sooner.

Note: Because coffee is so much better fresh, I welcome any coffee roaster or merchant of specialty coffee in St. Louis, that has dated roasted products, to email me when you have a freshly roasted coffee.  I will post it for people to snatch up at its best.

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Get it Fresh: Intelligentsia Zirikana @ Whole Foods

Due to the unfortunate closing of the Central West End location of Companion Bake House, today was to mark the opening of Chris Sommers’ new Pi Coffee Bar–located under the loft of Pi’s new Central West End location.  Teaming up with Matt Herren and Debbie Sultan of Edwardsville’s Goshen Coffee and 222 Artisan Bakery, the plan was to begin carrying a full line of Goshen’s coffee and teas as well as Sultan’s award winning pastries.

Of course, to run a great coffee bar, you need a great manager and barista, and when the topic of who to run the bar came up last Thursday, Herren told Sommers there was only one choice: Alex Brooks.  In a whirlwind of a day, the call went out, and an offer was made, mulled over, and accepted by Brooks.

For St. Louis coffee fans, this is great news.  A more passionate coffee professional you will rarely find.  It does, however, mean that the opening has been delayed as Sommers feels it wouldn’t be right to open without Brooks at the helm.  Sommers is, after all,  hoping to raise the level of what coffee can be in the Central West End saying about the Brooks acquisition, “I can’t afford him, but I can’t afford not too.”

Speaking with Brooks last week, he is currently putting the finishing touches on his employment in Portland and is excited for the opportunity to be back amongst his friends putting his mark on St. Louis coffee.

At this time, the plans are to now open Monday, February 8, with the hours being Monday-Saturday 6-11AM.  Be sure to stop in to welcome Alex home.

Full Disclosure: Alex Brooks, Matt Herren, Chris Sommers, and Debbie Sultan are all friends of mine.

* The title is lifted from a text message Sommers sent to me.

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Buckle Up For Caffeine Insanity*

Who knew this would be the one to get me to dust off that seldom used computer keyboard?

A response to Brooke Foster’s, Annoyed, Party of One

Brooke (or anyone else for that matter minus the first paragraph),

I know you.  I like you.  Alot actually.  You and your husband, frankly, rock.  You make St. Louis better.  But for the sake of debate (I love to argue) I offer a rebuttal:

First, the parented-by-conservatives in me has never been able to remove myself from the fact that at best, a jumbo super latte is like $6.00.  Having people hang around for 3 hours when they’ve spent $6.00 doesn’t exactly spell “good business practice”.

Second, as an admitted coffee snob, I actually hate shops with this kind of loitering.  Many times I have gone into the Carondelet Kaldi’s to (for once) enjoy my cappuccino “for here.”  Met with an endless sea of MacBook* toting students intent on sipping $6.00 lattes for hours, however, I had to take it “to go.”  I do not blame Kaldi’s for this in any way.  Their Carondelet shop is still the best coffee shop in St. Louis, MO proper, but it is annoying just the same.

Third, I do not know where you live, but I have an idea of where you live.  As I don’t see you patronizing the sewer of St. Louis coffee (MoKabe’s**), I offer to Gut Check readers both Hartford and Shaw’s as possibilities.  If you, in fact, enjoy coffee, Hartford should probably be avoided anyway because they don’t particularly try to make good coffee.  When last I went they had a super-automatic espresso machine.  Though, perhaps, that makes it a good solution to studying and paperwork as there won’t be all those pesky coffee lovers to contend with.

Lastly, the $6 latte is not coffee.  If the $6 latte is your preferred drink of choice–or worse still you like your $6 latte iced–you could just go get yourself a coffee flavored milk shake at Jack In the Box and do your work there.  It’s not a very big fast food restaurant though, so the tables might still be too small to really spread out.

* I tote both a MacBook and an iPhone so I have no room to talk.

** If you’re sitting there thinking, “Fuck that Bill Burge.  He doesn’t know what MoKabe’s does for Gay and Lesbian rights in St. Louis!”  The reality is I do know what they do.  I applaud what they do.  But that doesn’t make their shop any cleaner, or their coffee any better.  As a coffee shop, it still sucks.

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Coffee Shops: A Public Debate

And in still more local coffee news, Ian Froeb and Melody Meiners of toastedrav.com reported that Foundation Grounds is now open in Maplewood. Between the two of them they covered most of the W’s (like it’s being Green) except for one: Foundation Grounds is another Missouri notch for Edwardsville’s Goshen Coffee.

Continuing to increase their West-Side presence, their drip and espresso coffees are becoming increasingly easy to find around town as prominent spots like Pi, Winslow’s Home, Local Harvest Cafe, The Good Pie and Niche turn to them for service.

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Goshen Coffee @ Foundation Grounds

In other Kaldi’s Coffee news, don’t forget they are once again hosting the SCAA’s Midwest Regional Barista Competition. Last year’s event, held at Third Degree Glass factory, was a huge success and this year’s is shaping up to be even better. Changing venues to the Soulard Preservation Hall, I’ve heard rumors that several baristas from local shops not represented last year will be competing. For coffeegeeks, this is exciting news, and I’m hoping it will add a new dimension to the local barista pool. However, with the depth of talent at the Crescent Kaldi’s, and two top five performances for them last year, Kaldi’s is still the local shop to beat.

Kaldi’s, however, has a formidable opponent in the PT’s Coffee crew who will once again be rolling in from Topeka, KS. Taking first and third last year, their barista, Pete Licata, took the the top spot before going on to receive second place nationally in the United States Barista Competition. (It seems Pete works for Kaldi’s now) Additionally–though not barista news–another strong showing for them would be like icing on the cake as they were recently named the 2008 Roast Magazine [Macro] Roaster of the Year.

As for the remaining spot in last year’s top five, it went to a barista from one of Kansas City’s top shops, The Roasterie. Like last year, their competitors should be good and relaxed for the event as, even when they aren’t bagging trophies, they prove they know how to ride in style.

Full details on the competition can be found at kaldiscoffee.com, but the general break down of the weekends events is as follows:

• Friday, January 30, 2009: Round 1: Day 1
• Saturday, January 31, 2009: Round 1: Day 2
• Sunday, February 1, 2009: Final Round

After the jump, check out Pete Licata’s winning performance from last year.


Find more videos like this on Barista Exchange

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Event: Midwest Regional Barista Competition

Held one Saturday a month from January to March, the classes will be led by Kaldi’s roaster and coffee buyer, Tyler Zimmer, and head barista trainer Mike Marquard. Together they will cover what it takes to get coffee from the farm and into your cup (January 24), how to brew the best possible cup at home (February 28), and espresso (March 21). Marquard will, no doubt, be leading the espresso class as he came in 21st (out of 50) in last years United States Barista Championship in Minneapolis. This makes him one of the more qualified locals to talk to you about quality espresso (and the reason I signed up). With class size limited, and registrants basically getting a 50% discount in the form of a free bag of coffee, sign up soon if you’re interested!

You can register online at wholefoodsmarket.com and, full details (and a bonus) can be found after the jump.

Kaldi’s Coffee Series

10:00 – 11:30 am, $10 per session OR $25 (if you pre-register for all three!)

With Tyler Zimmer, Coffee Roaster and Green Coffee Buyer & Mike Marquard, Head Barista Trainer

We’ve invited Kaldi’s top baristas to host a lively, interactive, informative coffee series in our Whole Lifestyle Center while the months are still cool. Sign up in advance for all three classes to receive a FREE Private Tour of the Kaldi’s Roasting Facility! All attendees will receive a free bag of coffee. Class size limited.

Session 1 (January 24) – Seed to Cup: This session will lead the student through the complexities of growing and harvesting coffee at many levels – from micro-lot to estate. Specifically focused on current farming practices in Nicaragua, the presentation allows the student to understand the world’s second highest traded commodity by the example of two very small farms in the Segovia region. The class will conclude with a tasting (a.k.a. a cupping) of coffees processed by different methods from a variety of growing regions.

Session 2 (February 28) – Brewing Essentials for a Better Home Brew: Why does coffee always taste better at a café? This session will dive into the essentials of brewing a great cup of coffee and enable the student to understand some simple improvements he or she can take home. The session will end with the students being able to experiment with and taste different brewing methods under the guidance of Kaldi’s talented roasting and barista staff.

Session 3 (March 21) – Let it Flow: Espresso is possibly the most misunderstood, improperly prepared, and hated beverage in the United States, yet it’s in almost every drink on a Coffeehouse’s menu. This class will remove the myth behind this 1 oz. cup of joy, and open palettes to a world of taste hidden within a coffee bean. Kaldi’s top baristas will prepare espresso and cappuccino on their mobile kit and guide the student through making a quality shot.

Bonus: You can watch Marquard’s USBC performance online.

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Kaldi’s Coffee Series @ Whole Foods

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Weird Consumerism

They bought the Clover prompting coffeegeeks to shudder and Stumptown to pull them from their stores.

And starting yesterday the original topless logo has returned to signal Starbucks commitment to quality along with their new Pike Place Roast which Howard Schultz says “is truly one of the best coffees we have offered our customers in our 37-year history and it will reinvent brewed coffee.”

They have also migrated to “30-minute hold times for brewed coffee” and with a renewed focus on quality say that The Pike Place blend is both “Fresh” and “Hand-Scooped.” With all the bags on display in the shop I went to having roasted dates of 3/24 though, it was already two weeks old the minute it arrived.

So take note when you go to buy that next bag of coffee that while local roasters like Goshen, Kaldi’s and Northwest may not have topless logos, they do have fresh roasted coffee that was hand-scooped all along.

Do you think they’ll have to change all those green signs to brown now? 

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The Boobs are Back

Here’s a message from Market Manager Mike McLellan

Hello again everyone!

Spring is just around the corner, sprouts are springing, buds are bursting… um, wait a sec, now it’s snowing

Things can be unpredictable this time of year but this I promise – it’s time for another session of the St. Louis Community Farmers’ Market!

Don’t forget to bring your bags, coffee cups, and a friend this Saturday! This week we will keep the doors open until 12:30pm to accommodate all of the latecomers.

For more information, including the latest updates to this week’s vendor list, click here: February 8th

You can view a complete list of vendors at the Market’s Google Groups page for the event, but here’s the skinny:

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St. Louis Community Farmers’ Market Saturday