Celebrate the weekend with multiple shots of espresso.
Saturday, August 05, 2017
Friday, August 04, 2017
Thursday, August 03, 2017
Wow! caffe d'bolla is thirteen
This month marks caffe d'bolla's 13th anniversary.
It's hard to capture what thirteen
years has been in a short post. It's been a family business from the
start, both Yiching and I worked the day to day from opening day -
making drinks, cleaning, baking, roasting and everything else that
comes with owning a business for more than ten years. And once Alex
was walking, Yiching moved behind the scenes, still handling baking,
a lot of our social media, and coordinating our international
shipping. While she does that, she's a full time mom teaching a
brilliant and energetic young boy the important things in life.
So now, I'm just a husband and a father
who happens to be passionate about coffee. Every day I come home,
Alex says, “Did you work hard for us at caffe d'bolla today?”
Then he asks, “Who was your favorite customer today?” Maybe it's
YOU. If it's sometimes you, or if it's been you, you'd probably know
it. Some days there are several “favorites”. Other days, it's a
blur. And, if it's not you today... maybe tomorrow.
Caffe d'bolla is an embodiment of our
family's guiding principles. Work hard, have unshakeable standards,
and strive to be the best in whatever you do. The business has always
been family and continues to be a vehicle for teaching our son about
the “joys” of hundred hour work weeks and the rewards that come
with setting the minimum bar at “excellent” and learning and
improving daily. There's a determination and a fire in him I know he
has because of what both of us have done and what each of us
continues to do.
I have roasted our coffee and espresso
for nearly twelve of our thirteen years. And I'm good at what I
do. Every day I come in, I taste and adjust our current espresso
until it's pulling just right. And I do it throughout the day. I've
done it thousands of times because your first sip matters. So every time you come in to have an espresso,
macchiato, a latte or maybe take the time to sit down for a siphon coffee know
that what you are tasting took thousands of hours of roasting and an
equal number of hours making drinks at what's proven to be world
class standards, and there's a reason for that. Love of craft and
love of coffee is best as a shared experience. So, thank you for
coming and letting us share what we do best with you. I'll see you
tomorrow.
Wednesday, August 02, 2017
Colombia Urrao Valle de Penderisco
Fresh out of the roaster! Colombia Urrao Valle de Penderisco. So good. Come and get it!
Tuesday, August 01, 2017
Panama Boquete Camiseta Estate
More Single Origin coffees just roasted and bagged for you to pick up and delivery via Coffee Subscription (caffedbolla.com). In the photo: Panama Boquete Camiseta Estate. Come and get yours!
Monday, July 31, 2017
sharing the love
Spending time and sharing good coffee and treats with a loved one is a wonderful thing.
Saturday, July 29, 2017
Friday, July 28, 2017
a cortado
Come and have a cortado today. Center of Attention is On Tap here at caffe d'bolla, and it's so gooood!
Thursday, July 27, 2017
El Salvador Finca Matalapa - Bourbon
Another batch of El Salvador Finca Matalapa - Bourbon just came out of the roaster. Come and get some of this amazing coffee today!
Wednesday, July 26, 2017
fresh roasted single origin coffee beans
More coffee roasting at the shop right now! Come pick some up, or have them delivered to your door (via Coffee Subscription on caffedbolla.com)
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
a beautiful day
It's a beautiful day for a delicious latte at caffe d'bolla. "Center of Attention" is our current espresso On Tap!
Friday, July 21, 2017
for your weekend brewing happiness
John's been roasting coffee all day for your weekend brewing happiness. Come and get your favorites now!
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Best of State awards 2017
We are continuously inspired to achieve excellence in our craft by the people we love.
*Best of State 2017 Specialty Beverages (Siphon Coffee)
*Best of State 2017 Artisan Foods (Roasted Whole Bean Coffee)
Monday, July 17, 2017
Burundi Kibumbu Kayokwe Lot 1
Fresh out of the roaster: Burundi Kibumbu Kayokwe Lot 1. Ready to be bagged for you to pick up!
Saturday, July 15, 2017
Mexico Tenejapa Kulaktik Coop
Fresh out of the roaster! Mexico Tenejapa Kulaktik Coop. Come and check it out!
Friday, July 14, 2017
iced latte
Have you had your iced latte today? Center of Attention is our espresso On Tap here at caffe d'bolla.
Thursday, July 13, 2017
Understand the Process
John says...
Process is important. “Understand the process,” I say. But what does that entail? Is “process” simply a set of steps you follow to accomplish a task correctly – In this case brewing coffee?
Process is important. “Understand the process,” I say. But what does that entail? Is “process” simply a set of steps you follow to accomplish a task correctly – In this case brewing coffee?
Yes.
So, we're done then?
No, we're not. Because as
straightforward as it should be, to everyone's dismay (not really)
there are few professionals who get it right. What are they not doing
right and WHY are they not doing it right?
Let's start with: What is the process?
In a nutshell: Start with properly
roasted, quality, fresh, (whole) coffee beans. Understand correct
dosing (coffee:water ratio) and particle size. Use correct dosing for
chosen brewing method. Grind fresh with a good, adjustable burr
grinder. Use water within (generally) specific TDS parameters. And
brew! Then taste and adjust until it's just right. All of these
steps are taken in order to produce a specific result – excellent
coffee.
Now let's work through these “simple”
things and see where the problems are.
Quality coffee – Now there are
cupping scores and tasting notes in respect to the green coffee. So,
as a coffee roaster it's simple to get your hands on quality beans.
And I would suppose that most coffee shops who are making a claim of
craft, artisanal, or “Third Wave” coffee are, in fact, sourcing
quality green.
Properly roasted – Here is where we
need to take a closer look. Because as I have often said, the higher
the quality of your green, the more complexity within that specific
lot, the more skill it takes to roast it.
So, what does “highly skilled” as a
roaster mean? Is it about experience and dedication? Is it about
talent?
I think if I had to list these factors
it would be: talent, dedication, and experience. And when I talk
about dedication, I think you can use the word “dedication” as a
more serious sounding replacement for the word “passion”. You
can't be dedicated to a thing without loving or enjoying that thing.
And the dedication isn't simply to the craft. It's a dedication to
the result of the craft, which is excellent coffee. With dedication
and experience, you can always be above average to really, really
good. But in my experience, without some inherent skill, aptitude or
talent for the craft, you will never be exceptional.
So the first weakening of the process
is with the roasting? What is the talent level of your roaster? How
many hours of work have they put in? How many varietals from how many
regions have they roasted? And how many years have they been doing
it? Whether YOU are the roaster or your shop does the roasting, or
you bring in your beans from somewhere – in which case you have to
ask all these questions about their roaster – the likelihood is
perhaps your coffee program isn't on as solid a ground as you were
led to believe or that you are leading others to believe.
Now, I could really stop there, because
the roasting of the coffee is probably the most important step in the
coffee making process.
But let's assume the roasting is spot
on.
Correct dosing is a known thing, so
there's really no excuse for getting that wrong Look up “Gold Cup”
standards or SCA brewing standards. Coffee science doesn't change.
Grind size is a generally known thing
that you specifically tune to your coffee and your taste.
The same can be said for water
chemistry.
Brewing technique? That takes a bit of
skill. It takes some practice. And of course the goal again...
excellent coffee.
So the reasons for not executing
excellent coffee?
Either you don't know how. Or you don't
care to know how. Often it's both.
If you care about the prestige of
sourcing excellent coffees, but don't take the time to make sure you
have a highly experienced roaster who can create sweetness and
dynamic complexity and balance and mouthfeel in your coffee – then
what?
Well, what happens is if the
fundamentals of your coffee program are not rock solid, the smaller
details, like brewing parameters or water chemistry are going to be
an afterthought as well.
Or do you try to unknowingly take short
cuts? You have a refractometer of some sort, you measure TDS to
perfection... you dial in temperatures precisely, and what you do is
end up chasing numbers instead of following flavor.
Great coffee, excellent coffee,
exceptional coffee is not the result of following a set of numbers.
Exceptional coffee is the result of
understanding the process with the end goal of a delicious cup of
coffee. This means fundamentals of brewing and this means following
the flavor.
It's really simple. Everyone should be
able to do it.
You should be able to do it. So why
aren't you?
NEW ESPRESSO - Center of Attention
NEW ESPRESSO! Center of Attention - juicy apple, toffee sweetness, dark berry center. Only at caffe d'bolla.
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Tanzania Tarime Town Peaberry
Tanzania Tarime Town Peaberry. Just roasted and bagged. Come and get yours!
siphon syphon
Three delicious Single Origin coffees On Siphon here at caffe d'bolla. Relax and have one today!
Monday, July 10, 2017
Fresh Beans
John has been roasting coffee non-stop today. More beans just came out of the roaster. Come get your favorite!
Rwanda Kivu Kanzu - Lot 2
Just roasted and bagged: Rwanda Kivu Kanzu - Lot 2. Come and get yours today!
Saturday, July 08, 2017
fresh brewed iced tea
Come and get a fresh brewed iced tea at caffe d'bolla. It's refreshing and oh so yummy!
custard bubble milk tea with coffee cubes
Oh! A custard bubble milk tea with coffee jellies! Nom nom nom.
Friday, July 07, 2017
El Salvador Finca Matalapa
El Salvador FInca Matalapa. Amazing coffee. Just roasted and bagged for you!
Thursday, July 06, 2017
Wednesday, July 05, 2017
Monday, July 03, 2017
come and get your beans
Don't forget to pick up d'bolla beans for your holiday coffee brewing happiness!
iced
caffe d'bolla is OPEN today! (Closed on the 4th.) Come and grab a refreshing drink and get ready for your 4th of July celebration!
Saturday, July 01, 2017
Okinawa Black Sugar Custard bubble milk tea
Okinawa Black Sugar Custard （沖縄黒糖プリン）bubble milk tea in the making. Yum!
Friday, June 30, 2017
NEW ESPRESSO - popsicles and chocolate
NEW ESPRESSO! popsicles and chocolate - berries, cherries, and purple grape with a lingering almond and chocolate finish.
Wednesday, June 28, 2017
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
Fresh Roasted Single Origin Coffee Beans
More Single Origin coffees just roasted and bagged. Ready for you to pick up or have them delivered (details on caffedbolla.com).
Monday, June 26, 2017
Sunday, June 25, 2017
iced
Utah Arts Festival is in full swing! Check out its full coverage on The Utah Review by Les Roka, and grab a fresh brewed iced tea at caffe d'bolla before you head in to the festivities!
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