Chicken Soup for the Coffee Lover's Soul

My dear husband gave me a thoughtful gift this Christmas -- Chicken Soup for the Coffee Lover's Soul. I haven't read all the sappy short stories in it yet, but I think I've already found my favorite. "The Truth About Coffee" shares the story of two couples, the author and her husband are visiting the author's brother and his wife for a weekend visit in Naperville, Illinois. They go for a chilly evening walk and chide each other about they need to get home before everyone's too tired for a game of Scrabble. It's like foreshadowing -- they get back and everyone is ready to call it a night. Except sister-in-law Trisha, suggests putting on a pot of coffee. Which they do. And then sure enough, they all perk up, play some games and talk about old times -- all the while remarking about how good it is to have coffee to wake one up.

The punch line (as you might have guessed) is Trisha laughing as she informs the other three of her discovery -- she unintentionally brewed DECAF coffee for them. This, of course, leads to the discovery decaf drinkers everywhere have made -- "it really wasn't the caffeine that kept us going throughout the years when we needed a lift. It was the camaraderie -- the closeness of family and friends... with tasty sips of coffee to hold onto for enjoyment or comfort."

Looking for some great-tasting decaf coffee for your next get-together?

Aida Batlle story in The New Yorker

It's always great when the pioneers of truly specialty coffee are recognized in mainstream media. Such is the case with the article in November 2011's The New Yorker, "Letter from El Salvador: Sacred Grounds -- Aida Batlle and the new coffee evangelists." The journalist, Kelefa Sanneh, was on-site in El Salvador at Aida's beautiful and captivating farms. She writes with touching vignette's about Aida's career and the challenges she faces as a coffee farmer. The article highlights well the many challenges any professional in specialty coffee has come across at some time. This makes it a delight to read.

But you'll need some time -- and a good cup of (decaf) coffee. (The story is captivating enough to not need the caffeine.) But it's 10 pages of New Yorker fine print!

Finding Flavorful Decaf Coffee

Dec. 5, 2011
It's been fun hearing stories about people in search of great tasting decaf coffee. One student on his junior year abroad wanted decaf coffee for his mother's birthday. She's been looking for something that really tastes good -- not flat and burned. AND, if possible, it should be organic and certified as fair trade. He found it by searching the internet.

Peru, Swiss Water Process, organic, fair trade is what he bought!

DeliciousDecafCoffee.com launches!

Calling all gourmet decaf coffee lovers!
The website of your dreams has just launched - www.DeliciousDecafCoffee.com. It gives you the opportunity to buy roasted premium decaf coffee on-line, from a source you can trust: Artisan Coffee Imports (the only importer who specializes in great-tasting, high end decaf coffee.)

I've tried the decaf Kenya AA Meru-Riankune, and it's excellent. For those that want an organic and water-processed coffee, try the Peru.

The site is great, because it categorizes the coffees by decaf process. And ALL the coffees are single origins -- no blends of "nasty + moderately bad" trying to masquerade as good coffee. There's even a decaf espresso that's a "custom design" for great decaf espresso drinks.

Enjoy!

Decaf Admired - Ann Arbor.Com Newspaper

My local newspaper, AnnArbor.Com, just published a touching review of coffee culture in our county - Washtenaw County, Michigan. From a 1924 Men's Morning Coffee Group, to Frank's and the S.S. Kresge, the article recounts the history of coffee in our community. Love the Steinbeck quote, "The hot bitter coffee scalded our throats. We threw the last little bit with the grounds in it on the earth and refilled our cups."

Now the coffee scene is diverse and offers a wide variety of quality choices. Love it that one of my favorites, Zingerman's Coffee Co., is called out with a quote from a decaf drinker -- "I only drink decaf, and their decaf blend of Americano is really wonderful," she said. She is so right. When I've ordered decaf Americanos there I almost always am stopped in my tracks for a few seconds thinking, "DANG, that's good coffee!"

Keep doing that decaf right out there, folks! And if you need a source for good decaf grounds, besides Zingerman's, I've heard of another local provider who has great-tasting roasted decaf coffee.

Decaf Coffee In Europe - Data and Mysteries

Tea & Coffee Trade Journal, October 2011
This month's issue of Tea & Coffee gave a rare and detailed insight into the world of decaf coffee in Europe. A glimpse at Europe is, in many ways, a glimpse at the entire world of decaf coffee, because so much of the the world's decaf coffee is decaffeinated in Europe.

The article takes a look at the first ground-breaking compilation of market statistics on decaf coffee done in 1999 (using year 1997 based figures). The result back then? "Above 10% in Austria, Germany, Holland and Spain; just below 10% in Belgium and France; below 5% in Itlay and the UK; negligible amounts in Scandinavia." Averaged out -- "15 years ago the decaf tonnage consumed within the EU amounted to about 7% of the global [EU] coffee consumption, on a green bean disappearance basis."

Interesting terminology, eh? "GLOBAL EU coffee consumption? I assume that means there is also a "GLOBAL North American coffee consumption figure? As an editor, I would prefer to use "combined" to describe combined data, and save the word "global" for when we're really talking about the whole world.

Anyways -- the article goes on to estimate decaf consumption by country today. Unfortunately, there is no directly comparable report to the one done in 1999. Instead, Tea & Coffee has compiled various data and reports: France at 7% (down from before); Germany at 7.8% (also down). Decaf growth appears to have happened in Italy, now reporting 7% and Spain, "remaining the champion" is at 20%.

Wow! 20%! Why would that be? How could that be? That's a bit of a mystery. The article says "the Spanish decaf manufacturers have been intensely communicating about the benefits of decaf consumption." But who are the Spanish decaffeinators? We only know of plants in Italy and Germany.

So not surprisingly, an article delving into the world of decaf also digs up new mysteries in this shadowed and barely understood market!

Valuable by-products of the QGrader Exam

Maybe it's this way with every training course, but having just completed my QGrader re-takes, I've now had the opportunity to do 1.5 QGrade courses with two different sets of 10-12 coffee professionals. That experience, whether one passes the test or not, is truly valuable. I'm not saying I'd pay $1000 just to hang out and cup with 1o people for a week -- but there is a truly valuable learning aspect that one probably doesn't anticipate when one signs up for the course. At least I didn't.

What I noticed is that because each roaster and importer has different backgrounds and areas of expertise, all week you are on a learning curve about aspects of the coffee industry that are less familiar to you, given your place "in the supply and service chain". And when it comes to the coffee in the cup, it's fascinating to see how one roaster finds a cup "well rounded and bold" and another finds it "too earthy." Of course, it's great when a room of disparate traders, roasters, importers, cafe-owners all have a unanimous experience, too -- "that one sucks!", for example. Now we can debate how and why.

Keep cupping, everyone!