We are in Szczecin, Poland, seated comfortably at Alterntywnie cafe, having an excellent and delightful espresso. This particular blend is a combination of 75% Brazilian and 25% Peruvian beans, pulled as a ristretto resulting in a thick sweetly acidic flavor profile. The ambiance of the cafe is incredibly pleasant, creating an inviting atmosphere for every sip. The staff at Alterntywnie cafe are friendly and attentive, ensuring that our coffee experience is nothing short of exceptional. It's wonderful to witness the burgeoning coffee culture in Poland, and this cafe in Szczecin is a true gem. #Alternatywnie al. Wojska Polskiego 35/u3, 70-473 Szczecin, Poland  https://altcoffee.pl/  

It was a delightful surprise to discover Sonder Coffee in rural Alberta. The Colombian espresso served was exceptional, and the breakfast menu looked equally enticing. It seemed like the perfect spot to enjoy a classic breakfast combo of two eggs and ham. Sonder Coffee Bar is situated in Lethbridge's Warehouse District and serves as the heart of Red Engine Coffee Roasters. This cozy cafe fosters a sense of community and offers a warm atmosphere to savor expertly crafted beverages and delectable treats Sonder Coffee Bar - by Red Engine Coffee Roasters,  1119 3 Ave S, Lethbridge, AB T1J 0J5

Most amazing (only 1 year old cafe) cafe and coffee roaster in Panajachel by Lake Atitlan. We had a geisha roasted by Ariel who owns the cafe. Superb!! These guys are seriously into coffee in a good way. Light, medium and medium to dark roasts, the full range of coffee flavours available. Very friendly and very forthcoming with all information, making themselves available to answer all our coffee curious questions. So, we bought a bag of coffee - of course! The coffee roaster machine they are roasting with is made in Guatemala, in a village near Antigua. More information on that later...  https://www.instagram.com/artisancoffee_gt/ Calle Monterrey panajachel Artisan Coffee Roastery 4852 0384, Panajachel 07010, Guatemala

Arbol coffee is a " Japanese coffee style Coffee experience " cafe in Antigua Guatemala at 5a Calle Poniente 22 , Antigua Guatemala They roast their own coffee in small batches delightfully light to medium in style. You can always find an unusual selection of featured coffees, roasted with care to extract a balance of hidden flavors. Hiroaki is the founder and owner with a passion and deep knowledge about coffee. Fortunately for us, Hiroaki has an excellent barista in Celeste, she makes such great tasting espresso with their freshly roasted coffees.  

12 onzas is a beautiful cafe located in Zone 4 of Guatemala City. They are currently serving coffee using coffee directly from the Concepción Buena Vista family farm that was used by David Solano at the WBC, and it shows! Beautiful La Marzocco espresso machine, Mahlkonig grinder serving their best version of artisan coffee along with pastries. 

Eleven Speed Coffee Roasters Victoria, BC, Canada https://www.elevenspeedcoffee.ca We bought this online and had it shipped across 5 provinces for $6. We are very happy with the quality, the fresh smell and uniqueness. As an aeropress, we ground 25 grams and poured 3 oz of 201 water to let it stand for 25 seconds, than press firmly. The aeropress coffee with milk is very sweet chocolate-ly and balanced. Even at 9 days after roasting the coffee has an unbelievable freshness to it. Soon we will try it as an espresso and let you know how it goes! update: Espresso was just as unique. I can't overstate the freshness of this coffee and how Eleven Speed shipped our coffee fresh rather then whatever was available.

Aeropress Review  In preparing to review the Aeropress, we downloaded recipes from the World Aeropress Championship Website http://worldaeropresschampionship.com/recipes/ . After trying many of the recipes, both the fine grind and coarse grind versions, we came away wanting more, wanting a method that would satisfy our questions, and flavour & taste receptors. We wanted to know if it was possible to make an espresso-like drink with the Aeropress, mostly because we are a deeply curious bunch, but also we wanted a tasty method for our non-electric cabins that we were living in for 3 months...We were very pleased by the results. Press has hard as possible  Pre-heat plunger Pre-soak the paper filter Grind 27 grams of coffee using a Porlex hand grinder (or roughly the entire contents from a toped up Porlex) Use 90 grams of 95 Celsius water (or fill only to the #2 mark on the Aeropress) 10 seconds of stirring Plunge as hard as possible Details: Place the plunger a

Wangapeka Study and Retreat Centre,  Wakefield, NZ Feb.16 to 22, 2013 At the beginning of a meditation retreat, Jamie van Dam, of the Galiano Coffee Lab  was asked to introduce specialty coffee and the technique of cupping to 11 meditators... For one week we began each day, after breakfast, with a blind cupping/tasting of some of the best coffees of New Zealand and Canada. The retreatants were a delight to share this with. Many of them are experienced meditators so they had open and receptive minds to the blind tasting process. Even the new ones had such good enthusiasm!  Each day started with the introduction of another aspect of coffee tasting/perceiving as well as a bit of theory on the history of coffee and the business of coffee  with special thanks to the Canadian Barista Institute. We also examined the coffee roasting procedure step by step, focusing on the extraction theory, water temperature variables, and dosing versus grind size adjustment. .  Befor

Coffee Supreme Cafe & Coffee Brew Bar 42 Douglas St, Ponsonby, Auckland, NZ http://www.coffeesupreme.com/ A nouveau-hipster cafe that was serving up some Sumatra on espresso as well as their in house blend. An excellent barista pulled us a ristretto and it turned out with a rich body and gentle sweet acidity. Beautifully done! The staff were very generous with their sample bags of whole bean coffee. They have an on-line sight for ordering. Before we left we tried a delicious Kenyan Waitangi cold brew coffee that was apple juice-like refreshing - a perfect cuppa for a hot day in Ponsonby. These folks are dedicated to fine specialty coffee and have some excellent medium roasts for sale. We are looking forward in the weeks to come trying many of their different roasts. When in Auckland, place Coffee Supreme very high on your list of ‘must visit’. 

ARK Coffee Shop 6, 461 Lake Road, Takapuna,  Auckland, NZ http://arkcoffee.co.nz/ Everything has it's place in this roastery/cafe: clean, organized, efficient and above all else — excellent quality. We were served a Costa Rican espresso and cortado by Ulala Ukama whom won 2nd place in the SCAJ 2010 Japan Barista competition. We did not miss the fact that Ms. Ukama was using a Nuova Simonelli Aurelia, the same machine used during the WBC. For us, this cafe and roastery is like a hidden jewel. One can feel it ooze excellence and refinement and utter dedication to the craft. And the proof is in wondrous coffee she pulled. It is certainly to be rated in the upper echelons of all NZ coffee and like Coffee Lab on the North Shore it is world-class. Will we be ordering their roasts...for sure! And not be missed in the splendor of coffee tasting is Ms. Ukama’s sister Naomi’s wonderful art exhibition. 

Coffee Lab 15 Silverfield, Wairau Valley, Auckland, NZ http://www.coffeelab.co.nz/ This is our second year visiting Coffee Lab (see May 9, 2012). It is where one has to go in New Zealand, being one of the the top cafes and roasters anywhere on this planet.  Its continued dedication to roasting quality coffee and making it so very well makes it a delightful and educational experience. Seven key elements come together at Coffee Lab, all necessary for a coffee pilgrimage site: high quality beans, excellent roasting, superb barista, high end equipment, an attitude of genuine friendliness, a pleasant quiet space to taste and discuss the art of coffee and a willingness to share and educate. Cupping roasts with Anna, watching and learning about roasting was a marvelous encounter with attention to detail. We learned plenty and came away with some very fine coffees. As a traveller and explorer of great cafes/coffees, we are open-minded to having mediocre coffees bec

Kaffeine Corner 10 Victoria Road, Devonport, Auckland, NZ, 0624 Easy to miss but well worth the effort. While at Coffee Lab, Anna directed us to visit Lee, owner of Caffeine Corner in Devonport, a suburb of Auckland.  Lee’s tiny cafe is not so easy to find, you will need to use all your senses for this one as he is tucked away in the entrance to a Japanese restaurant called  Makoto Sushi & Danburi. But when you find him you won't be disappointed! We spotted Lee when he came around the corner in the restaurant as he was wearing a T-shirt from 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters which  gave us much hope for superlative coffee! Lee is serving Coffee Lab beans: he was espressing his own blend of Coffee Lab’s current  house blend with some of their Yirgacheffe to produce a lovely, delicious, smooth, creamy, brightly, lively espresso and cortado. Lee is a friendly and dedicated coffee aficionado of the specialty coffee arts, an excellent barista with top equipment. What

Fourbarrel Coffee,  375 Valencia St, San Francisco http://fourbarrelcoffee.com / We entered into the busy cafe roastery and found ourselves easily diverted to the tasting bar. We sampled 3 espressos: A Columbian, Kenyan and an Ethiopian. All had a depth of flavours and aromas that were pleasing with a barista that is competent and concerned to pour us an excellent shot and experiment on the La Marzocco to get it right —  thank you! Fourbarrel is doing lots of things right; not only quality roasted and pulled coffee, but fine service.

Feb.7/2013 Wrecking Ball Coffee Roasters 1648 Pacific Ave, San Francisco http://wreckingballcoffee.com / Remnants of the old fire hall With Nick at Wrecking Ball we hade a deliciously well executed espresso and cortados  with a deep dive into the philosophy of coffee tasting. The espresso blend was mostly Columbian with Ethiopian coffee... It is a pleasure to engage with a drink and a barista that are as equally stimulating and thought provoking. This fire hall of a coffee shop is a must visit, on many more than one occasion! Spacious!  Practiced Hands What then must we do?!?!?