Quixotic Coffee is not to be missed!

Quixotic Coffee will blow your palette! Stop the presses, drop everything and get over to this new coffee house in St. Paul near Cleveland and Ford Pkwy. They've done everything right, from the locale to the beans (Madcap) to wearing their hearts on their sleeves. These guys are way into it. And the result if as close to perfection as you will find here in Minnesota. They put their own stamp on their espressos. The espresso I tasted was creamy, dark, smooth, had hints of sweetness but a nice bright finish. Definitely their own. They are 5 for 5 as far as I'm concerned...

Here is Shawn halfway through a "Gibraltar" making sure everything is just right...


Video of Shawn putting the finishing touches on an espresso and his signature "Gibraltar"


Quixotic has a nice zen quality to it...

A New Coffee House in St. Paul? Who Knew?

I certainly didn't, but I guess Shawn and Co. opened up Quixotic Coffee in St. Paul about 5 weeks ago and I'm very anxious to try their espresso, twice! Anyway, in the meantime here is some espresso from Espresso Royale downtown. It kinda tasted like my show, that's why I put that in there. Oh when will they ever learn how to make a good cup of espresso in Minnesota? A few do, but they are so far between. If you're wondering why there is only one espresso, suffice it to say I knew what I was getting into...

Grinderman!!!

Almost a coffee like name... Can't believe they're coming to Minneapolis! Drinking my espresso and thinking about Nick Cave...

Fireroast Mountain

One of my favorite stops for espresso!

If you stare into the abyss long enough...

It stares back into you...

Or in this case it tastes delicious...

Gazing into a cup of espresso

Could anything look or smell so wonderful? Oh, right, my wife...
Sorry. But man I love this stuff! Espresso Cubano makes life taste
great!

Miceli's Restaurant - Hollywood California

I'm back!

Been awhile. Too busy enjoying the summer... Stoped into Dragonfly off
Penn and 50th. Lars, the owner, served me up some fine Matador
Espresso from Flamenco. Only 2nd time I've seen Flamenco beans in
Minneapolis, the other being at Jackson's in Uptown. It's a shame
since they're excellent beans...

An Angry Catfish Am I...

I guess I do look a little serious. But you would be too if you were about to taste Intelligentsia Black Cat espresso!

And who should I get to pull it? None other than ultimate barista Adam Dunn. Note the attention to detail. Cheers!

Fireroast Mountain and Mexican!

And they have gourmet tamales too!

2 Espressos, 1 Daughter, Kopplins, kind of hard to beat that combo...

Excellent mild Ethiopian followed by a brighter and more chocolaty Ecco Cafe Espresso Blend (Sonoma Valley roasters). Nice to share some excellent 2 espresso with my daughter who had the bittersweet heavenly mocha. You've got to taste it to believe all the others are all just syrupy lame imitations...

Stillwater, MN - "Daily Grind" lives up to its name...

Daily Grind tasted like Daily Grind...

The Beat Goes On...

Matt served me up some very fine espresso today. Hard to go wrong when you start with Bullrun. Nice thing too about the Beat Coffeehouse is that they're so damn friendly. Nice space, nice people, and fine espresso. What more could a guy want?

Even Tom Hanks Recognizes a Crappy Espresso Machine

You have to be specific when ordering 2 espressos...

Gotta say separate cups! Turtle Bread Company in Linden Hills...

Cars-R-Coffins

Cool space, cool bikes, nice vibe. The first thing the manager said after I ordered my 2 espressos was "I just watched the coolest movie last night" and you guessed it, it was The Limits of Control. If you still haven't seen it, definitely check it out. And check out Cars-R-Coffins on the corner of 34th and Lyndale. Peace Coffee Espresso blend done decently and with a smile...

I find a place that sells hotdogs and beer and THE BEST ESPRESSO IN THE SOUTHWEST and interview the man behind it!

I sampled the Intelligentsia espresso that John pulled and it was wonderful. It had a nice bitter lemon bite to it and went down like gold. Tyler was nice enough to let me sample some single source Burundi that left a nice oily finish coating my palette and never wanting to leave this place. You definitely have to stop by this place next time you're in Austin. It's one of the best I've found.... anywhere!

Video Interview with Tyler, the man behind Austin's hottest espresso joint, Frank!

Heaven in a cup looks like

If you haven't had espresso, you haven't had coffee...

Angry Catfish is Open, Hallelujah!!!

I was greeted with a "Hey Keith" by master barista Michael as I walked into the new Angry Catfish coffee and cycle shop. He pulled me two awesome shots that almost brought me to tears they were so good. I probably would have cried right there and then with joy if it weren't for the fact that I was exhausted from flying in on the red eye from California. Anyway, you've simply got to check this place out. The espresso is divine. I had the Intelligentsia Black Cat espresso and it was delicious. It's sweet finish is what hit me. It had the perfect nose to it with just the right acidity, a perfect brown rust crema and a bittersweet finish that stayed with me on my way back to work. Finally south Minneapolis has a high end espresso bar we can all flock to!

Look at the space in this place!

Venice Beach's own Intelligentsia beans... Rare to find here in Minnesota...

One down, one to go... and the crema!

Yours truly striking the 2 espresso pose...

Pismo Beach, CA

Nothing like escaping the Midwest cold and downing some espresso on
the beach in California. Stopped into Mon Ami on the main drag and
wandered out on the pier. Nice acidic nose, good crema, swell bean.
Paper cups, eh...

Travellin' Espresso

On the way to LA I grab a couple of espressos for the road...

Atmosphere, Atmosphere...

You can't knock the way the evening sun sets right on the bar at the N.E. Social, especially on cold days like these. Dropped into one of our favorite haunts for some beans and mushrooms on toast accompanied of course by some espresso. Everything is prepared with attention to detail here and the service is impeccable... Gourmet food and wine followed up by 2 espresso is the only way to go. You will enjoy the relaxed class of this place. I know we did. Billie Holliday spinning, chipotle chocolate mousse, a rare Greek wine, saffron infused sugar to accompany your espresso, the place is heaven on earth...

Brett Favre Espresso!

Brett Favre stopped in for Espresso at Rinata Restaurant!

Ok, just kidding...

Fellow Espresso Fanatic T.C. Long Sent These Photos

TC shared these photos of his office "Handpresso Domepod" I told him it looked like a bong. The results certainly look good. I must admit to being a bit jealous...

The "Java Bong" in action...

T.C. striking the 2 espresso pose... Nicely done...

It's sub zero so I warmed my Isles Buns...

Met my good buddy Bob Rue for coffee today at Isles Buns on 28th and Hennepin. These people have wonderful buns! And they have a vat of frosting cream you can dive into and spread all over their buns. Yummy... Oh yeah, this blog is about espresso right? Sorry, but if you tasted their buns you'd digress too.

First off, they have a Synesso! That is already half the battle. And they have big smiles so that wins a lot of favor too. If I might suggest a couple things however... Train the baristas to pull shots the way Synesso allows you to. You can control everything with those machines so make use of that. And the beans could be better. The shots were ok, don't get me wrong, just didn't have much nose and came off a little burnt and bitter. Maybe it would have tasted better if they had been pulled right. I'd make better use of that very expensive espresso machine.

Anyway, it was a great place to meet up with Bob and talk movies again and smell the smell of heaven... their buns!

The Warming Qualities of 2 Espressos

Today was a good day (like many days here in Minnesota) to bundle up and venture out to one of my favorite coffee bars, Blue Moon. There I settled in and appreciated the coziness of it all as I sipped on my espresso. I'm getting anxious to hear whether my grant proposal will be accepted so that I can venture out into the world (Italy to be precise) and sample the best espresso they have to offer. I asked for money to be able to study the "art of espresso" in its country of origin so that I could learn from the best and apply that knowledge back home in Minnesota and nationally to bring fine espresso center stage (where it deserves to be!). I guess I can only cross my fingers and hope the committee understands the importance of educating the public to the virtues of excellent espresso. Cross your fingers too because it would make one hell of a blogging experience...

Happy 2010!

From me to all you espresso fanatics... Cheers!

Cave Creek Arizona has Espresso!

My brother sent me this photo (complete with his Delorean) from Cave Creek, Arizona

Urban Bean visit

Beautiful red and white decor and simple layout at the Urban Bean on 35th and Bryant. They even had a red Cimbali to go with it. Too bad the European Roasterie espresso blend tasted like most of the other regular coffees in this town, that is, it tasted like normal bitter almond coffee that kind of resembles espresso but not really. No real aroma to it either, no nose... It's one thing to buy the beans and another to finish the product. No finish here. Why do Kopplin's and Bull Run have to be the exceptions and not the norm? Why?

Sebastian Joe's Has Great Intentions...

Indeed they do. The guy behind the counter was so proud of their beans and told me about the owner who apparently is studying hard all about roasting coffee and barista techniques and the like. I had the "dark dancer" espresso which they roast themselves. Well I do appreciate the hard work that's being put into the beans and the process but I have a big suggestion, get a better machine, not the Cimbali instant button press variey. They need something so they can pull good shots because I only tasted dark roasted and pretty bitter coffee. They might be able to pull the right tastes, aromas and textures from a better machine. It's a shame to do all that work on the roasting part just to have a mediocre product to serve. Upgrade your machine so we can taste the beauty of your beans...