Andrew Brewtbart is a Boca Raton-based author, coffee pundit, and “leading voice of the Conservative Coffee Movement.” Writing here exclusively for Sprudge, Mr. Brewtbart has toned down his trademark liberal-bating, instead proudly bringing you a message of impending electoral opportunity for registered BGA members.

My Friends,

There is no season that stirs the marrow in my bones like election season. Gingrich? Romney? The villainous Ron Paul? I’m not referring to Presidential caucuses – kooky blasts of ca-ca, best left in the Caucusus – nor the Republican primaries – secondary at best – but rather, the pressing electoral decision of our time and age, presented before us on this very day. That’s right, America – it’s the BGA Leadership Elections, and they are now upon us.

The spoils: two (2) Executive Council positions, plus new chapter reps for the Northwestern, Western, Mountain, South Central, and Southeast regions. 9 candidates offering their service for the EC; a heated pool of willful entrants vying to represent the Northwest. You can read the full candidates list by clicking here, and you can check out some more information on the voting process and what these positions mean by reading this pamphlet by Scott Lucey. Your official ballot is available here, but remember! Only active BGA members may vote in this election. No foreign nationals, no former members whose dues have been in lieu since the victory of Mike Phillips, just the current and bona fide electorate.

Voting has now begun, and will run until February 17th. As the Kennedys used to say, “vote early and vote often.”

Happy voting, friends. While I shall endorse no candidates, I do have these words for you consider when going forth into the digital voting booth: When you exercise democracy, you exercise freedom; and when you exercise freedom, you exercise courage; and when you get this much exercise, I feel well-within my inalienable rights to take a day off at the gym. God bless America! In Brewtbart we trust.

-A.B.

Murphy will only distribute this special blend at a single shop, but as for what shop and what particular beans, Murphy can’t say. “I can’t talk about that because I’m still in negotiations,” he said, laughing. “I love that we’re here and talking about a film, but I’m like, ‘I can’t really talk about the coffee.’”

Anyone want to guess the “single shop”? Well, James Murphy is literally the most Williamsburgy person on the planet – 1/2 of Sprudge ate dinner next to him recently at the Brooklyn Star – so let’s start the bidding there. Could it be the notoriously post-irono-meta Bedford Avenue cafe El Beit, currently serving 49th Parallel? Or maybe it’s the Variety location on Graham Street – a short walk from the Lorimer L stop, and another short walk to your cookie kickball game in McCarren Park, Variety could be just right for Mr. Murphy’s target market. What about the brand new, stunning Toby’s Estate location just off Bedford Ave? Unlikely. If James Murphy were Jamiroquai, then maybe, but otherwise Aussies don’t tuck in for all that post-irony nonsense.

“Coffee! Congratulations! This is really awesome because they say we represent the best of our industries and that’s lucky for us because I think we are the best industry. So, sorry everybody else. [Laughter, Boos, Hisses] There’s one thing you need to know about coffee people and that’s that coffee people really love coffee people.” – Colleen Anunu, Gimme! Coffee

More than 3 years on from Slow Food Nation, an event whose retrospective acclaim and estimation shows no signs of slowing, the San Francisco Organic Dining High-Low Society scene is still a real trip. In the 19th century, you would have needed the bluest of blue blood to be anywhere near an event like this, and it would be thrown not in celebration of tasty things, but rather to honor the holy nuptials of some anemic royalty. In the 20th century perhaps sheer money could buy your way in (or at the very least, a notable art collection). But here in 21st, it is the organic apples you’ve sourced for your line of heirloom preserves – this is what clips your ticket into high society. The result is something like the Royal Court at Versailles getting down with the 4-H Club, both low and high society at the same time; a place where where no one quiets down for the key note speech and Alice Waters is referred to only as “Alice”, making her the mononymous Brazillian soccer hunk of California cuisine.

For the sake of archival purposes, props and perhaps to get your hands on some of the coffees that were selected, here is the complete list of 2012 coffee finalists and winners. One things certain, it was a banner year for Yirgacheffe.

Broadway Café and Roasting Company, Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Missouri * Winner
Counter Culture Coffee, Buna Ababa – Haru North Carolina * Winner
Equator Coffees & Teas, Ethiopia Watadera FTO California * Winner
Flying Goat Coffee, Ethiopia Sidamo Moredocofe California
George Howell Coffee Company, Konga Yirgacheffe Massachusetts
Gimme! Coffee, Colombia Finca San Luis New York * Winner
Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Co., Organic Ethiopia Koke Missouri
Kickapoo Coffee, Organic Biloya Yirgacheffe Wisconsin * Winner
Klatch Coffee Inc., Ethiopia Worka California * Winner
Noble Coffee Roasting, Colombia Finca San Luis Oregon * Winner
Sightglass Coffee, Ethiopia Shakiso California

EXC Ethiopian coffees cleaned up at the GFA’s for a variety of reasons. We asked Good Food Awards judge and Counter Culture Coffee head buyer Peter Giuliano for his opinion on why Ethiopian coffees were so resoundingly honored:

The jasmine-citrus-honey flavor of coffees from the Sidama region near the town of Yirgacheffe- where all the Ethiopian Good Food Awards winners were from- is unique in all of coffee. This mouthwatering flavor- instantly identifiable to any student of coffee- is probably the most cherished coffee flavor on the planet. Every coffee expert I have ever known grows wistful and romantic when they speak of Sidama and Yirgacheffe coffees.

It’s not at all surprising that the coffees of Southern Ethiopia would essentially sweep the Good Food Awards. The coffees of Ethiopia are monumental, and are the granddaddy of all the coffees of the world anyhow.

We also think it had something to do with the rules, whose wording may have unintentionally given advantage to countries with nationalized coffee programs, like those run in Ethiopia by the ECX, or semi-nationalized who-can-really-tell programs like those run in Colombia by the FNC.

Somehow amidst the crash and din of the downstairs after party, we had an opportunity to pour V60s for attendees of the post-gala eat-and-drink-a-thon. It was hard to juggle the brisket, the coleslaw, the aspic, and the booze jars flying past, so as to truly step back to to taste the coffee. Here’s a short list of things consumers kept asking at the GFA coffee booth:

• Why are there so many Ethiopian coffees?
• Where’s the decaf?
• Do you have cream and sugar?
• What’s the darkest roast?
• How many grams of coffee do you use for a cup?
• Where’s the bathroom?

In all, the GFA left us with lingering questions. Who is the Good Food Award ultimately for? Is it for the farmers? Certainly there were farmers in attendance: organic raspberry farmers from Oregon; fig farmers from North Carolina; apricot farmers from California. But nary an attendee from Colombia or Ethiopia. Is it instead for honoring the roasters? Are they more like the whiskey distillers, crafting alchemy from raw material they did not themselves grow, albeit with fewer cowboy hats?

Steve McCarthy of Clear Creek Distillery, whose remarkable eau de vie poire was honored in the GFA’s “Spirits” category, had some wise words to share with the assembled winners, journalists, and courtly hangers-on, and it’s a nice place to leave our 2011 GFA coverage:

“Americans are obsessed with building brands. But never forget that you aren’t building brands, you’re creating products. The brand will take care of itself.”

Intelligentsia Chicago cafes just got an upgrade in deliciousness, Chicago Business writer Kate MacArthur reports:

Pastoral Artisan Cheese Bread & Wine is providing sandwiches, salads and plates of cheese and charcuterie to sell at Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea Inc.’s three Chicago coffee shops.

Pastoral is making and delivering the offering daily, with menu items changing every other day. Sandwich and salad prices start at $7.50, while plates that include meat, cheese, dried fruit or olives, and toasted breads cost $8. Items will vary by season. The service started Jan. 16.

“We consider Pastoral’s offerings as a perfect complement to our menu of direct trade coffees and teas,” Intelligentsia co-founder Doug Zell said in a statement.

Ooh, yum. The article goes on to (somewhat misguidedly) compare Intelligentsia to Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts, both having turned a tidy profit on expanded food offerings in recent years, but neither having anything on Canadian chicken-salad-and-crueller merchants Tim Horton’s in terms of overall swill-to-carbs ratio (STCR). We personally trust the taste-testing veritas of the Chicago Intelli crew, even if it means they were briefly forced to forgo more tacos at Big Star.

A short vignette of Yoshi Masuda–a coffee enthusiast who is sharing his passion for coffee with victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami.

(Sourced via ShotZombies)

Griffin, Georgia’s Safehouse Coffee & Tea caught fire last night. You can help support the rebuild by donating here. Owner Hunt Slade writes via Facebook:

To all of our friends and family that share in the loss of our beloved shop this evening to fire – thank you all so much for your support and encouragement. The worst site tonight was not the flames breaking through the roof of the building or the smashed in windows; it was the distraught look on the faces of those that have come to know each other within its walls. Well, before I collapse into bed I want to tell you this – Safehouse is not a building and it is not a person. Safehouse is a community of people who believe in something better for their lives and their town. So hug each other and be thankful that we can all see one another tomorrow. This fire claimed wood and metal but took no lives – not a single person was injured and so we go on. We will rebuild. We will start over with all of the experience we have gained and all of the powerful heartfelt relationships we have grown and we will all be stronger for it. Make something that counts and share it with someone – we did and not even a raging fire could destroy that. I am grateful for you all.

As we cull through the wreckage and compile a battle plan, sobs billow ‘neath the surface threatening rain. But if we weep, we shed tears of gratitude that we can all stand together now that mortal danger has passed. Our deepest thanks to all of the fire fighters and servicemen that protected our beautiful down town – we pray for your continued safety in the dangerous jobs you perform.

We have been told by the fire inspector that the fire started in some old original wiring that ignited between the ceiling of the mezzanine and the floor of the top level. By the time the fire was visible it was already uncontrollable as it spread through the ceiling and walls. This accentuated how grateful we are that everyone got out safely.

Thank you all for your support and we will post on how people can help as a plan develops over the next few hours.

SCAA Chronicle reports that Batdorf and Bronson set up a pop-up pour over bar today. An inspiring and uplifting show of community support.

Employees of the company, Daniel Thompson and Dut Goodman, drove from Atlanta to Griffin to help serve coffee for the cleanup effort.

We wish the very best for Amanda, Hunt, Jacob and all of our friends at Safehouse.

Roasters of the world – are you single and looking? What if we told your dream account was just one click away? This your chance to rep your coffee company in a one-of-a-kind setting: the upcoming Coffee Common service at TED 2012. Your coffee will be served by some of the best baristas on earth. Violinists, political prisoners, brain scientists, novelists, academics, business leaders, and Bill Clinton will be your new regulars. Sounds too good to be true? It’s not; roasters are now eligible to apply for inclusion at the next Coffee Common event:

If selected, roasters will be asked to provide the following: 200 lbs of a single roast of a single coffee, which will be prepared in brew methods like handcrafted drip, espresso, siphon pot and aeropress. $1000 financial support which will be used to cover a dinner for baristas To apply, please complete the following form and mail a 12 ounce sample of the coffee…

Full listing available here. All submissions are due by February 8th.

This Friday, February 3rd there’s a most excellent event being offered by long-time Sprudge sponsors Espresso Parts NW. This is a ground-level, top-to-bottom comprehensive one day course, aimed to arm the working barista, the cafe owner, or the machine head super nerd with everything he or she might need to take their espresso machine maintenance skills to the next level. Oh, the things you will learn:

Front of the machine! Changing gaskets, screens and screws! Quick reference preventative check lists! Steam valve fix-its! Grinder grumbles! Drain strains! Elementary heating elements! Pump adjustments! PID FAQs! Plenty of hands-on time with a variety of espresso machines! Plus, lunch!

The class is graciously hosted by our pals at The American Barista & Coffee School, located at 1028 SE Water Ave, Suite 275, PDX. Spots are still available. Price is $395 per attendee. Call to register at 800-655-3955, and check out the event listing here.

It’s a little “As Seen On TV”, but it kind of makes a lot of sense. Right? Check out the Cuppow online here.