NERBC 2010 Competitor list is up

The competitor schedule is online for a quick browse. Notable on the list is our own roaster Jamie Lynn Waltz and first time competitor who is up Saturday. Come cheer her on in the afternoon. Chris and Ethan are both judging others so you can cheer them on also if you see them.

Ben Wilkinson shows up on the list repping Blue State Coffee and should be a solid contender to do well. All around great guy and BGA rep for obvious reasons. Noticed Danielle Glasky (formerly ATL) is showing up for Stumptown. I don`t remember Stumptown being big into competitions in the past but Danielle is cool and we wish her well. There are several familiar names from last years NERBC which is a good sign but even better is that there are a lot of first timers.

Of the main host sponsors, there is a lot of representation locally. We at barismo clock in with 4 competitors using our espresso (not including our dear roaster). Judson from Hi Rise, Markus from ERC by BU, Nathaniel and Alison from Simon`s (Check out Simon`s spiffy new Robur next time you are in there). Jamie, Jud, and Markus are first time competitors while Nathaniel and Alison had competed before for 1369. Both Alison and Nathaniel have put in a lot of work the last few weeks and I am pretty damn proud of how far they have come regardless of the final results. New Harvest clocks in with several representatives from Blue State Coffee, Seven Stars Bakery and others. GHCC brings their own Nikolas Krankl, with Jared Mancini and company from SIP also competing.

I am glad to see turnout from the NY crowd as well, but more important is that the list of local roasters and their accounts such as Flat Black and Equal Exchange is large. Competitions are a good focal point for our coffee community that can change the local dynamic a lot. It should be a huge competition and we hope everything runs smoothly and that everyone gains something from the competitions.

During the three days of competitions, there will also be a Hario brew bar serving cups of coffee using Lb-1 prototypes and the 4th machine serving espresso drinks to the attending public, competitors, volunteers, and even judges (if they could drink more coffee after judging). The service will be free and coffees from the main three sponsors as well as several other regional roasters will be offered up at different time slots during the weekend.

See you there-

NERBC 2010 Mass Ave Cafe Crawl: Sat Mar 20th

For the NERBC, we helped organize a cafe crawl with Peace River Coffee that will start at our shop with a v60/Syphon service and then move on to the following shops:

Diesel Cafe 257 Elm St. in Davis Sq. for Chemex Service

Simon's near Porter Sq. 1736 Mass Ave for v60 service or shots of Competitors Espresso

Hi-Rise on 56 Brattle St. Harvard Sq. for Syphon/Woodneck/Competitors espresso

*Cafe Crema on 27 Brattle St. Harvard Sq. for a special coffee service

*1369 Coffee House on Mass Ave in Central Sq. for a special coffee service

Toscanini's at 899 Main St. in Central Sq. for a special ice cream coffee service

ERC at 286 Newbury St. for Competitor's Espresso Service

NOTE: Cafes with a * are expected to participate but not enough information on actual service was available at time of publishing. I will update it as it becomes available.

Attendees will need to pick up a map at the Somerville Armory Fri or sat before participating in the cafe crawl.

There are other cafes in the area that will want to participate and there will be an expanded map posted closer to time of competition in an online form with mentions of other cafes outside of the Mass Ave Cafe Crawl.

NERBC 2010

The dates on the NERBC are the 19th through 21st of March. If you want to sign up to volunteer or to compete, visit http://www.usbaristachampionship.org/northeast/ and register.

If you are visiting from out of town we recommend getting a hotel here:
Homewood Suites by Hilton® Cambridge-Arlington
1 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington, Massachusetts, United States 02474
Tel: 1-781-643-7258 Fax: 1-781-643-7298

Ask about the special rates for the barista competitions and remember these are massive suites which are nicely furnished and did I mention, big!

Events and special offerings available for people in town will be posted next week.

Chia-Ming tea visit

Chia-Ming is a relatively famous tea producer in Taiwan known for it's Honey Cicada Black Tea. In our visit to them, we found out more about this particular tea as well purchasing another pristine Oolong from them.

The Oolong is a semi ball style Dah-Yeh (broad leaf) cultivar. For this elevation, the broad leaf cultivar is quite ideal and produces a sweet clean cup. We were visiting Chia-Ming as this tea was being packed post processing. The leaves are beautiful and unfurl with each steep to reveal nearly perfect preservation of the pick. This doesn't surprise because Chia-Ming is know for it's superior processing skills.



The other tea, Cicada Honey Black, was the byproduct of a unique method noted for it's use of tea green leafhoppers. Normally considered a pest or associated with novelty teas, this particular tea uses these little pests to produce an exemplary experience. The folks as Chia-Ming have learned to identify a specific type of bitten leaf as an ideal pick that when processed to an exacting methodology results in one of the more unique teas experiences you can have. This black tea yields strong aromas, complex sweetness, and a very distinct cup.

I admit being skeptical about this tea coming in. I had sampled it before through other sources and had what I can only describe as skunky results. Once I arrived at the farm and cupped through all of their lots, the distinctions became clear as to our preferences. We took the silver medal competition lot which was picked as the favorite in the competition by the tea research facility manager in the area. Compared to the gold medal lot, which Chia-Ming also submitted and won, it came as so distinctly special that it was better in our opinion than the more singular gold medal lot.

Fulu Red Oolong

Another novel tea process from Shin-Fong, this Fulu Red Oolong (fully oxidized translated directly as red rather than black) is something out of the ordinary. The natural floral notes of Taiwanese high mountain 'terroir' come through the excellent execution of a paochong or 'balled' tea from a chin-shin varietal. What makes it particularly novelty is the full oxidation which provides a beautiful amber hued red liquor and warmth in the cup profile of gentle honey and caramel tones of this semi balled Oolong varietal.

Tea roasting at Shin-Fong

This tea took a little getting used to. We had to find a balance point in how we brewed it. It did not take long for us to figure out that we were treating it incorrectly. Once we tuned in our brew temps, this tea really excelled as one of our favorites.

The cup color is beautiful with amber red hues. Strong aromatics of rose hips and straw flowers dominate the cup profile yielding to a clean and sweet aftertaste. The flavor is warm and invitingly pleasant but the aromas are what make this tea particularly unique.