Thanks Coffesnobs

[davwhite]

Thanks to this forum and the Captain in charge I have developed a new taste.

You see, I have just returned from 3 weeks in Europe. On previous trips I have enjoyed many varieties of coffee from many sources.

Until NOW!!!!!!

As a dedicated coffeesnob who roasts, grinds and produces what I considerder a fine cup.

In Europe I was asking for double coffees and in Vienna I had a shocker.

In England I left the coffee after two sips (one too many)

So thanks coffeesnobs for making me a real coffee snob ;D

[Andy]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs



El Espressio had similar stories from the UK a few months ago, tragic coffee everywhere and adopted the taste for tea while away.

I would have thought that the cream filled coffee in Wein would have helped hide the quality! I have fond memories of a good vienna coffee in Vienna but that was 10 years ago and although I enjoyed coffee then and traveled with a gas stove and moka pot on the motorbike I was far from the CoffeeSnob that I am now.

Ahhh... gone are the days of Nescafe being drinkable. ;D

(PS Welcome back!)

[el_espressio]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

I think the thing about this that is really scary is the proliferation of the mega franchises in major cities and then in minor ones.  It gets to the point where people think that Costa or Starbucks or Nero (or whatever) is the limit of the coffee drinking experience.  People accept what they are given and dont realise that it isnt as it should be. A bit like thinking that McDonalds = food if youve never really eaten something excellent.  All of these shops have their place - and Im sure that some are better than OK, but its the pervasiveness of it that bothers me.  Yesterday whilst doing the "Husband outside the dress shop"  thing, I stood back and observed the craft of the workers at a cafe.  It was extraordinary.  Five second mugachino gushers and almost transparent (obviously). Clearly, minimal training and none necessary, apparently. The point is - if you dont know the difference why would you complain?  We ironically call ourselves "coffee snobs", but would you call a surfer a "surfing snob" because she likes to surf on good waves with offshore winds in clean water instead of a polluted lake?  When these huge franchises have cannibalised each other to the point where one or two remain, it will be even worse, because there will be no incentive to improve if theyve got the market cornered and most of their customers never have had a "real" coffee.  When most of us say we make coffee better than you can buy at a cafe, its not a boast, because the reaction from a fellow CSer should be "I should bloody well hope so!!!" otherwise, why are you doing it?  As I said a little while back you could walk down Oxford St. in London and never be more than 30 metres away from one of those franchises.  Its scary.  Imagine if the customers could quickly and easily be shown the difference between what theyre used to and what is possible. Cafe coffee would improve very quickly.  Im sure that all of us had a "defining moment" when we realised that there was a whole new world out there.  

Given that coffee is one of the true "quality of life " things we can experience daily, we have a responsibility to get it right - as consumers or producers of the coffee and the experience.

Maybe we should share some of those stories.  Perhaps a thread along the lines of "Why Im here - My coffee journey in 10 bullet points."

[Master_Chief]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

Im not sure if any surfer would surf in a poluted lake =D

the thing with surfing is that you actually have to go out there and get it yourself, nothing is given to you, theres no starbuck wave or gloria jeans wave that will sweep you up.. and thats why when it comes to surfing, often the best waves are crowded with sometimes hundreds of surfers (check out the tweed/coolangatta/kirra area, lol.)

Anyway, this is where I might ask my question... seems everyones on a similar path to the answer I want.

Theres a coffee shop in Melbourne according to my mother which is in a walkthrough mall somewhere, and apparently they sell coffee from 3rd world countries (such as east timor and that) for good prices, and most of the money goes back to the funding of coffee farms and other sorts of farms in 3rd world countries... Does anyone know what this shop is called and where exactly it is?

[el_espressio]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

Dont know about this particular place, but it would be aligned with the coffee fair trade principles.


This link will tell you about it.


http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/fairtrade/coffee/faq.html

[Andy]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

psssst.... CoffeeSnobs is now Fairtrade certified too. We should have our first FT coffee this month. Even bigger news is that as far as I know we are the ONLY Fairtrade certified green bean supplier on the planet.

Cool eh!

[rice]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

I think the thing about this that is really scary is the proliferation of the mega franchises in major cities and then in minor ones. It gets to the point where people think that Costa or Starbucks or Nero (or whatever) is the limit of the coffee drinking experience. People accept what they are given and dont realise that it isnt as it should be. A bit like thinking that McDonalds = food if youve never really eaten something excellent. All of these shops have their place - and Im sure that some are better than OK, but its the pervasiveness of it that bothers me.

Sometimes a franchise sign can be a godsend in a bleak landscape. After more than a 3-4 days without, I pine for any sort of coffee brewed through a commercial machine.

I did cart wheels when I saw the first Delifrance outlet open in Sri Lanka a few years ago. There are now a couple of chain type coffee houses selling their wares in the country using mainly Cimbali, Marino and even a few LM machines, but pathetically crap coffee abounds. After a number of bad cups, Ive found only a single restaurant in the capital that uses a locally roasted blend and have managed to get the coffee maker to follow my ethos (regular backflushing, fresh ground coffee & milk for steaming). There are a couple of places in the rural areas (mostly small, boutique hotels with vp e towners who have a palate for fresh coffee). I used to take a hand grinder and plunger + stove top machine with me, but they are not a real substitue to a proper espresso.


Singapore would have to be the scariest place Ive been to in terms of the proliferation of the franchises. The price of a cup was pretty expensive, but I must say that the average barista their seemed to be able to foam milk more skillfully. But I think this is due to higher basic standards & proper intial training perhaps - didnt see as much reheating of old milk as I do in Melbourne, nor did I see a single instance of a coffee maker reusing a portafilter with used coffee to pull a second shot (I spent a few months their on work, so it was a somewhat lenghty period of observation)

[Dimal]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

Hi el espressio,

Forgive me for digressing but just what exactly, is that furry thing in your avatar? It looks for all the world like a Tamper wearing a fur coat .

Mal.

[el_espressio]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

Hi el espressio,

Forgive me for digressing but just what exactly, is that furry thing in your avatar? It looks for all the world like a Tamper wearing a fur coat .

Mal.

It is a surrealist art object by Meret Oppenheim - "Breakfast in fur"
Fur cup, saucer and spoon.
That might confuse the issue even further!! :-?

[fatboy_1999]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

Q. How many surrealists does it take to change a lightbulb?


A. The fish.

[Dimal]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

LOL

Great art and good joke ;D

Mal.

[robusto]

Re: Thanks Coffesnobs

Franchises are nothing new -- its part of the human mind set to be attracted to the familiar, whether it be the same race, language or way of life.  We baby boomers had petrol franchises: Go Well With Shell.  Tip Top Bread. Not as good as the produce from our wood-fired ovens, but cheap, readily available, convenient and--sliced.
We loved Greasy Joes hamburgers with fairly crunchy bread, crunchy lettuce, thick meat and over-easy egg.
Then came McDonalds. How did we foresake the real thing for this tasteless wet cardboard?
Yet, to an entire generation, McDonalds = hamburgers.
Now, Generation X is doing likewise with Starbucks.  
Part of the reason is lifestyle. They eat out more. And just as we geeks want consistency in our food and coffee quality, they can be certain that McDonalds and Starbucks will give them the same consistent product, with consistently clean surroundings (even in the toilets) just about in any corner of the world.