Monthly Archive for March, 2008
Sarah Kluth (the lady that first taught us how to pull a shot of espresso) and Geoff Watts from Intelligentsia appear on ABC 7 Chicago in their “Wonders of the Windy City” series. Very cool spot- and they are cupping Kenya, Cruz del Sur, and Tres Santos.
So the Trib PM had a write up today on latte art. They interviewed the fine folks at Aldo Coffee and they also stopped in to interview me. Here’s an excerpt:
Self-taught latte artist Luke Shaffer, 31, owner of 21st Coffee and Tea in the Strip District, said he’s been doing latte art for a year and a half.
“One day, I figured out what I was doing wrong, kind of the light bulb moment, and all of a sudden it’s working,” Shaffer said. “Then you start showing off and doing stuff for customers because it’s fun.”
Some 21st Coffee regulars have come to expect it.
“We gave him a hard time one time when he didn’t do it,” joked Kalman Pelhos, 39, of Squirrel Hill. “It’s much like going to a French restaurant — you have a certain appreciation for the presentation and not just the taste of the food.”
“People ask, ‘Did you do that on purpose?’ and sometimes we joke around and tell them it was an accident,” Shaffer said.
A reporter from the Trib PM was doing a story on latte art and contacted us for an interview. I rambled on quite a bit about coffee, direct trade, milk, independent shops in the area and a bunch of other stuff- but I do think the write up will primarily focus on latte art.
It should be in Thursday’s Trib PM, barring any late breaking Roethlisberger contract details 
Soooo the Trib also sent someone down to shoot some photos for the write up and video for the online version. So in between making drinks for customers I poured four or so example drinks. Below is the montage…
I had a couple of good ones- the rosetta at the beginning was my first pour and the still of the tulip at the end turned out nicely. The triple (Mary’s idea) kind of blew up on me and there were too many customers coming in to give it another go. I guess that’s what the latte art competition is like- you get a limited window, pressure’s on, so you do it or you don’t.
I would also like to add that the gentleman that shot the video paid for a couple of the drinks that I made so he could take them back to the office. By the time he was ready to go the drinks we had put into to-go cups were gone! It appears there is a latte thief on the loose in the Strip. I comped him a few Clovered El Cuervo’s- at least the coffees would be a good drinking temperature (better than the lattes anyway) by the time he got back. I’m thinking about filing a police report with the Strip’s new beat cop Elvis. I’m not done with this… not by a long shot.
