Author: admin

a few random statistics, for no particular reason whatsoever

Coffee (including coffee products) imports for fiscal year 2024
$9,001,262,447
source: US Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service data

Rank of coffee (including coffee products) among agricultural products imported to the US for fiscal year 2024
4th
source: US Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service data

Top countries supplying coffee to the US in 2023/24
Brazil (32 percent)
Colombia (20 percent)
Vietnam (8 percent)
Honduras (7 percent)
source: US Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service data

Newly enacted US “reciprocal” tariffs
Brazil, 10 percent
Colombia, 10 percent
Vietnam, 46 percent
Honduras, 10 percent
source: Executive Order of US President, dated April 2, 2025

one DC coffee shop I won’t be visiting

This is absolutely nuts. Staying far far away, hopefully it will be gone soon.

UPDATE: they’ve been closed down by DC authorities, at least for now

coffee & booze, a beautiful friendship

I’m not much for Irish coffee and its derivatives (especially those buried in whipped cream), but I do love me a well-made espresso martini. Not too long ago I discovered an even better way to enjoy coffee in an adult beverage.

Behold, the frozen coffee drink:

This delight can be found at Snappy’s Small Bar, in DC’s Petworth neighborhood. Terrific owners and staff, friendly as all get out, timeless decor. It’s the go-to place if you’re a fan of Underberg, as they always have a ton of it available.

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why, you cocky little…..

Had a great time recently visiting my hometown in upstate New York for my high school reunion. The area used to be a desert for good coffee, but as the Hudson Valley has become the Hamptons north (that person looks so familiar, are they an actor…… rock star……. someone I went to high school with……. someone whose parents went to school with me….) that is slowly changing. There’s a lot of independent roasters aspiring to greatness, and more and more cafés trying to do things the right way.

The barista at a café in the hamlet of Tivoli (I-lov-it spelled backward) spotted my Onyx Coffee Lab tee and made me out for a coffee guy. He was pretty cocky in a funny kind of way, but damned if he didn’t make me a terrific beverage. Congratulations, my confident friend, you just earned your shop The Coveted Asterisk of Quality.

Tivoli General
54a Broadway
Tivoli, NY

https://www.tivoli-general.com

well, since you asked… DMV power rankings

images: Boston Public Library

If you’ve spent more than 2 minutes on this site, it won’t surprise you that I’m known to friends and colleagues as “the coffee guy.” More than a few times I’m asked by someone new to town which coffee places they really have to try, and I’m often unprepared for the question.

I’m going to give it a go here. No copping out with ties or honorable mentions. No explanations, other than I’ve limited myself geographically to my understanding of the DC metro area.* No fretting about coffee vs service vs food vs whatever other factors should be considered. Ask me tomorrow and I’ll give you a different answer, and there are a lot of great places not listed, but here are one guy’s rankings of the very best of the best in and near the nation’s capital.

Washington, DC
1. The Coffee Bar (Shaw)
2. Baked & Wired
3. Doubles
4. Café Unido (La Cosecha)
5. Lost Sock
6. Elle
7. Ebenezer’s
8. Simona
9. Little Hat
10. Dua

Maryland
1. Vigilante (Hyattsville)
2. Kaldi’s
3. Takoma Bev Co
4. Vigilante (College Park)

Virginia
1. Rare Bird
2. Rossana to You
3. Caffe Amouri
4. Swings
5. Kaldi’s
6. Simona

* – apologies to the rest of Virginia and Maryland and the eastern portion of West Virginia – I’m looking at you, Red Rooster, Hopscotch, Curate, and Lost Dog.