DFW Barista Jam Video

Here is a little video Ashlind put together for the jam . . . Start the Fire.

And that's the rest of the story . . .

More details on the Dallas barista jam have been coming in (okay, I'm actually making them up as I go along . . . but now we have a bunch of people!). The locale is a local cafe called Urban Dog Cafe, and it's so secret of a barista jam that it's not even on their website yet. It'll be held on SUNDAY (very important, as this is not on a Saturday) June 28th at 6:30 pm, with the throwdown starting at 8 pm . . . but get their early as we have a few special guest speakers.

Danny and Sherri Johns, owners of Whole Cup Consulting and facilitators of the Ultimate Barista Challenge will share some of their vast wealth of coffee business knowledge garnered from over 20 years in the business. Rounding out the educational portion of the evening is two time United States Barista Champion Heather Perry, elucidating the audience on some of the finer points of barista technique followed by a demonstration of what it takes to be Heather Perry(insert smirk here).

The same rules will apply as if this were a Saturday Night Smackdown, save for the sign up time, which will start at 6:30 pm, and the cut off time, which will end at 8:00 pm. The theme pour will be determined on site by the panel of judges, and the buy in remains $10. For any other questions refer to the rules on the right, or email me at SaturdayNightSmackdown@gmail.com.

Rock.

Ladies and Gentlemen . . . Start Your Engines!!

Something very exciting is happening in the State of Texas this month . . . Saturday Night Smackdown is being hosted in Dallas! That's right, we're taking this show on the road.

There will be a barista competition the last weekend in June, the Ultimate Barista Challenge, and we will be taking advantage of the opportunity to have everyone gathered around. The details are coming in slowly but surely, with two time USBC Champion Heather Perry making a guest appearance as our speaker, and some more surprises on the way . . . this is gonna be awesome.

I will keep you updated as more information presents itself, but for now, keep your weekend free for an awesome time in Dallas on June 28th.

The Most Successful

This past weekend brought about the beginning and the end of the most awesome Smackdown to date. One great presentation from Mike McKim of Cuvee Coffee, three delicious coffees from El Salvador, Sixteen talented and passionate baristas, one empty keg, and loads of great pictures.


Mike's presentation on processing methods was elucidating and exciting, especially when paired with washed, pulp natural, and natural processed coffees to not only see and hear, but also taste the distinction. A silent and anticipatory crowd hung onto Mike's words and savored Jose Antonio's fine work. A big thanks to Mike for taking the time to pass on a little more information that will help us all become better baristas.



Not only did we have a great number of folks show up for the educational bit, but they even stuck around for the free beer and latte art throwdown. This event had baristas from as close as Once Over Coffee Bar and Thunderbird, to as far away as Colorado Springs. The word is getting out! A sizable contigent from Dallas - the White Rock boys again - as well as baristas from Quacks 43rd Street Bakery, Clementine, unaffiliated (or over-affiliated in Tyler Wells case), and a fair number of coffee lovers made this event so much fun.


Thanks to everyone who showed up, thanks to everyone who competed, and thanks to everyone who helped me put this on. The Smackdowns are a success because of your participation. Just like the coffee world, we wouldn't be here if not for the baristas who are willing to put in the time and energy to grow their craft.

And now for the winners . . .
in no particular order the top six were . . .

Nathan Shelton from White Rock Coffee

Tyler Wells from all over the place

Ryan Van Eck of Caffe Medici


Deanna Durgis of Caffe Medici

Daniel Austin Reed of Caffe Medici

and the cash money went to ....

Jenna White of Caffe Medici!

It's on like Donkey Kong!!

May 30th is the date for this months Saturday Night Smackdown . . . same bat time, same bat place. Which for the sake of clarity means 2222b Guadalupe Street (Caffe Medici), Austin, TX 78705. We'll start sign up for the Throwdown at 5pm, first come first served and it stops at 30 people. This means a potential prize of $300 . . . holy cow!!

Cuvee Coffee's Mike McKim and Dan Streetman will be elucidating us on the finer points of coffee processing. They received some coffee from the El Salvador San Francisco Estate Cerro Las Ranas processed three different ways, Natural, Pulp Natural, and Washed. This promises to be eye opening.

There have been a couple of rule changes since the last Smackdowns, so be ready for a slightly altered format, and thanks for bearing with us as we attempt to perfect our art at perfecting your art. You can read the new rule posting by clicking the Rules and Regulations link on your right.

The two big changes are the creation of "theme pours", that is every competitor must pour into a predetermined cup size and design. The theme pour for this month is 12 ounce single rosettas . . . please remember though how varied rosettas can look and get creative. The second big change is in the scoring, half points are now given, and ties will be broken by Overall Impression scores . . . which rosetta is the most appealing and creative breaks the tie.

We'll have a pony keg of some tasty tasty beer (you know us) and we encourage you to bring a sixer of your favorite to share, or not to share. Here's to hoping the Dallas boys and the Houston boys come on down for the Smackdown in the ATX.

See y'all there.

April Smackdowns bring May Throwdowns

Another great Smackdown has come to an end. This past Saturday was a more intimate gathering than previous Smackdowns have been, which was a great change of pace. Dan Streetman and Clancy Rose, both from Cuvee Coffee in Spicewood, sat down with the baristas and held a very interesting coffee tasting.

The theme for the evening was "Storied Coffees", and the three coffees presented for the audience were Costa Rica Helzar de Zarcero, El Salvadaor Cerro Las Ranas, and Rwanda Epiphanie. Each one of these coffees holds an interesting story and a unique and budding relationship with the boys at Cuvee. All of the coffees were french pressed and passed around (think Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony) while being discussed, not only tasting notes, but relationships and histories as well. Kudos to Cuvee on this one.



The Throwdown portion of the event was also as intimate and interesting as the coffee tasting. A sizable Dallas contingent made their presence known . . . all from White Rock Coffee!! Seems to be one coffee shop to keep paying attention to. Can't wait for next months Dallas vs. Austin vs. Houston throwdown. You hear that Catalina?? Medici and White Rock will be bringing it baby! Hope you can too.

After all was said and throwndown, top honors went to:

Third Place: Tyler "One Dollar" Wells of Beef and Pie Coffee Bar



Second Place: Dan "Always the Bridesmaid" Streetman of Cuvee Coffee



First Place: Stevo "I Just Brought It" Wimberley of Caffe Medici



Check out more photographs at our flickr page. All photographs courtesy of Gregory Beuhler Photography. More information on him at www.IsTheOvenOn.com.

As usual, Strongbad says "See you suckers next time!"

Once More With Feeling!!!

It's almost that time again . . . no, not 1:24 in the morning, but the last Saturday of the month. Which can only mean one thing . . . okay two things, I have to do laundry, and you all have to show up to Caffe Medici on Guadalupe for the Saturday Night Smackdown. Oh Yeah!!!

Starting at 5 pm, Clancy Rose from Cuvee Coffee will share with us insights on processing methods gained from his recent trip to Panamanian fincas, aka Coffee Farms, and he promises to have some amazing photos of real life Panamanians. WOW!

Then at 6 pm, the real reason you all are showing up . . . Latte Art Throwdown!! Boosh! The rules are the same as always, and posted at the bottom of the blog. Ten dollar buy in, winner take all . . . and tshirts for the top finishers.

So be there, or forfeit your chance to win lots of dough and walk away with a kick ass t shirt.