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  #1101  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 5:49 AM
Blader Blader is offline
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Originally Posted by freeweed View Post
I'm kinda like that guy who spends months sampling 300 beers from around the world - and ends up sitting back enjoying his Canadian (). But with coffee. Like I said, a hick.
And I'm the kind of guy who enjoys foie gras and ends up eating kraft dinner now and then

Still, most of the the coffees on the supermarket shelf are triage, grade 8 in American standards, ie, coffee, weed seeds, mouse shit, and the list goes on. The majors, then roast it, grind it, and flavour it (you wouldn't drink it if they didn't) and label it gourmet. And it is stale. Did I say stale.
Most coffee drinkers have only tasted stale coffee and have no notion how good fresh can be. Even if you buy coffee roasted but not ground, its shelf life is 2 to 3 weeks and then it begins to stale. Still, I can enjoy a coffee at Tims even though I can taste the stale, and I prefer not to think about the mouse shit.
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  #1102  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 5:58 AM
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Originally Posted by jeffwhit View Post
Speaking of coffee, does anyone know a place in town that carries these?
That is a beautiful vacuum pot, I had one similar that I never used and took it to the Sally Ann. Good luck in you search.
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  #1103  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 6:00 AM
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That is a beautiful vacuum pot, I had one similar that I never used and took it to the Sally Ann. Good luck in you search.
Thanks They're easy enough to find online, I'd just rather support a local business (and not pay for shipping.)
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  #1104  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 6:16 AM
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Jeff, I am almost certain that Phil and Sebastian used to carry that vac pot. They have less room for merchandise now but they may still have it somewhere.

You might also try Kilian.
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  #1105  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 6:27 AM
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Originally Posted by Blader View Post
Most coffee drinkers have only tasted stale coffee and have no notion how good fresh can be.
This has to be shouted from the rooftops.

I will only buy beans that indicate roast date, but a lot of roasters either don't provide that info or else make it difficult to figure out roast date- and you should not buy beans that are more than a couple of weeks off the roast if possible; never more than a month, and NEVER pre-ground. Whole beans stale in weeks but ground coffee stales in minutes.

In Calgary, all the beans from 49th Parallel (sold at Caffe Artigiano, Bumpy's and Kawa/Java Jamboree) is roast dated. Fratello, who supply Good Earth, Beano and many others (incl Purple Perk) roast date their "cup of excellence" 8-oz bags but not always their other products, so if I want their very good Godfather espresso I get it from the 5-lb "bar bags" that are used for the shop's coffee; the big bags (from Fratello, not all roasters) have roast dates and they're usually very fresh; I've purchased Fratello beans at beano that were roasted 48 hours prior. Purple Perk only charges $12/lb for this one and I hope they don't figure out that they're charging too little- even Kicking Horse that's 6 months old is about $16/lb (which is the exact same price Kawa charges for insanely superior 49th Parallel Epic Espresso).

Phil and Sebastian's beans are very VERY clearly roast dated, and the Intelligentsia sold at DeVille is roast dated too.

Oso Negro and Mountain View (from Didsbury, available at Bumpy's and Community Natural Foods) roast dates too. So nobody needs to buy stale coffee anymore.
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  #1106  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 7:41 AM
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Originally Posted by furrycanuck View Post
So nobody needs to buy stale coffee anymore.
Your right but:
As you know, the poor can't afford to buy fresh.
And many of those who can afford it are accustomed to paying triage prices are not willing to pay 12 to 16 dollars a pound for fresh.

Oddly, I think some like the taste of stale, and it's what they look forward to, in the taste of coffee, not having known anything else.

Nonetheless, as you say, the coffee scene is changing rapidly. Last fall, I was in Saskatoon and dropped into the Cafe Museo and had a superb cappuccino. The owner just recently placed 2nd or 3rd in the Prairie barista championships.
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  #1107  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 2:11 PM
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Oddly, I think some like the taste of stale, and it's what they look forward to, in the taste of coffee, not having known anything else.
We all like what we're accustomed to, by and large. Even when we're shown something better.

With in-laws in town, and them doing the groceries - I'm turning into a ground beef snob. Extra Lean is pure, unadulterated CRAP, thank you very much. But as it's all they've ever eaten, they think juicy, flavourful meat tastes "bad". And I'm not even much of a red meat eater.
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  #1108  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 2:32 PM
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^Yeah, I don't go past "Lean Ground Beef"...just works the best for burgers, etc.


Speaking of beef, when I had that excellent bison with chocolate sauce at Passo Tempo in Osoyoos, my wife had the "Spring Creek Ranch Striploin" - which was pretty good. It's not the first time I've seen "Spring Creek Ranch" being served at a restaurant, so decided to look it up and try it at home if I could find it.

Turns out, 4 Safeways in Calgary sell two cuts of Spring Creek Ranch (apparently, no hormones, no antibiotics). Safeways in Westhills, Glenmore Landing, South Center, and Crowfoot sell it (and Master Meats on 40th Ave as well).

Personally, I didn't find the strip I got to be fantastic (compared to say, the 28-day dry aged at Co-op)...but, I'm also more a ribeye/cowboy cut fan, not strip.
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  #1109  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 3:16 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blader View Post
Your right but:
As you know, the poor can't afford to buy fresh.
And many of those who can afford it are accustomed to paying triage prices are not willing to pay 12 to 16 dollars a pound for fresh.

Oddly, I think some like the taste of stale, and it's what they look forward to, in the taste of coffee, not having known anything else.

Nonetheless, as you say, the coffee scene is changing rapidly. Last fall, I was in Saskatoon and dropped into the Cafe Museo and had a superb cappuccino. The owner just recently placed 2nd or 3rd in the Prairie barista championships.
A pound of coffee will yield about 25 cups of brewed coffee- at $16 a pound, that's 64 cents a cup, cheaper than Mac's or Tim Hortons- and a garage-sale brewer, press pot of pour-over and cheap blade grinder might cost $20- anybody can afford fresh coffee, it's just a matter of thinking about it differently. And I agree that there is the rub, but the fact is that even my $2000 home espresso setup has paid for itself more than once since I bought it.

Jimmy Oneschuk is the barista from Museo and yep he placed second; I was the judge in his prelim round and he has skills!
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  #1110  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 3:17 PM
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Give these guys a try for excellent beef and other meats.

http://www.second-to-none-meats.ca/
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  #1111  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 3:36 PM
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^Yep. JeffWhite has talked about them quite a bit.

They do sell Galloway beef from one individual farm east of the city (can't recall the name now). There should be nothing special about the Galloway breed (and, it's not as common in AB as say, Angus), but I guess it at least helps market them differently.

I am more interested in how the age the meat - and grade it. The problem with coming from one smaller operation is, you may not always be getting the exact same quality (marbling, specifically).

I'd like to see more of these producers/butchers take the time/energy and space to dry age their beef. At least with second-to-none it is aged a minimum of 28 days - which, although many will claim there's very little difference after 21 days, my taste buds would dispute that.
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  #1112  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 3:39 PM
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Originally Posted by furrycanuck View Post
A pound of coffee will yield about 25 cups of brewed coffee- at $16 a pound, that's 64 cents a cup, cheaper than Mac's or Tim Hortons- and a garage-sale brewer, press pot of pour-over and cheap blade grinder might cost $20- anybody can afford fresh coffee, it's just a matter of thinking about it differently. And I agree that there is the rub, but the fact is that even my $2000 home espresso setup has paid for itself more than once since I bought it.

Jimmy Oneschuk is the barista from Museo and yep he placed second; I was the judge in his prelim round and he has skills!
A blade grinder, Furry?? I mean, if you're going to go on the cheap investment to grind $16/pound coffee, why not just start with a burr grinder for a few $$$ more?
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  #1113  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 3:48 PM
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Speaking of coffee shops, have any of you been down to Cafe Rosso in Ramsay? It's at the site of the future Ramsay Exchange development, so it's surrounded by a construction site, but they know how to make a good espresso drink.

Plus it's the only place in town I know of where I can get a latte, since they have lactose-free milk behind the counter.
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  #1114  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 5:07 PM
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Originally Posted by furrycanuck View Post
Phil and Sebastian's beans are very VERY clearly roast dated, and the Intelligentsia sold at DeVille is roast dated too.
How much is a pound at P+S? We were there last weekend and couldn't find the price (and our squirmy 11-month old was not patient enough to let us wait in line to find out).
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  #1115  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 5:27 PM
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How much is a pound at P+S? We were there last weekend and couldn't find the price (and our squirmy 11-month old was not patient enough to let us wait in line to find out).
They only sell in 12 and 8 oz packages- espresso is, I think, 12.95 for a 12-oz. Single origins are of course all over the map, just like with wines.

ItW- I just mentioned a blade grinder because that's the cheapest option to point out that even "poor" people can have fresh coffee. I know of course that a burr grinder is preferred but on the cheap a blade grinder is a lot better than pre-ground- hugely better.

I've not been to Rosso but am miffed that they insist on Illy. Italian beans might be acceptable IN ITALY where you can drink them a few days after roasting, but they're weeks or months post-roast in North America and unless they turn it over FAST it's stale by the time it gets to your cup.
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  #1116  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 5:28 PM
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It's been a few months since I bought there, but I believe they sell their best direct-trade coffees by the half-pound, and they're around the $15 from what I recall.

EDIT: Beat me to it, Furry (and way more accurate of course )
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  #1117  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 5:48 PM
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^^ Thanks Furry/ItW - good to know. Will be interesting to try P+S to see how we like fresh beans compared to the typical brands we buy.
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  #1118  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 6:36 PM
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Originally Posted by furrycanuck View Post
Jeff, I am almost certain that Phil and Sebastian used to carry that vac pot. They have less room for merchandise now but they may still have it somewhere.

You might also try Kilian.
Doh!
I've never even bothered to peruse P&S's retail offerings since I'm usually trying to stand away from the crowd while waiting for my clover. Kilian is in the neighbourhood, though I except to pay a heft markup there. Mr. Cappuccino doesn't carry Bodum does it?

The CPO's new Timpanist's bio mentions "serious espresso" 3 separate times. When he gets to town I'm going to take him around. P&S, Artigiano, Kawwa, and Bumpy's are obvious, I still haven't hit Deville but it's the closest to work. Have I missed any?
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  #1119  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 9:22 PM
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All tjhree of those coffee places in one day! You are indeed the coffee king Furry!

I'll try and get some pics of the other places sometime. Beano is a regular stop for me, but I've never been to Kawa or Bumpy's Sounds like I need to check them out

Quote:
Originally Posted by furrycanuck View Post
Thanks for the coffeehouse pics surreal!! Add Bumpy's, Kawa and Beano to the collection if you're down that way.

I was at all three of Artigiano, DeVille and Kawa today- got a lamb panino at Artigiano, then walked over to DeVille for a macchiato and desert (chocolate tart w/ caramel and a tiny bit of fleur de sel on top- it was as good as the version at Nectar and about half the price, $5 for one gorgeous pastry... and the coffee is superb as well) then home via a beans purchase at Kawa, and it's nice to see that Kawa was very busy- not packed but busy. DeVille does OK, it has many regulars, so I wouldn't worry about it, especially considering that it's actually a pretty tiny shop.

A really high volume shop like Beano can and will sell 1000 or more drinks a day. Phil and Sebastian might do the same clip on a Saturday but given that they're only open from 9-5 whereas Beano is from 6a-midnight, naturally the totals are different but Sebastian tells me they can pull 600 shots on a good day. Those are both INSANELY busy examples- at Kawa they estimate they do about 200 drinks a day, going through about 8 lbs of beans a day, and I'd guess that Deville is a little less than that- but these are all really robust sales.

One standard double espresso takes about 20g of coffee, so you can calculate volume by asking how much coffee a shop goes through a day- at Beano they get shipments every other day. That's far more volume than a typical Starbucks btw!
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  #1120  
Old Posted Aug 14, 2008, 9:58 PM
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Doh!
I've never even bothered to peruse P&S's retail offerings since I'm usually trying to stand away from the crowd while waiting for my clover. Kilian is in the neighbourhood, though I except to pay a heft markup there. Mr. Cappuccino doesn't carry Bodum does it?

The CPO's new Timpanist's bio mentions "serious espresso" 3 separate times. When he gets to town I'm going to take him around. P&S, Artigiano, Kawwa, and Bumpy's are obvious, I still haven't hit Deville but it's the closest to work. Have I missed any?
Okay, sorry but was just at Kilian and no vac pot- but will keep my ear to the ground for you.

The Calgary Six: P&S, Artigiano, Deville, Bumpy's, Kawa, and Java Jamboree, but JJ is of course in Cochrane. The second tier would be Beano, Good Earth (some locations are better than others of course), Caffe Rosso, The House on a good day, and I've heard good things about some hard-core Italian shops like A Roma in Spruce Cliff and this place by Sandro up around 40th and Edmonton Trail- but really with the number of good shops in or near DT there is not much cause to poke around industrial parks, unless of course one if looking to buy an espresso machine.

Feel free to give the fella my contact info, thrilled to meet new coffee geeks.
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