The Reading Room

It’s been said that coffee is the new wine. The two favorite beverages have been seen together lately, leading some to suspect they might have a thing going on.  Not since the ancient Celts of Galicia mixed wine and coffee...

It’s time to take a break from the WBC buzz and focus a bit of energy on the subject of coffee. After all, it’s hard to dispute the fact that coffee has taken on a cult-like following and can even...

I've sung the praises before of the vertiginous glories of cloth-filtered vacuum pots. The cloth allows a little bit of insolubles through, which really accentuates the aroma of the coffee and contributes to a lush mouth-feel.  However, I'm now an apostate...

It seems to me that scales can inspire varied reactions among coffee drinkers or even within one. In certain moods I'm of the school that weighing seems rather fussy. It is, after all, only coffee and if one is off...

ROASTe Partners with the World Barista ChampionshipOk so it’s now official – ROASTe has partnered up with the World Barista Championship (WBC) and we’re getting ready for the upcoming events in New York, between April 7-10. So get your party...

ROASTe wants no coffee drinker left behind, so if you don’t know coffee waves from coffee beans, don’t feel bad. Though it’s the third wave already, it’s no big deal if you missed one and two. Many of us are...

If you’re anything like me your coffee standards are high. You have your favorite coffee drink, your favorite coffee shop, and more importantly, your favorite coffee baristas. Don’t you agree that your baristas are the best? And wouldn’t you like...

* Cold brew. This is where you take coffee that's ground to a sea-salt consistency and steep it in room-temperature water for 8-12 hours. Then, you scoop out as many grounds as you can and filter the liquid through the...

ROASTe has just introduced a new coffee line from LION Coffee.  Among LION’s “pride” is the Pure Choices line.  The Pure Choices group of coffees is a revolutionary concept in healthful coffee which uses more of the coffee cherry to...

As St. Patrick’s Day approaches - with spring following right behind by three days - we start seeing green everywhere – on people, on store decorations, in all kinds of food, in the Chicago River, as well as covering trees...

 While out shopping something bright red laying in the bargain bin caught my eye. At first I thought I had found a mini red plastic percolator.  Bright colored Proctor Silex mini percolators are common finds in thrift stores.  What I...

Many people know about the relatively recent popularization of a brewing technique that's been around for a while, even in the United States--manual drip. More shops are brewing by the cup using the Hario V60, Beehouse drippers, or Abid drippers...

http://dailyshotofcoffee.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/coffee-prices.jpg" alt="Coffee prices soar" title="Coffee prices soar" align="left" vspace="4" width="208" height="155" hspace="4" />Around the world, cafes and roasters are watching the price of the green bean soar. "C" Futures, where green beans are traded, reached a 14 year high and...

/files/u3017/falls.png" align="texttop" height="405" width="560" /> Guatemala is a land with unlimited potential and a hardy population. Sugar cane, rubber trees, plantains, and coffee all grace the fertile soil and highlands in this Central American country. The coffee here is prized...

Some two-odd years ago, I was introduced to Dennis McQuoid via coffee god Andrew Hetzel of Cafemakers.  He had begun planning his dream café and wanted some consultants to help him out.  On Friday, January 27, 2011, Dennis opened Beach...

I found one of these Zelco Brisk Brew single cup coffeemakers at a decent price still in the original box with an unwrapped cup and unopened instructions - who needs instructions anyway - it's 240v in the US and 110v...

Well, you probably saw this one coming. In its modern all-glass form, the Chemex is coolly insubstantial. It's light and transparent and non-porous. Self-less, if you'll indulge me. Chemex doesn't care to distinguish itself; it would rather distinguish the coffee...

J. S. Bach's Coffee Cantata (Peasant Cantata) ''Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht'' BWV 211 - Final Chorus Libretto by Christian Friedrich Henrici This cantata, a short musical drama, was composed for performance by Bach's Collegium at Zimmerman's Coffee House, Leipzig, between...

There are coffee songs popping up from classical to modern musical venues. One such song, by Josh Woodward, is a cute song by itself, but it’s made 100 times more enjoyable when coupled with the high-energy antics of Jesse, the...

Not too long ago someone offered to send me some Coffeeduck Espresso adapters since they did not work in his machine. Being a coffee gadget fan I gladly accepted and came in the mail today as promised. My Nespresso machine...

I stand corrected and again acknowledge that I oversimplified by reducing coffee drinkers to the two end-of-the-line groups. As pointed out by Julie Fisher in LinkedIn, there is a “massive market between the two”, meaning the people who are not...