I (heart) Espresso

Note: I’m not sure exactly what this blog is supposed to be like.  I’m testing the waters a bit with this post so please bear with me.

It’s easy to be an espresso snob.  The truth is that no one consistently makes a good espresso in California.  Now, I know that sounds like a tremendously snobby thing to say, but it really is just a statement of fact.  I have been to every top rated coffee house in every major city in California, and not one, not even the legendary Peet’s Coffee and Tea of San Francisco, makes a great cup of espresso consistently (SF’s once famous café culture is dead.  Don’t worry about the snooty folks who work at Peet’s though, their ego has survived and is bigger than ever.  But I have to admit I really like their coffee).  As a matter of fact, almost none of those top rated cafes are even about coffee, having given up on the pursuit of coffee perfection to fill half their menus with deli sandwiches, candy bars and even pizzas.

And I’ll save you the trip to the Starbucks Oracle, my personality type is “Asshat”.  But before you start hating on me I think I should remind you that you love espresso too.  That cappuccino you drink every morning?  Espresso + a little steamed milk + a hefty dollop of the foam from that steamed milk.  The latte you love so well?  Espresso + a lot of steamed milk + whatever flavors you feel like adding.  The mighty mocha?  Espresso + a lot of steamed milk + dark chocolate sauce (yes, it’s just a latte).  You and me go to Starbucks for the same reason: We love the bold and rich flavor of espresso.

What makes an espresso so great?  Aficionados -- which I am most definitely not -- will talk your head off with technicalities like acidity and the influence of regional soils on flavor, but it really boils down to one simple factor: Crema.  Crema is the word Italians use to describe the creamy, decadent foam that forms whenever espresso is brewed.  It’s stupendous and the key to downing that tiny cup of concentrated coffee goodness in one shot.  That rich foam hits your taste buds first as the strong flavor of the espresso slides on by.  The result is way beyond a caffeine rush -- it’s a coffee high.  I barely know what to do with myself when I get my hands on a well made espresso.  Once I gulp it down I can’t wipe the smile off my face.  I try to keep it together by crossing my arms, because I know that if I give in and let them dangle at my sides this would surely lead to me drooling and falling out of my chair.

And crema is the reason a well made espresso is so hard to come by.  Making a good cup of espresso isn’t rocket science, but it does take attention to detail.  I’ll take you through the process quickly.  First off, the espresso roasted (very dark roast) coffee beans can’t be ground too fine (think flour) because what you’ll end up with is what my buddy Miza would call “motor oil” (although that’s what he calls espresso in general since he and his brother the Soulman are all about French Press).  Once ground you have to compact the coffee and it’s at this point that the espresso usually goes to hell.  If you pack it too tight, then you get the aforementioned motor oil.  Too lose and you get horse piss.  Watch the next time someone is making you an espresso based drink.   When they brew the espresso (if they don’t brew you a fresh shot of espresso and instead pour it from a pitcher they filled with espresso that was brewed in the morning, ask for your money back), it should look like a small but steady stream of golden caramel cream.  No I’m not exaggerating, that’s what it looks like damn it!  Because espresso gets packed either too tight or too loose, you usually don’t get that nice crema floating at the top.

Here in the Imperial Valley, you can get as good (or bad) a cup of espresso as you can get anywhere in La Jolla or San Francisco.  The top three in the Valley breaks down as follows:

3) Starbucks on Imperial and Main in El Centro.  In spite of Starbucks’ best efforts at homogenizing the café experience, some stores are better than others -- just like some McDonald’s stores are cleaner and make better cheeseburgers than others.  It’s not that the staff is any better with the process of making espresso because Starbucks uses fully automatic espresso machines.  All they do is push a button and out comes the coffee. 

What makes this store in particular stand out is the staff’s speedy delivery of my drink.  I’ve never met the go-getter that manages this store, but she has her entire staff excited about coffee, and that is reflected in the drinks they make.

2) Anazao.  This place is a haven for coffee snobs, and that starts with the folks that run it.  I was recently told that the owner took a trip to Italy to get trained as a barista in preparation for opening his place, which is cool.  Although he botched my espresso just a bit even though he spent a remarkable amount of time massaging the portafilter, which threw me off.  While I don’t enjoy the snobby atmosphere, I think it’s great to have a place like this in the Valley. 

The espresso I get here is OK.  It passes the sugar test: Simply pour some sugar on that crema.  If it sits on the crema for twenty or thirty seconds, then suddenly collapses into the espresso below, you’ve got yourself a decent espresso because you’ve got yourself a good head of crema.

1) The Rock.  The kid that works the counter at this place is proof that to make great coffee you don’t need to go to Barista College (I’m not making that up, there are barista colleges).  On top of making a good espresso on a regular basis, he gives great service.  He fills my tiny espresso spoon with sugar, which is just plain nice.

You should give espresso a shot (espresso pun!).  You won’t like it at first, but that didn’t make you give up on beer, did it?  Your efforts to develop a love for (addiction to) espresso will be equally rewarding.

-- Rigo

Comments

[JBrad]

I haven't read the blog yet, but I knew it was Rigo by the length!

[JBrad]

Good post. I'm not much of a coffee guy. How is that place Cuppy's? I like the tea at The Rock.

[Rodrigo]

Ha ha! I thought about cutting my little list out to save space, but I couldn't figure out what part of the post was worth keeping. I did trim out about 400 words though!

I like cuppy's! Friendly staff. They don't do everything well though, so you kind of have to give it a few chances and see what you like from the menu. They make the best iced chai tea latte's in IV, I think.

[soulman]

I love my coffee french pressed. Once you have coffee this way, there is no other way to have it. I've never tried an espresso, but it seems like too much work but I would be willing to give it a whirl.
Horse piss i've never tried, and I hope I never will.

[ME]

I've been to all these cafes you've mentioned, the only one I won't go back to is starbucks. I've had this conversation many a times with miza, especially when he's trying real hard to find one whenever we go out of town, how starbucks is the mcdonalds of coffee houses. You don't go to mcdonalds when you really want a good tasting burger so why would I go to starbucks when I want good coffee. These other three places mentioned: anazao, cuppy's and the rock cafe. I've been to cuppy's much more often then any of the three, they get it right more often than they get it wrong. Anazao is pretty good, but my favorite is rock cafe. At the rock cafe I've never had a bad espresso based drink (I mention this cuz I've never had a cup of coffee there) plus they have phenomenal sandwiches and cookies, on the flip side it's all the way in brawley.

[ME]

I've tried the french press, it's good very strong. Little bit of info on soul and coffee, he drinks coffee with his sugar, I can't imagine how much sugar he puts into his french press to get it sweet enough.

[ME]

I've also tried the espresso shot, that's way to hardcore.

[JBrad]

Do you have Freedom Fries to offset that French press, Soul?

[soulman]

I've thought about that JBrad, I usually call it a coffee press. It does bother me a little that it's called a "french" press.

[ME]

Call it what its known for, you tell me coffee press and I have know idea what your talking about.

[Rodrigo]

Funny. I still remember when I first time I saw the Soulman prepare himself a cup of freedom press coffee. "How do you take it?", I asked. "I just put a couple spoonfulls of sugar," he said as he dug into the sugar with what has to be the largest "spoon" I have ever seen. I mean, you could have served soup with that thing.

[me]

Freedom arabica top of the american moutain coffee press

[Rodrigo]

Me (ME) mentioned the cookies at The Rock. They're not all great all the time, but my favorite is the ginger cookie. Good lord, that's a fine cookie.

[soulman]

check it out Rigo, there might be some hope for Starbucks

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23351151/?GT1=10856

[Rodrigo]

I don't know how they plan to re-teach their "baristas" the "art of espresso". They push one button and the machine does the rest.

And they are as passionate about coffee as McDonalds is about cheeseburgers. If Dunkin Donuts and McDonald's are your competition, sorry, you are not about coffee. Which is fine -- I don't say that to be a snob. I LOVE the McD's double cheeseburger. I go to Starbucks probably once or twice every week. I would love to try Dunkin Donuts coffee, which I've read is highly addictive.

I do love Dunkin Donuts marketing this year, promoting themselves as the anti-starbucks even though they are selling the same product. It seems to be working.

[Jonathan Dale]

Anazao all the way baby...but what's this about it being a snobby place? I take my youth group in there every once in a while and every time I go there is at least a small group of people playing cards or board games and being a little rambunctious...

Iced Tea (African Nectar is good) is great at Anazao....the Rock's mocha frappes give me stomach ache though, but I haven't tried anything else there yet.

[Rodrigo]

The Rock definitely doesn't do everything well. They're iced tea was brown water until the switched to a branded fountain iced tea. I forget the brand.

"Snobby" was the stron vibe i got from Anazao. The owner wore a constant smirk and serves some of his drinks in martini glasses! But I could be wrong. You made it sound like a very different place. I'll have to join your youth group for coffee one of these days.