Here are more pictures!

Which coffees would you like to see demonstrated and to sample? Peek at our offerings, pick your fave, then post it in the comment box below! Jitterz Offerings

Date: 6/10/2011

Time: 7pm – 11pm

Address: 108 S. 12th Street at Channelside | Tampa, FL

This event is hosted by the Tampa Etsy Craft Party. Visit the Tampa Etsy Craft Party page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=219420521415349

Visit the Official Etsy Craft Party 2011 Meetup Page: http://www.meetup.com/etsy/Tampa-FL/100657/

*Photo Credit: Gevon Knox*

City Roast

Such an appropriate introduction to this coffee. It features bright characteristics over different types of preparation: a candy-like fruitiness, orange and tangerine, strawberry blanketed in mouth-watering layers of chocolate.

Grind & Prep: Coarse, French Press | Coarse, Pour-over

Dry Aroma: Nutty, Maple Syrup, Cardamom

Wet Aroma: Tussin, Syrupy Pancakes, Nutty Butty Bar

Mouthfeel: Smooth & Velvety

Full City Roast

Skip over to Full City and you get a much more mature cup featuring different herb and fruit elements: basil, lime, tangerine, pomegranate, warm buttery popcorn, gala apples, and milk chocolate almond. At this level we have a beautiful smooth velvet chocolate finish. Upfront, it has chocolate on the cusp and a hint of blueberry softness. As it cools we get to experience some strawberry layered with butter cream and cream cheese frosting. There is such a peaceful ambiance to the Full City roast. The Full City roast would likely pair well with a full-bodied Madura cigar that has a hint of woody spice elements.

Grind & Prep: Med/Coarse, French Press | Semi-Fine, Pour-over | Fine, Vietnamese Phin Filter

Dry Aroma: Nutty, Maple Syrup, Cardamom

Wet Aroma: Pancakes, Canoli, Baked Bread

Mouthfeel: Smooth & Velvety

City+ Roast, Ooooh-weeee, that Damn City+ Roast!

City+ roast proves to be an electrifying experience in both the French Press and the Vietnamese Phin Filter. This roast and preparation is the ultimate performance level for this coffee. City+ roast introduces an intense intimacy of boastful wild fruit, tangerine, raspberry, toffee nut, macadamia nut and finishes like a sexy chocolate fruit bomb. At this roast and grind, it would perform as amazing single origin espresso (SO, meaning from one coffee region, not a blend). The texture, acidity, brightness and the subtle chocolate nuances combined with its boastful fruit and herb complexities takes the experience to a whole other level.

Grind & Prep: Coarse, French Press

Grind & Prep: Fine, Vietnamese Phin Filter, 10-min Steep, 2.5 Tbsp tightly packed, Slowly Releasing the Screw-Down Filter

Wet Aroma: Caramel, Chocolate, Fudge

Mouthfeel: Fruit-like texture, a bit dryer, gorgeous acidity

Pair With

Absolutely nothing – Harrar owns the stage, and totally deserves it! We wouldn’t want to rob it of its ultimate performance, i.e., no unnecessary distractions. But if you must…a handful of nuts (almond, pecans or walnuts), raisins, freshly-baked, warm buttery bread or mango.

Taste Test Snapshot: French Press, Coarse Grind, 4min steep

• Dry Aroma: Buttery, caramel, a hint of licorice
• Wet Aroma: Sweet, honeyed, almond, praline
• Taste: An elegant, nutty earthiness, very citrusy, lemon, bright, clean, winey, chocolate undertones, high acidity
• Overall Notes: A citrusy cup throughout that is eclipsed by chocolate undertones. As it cools, more berry emerges.

Taste Test Snapshot: Vietnamese Phin Filter, Fine Grind, 5-6min steep

• Dry Aroma: Buttery chocolate
• Wet Aroma: Sweet berries
• Taste: Profound nutty, earthy and chocolate flavors that accompany its caramel aroma, a hint of citrus, high acidity
• Overall Notes: This preparation revealed a citrus blast that was finished by almonds and chocolate.
• Click here to learn how to properly use a Vietnamese Phin Filter – by BaristaOnDutY

Taste Test Snapshot: Pour-Over, Medium Grind, 4min steep

• Dry Aroma: Buttery, caramel
• Wet Aroma: Caramel, nectar, honeysuckle
• Taste: Pear-like, fruit, chocolate, berries, high acidity
• Overall Notes: The first time in the pour-over, we got some of the chocolate and dark fruit. The second time around and with a little rest, this coffee had a much more intense punch of berry and fruit. All of these flavors were eclipsed by chocolate upon the first sip. As it cools, chocolate becomes very present. It proves to have a balanced complexity throughout the duration of the cup.

Now here’s where we get to complexity and balance. Can a cup be both complex and balanced – I know, awkward that we use these two terms as complimentary to each other within the same sentence – and if so, what does that mean? There were four key tastes that apply to this Kenya AA coffee: citrus, berries, chocolate, and lemon. Let’s watch to see how they all play a role in this coffee’s existence.

As we see, at different moments in time and over the course of a few different types of preparation and grinds, the Kenya AA reveals its multi-faceted characteristics throughout the experience of the cup while letting us know of its possibilities and its range – COMPLEXITY. There are no “random” moments that are unpleasantly tasted; however, it is a harmonious experience that may catch us by surprise, but it is a pleasant mix of the unexpected, and makes for a very pleasurable and desirable cup – BALANCE. Read more about complexity and balance here.

Now, I am a 100% advocate for fresh-roasted coffee. But after returning from a few months of travel, I realized I still had at least one cup’s worth of beans to brew from this amazing coffee – BaristaOnDutY’s Light Roast Vietnamese Caphe R16.  I fired it up, and much to my surprise, I was greeted with elements of caramel, raisin, and wine – almost like a nice pinotage or syrah. This was very different from the woodsy, tobacco-like qualities I had experienced upon fresh roast. I must say, after a few months – yes a few months – of rest, this coffee still had some mind-blowing characteristics. Of course I lit up a cigar to go along with it, which turned out to be the perfect pairing. Perdomo Lot 23 Belicoso, a mild cigar with woody and sweet spice notes, complimented this coffee so well. For as little as $4.95, you can enjoy this torpedo for about 30-45 minutes along with a sweet caramelly, rested, light roasted Vietnamese Caphe R16 from BaristaOnDutY.com. Coffee + Cigar Pairings.

Previous R16 Reviews

Raging Brews

Raging Brews: The Smokehouse

Mean Chicken-N-Waffles with BODY

Photo Credit: Gevon Servo

We are gearing up for a Holiday Coffee Giveaway!

!!UPDATE TO TEXT BELOW!!

We just decided, instead of waiting until Friday, let’s start now! Screw the trivia, just go to our Facebook page anytime, type in “I Want Coffee!!” Then go to Twitter and post: “I just entered the Jitterz Cafe Holiday #Coffee Giveaway! Find out how you can win! http://bit.ly/e7jDqq #JitterzCafe”

Giveaway ends Friday, 12/10 @ 2PM. Winners selected at random. Happy Holiday Trivia!

Photo Credit: Gevon Servo

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On Friday, December 10th @ 11am, we will post a Christmas trivia on our Facebook page. Be one of the correct answers and you can win FREE coffee from Indonesia!!! The only rules are you must post the answer as a response to the trivia on our Facebook page, then go to Twitter and post: “I just entered the Jitterz Cafe Holiday #Coffee Giveaway! Find out how you can win! http://bit.ly/e7jDqq #JitterzCafe”

Enter as many times as you like. Winners will be selected at random. Happy Holiday Trivia!!

Well, I am going to stuff my face now… Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone!

Photo By Fashion Time Magazine

I recently attended a local art gallery opening. They had the usual hodge-podge of food: a few dips here and there, some healthy stuff to quiet the health freaks, and of course, COFFEE. I watched as everyone hovered around the coffee bar, one guy nervously spilling it all over the counter top. I approached the bar, poured a little coffee for myself, and waited for it to cool down. When I finally got the chance to drink some, the only thought in my mind was that it tasted like brewed cardboard water. Everyone else was seemingly enjoying it, constantly revisiting the coffee bar for a warm up.

I pretended to sip on so as not to “be rude,” and as my eyes wandered the room, I caught a glimpse of a woman in a gold party dress that was over-adorned with sequins and glitter – way too much for her petite frame. At that moment, I thought to myself: “Is this what coffee has become? Over-adorned with a mess of ‘stuff’ we think looks good, but actually tarnishes the beauty of what’s underneath?”

This brought me to a question, which has been toiled over for years: What constitutes good coffee? Is it good for only satisfying our morning jolt? Or is it only good for awakening us to break us from the afternoon’s robotic work patterns?

We yearn for good food, to be cultured, artistic, entertained, and to be “in the know…” But has our taste for good coffee fallen by the wayside? Why do we even drink it? To socialize with friends? To talk about how many espresso shots we had stuffed into one drink (that ended up giving us the JITTERZ for the next two days straight)?

Or is it only good by a coffee connoisseur’s suggestive dialogue? Terminology and recommendations forced upon us, and we – like human nature – rebel and do exactly what we want anyway, too afraid to try something new.

Photo By Gevon Servo

Coffee doesn’t have to be crammed with unnatural flavor for it to be enjoyed; and it doesn’t have to be sans milk and sugar or “under-brewed” either. But shouldn’t it have its own character and elegant flavor, not something we’ve forced it to be? Example – Ethiopia: Naturally sweet coffee, it can have honeyed tastes, chocolate undertones, and may even be loaded with berries. Sometimes I take it black, sometimes with a little sugar. Example – Café au lait: historically prepared with steamed milk, mostly tastes like toasted nuts, the coffee most likely from Brazil or Nicaragua, somewhere conducive of a great espresso blend.

We are feel good people and some brands of coffee know how to tap into that human element. SBUX… As people, we have always demanded better coffee, but without knowing the true element of “better coffee,” it was defined for us and excited us enough to buy fancy machines and syrups, host parties, collect art, all in good efforts to make it good just like SBUX taught us. Coffee can still induce good friendships, family, conversations, fun… The cup itself can truly be a lively experience that complements our relationships, conversations and friends, but it doesn’t have to be completely empty or over-adorned with postiche beauty.

And while Starbucks isn’t exactly the devil, we as consumers have managed to demand a beautifully wrapped package. Some “uber cool” coffee shops have answered the call and have assessed our aesthetic needs by dazzling us with tasty syrups and whipped cream. We’ve allowed ourselves to become drawn to the package without appreciating the beauty of the cup underneath all the wrapping…

BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL…

Here are some fun pics of the Med/Dark Roasted Vietnamese R16 Glaze, Light Roasted Vietnamese R16 Glaze, and Med/Dark Roasted Vietnamese R16 Glazed Chicken. Both pair well with A Malbec or Riesling!