Tag: Sprudge

new object of coffee gear lust

The folks at Mahlkönig, the German company whose grinders grace the counters of specialty coffee houses around the world, are entering the home enthusiast market with the X54.

WANT
photo: Mahlkönig website

The folks at Sprudge were fortunate enough to take it for a test drive ahead of the imminent US release. Sounds like it’s as amazing as it looks, though the biggest problem is the hopper is too tall. I’d suffer through that. Then again I’m not really looking to spend $900 on a home grinder, as magnificent as it may be. But if money were no object, that bad boy would soon be sitting in my kitchen next to a La Marzocco Linea Mini or a Rocket Appartamento.

mini review: Dua Coffee DC

Dua Coffee DC had been getting a lot of attention, including a spot in the most recent update of the Eater guide to best DC coffee shops and mention in the recently expanded Sprudge guide to Washington, DC. Loyal customers sing its praises regularly on DC social media sites. And I thought it would be interesting to try a shop centered around the coffee of Indonesia, which other than kopi luwak often gets overlooked in favor of beans grown in Africa and Central and South America.

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they really shouldn’t have done it

A short time ago I mentioned that for some reason the people at Coca-Cola thought combining their iconic cola with “rich, luxurious” coffee was a good idea. I tried to forget about it, but recently I saw that Jenn Chen at Sprudge did a taste test and my curiosity got the better of me. I purposely didn’t read the article first, since I was already coming into this with negative preconceptions. Stopped by a local market, plunked down my money for a can of the stuff, opened it up and gave it a whirl.

Oof. No bueno. What seemed like a bad idea may be even worse in reality.

I won’t bore you with a long, detailed review. Basically, here’s the deal: if you like Coke, you will be disappointed. If you like coffee, you’ll really be disappointed.

Each sip starts with the underwhelming flavor of a poor quality off-brand cola that is nowhere near as good as Coke, and finishes with a flavorless sensation of weak, bland coffee. There is nothing rich or luxurious about it. They’ve combined two things many like and worsened them. They may be going for 1 + 1 = 3, but they flunked and ended up at 1 + 1 = -7.

loving coffee in the time of COVID-19

As we transition into what we all hope will be a temporary new normal, it’s natural to expect an impact on cafes and the coffee industry as is the case with pretty much every business in every industry.

Here are a few changes that have already happened:

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pardon me while I keep beating the drum


Hana Kaneshige (L) and Jenna Gotthelf of Counter Culture. photo by Sprudge

Continuing my one-man campaign for better awareness, appreciation and treatment of baristas…..

Please read this article from Sprudge, about the efforts of two Counter Culture educators to get data on a living wage for baristas.

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