http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/ en info@transitionespresso.co.uk Copyright 2010 2010-03-26T18:21:20+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/good-news http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/good-news It has been a while since I have posted but we have been very busy.  We have just been out to MIPIM the international property event in Cannes with Liverpool for the 3rd year.  I will do a separate post on this though. The other reason I have been busy is because we are opening a shop in Liverpool.  It will be called Bold Street Coffee and will be Liverpool’s only real specialty coffee shop.  We hope to open at the end of April and everything will documented on the website, so be sure to check it out.  It will be a controlled environment so that we can really work on the coffee, this is sometimes difficult at events because the conditions are always so varied.  It will also enable us to be able to work with more baristas and hopefully other like minded coffee shops. I am really exited about this as it has been a long term goal.  This summer promises to be a roller coaster with the shop and our busy festival season, as well as lots of conferences around the country.  2010-03-26T18:21:20+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/pour-over-filter-instructions http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/pour-over-filter-instructions Here are some instructions for making a nice pour over brew at home. As always, if possible FRESHLY GROUND COFFEE IS BEST.  And check out the awesome Brew Methods website for all sorts of coffee making knowledge. Here are some guidelines to help you get the most from this brewing technique. GETTING READY HOW MUCH COFFEE? FOR 1 lARGE MUG:  20 - 25g (2 tablespoons) 1/2 LITRE: 30g (3 tablespoons) 1 LITRE: 60g (6 tablespoons) WHAT GRIND? This coffee is ground for this brewing method, which is medium or filter, finer than for French Press coffee and much courser than for Espresso. HOW HOT? You need water just off the boil (about 93C/200F) so let the kettle cool a little before you start! STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO BREWING When the water has boiled, put the filter paper into the cone, pour some through the filter and cone and into your cup to rinse the filter paper and warm the cone and cup. Put your coffee into the filter paper. Pour a little water gently onto the grounds of coffee to wet them. Wait for 15-20 seconds for the coffee to soak and for the ‘bloom’ to develop. Pour some more water onto the coffee starting in the centre. Quickly pour water over all to coffee to agitate the grounds and to aid even extraction.  Until water nearly reaches the top of the filter paper. Wait for all the water to filter through the paper and gently pour the rest of the water around the centre of the filter cone to fill up the up. When the desired amount of coffee is in the cup or container remove the filter and discard. Do not re-use the filters.  The spent filters and coffee grounds are good for compost and your garden. HELPFUL HINTS The process should take 2.5 to 3.5 minutes.  If the brewing process takes longer than this, your coffee may be too coarse or too much coffee has been used. Likewise, if the water filters through quicker than this, the coffee may be too finely ground or there is not enough in the filter. Use taste as your guide as well as these times.  If the coffee tastes too strong or bitter use less coffee, if it tastes too thin and lacks body, use more coffee.  You can also leave the first wetting phase longer and pour slower. ENJOY! 2010-02-08T22:31:18+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/liverpool-chrismas-market-coffee-bar http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/liverpool-chrismas-market-coffee-bar In December we had a chalet on the Christmas market, it was a really good, if not cold two weeks. We sold our usual espresso menu but also did pour over single origin filters.  We also sold these as gift sets with bags of coffee, ceramic filter cones and the papers with instructions on how to use them.  I will post the instructions here for anyone that is interested.  This is my favorite way of having coffee at home as it is so easy to get a really clean taste from single origin coffees. We also had some awesome strictly limited 2010 calendars from barista Russell.  Check out his blog Sketch Stance Blog. It was good to talk to people about this and show them how different coffees from different origins are.  It was also good to find out how many people have grinders, there were much more than I would have thought. It also shows how many people are really into their coffee and interested in how it is grown, processed and sourced.  Our coffees were roasted by Steve at Has Bean Coffee Link We also started to get a mailing list together for our planned coffee shop in Liverpool, which I hope I will be able to tell you more about soon… 2010-02-08T22:20:43+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/london-coffee-visit http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/london-coffee-visit After the Sanctum special Events party a couple of weeks ago we had a day in London so we visited a couple of good independent coffee bars.  One new one that I had never been to before was the ‘Espresso Room’  on Great Ormand street.  It is run by Ben Townsend who is pretty well known in the coffee community.  We went on an advanced barista course with him last year at the London School Of Coffee and he is a really nice guy.  They serve Square Mile espresso and also has Bean Coffee, he also sells some brewing equipment.  The first thing you notice about the place is how small it is, its tiny, but this apart from the excellent coffee is it’s greatest asset.  It means that it is really personal, Ben gets to talk to everyone who comes in the shop.  The customers who came in whilst we were there were all talking about the coffee and asking questions.  I think this gets the customers interested and will increase loyalty because they know they are getting a high quality product made by an expert and the passion of the barista is passed on to the customer.  You don’t get this in a restaurant or noisy bar, and people who love coffee generally love talking about it!  So if you go to London or live there pay him a visit. We also went to Milk bar and Fernandez & Wells (pictured)  I always enjoy these bars, very different but both very cool.  Next time I’m down there I want to go to ‘Dose Espresso’ which is also pretty new and is supposed to be good..  Can’t wait…  2009-10-19T19:05:56+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/transition-end-of-summer-jam http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/transition-end-of-summer-jam A couple of weeks ago we threw a party in Kate’s garden in Chester for Transition family and friends.  We had a great session and the weather was lovely.  The picture here shows Russell and his dad having a pour off.  Everyone got involved bringing garden games and activities.  the highlight of these was Taz’s ‘Human Fruit Machine’  with plenty of prizes to be won.  It was good to get everyone together to say thankyou for their work and support over the summer.  I have produced a yearbook which I will try and figure out how to get online.  The next celebration was down in London with the Sanctum Special Events crew at the Embassy club in London, it was good to see all the guys from the festivals again.  This was followed by a day in London going round some of favourite coffee shops there which is always an inspiration and makes me more determined to find a site in Liverpool for our own. 2009-10-19T18:49:37+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/september-update http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/september-update So we have come to the end of another festival season and it finished really well.  Both bars at Reading and Leeds festivals were really busy and our staff put in some seriously long hours!  It was great to see Radiohead again after about 10 years and also got to meet and have my photo taken with Ian Brown, which I was very happy about. We are going to have a big get-together with all the people who have worked with us over the course of the year so far to say thanks.  Good times! It is currently Liverpool food week which kicked off in Sefton park with Marco Pierre White last sunday and end this Sunday with the Hope Street Festival.  We had a stall and were really busy last weekend, we were offering help with coffee questions to all the restaurants who also had stalls there and will be doing the same at Hope Street this weekend. It is interesting how many businesses would love to make and sell better coffee but they just don’t have the time or know where to find out more about coffee.  Most of their suppliers gave them a free machine years ago and left them to it leaving staff to pass information on to other staff.  Maintainence and cleaning espresso machines is something lots of people ask about.  People are exited to learn that with a few minor adjustments eg. clean equipment and ground to order coffee they can make huge improvements.  2009-09-18T12:45:27+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/summer-festivals-2009 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/summer-festivals-2009 Well, this summer has been a whirlwind for us, a blur of coffee, driving, mud, cider and good times! We have provided coffee backstage and for VIP’s at Glastonbury, Download, Sonisphere and Lattitude amongst many others. i think the highlight for me was providing a bar in the artist area at Lattitude.  The people there were so friendly and appreciative that we were giving them great coffee, and it was really busy which is a bonus. I have taken loads of photos but need to get them in order and get them uploaded, I have already exceeded my Flikr limit for the month so need to upgrade! I would like to take this opportunity to thank some of the baristas that have worked with us.  Pat from Vancouver has been an inspiration, has has worked in some great coffee places and brought some extra knowledge and superb latte art with him.  It’s good to work with people like that who encourage you to strive for perfection.  He has gone home now and will be missed.  It’s a good job he has left his missus here to carry on the good work.  Sam has only done a few events so far but is brilliant in all aspects, practical, creative and awesome at coffee. Russell has worked hard and provided us with many laughs along the way, always doing what is asked of him. Taz, chris Jones, Chris Cox (now retired to concentrate on his growing web design business), Mags, Dave, Lee, Robin.  And last of all My sister and business partner Kate who continued to work like a machine when heavily pregnant and everyone was telling her to slow down! I will save more of this back slapping until the end of the season though for our end of season party.  We have only got a couple more weekends to go - V and 80’s Revival this weekend and Reading and Leeds next.  I’m looking forward to a weekend off before throwing myself into opening our shop in Liverpool…. 2009-08-20T11:14:51+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/london-coffee-shops http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/london-coffee-shops I had a nice visit to London last month and we had our customary visit to a few coffee shops there. We usually go into flat white which I first visited a few years ago. It really inspired me at the time, I hadn’t really seen anyone do latte are before and after that I had to learn it. The taste of the first cappuccino that I had there really opened my eyes to how good coffee can be. Ths time though we went to the Milk Bar which is assosiated with them, I’m not sure how exactly but it is similar in the service and coffee but the decor is different, really cool and cosy. I love the door closing mechanism withh the portafilters, a nice touch. They are now using Square Mile Coffee not Monmouth and it was very nice. I went for a cap and then an espresso, those guys are good at making coffee. I love it that the main thing is the coffee and there is not much else on show, no big fridges or anything, stylish but independent looking. The next place we went was fernadez and Wells (see pic), the food here is awsome for a coffee shop, I had a quick look at the Deli round the corner but then went to the coffee shop. It all looks so tempting being laid out in from of you like that! I had probably the best panini I have ever had there, and a coffee, and a nice chat with the barista there, feeling pretty caffiened-up by that point! It is a beautiful looking shop, very simple but quality, that goes for the food aswell I look forward to my next trip… 2009-05-21T10:17:58+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/easter-coffee-tasting http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/easter-coffee-tasting Over the easter weekend we took advantage of having a few friends over at my sisters house and did some cupping and created a new espresso blend tat we will be using this summer.  It was fun to show our friends how we go about tasting coffee and interesting to see what they thought about the coffees and get another perspective on things. The blend we came up with was equal quantitites of Brazil Cachoeira, Sumatra Lingtong Batak and Rwanda Murambi Bourbon, it had great depth, smooth body and sweetness.  We will get our roaster Steve from Has Bean to roast us up an initial batch and see how it goes. 2009-04-21T10:19:06+00:00 http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/barista-tests http://www.transitionespresso.co.uk/blog/barista-tests As some of you will know we are doing coffee the guest areas of a lot of festivals this summer.  We did five last year and they were really busy.  The coffee was good last year but we were short staffed on good baristas for a few of them which led to some of us doing insane hours!  Driving home was a danger, no amount of coffee would keep me awake. So, this year we have more really good baristas and I want to do some intensive training with the other guys to make sure that the coffee is second to none. I have been putting some tests and parameters together that the guys will have to hit to be incharge of the coffee.  I have been coffee training for some time, however much of the time it is in bars and restaurants where the training is basic and it is difficult to get the owners to really strive for a higher standard.  I think the standard customers expect and what they know about how good coffee can be is slowly improving but it has still got a long way to go.  We like to supprise people by making great coffee at events where the produce is usually poor. I think the following are good starting points; Get the grind right (23-25 seconds works well for our blend) in 3 goes. 2 caps and 2 espressos in 3 minutes 30, no ground coffee left in the grinder, minimum waste, all drinks consistant and tasty. Flushing etc as per competitions. Make a cappuccino and a latte from one jug, poor the cap first.  I think this is a really useful one for busy real world situations. Also knowing the blend so that they can talk to the customers with confidence, and being able to explain the joys and benefits of speciality coffee when people ask the question ”is it fair trade?”! I will see how this goes, it will be fun to create some kind alternative barista comp for each event, we have 4-6 baristas at each event so competition should be good.  Also other factors such as best customer comment,  salesmanship and showmanship should be involved to make things more fun! 2009-04-03T10:22:00+00:00