Application of Knowledge: Cups

I spend far too much time at Panther Coffee, as I’ve mentioned before, using it as my office and a source of (almost) infinite energy. I still drink tea in the mornings, and at night but most of the rest of my days in Miami are spent sipping coffee by a computer. It’s so much nicer being in the company of others rather than being hole’ed up alone; Panther has really built a community around it and has a constant flow of ‘interesting and unique flowers of individuality’, also known as ‘people’. I mean, its still Miami…

Best of all is talking with the Baristas. Our conversations always move to action and most end in experiments (where I find out I still do have a limit to my caffeine tolerance).

It started off normal enough; A shot of espresso came out a touch watery and was lacking in all the malty depths ground beans can offer. Not an earth shattering problem, and not one I blamed them for; their primary Synesso is in the shop, and they have been relegated to using a mere double head La Marzocco without pre-infusion.

But improvements could be made.

Christopher, the fearless Barista manning (not simply using) the machine, adjusted the parameters, and hidden flavors locked away came surging up sugar coated in proper tiger stripe crema. The shot went from just under 1.5 fl oz to a single ristretto 1.15 fl oz (not that I was counting or anything); correlates of quality you ask? the bitterness flipped from a slightly woody note (-) to nuttiness (+), while roastedness (- / is that a word?) decreased, and rich (+, the flavor of fat and oil) increased with an enjoyable creaminess  (+). Most of all, the viscosity (mouth feel) of the shot was much thicker and more present. The shot was an order of magnitude (on a logarithmic scale) better.

While most intelligent, life loving mammals would have ended their consumption of psychoactive alkali while still cogent, it was with great pleasure, amidst further discussion, that I proffered a fine quality YingGe tea cup to test how much a difference it would make.

The results: Wow.
actually, let me make that a bit more clear:  WOW

And while I’m not much one for superlatives, this really did raise the bar and blow me away.

The aromatic profile was far more rich, dense, and complex than in the coffee house ceramic. Coco, butter, figs, and ground up young fairies all were volatile and aromatic. Viscosity increased, and the general sense of well being and paranoia from caffeine overdose also hung over my head. I know I wasn’t imagining all of it, because Christopher, the brave and valiant Barista pulling the shots (from the mere, remember?) tasted it as well. T’was good!