Four shots of espresso in one serving.

Manual cone-filter brewing has many advantages over the common automatic drip coffee machine. With the pour-over method, you decide how much hot water is enough and decide how fine a grind you want to use.

Author’s note:
I have found it best for single-serving cups of coffee. It is also one of the cheapest forms of coffee making available with the cone selling for under five dollars in a variety of sizes to meet your needs.

Pour over coffee brewer with bleached paper filter

A plastic handled metal basket that holds a filter basket. The two-part unit then clamps in to the group of the espresso machine. A bottomless, or naked, portafilter is similar to a regular portafilter but with the bottom removed to expose the screened basket.

Portafilter in Doser

A coffee estate is a coffee plantation and vise versa.

Author’s note:
There is no difference in quality between an estate and a plantation in my opinion.

Happy Holidays to all of you in the world of coffee. I apologize for the lack of new posts, it’s been a wacky winter to say the least.

Two recent events, one in coffee, the other not, have lead me to put a short pause to any more cafe reviews. It has become harder to keep a large number of cafes updated. If I stop by and if things have changed, for better or worse I’d like to update the blog post, but yet right now that is hard to do.

But you should follow me on twitter @coffeevancouver So where making a change and you should see a CoffeeVancouver V.3 Sometime in the new year!

Minimalist Latte Art by Tessa

A bottomless, or naked, porta-filter is similar to a regular porta-filter but with the bottom removed to expose the screened basket.

A large quantity of particles from the grinds suspended in the beverage.

Author’s note:
This usually results from using a grind that is too fine for the filter type. While a paper filter will usually hold what ever grind you use. Metal filters that are perforated will not hold a improper sized grind, which will result in muddy taste.

Latte Art Heart

I am thankful

I am thankful for living in an eclectic area of town, East Vancouver, on the best street Commercial Drive.

I am thankful for living near my family and the support I have received when I broke my leg skiing.

I am thankful for living in a city that has such a dedicated coffee culture. A place where I can visit three amazing cafes without batting an eyelash. A town where you’ll see dedicated owners up at the crack of dawn pulling shots to make sure the espresso is the best it can be, and not sacrificing quality for profit.

I am thankful that the great cafes are just the public face of the caffeinated culture that is somewhat behind the scenes for those who might be unaware of its influence.

Two things have led me to this conclusion.

The Canadian Barista Championships at the Canadian Coffee and Tea Show were held in Vancouver. To see such a large collection of coffee enthusiasts all in one place for a first timer really showed me how much Vancouver really has to be thankful for. From the Piccolo clan to the Jones brothers from Banks Thomas to Spencer Viehweger. They were all in attendance. For a first timer like myself it was an impressive display of just how much Vancouver is involved with coffee.

The second came a couple weeks ago at a Coffee Lab near you.

Chris Giannakos, left, pours Nathan Slabaugh a cup. Photo by Mark Prince.

I went to Mark Prince’s new coffee lab for an inaugural coffee tasting. It was one of the best collections of coffee sampling I had ever seen.

Phil and Sebastian Kenya Kiru Co-op, left, PT’s Panama Elida Estate, Doma Costa Rica, Counter Culture AIDA Grand Reserve, Counter Culture Hacienda Esmeralda Special

But more than that the amazing collection of coffee was the eclectic group of people in attendance for the inaugural tasting. From baristas to bakers to bloggers. It was a diverse collection of coffee aficionados who were all bringing a different viewpoint to the cupping table.

It was one of the most enjoyable coffee experiences I have had. All the little pieces fell right into place. I also feel that this variety of people would be hard to find in a less coffee-centric locale. Check out the video below from my new youtube channel.

And then here is when you say, “Rob you’re in the know, normal coffee drinkers wouldn’t get this type of opportunity.” Well, I beg to differ and here is why. I run this blog so you can  learn more about coffee. I am here to tell you that these experiences aren’t for the in-the-know of coffee.

Coming in the new year Mark Prince is opening up his coffee lab to courses for the consumer and I only know Vancouver will benefit from this. He will also be teaching people how to make great coffee on machines you’ll be able to afford. So if you can’t afford the $5k Speedster that’s OK  ( p.s. neither can I ).  His classes will be centered around how to make great cups at home.

After attending a number of his tastings at the Bump and Grind a couple years ago and attending a number of his cuppings at the Lab I have only benefited from the vast amount of knowledge in this  geek’s head.

I’ll post a link when his lab is up and running, and hope to take a few classes myself.

p.s. Here is a list of twitters that were in attendance. (My apologies if I have missed anyone)

@circuscoffee
@peter_van
@kafkascoffeetea
@casualbaker
@thecafeguide
@Coffeevancouver
@GI_Spro
@CoffeeGeek

A Moka pot is the brand name of a stovetop espresso maker made by Bialetti Company.

Author’s note:
Correct me if I am wrong but too my knowledge this is not associated with the Mocha region of Yemen.

A Mocha is a coffee drink made from espresso, chocolate syrup and steamed milk. To make a Mocha, start with a shot or two of espresso (depending on taste), mix 1 oz of chocolate sauce with milk and steam. Top with whipping cream and chocolate sprinkles.

The Mocha name comes from the city of Mocha, a port city off the Red Sea coast of Yemen. The beans from this region are known for their relatively chocolate-y flavour.

Author’s note:
For the variety of independent cafes and chains, this is one drink that most can agree on the way it is made.

A Moka pot is a brand of stovetop espresso maker made by Bialetti Company and to my knowledge is not associated with the Mocha region of Yemen.