When I first came to New York City almost 15 years ago, I was dismayed by how few independent coffee shops there were. I liked Oren’s Daily Roast, and when I moved to Brooklyn, I frequented Ozzie’s in Park Slope. And then there was that strange café run by Moonies in midtown that brewed Green Mountain coffee from Vermont. But other than that, coffee in this city was mediocre at best. I couldn't understand why some savvy entrepreneur didn't open a Pacific Northwest-style café—they'd make a killing.
Well, a lot has happened over the past 8 or so years, starting with Ninth Street Espresso, Joe the Art of Coffee, and Gimme! (in Williamsburg). But even since I reported my story on coffee cuppings last year, the number of "third-wave" coffee shops here has mushroomed. I can't keep up with the openings, mostly in Brooklyn, but some in Manhattan. (There are also a number of existing cafes that are switching to higher-quality roasters, such as City Girl on Orchard St., which now serves Stumptown.) In short, it's a good time to be a coffee drinker in New York City. (It's about time.)
That was the gist of a panel I was on yesterday at the first ever NYC Coffee Summit, hosted by the International Culinary Center and Edible Manhattan. I spoke about coffee education from the consumer's perspective: how can the typical NYC coffee drinker learn to distinguish between an Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and a Brazilian pulped natural of the Catuai variety? How can he or she learn how to make a great cup of coffee at home? My answer: chat up your barista, go to cuppings (and "home brewing" classes), and read coffee blogs.
Here's a list of cuppings and classes offered (mostly for free) in NYC and environs:
• Counter Culture coffee holds weekly cuppings on Friday at noon at Everyman Espresso (136 E 13th St between Third and Fourth Aves) and at 6PM at Roots & Vines (409 Grand St at Clinton St..) In June, they’ll start public cuppings at their brand new New York training facility.
• Café Grumpy has cuppings once a week at both locations—the dates and times are posted on their Web site. They'll also be hosting barista classes and home brewing classe @ the Chelsea location as soon as their back room renovation is complete.
• Joe the Art of Coffee has cuppings the first Monday of every month at 6:30 at the 13th street training facility, but also classes on "How to Brew Coffee at Home." (The next one is May 12 at 8:15 PM.)
• Intelligentsia has weekly cuppings at their new NYC "training lab" but also brewed-coffee tastings (the different profiles from french press vs chemex, for example), espresso tastings (four different single origins in a tasting), food and coffee pairings, plus home brewing classes, latte art classes, espresso classes, and "seed-to-cup" classes. (Daniel Humphries, now Intell's NYC guy, tells me he'll have another coffee and cheese pairing soon—not sure if that'll be under the aegis of the NYC Coffee Society or Intell.)
• Ken Nye tells me that Ninth Street Espresso (which now serves Intelligentsia) will start cuppings and other workshops soon, most likely at the 10th Street/tompkins Square location.
• Gimme! in Williamsburg has cuppings every so often—but they rarely advertise, so if you live in the 'hood, just ask a barista.
• Stumptown will start regular cuppings at Café Pedlar in Cobble Hill (or is it Carroll Gardens?) soon. (Probably Saturday afternoons.) A few of their NYC accounts hold cuppings: Variety Cafe (one of my new favorites), and Marlow and Sons (81 Broadway in Williamsburg). Lizz Hudson from Stumptown is doing a cupping on May 13 @ Spoon Catering at 17 W. 20th St.
For more on NYC's vibrant coffee scene (and its early history), see Liz Clayton's article in the latest issue of Edible Manhattan.
And finally, for those of you who could use a guide to all these third-wave cafés, check out Anne Nylander and Neil Oney's NYC and Brooklyn coffee tours. (Anne and Neil own TampTamp, Inc., a specialty coffee service firm.)
One more thing: If you're truly obsessed with coffee, James Hoffman's blog is an education in and of itself. Hoffman, who won the World Barista Championship in 2007, is based in London and I can guarantee that he's more obsessed with coffee than you are. He posts about barista championships, food chemistry, roasting and latte art, but don't miss the videocasts of him brewing coffee with the Chemex, Moka Pot, and even with snow.
Now, it's time for another cup of Ecco Caffé's Fazenda Serra do Bone from Brazil...
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