The $20,000 Coffee Maker, Step by Step – The New York Times
Someone had to one up the Clover it appears ;^)
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February 2, 2008
by ray
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February 1, 2008
by ray
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getting closer!
Well, my package arrived today – containing a new tamper, and frothing pitcher. After getting things washed up (and also thawed out – the box probably sat outside for at least a couple hours in -25C), I had to give the pitcher a try - and I was thoroughly impressed! The claims were very true indeed. Perfectly microfoamed milk! I’ll add some pictures in the coming days.
The tamper is a welcome addition as well – I think that I’ve probably been packing my coffee with 50 or more pounds… 30 pounds of packing force isn’t much! I think that it will definitely bring greater consistency to my shots!
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January 30, 2008
by ray
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Connoisseurs are willing to pay as much as $15 for a cup individually brewed on the Clover coffee maker
globeandmail.com: My $11,000 hot java love machine by CINDA CHAVICH
From Wednesday’s Globe and Mail
January 30, 2008 at 10:48 AM EST
An interesting read – here in Edmonton you can experience coffee brewed in a Clover at transcend.
Keep in mind, it’s not all about the Clover – and significant portion of that $15 cup of coffee is in fact the coffee itself. At transcend, a cup brewed using the clover is typically around the $3 mark. A few weeks ago, I had a $5 cup, but this was a special coffee.
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January 26, 2008
by ray
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This weeks bean supply
Made the rounds today – the coffees for this week include:
- Kona Peaberry from St. City Roasters
- Dominican Republic from St. City Roasters
- Organic Espresso from Transcend
Haven’t had any Kona Peaberry since last year, before I got the Andreja Premium… definitely looking forward to trying it out!
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January 23, 2008
by ray
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A couple Espro accessories coming soon!
I broke down and ordered a new tamper and a new frothing pitcher.
The Espro Tamper has a mechanism built into it that ‘clicks’ once you’ve exerted 30lbs of tamping pressure. I’m certainly happy with my Reg Barber tamper, but I figure it can’t hurt (except in the wallet) to eliminate one more variable in making the perfect espresso shot 
We’ll soon see what a difference it really makes!
I also ordered one of Espro’s new ‘Toroid‘ frothing pitchers. They claim that its the best pitcher for making perfect microfoam for latte art. My skills at making microfoam are pretty sad, and even after being shown at Transcend, I haven’t succeeded yet. Maybe this will do the trick!
Hopefully the new goodies show up this weekend!
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January 4, 2008
by ray
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Planetary Design
I’ve had a Big Sky Bistro coffee mug for years – use it for camping. Last year I got a new mug from MEC, a 20oz. thermal stainless steel desk press mug, and I use it daily. Both mugs are from Planetary Design. I didn’t buy them because of that – but after this experience, I’ll definitely make sure that any travel mugs I consider purchasing in future are from these folks!
A couple weeks back one of the small tabs got broken off the lid slider from the mug I bought last year, causing it to fall out all the time.
Over the holiday season, I bought a new mug to replace the old one (same mug, different color), but figured that it would be quite a waste to just get rid of the old mug. I visited the Planetary Design web site to see if parts could be ordered. There was nothing in the way of mug parts, so I used their contact form to see if it was possible to buy replacement parts for their mugs. This was just last week, and I haven’t received an email reply – however, to my surprise, a package arrived from UPS today, containing a couple replacement lids! Now that’s customer service!
I purchased my mugs (the Big Sky Bistro and 20oz. Desk Press) from the Mountain Equipment Co-op here in Edmonton. I’ve also seen the ‘Double-Shot’ mugs at Transcend.
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January 3, 2008
by ray
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re.ality media
December 23, 2007
by ray
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Navan Latte
Here’s something that I tried last night while making some coffee drinks for some friends and family.
- Heat up latte cup with hot water, dry, and then pour 1oz. of Navan into it
- add a double shot of espresso – I used Transcend’s Organic Espresso.
- top off latte cup with steamed milk and serve.
I suspect that the espresso blend definitely played a role in the resulting drink. It was a pleasant surprise… it was like a fine European dark chocolate.
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