I was excited to learn that Alterra is running another of their champion coffees this week, the Alterra Kenya AA Karindundu. At least a couple times a year, an Alterra selection is offered that really hits it out of the park. This is one of them. (I've heard that February's Nelson Melo was another, though I was in Arizona at that time and only had the opportunity to have it as part of Scott Lucey's signature drink, Liquid Swords.)
At the Prospect location, you can try it as a single-origin espresso, as I did yesterday. I'll have to have another doppio to be sure, but my inital impression was that it was perhaps a little too acidic as espresso. When I poured half-and-half into both the espresso and the drip coffee, it seemed to turn the cream almost sour. I'm mostly a with-cream drinker these days, but this is one you want to have black.
I find that all Alterra's coffees are ridiculously acidic, even the ones they claim to be 'mild.' I have liked basically everything I've had there, but that is probably because they all taste similar. I have not yet tried this one but I kind of want to now. Just had a cup of Stone Creek Organic Mexican... one of my favorites in a French press!
Posted by: Ashley | June 10, 2009 at 08:13 PM
It's certainly highly recommended (and, I believe, only available in the cafes through Sunday). Your comment raises a couple interesting questions: What is meant by "strong" and "mild" in coffeehouse parlance--that's probably worth a blog post in itself. Also, does Stone Creek do French Presses? I think SCC's beans are better, but something gets lost in the process of brewing and serving there. About 25% of the drip coffee I have there is good, 50% is mediocre, and 25% is awful.
Posted by: Michael Miller | June 10, 2009 at 11:23 PM
yes. i mostly HATE any of the coffees we do through the drip process - the only ones I can stomach really are mexican, our current factory reserve (burundi - if you haven't tried it it's AMAZING), and... well that's pretty much it. i prefer all my coffee through the french press and I am pretty sure that if you ask for a french press, at least from me, I am pretty sure we can do it for you. It'll take a few minutes but it's way worth it. You should ask sometime, particularly at one of the less 'by-the-book' stores (this excludes Glendale for sure, unless I am working sans manager) and see what happens. I'm not totally sure of the policy on that.
I'm still trying to figure out 'strong' and 'mild' because in stone creek language it means... jibberish, I'm pretty sure. It changes depending on where you go. Once I get my blog past the initial crap-phase I'll post something about that, and let you know when it's up.
Posted by: Ashley | June 11, 2009 at 03:38 PM