Triangle Cupping

Triangle cupping is the type of cupping done on championships.

The basic idea is you have three bowls, or glasses, to cup. Two of them are similar, one stands out, and that's the one you have to pick.

Anette Moldvaer, who won the world crown at the world championships in Antwerp earlier this year, told me it's all about practicing. So, i followed her advise and threw it into our staff social last Sunday.


These are the combinations i had on the table :
Honduras A against B. I did not have the exact region.
El Salvador Picacho against Costa Rica Tournon.
Sumatra Mandling against Sumatra Lington.
Kenya AA against Zambia AA.

From the 15 participants, there were only 2 who had 4 out of 4. And Anette is right : it were the two guys who did some practicing. Luckily i was one of them, although i need to train myself harder if i want to make a chance at the Belgian Championships November 21 in Gent.

New York Times slide show.

From cherry to cup : click the cherry.

Cupping Event Staff Social

Twice a year we try to get the group of staff together for some fun after working hours. This time i combined it with some cupping and latte art competition.
It's going to be a post in 4 parts, to start today with the regular cupping.

A large row of top class espresso beans at Caffènation this week. I thought it would be a pity not to invite some extra friends to this happening. One of the friends was also my sponsor, Jazzy Jeff, who is here on the photo with Daisy, and laughing with the kopi luwak and the whole idea behind this coffee resting on his spoon.
The whole list :
Kopi Luwak Indonesia (the all famous 'shit' coffee)
Sul De Minas Brazil
Herbazu Costa Rica (the one James Hoffmann took with him to Tokio)
Sumatra Lingtong (from Hasbean)
Australian Mountain Top (from Hasbean)
Indian Peaberry Bold
Kenya AA Top Superstar (from AKC and our espresso of the week, whoewaah!)
Pedra Preta Brazil (Terroir)

Later on the evening some more side cupping, but that's for another post.

The reactions? Very divers. Although the reactions were most positive on the Kenya and that Sul De Minas from Caffé Del Doge, i wrote about a couple of days ago.
From my side i had to notice the most of the beans were picked for espresso preparation and therefore often on the heavy side. The Indian came out better than expected and the Kopi Luwak was not worth the price, but it was a very good clean cup. On Monday we pulled one small and a couple big coffee's with it. Very very tasteful. Medium body, sweet, good balance, well dosed fruit and a super clean finish. If someone can make me a decent price for this one i'm willing to buy some bags.

Coffee for Dummies Down Under

The dummies' guide to coffee

5:00AM Monday September 10, 2007
By Jennie Milsom

Auckland flat whites usually contain a single shot of espresso whereas Wellington is generally a double shot city. Photo / Mike Regan

Fed up with with extra foamy cappuccinos or scalding lattes, which taste of burnt milk? Top barista David Huang spills the beans about what we should expect from our daily caffeine fix.

What to order ... flat white, latte, cappuccino?

A flat white is a single shot of espresso, with steamed milk and a thin layer of foam. A cappuccino has a thicker layer of foam and is sprinkled with chocolate or cinnamon. A latte, usually a double shot, is milkier than a flat white or cappuccino and served in a glass with a small head of foam. A short black is a single or double shot of espresso and should have a distinctive reddish-brown crema on the top. Serve it with an equal amount of hot water, in the cup or on the side, and it becomes a long black. A macchiato is a short or long black, topped with a spoonful of milk foam or a short pour of steamed milk. Piccolo lattes are mini lattes made from a single shot of espresso and steamed milk.

How hot should it be?

The temperature of the coffee should be around 60C. If it's too hot to drink, chances are the milk's been over-steamed.

Why is some milk bubbly and frothy?

Because the barista added too much air during steaming.

And the beans?

They should have been roasted within the past two weeks and freshly ground to order.

How long should my coffee take to arrive?

Up to five minutes if the cafe isn't busy, ten minutes if it is. After that, tell the barista you're waiting.

Any regional variations?

In Auckland, a standard flat white or cappuccino has a single shot of espresso. Wellington is generally a double-shot city.

*David Huang co-owns Espresso Workshop, opening next month in St Georges Bay Rd, Parnell.

- Detours, HoS

Sul De Minas : Weed coffee

Cupping with the friends.

We had two Sul De Minas Yellow Bourbon on the program.

First one is one from Caffe Del Doge. A Venetian Roaster with lots of specialty's. I can't find back more information about the one we had, but it was stunning.
It starts with the smell : Weed. Dutch weed, grass. I have nothing against smoking 'fun cigarettes' but are not doing it myself, but i know the smell, and that's what we had here.
The bean was a Yellow Bourbon Peaberry from Sul De Minas, i didn't even know these type peaberry existed over there. Italian Roast.
Lots of body with weed. Sweet acidity with light lemon notes. Very good binding with a bit of bitter and grass/jute aftertaste, but clean.
Very strange indeed, but everyone liked the shots we pulled. And so came in Henk from ESW who admitted we had that afternoon the smell of a Dutch Coffee House.

The second one was a George Howell product. A Cup Of Excellence winner from Brazil Sul De Minas : Pedra Preta.
Heavy Indonesian styled smell. Very prominent mouthfeel. Light citrus and stone fruit acidity. Very well balanced. Chocolate aftertaste. Clean. Heavy on the tongue.
It lost some points on the cooling down. It lost the balance it had and a not so pleasant taste of burnt caramel and spiced biscuit took over.
It scored 87, which is lower than the 92 COE score, what can be seen as normal due to the age of the beans.
Unfortunately no time for espressi from this one.

The Kid From Brooklyn Starbucks

Already a couple of months i had this video in the waiting room. Today it's time to post the Kid from Brooklyn. Hilarious.

Another Jam

Alexander looking at Pieter and Thomas.
One of the immortal moments at our 5th Barista Jam Non Professionals, and the last one in this current form.

Very nice bunch of coffee amateurs last Sunday at Caffenation.
A bit of history about the espresso, coffees of the world overview, information about the harvesting, processing and roasting, cupping 4 different varieties, cupping overview, espresso extraction theory, milk texturing, latte art and etching.
Our newest force Thomas was a very good helping hand. And my hand is that one on the photo, holding the pitcher. ;-)


This Sunday we have a staff social with some cupping (kopi luwak, Costa Rica Herbazu, Brazil Yellow Bourbon COE Pedra Preta, Sumatra Mandling, Kenya AA and many others) , triangle cupping, a blind latte art contest and some more fun, fun and fun.