The S1 Cafe - Helping Your Espresso Dreams Become Reality

Recently I made a trip to Copenhagen for vacations and, of course, I did a coffee tour to taste the espressos from the most recognized cafes -Risteriet, The Coffee Collective, Kontra Coffee, etc. including two of Malmö (Sweden). Most of the shots were pulled from La Marzoccos, including a Strada and a Mistral, with Roburs & K30's. The coffee skillz of most of the Copen baristas seems pretty high, there a coffee culture on all the city which I find it impressive, but... For one side I'm a little dissapointed, but for other part... I'm proud.

I mean: while the shots I've tried has been very good... and I don't want to seem vain... I have had better shots in my home with my La Spaz I bought some coffee from the cafes I've tried to pull some shots in home, and to me, my shots tastes better.

Why? I don't know. Perhaps I'm used to the flavor profile of my shots? Probably. But I'm proud of my La Spaziale right now.


Just two pics to "illustrate" the post...

(pulled with my LaSpaz)
Coffee Collective blend:


Summer blend from Square Mile (Oh yes, this is not from Copenhagen)

Oton, I don't think you're crazy to believe that your coffee beats the cafes. The best cafes have a very high average quality, but a really committed amateur, taking all the time a production barista can't, could plausibly do a better job, at least on occasion. Commitment and time to do things right count. Analogously, an amateur musician might in some cases give a better performance than a famous pro who is flagging on a long tour.

These northern European countries have the highest coffee consumption in the world (by far):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_co ... per_capita

Denmark (#4) is actually double the US (#26).

As far as home shots versus cafes go, I would can honestly say my home shots on the LaSpaziale have bettered almost EVERY shot I've had at any of the 50 or so cafes I've visited in Canada and the US.

I've had some better shots at Myriade in Montreal and only 2 other cafes I can think of. But remember, they are using a $20K Kees Mirage, Robur Grinder, 1 week old custom blend 49th Parallel coffee pulled by the Barista ranked #2 in Canada".The fact that I can come even close to these shots says a lot.

It just takes practice, patience and attention to details. The cafes have the practice, but the home barista will always have the luxury of more patience and attention to details.