Matters of Taste

More Brew-haha at the 'buck

While we’re on the subject of coffee…

I gotta hand it to Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. When that guy says he’s going to make waves, he’s talking tsunamis.

In addition to shutting down the entire world-wide operation one afternoon for a barista “remedial,” taking smelly breakfast sandwiches off the menu, creating a new “retro” blend, and giving away millions of “talls” between now and May 28th, Schultz recently announced the purchase of the Coffee Equipment Company of Seattle. Connoisseurs know that as the maker of the Clover coffee brewer, an $11,000 contraption that’s considered essential equipment at top cafes.          

Rather than brewing coffee by the pot, the Clover brews one cup at a time using beans that are poured into a small metal cup and weighed on a scale, then ground. Next, hot water (about 202 degrees, I was told) shoots out of a spigot into a well in the top of the machine. The barista dumps the ground coffee into the water and stirs it gently with a paddle. After about a minute the grounds rise dramatically above the top of the well, forming a half-inch “cake” which is scraped into a trash receptacle. The brewed coffee comes out of another spigot near the bottom of the machine. (Photo from New York Times.)

The process is similar to that of French Press coffee, but the French Press operation can take close to 10 minutes. The Clover is ready in about two minutes. Starbucks calls it “fresh pressed” coffee.

The company is testing the Clover at six outlets, three in Seattle and three in the Boston area. Last week I got to watch the show and taste the results at a Starbucks in Harvard Square, Cambridge.

The employees treated the Clover like a shrine, jockeying graciously for the chance to operate it. They were knowledgeable about the process and the beans being used. (Six types of beans are suggested but customers can ask for any type of bean they want.)

The brewing was fun to watch, the aromas were terrific and the end product was impressive.

I found the aged Sumatra wonderfully fragrant with a multi-layered flavor that included some fruit and floral notes. But what I liked best was the freshness of the flavor, the brightness, the clarity. I swear it even looked clearer, shinier and more appealing. I also tried the Guatemalan Antigua which was significantly milder, less interesting, but very elegant. Both coffees showed their stuff a lot more when they had cooled off for about 15 minutes.

There was only occasional traffic at the Clover machine in the store I visited. At that rate, the baristas could fuss over their gig as much as they wanted. But I wouldn’t want to be tenth in the Clover line waiting for my morning cup.

During the “test drive,” Starbucks is selling the Clover coffees for $2.25 a tall and  $2.50 a grande. If the machine goes store-wide, I’m guessing there’ll be a bigger gap between the fresh pressed and the regular Pike Place Roast.

Much Ado About New Brew

Starbucks introduced a new coffee this week. Now, that doesn’t seem like such a big whoop to me, considering that the company offers dozens of different varieties, with new ones like Komodo Dragon Blend and Winter Melange showing up all the time.                

However, this is a special new coffee, they tell us. A coffee to appease the folks who complain that Starbucks coffee tastes bitter and burnt. A coffee to win back the customers who have deserted the brand for, of all things, McDonald’s and Dunkin' Donuts. A coffee to help CEO Howard Schultz (who recently returned to the company) right the ship.

Dubbed Pike Place Roast, in honor of the original Starbucks’ location in Seattle, the new coffee is a lighter, brighter blend of beans, mostly Latin American. The word is that it’s freshly ground and brewed throughout the day, with no pot allowed to sit for more than 30 minutes.

The company has mounted an advertising blitz to sell the stuff. Coupons for a free cup every Wednesday from now until May 28th were sent to households via direct mail. In addition, on Tuesday, the day Pike Place Roast made its debut, USA Today featured an ad incorporating the “Brewed Coffee Card.” Anybody who hasn’t seen the new brown-and-white logo (in fact, the original 1971 logo) must be living in a cave.

So, how does it taste?

Let me say up-front that #1 I’ve never been a fan of Starbucks coffee, frequenting the chain instead for their lattes which are unfailingly consistent. And #2, I happen to like strong, dark-roast coffee.

But a trained critic doesn’t let pesky personal preferences interfere with the job at hand. And I can say that this cup of joe is pretty darn good. Nothing earth-shattering. But the people it’s designed to please don’t want earth-shattering. They want something that tastes good with a donut.

The Pike Place Roast does have a lighter, brighter taste.  Though it's devoid of distinctive coffee beany flavors, it does have an ever-so-slightly nutty aroma. It’s smooth, not sharp or overly acidic. And it does taste freshly made.

I’d call it user-friendly. Homey. All-American. Something to wake you up or warm you up, not to analyze.

Bag it!

Under a proposal announced this week by Seattle mayor Greg Nickels, that city's shoppers will be paying a 20-cent "green fee" for every "paper or plastic" bag they use to carry their loot away from supermarkets, drug stores, convenience stores and the like.

According to a New York Times story today, the proposal will probably be taken up by the City Council (which is expected to pass it) this summer. The fee would go into effect early in 2009.  Nickels says the goal is to reduce waste, reduce production of paper and plastic and "help ensure a truly sustainable city." Though San Francisco recently banned plastic bags outright, it appears that Seattle will be the first city to impose fees on both types of shopping bags. I'm guessing that more and more cities and/or chains (Costco got rid of all bags last year) will follow suit.

Seattle being one of the "greenest" cities on the planet (and I'm not referring to rainfall), the proposal will be handled by the citizenry with some grumbling but plenty of soul-searching. too.  Let's face it: How hard is it to keep a couple canvas bags in the trunk of your car? Or a bunch of used paper or plastic bags (though the plastic ones really don't last more than one or two shopping trips). 

Anyone arguing against the notion of re-using bags sounds downright stupid. Sure, we need to change our habits. And, re-train our brains. (I routinely get into the check-out line before I remember that I left the canvas bags in the car.) But it seems a reasonably painless way to deal with our mushrooming waste problem. (The bag on the right is available at Bags on the Run for $1.99 each, minimum order of ten.)

When I lived in Innsbruck, Austria about 30 years ago, I went to the supermarket one day, loaded up my little cart, watched the old frau enter the prices into the cash register, then swoosh my groceries along the shiny metal counter into a big heap.

After I paid, I realized the big heap was still there. Waiting for me to load, into my bags. In those days, no one had figured out that you could make a few extra bucks off shoppers by selling bags.

I left the store with an overstuffed handbag, cheeses hanging out of my pockets, a strand of sausages around my neck, bread under my arms and my hands full. It was not pretty.

But I never went to the store without bags again.

Hold the Pepperoni

It seems that the Chicago P.D. has some issues with flab.

According to a story in The New York Times, the department’s new superintendent, ex-FBI agent Jody P. Weis,  is talking mandatory fitness tests and maximum body-fat allowances, “only after a year’s physical education and with exceptions, of course.” This, in a city that has made pizza an art form, and calls four poached eggs slathered with béarnaise sauce “one serving” (you Butch McGuire fans know who you are.)

Weis says he only wants to “promote healthful physical standards.” But some members of the rank and file take issue at the suggestion that Chicago cops are any more out of shape than their counterparts in other cities. “I hope it’s not his opinion that this force is in bad shape as compared to others,” said Mark P. Donahue, president of the Chicago local of the Fraternal Order of Police.

Given the temptations on the beat – hot dogs smothered with pickles and tomatoes,  chicken Vesuvio, and, of course, deep-dish pizza, it just doesn’t seem fair to hold Chicago cops to the traditional fitness standards.

You can find some of Chicago’s Best pizza at these four eateries. (And you just might run into one of Chicago’s Finest, but only if you go before the BMI tests start.)
                                                                      
LOU MALNATI’S. 28 locations in Illinois. Plus you can order a frozen pie to be shipped anywhere in the country. 

GINO’S EAST. I’m partial to the 633 N. Wells Street location, but there are scads of Gino’s pizzerias and you can even buy the stuff frozen in some California supermarkets.

PIECE. 1927 W. North Avenue. Specializing in New Haven-style thin-crust and hand-crafted brews.

BRICKS. 1909 N. Lincoln Avenue. Also in Petaluma, CA.

Belt-tightening (and we don't mean dieting)

We’re still a couple weeks away from Tax Day but headlines are already screaming about supermarket sticker shock and how the restaurant-going public will have to tighten its $50 Vineyard Vines belt in the coming months.

Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal pointed out that a gallon of milk that cost $3.10 this time last year is now going for $3.87. And that the dozen large eggs that cost $2.17 in February was up a whopping 24% over its February, 2007 price.

Last week The New York Times weighed in on the subject with a look at the feasibility of buying everything for a meal from Jack’s 99-Cent Store in New York City.  The message: If superchef Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin restaurant can work wonders with frozen salmon fillets,  so can you.

Though I haven’t visited Manhattan’s 99-Cent Stores yet, I have shopped at Grocery Outlets in Oceanside and Chula Vista and find them great for bargains but not terribly broad (or sophisticated) in their food offerings. Moreover, the franchised 99-cents stores around San Diego are pretty much limited to canned and packaged goods.

If you’re determined to save money on an impressive meal, Costco is the way to go.  For an article in the San Diego Union-Tribune entitled "Big Box Dinner,"  I prepared a dinner party for 14 people using only ingredients, wines, etc. from Costco.  The food was delicious. The final tab was a bargain.  (Article no longer available on-line.)

The New York Times article includes several recipes.  However, if I happened to have the IRS biting at my heels on April 15,  I doubt that I’d be in the mood for the fancy-schmancy Almond Nougat Parfait with Orange Coulis that Eric Ripert suggests for dessert.

Instead, I’d be tucking into a tub of cookies ‘n cream ice cream and one of the cheap, easy, comfort-food dinners that cookbook author Phillis Carey shares in her book “The Casual Gourmet: 50 Easy Entertaining Menus." (Carey's books are available at Amazon.com and, in San Diego, at Great News!)

Here are two Phillis Carey recipes.

ZUCCHINI FETA PANCAKES
Makes about 12 pancakes

1 pound zucchini, coarsely grated                                    
4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled         
¼ cup snipped fresh dill weed or 1 teaspoon dried dill
2 tablespoons snipped fresh mint (optional)
2 tablespoons fresh parsley
½ teaspoon salt
Dash pepper                
1 cup flour                     
2 eggs, beaten
Vegetable oil
Tomato wedges (garnish)
Fresh mint (garnish)

Combine the grated zucchini, feta cheese, dill, mint, parsley, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Using a fork, stir in the eggs and flour.
In a heavy skillet, heat the oil (about ½ inch-deep) to 400 degrees. Drop rounded tablespoons of the zucchini mixture into the hot oil. Fry pancakes until golden, about 2 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels. Garnish with tomatoes and mint.

MUSTARD CHICKEN PICANTE
Serves 6-8

6 to 8 chicken breast halves, skinned and boned
½ cup medium or mild chunky salsa
¼ cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons butter
6 to 8 tablespoons sour cream
1 lime, sliced
Cilantro, for garnish

In a flat dish, stir together the salsa, mustard and lime juice. Lightly pound the chicken breasts (between sheets of plastic wrap) and add to the marinade. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
In a large fry pan, melt the  butter over medium heat. Remove chicken from the marinade and cook breasts in the skillet for 4 minutes per side.
Add the remaining marinade to the skillet, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer about 5 minutes or until the chicken is fork tender and the marinade is reduced to a glaze.
Remove chicken to a serving platter and top with sauce. Garnish each breast with 1 tablespoon sour cream, a slice of lime and a sprig of cilantro.

Brouhaha over Brew

I cheered on our beloved Padres last night at Petco Park with a plastic cup of delicious Yellowtail Pale Ale. Nine bucks worth of Yellowtail Pale Ale, to be exact.
                                                                     
In the San Diego Union-Tribune, reporter Michael Stetz tells us all about the newest beer price increase in an article entitled "Ballpark suds'll soak you."

I, for one, applaud Petco's efforts to bring in a wide variety of premium beers, in bottles and on tap. But $9 for a beer that might cost $6 in an upscale restaurant or nightclub is annoying at best. And I'm not buying for an instant one Padres exec's contention that they're charging more for beer to "maintain a family-friendly environment" or to discourage "excessive alcohol consumption."