Comments on: Some Thoughts on Coffee

By: Corduroy Orange » Blog Archive » Why There Aren’t Single-Origin Espressos

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 13:00:26 +0000

[...] I raised the question in a recent post of why it is that you can go into most any coffee shop and know exactly where your cup of joe was sourced, but it’s never really clear where espressos come from. I had a chance yesterday to ask David Diorio of La Prima, and it turns out that it’s because of the nature of the drink. There are two basic types of coffee beans: Arabica and Robusta. Arabica beans are recognized to be of a higher quality, but they are more difficult to grow: the trees only grow at altitudes above 3,000 feet; and they are more disease-prone than Robusta trees are. As a result, Robusta beans are easy to find: they’re used in maxwell House, Folgers, etc.: the types of coffee where quantity is more important than quality, and you’d better drink it hot because once it cools down, the flavor profile changes to nasty. Coincidentally, Robusta beans also have a higher caffeine level than Arabica. [...]

By: Batz

Batz — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:00:16 +0000

Nicholas Coffee, Downtown, also offers a Monsoon Malabar, which is one of my favorite coffees, starting with the name.

By: Lori K

Lori K — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 02:35:58 +0000

Coffee Tree also has locations in Squirrel Hill and Shadyside, if that helps. They’re locally owned in a chain store market and they’ve been around since before Starbucks came to town.

By: jwsharrard

jwsharrard — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 11:49:06 +0000

Must be tough having to bake with only maple sugar and only local grains…

By: jim

jim — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 13:24:51 +0000

It’s rough living it the North. We all have to make sacrifices. For example, I won’t eat coconut that isn’t grown in western MA.

By: jwsharrard

jwsharrard — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 12:29:19 +0000

That would be pretty tough… I think Phipps Conservatory has a coffee tree or two, but I also know that the chemicals they use on their plants render them unfit for human consumption (which is in part why the cafe in Phipps derives none of its ingredients from their greenhouses).

In general, coffee is a tropical plant, growing within 20 degrees of the equator; Hawaii is the only state in the union that has a coffee crop. So, until climate change changes that, I’ll have to remain part of the global marketplace if I’m to get my caffeine.

And, drinking caffeinated beverages still connects you to coffee… the caffeine is derived from decaffeinated coffee.

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:09:57 +0000

Considering your interest in locally grown food, I’m surprised that you’re not limiting yourself to coffee beans grown in western PA or eastern Ohio.

By: Jon

Jon — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:19:02 +0000

I order coffee from Seth at http://www.oldbisbeeroasters.com/

He roasts the beans when you order them, always has fresh coffee from a variety of regions, and provides top notch service. I can get coffee next day here in Arizona, in two days in Florida, and when I was in Iraq I got them in a week. I highly recommend giving his website a look.

By: jwsharrard

jwsharrard — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 13:14:45 +0000

It’s probably the same thing under a slightly different name would be my guess… but I am rarely in Fox Chapel, so have never tried it.

By: Lori K

Lori K — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 04:13:30 +0000

Have you tried India Monsooned, available at Coffee Tree in Fox Chapel? I wonder if it is similar…