Welcome to the very best in tweets, pics, and .gifs from Day Two, Round One of the 2013 Northeast Regional Barista Competition! Sprudge.com’s coverage of the NERBC is made possible by direct support from Dallis Bros. Coffee. The entirety of our 2013 competition coverage is anchored by our friends and partners at Nuova Simonelli. We’re proud to serve as your 2013 Official Digital Media Sponsors, as anointed (and granted access) by the Specialty Coffee Association of America.
14. Joseph Palozzi, Kobricks Coffee, Jersey City, NJ @kobrickcoffee
11:20 kobrick’s coffee is a 90+ year old 4th generation coffee roaster in the NYC area – learn more!
11:22 mr. palozzi competes using a yemen sanani and ethiopia harrar – “back to the origins of coffee”…that harrar is naturally processed, grown at “1500 meters”
11:26 mr. palozzi’s sig drink is a riff on the traditional ethiopian coffee ceremony, but with an aeropress thrown into the mix, along with clarified butter, cinnamon, and cardamom
15. Daria Whalen, Pavement Coffeehouse, Boston, MA @djawyea @pavementcoffee
11:40 “specialty coffee, is always changing…we’re walking the line to embracing tradition and welcoming changes”
11:43 conceit of @djawyea‘s routine – darker flavor profiles have fallen out of fashion, and that’s a shame, because they can taste great.
11:48 watching daria again a year later, there’s a lot more confidence and control in the way she competes today. big growth.
11:50 “black tea, citrus, red fruits…an herbaceous element. you’re going to be happy w/ this.” @djawyea on her @counter_culture Toscano Espresso
11:53 “quality can be found in any profile – it’s our job as professionals to raise the bar across the board.”
16. Amanda Wells, Toby’s Estate Coffee, Brooklyn, NY @TobysBrooklyn
12:02 ms. wells competes using @tobysbrooklyn Colombia La Piramide – you can take this coffee home yourself by clicking here.
12:04 this is a really gorgeous stage setting – carefully chosen tiny glassware, very careful setting placements…and this is a pretty blissful routine to watch, all control and pace, breezy and polite
12:10 sig drink: huckleberries, honey, hibiscus, and sparkling water – “a sparkling tisane” – floated with Toby’s Colombia Piramide espresso
17. Josip Drazenovich, Dallis Bros. Coffee, New York, NY @jdrazenovich @DallisCoffee
12:20 Mr. Drazenovich goes by “Joe” – and now you know. “tasting coffee is the single most exciting thing I get to do as a coffee professional.”
12:24 Mr. Drazenovich’s routine is focused on agronomy, botany, science, growth, plants… taking the judges to “the origin of flavor.” competes using Dallis Bros. La Esmeralda, located in Huila, Colombia.
12:30 tons of information in this dense, packed routine from @jdrazenovich – acids, soil qualities…capps with “apple pie notes”, butterscotch, apple butter
12:37 sig drink served in champagne coups – calls time at 15:09 – great run from @jdrazenovich of @DallisCoffee
12:37 know what’s great? when companies interview their competitors. read this chat with Joe on the Dallis Bros. website.
18. Evan Collier, Flat Black Coffee., Boston, MA @emcboston @flatblackcoffee
12:47 mr. collier has 5 kids: titus, priscilla, julia, silas, and an 8 month old baby whose name escapes me…
12:48 mr. collier competes using a yemeni sanani – that’s 2 sanani’s today at #NERBC, after like maybe… 1 Yemeni coffee all season long? when we need to learn about coffee, we turn to @sweetmarias – your Yemeni questions, answered.
12:52 mr. collier’s sig drink includes muddled cherries and turbonado sugar – “family is a very important value to me personally”
19. Ezra Baker, Café Grumpy, Brooklyn, NY @cafegrumpy
1:13 Mr. Baker competes at #NERBC using NYC’s own @cafegrumpy Kenya Nyeri Gatomboya – learn more! Love it, own it, make it thine. — “passionfruit, red wine, dark chocolate finish”
1:20 gonna call this not just best music of #NERBC but the most careful, intelligent soundtrack we’ve heard all year. “this espresso is going shine bright, like a diamond” – as rhianna’s “diamonds” kicks in on the stereo
1:24 “that’s what coffee is about: playing with flavor” – @ifyouwannabump of @cafegrumpy calls time at 14:50
20. Craig Melillo, Ports Coffee and Tea, New York, NY @PortsNYC @craigmelillo
1:32 “my name is Craig, and my goal today is to have some fun. i want to make it feel like you’re in my house.”
1:33 he’s baking cookies live on stage. no, seriously, @craigmelillo is baking cookies live on stage at #NERBC. easy bake oven.
1:36 mr. melillo competes using @heartroasters Agua Blanca – learn more, hook it up yourself, man
1:40 . @craigmelillo competes using milk from Trickling Springs Creamery – “quite frankly, the best milk i’ve ever tasted” – #NERBC
1:42 “i think it’s about time for dessert!” – DING! – the easy bake chimes, and it’s cookie time with @craigmelillo
1:44 sig drink: separate glasses w/ cinnamon simple syrup & espresso, warm cookie & milk puree, & a “non-alcoholic cocktail”
21. Calen Robinette, Voltage Coffee & Art, Cambridge, MA @outboxpuppy @VoltageCoffee
2:00 mr. robinette is pulling a @TalyaStrader! three different coffees from three different roasters.
2:02 the first of @outboxpuppy‘s 3 coffees: @coavacoffee Costa Rica Girasoles. learn more you bunch of so and so’s.
2:06 the 2nd coffee employed by @outboxpuppy is @madcapcoffee‘s Colombia Didier Reinoso for his capps: LEARN MORE –“pink grapefruit citrus, flan-like mouthfeel”.
2:10 mr. robinette’s final coffee is a @barismo Ethiopian, no web info currently available. paired with blood orange infusion. pulls a @charlesbabinski – serves 2 sig drinks, 2 straight shots, asks judges to “share”
22. Brian Gelletly, Ultimo Coffee, Philadelphia, PA @bpgel @ultimocoffee
2:21 “espresso is a paradox between intensity and delicateness” – Brian Gelletly
2:24 mr. gelletly competes at #NERBC using @counter_culture Burundi Mpemba – check it out.
2:26 “since the cappuccino is only two components, they must be high quality ingredients that pair well together”
2:30 “floral, citrusy aromatics…orange brightness, & toasty date sweetness” – @bpgel and his Burundi Mpemba capps.
2:34 sig drink: fresh apple juice with navel orange zest, jasmine white tea “cold steeped”, sparkling water
2:36 mr. gelletly calls time at 15:12 – @bpgel “got a little juicy” on stage here at #NERBC
23. Jordan Barber, Intelligentsia Coffee, New York, NY @barber_jordan @Intelligentsia
2:53 “balance is a little bit tricky…it requires all the variables in a cup of coffee to be in line.”
2:55 Mr. Barber competes using @intelligentsia Agua Preta Brazil – learn more, sure why not?
2:58 “washed coffee = pour over, natural coffee = full immersion, pulp natural is a balance – like a clever dripper.”
3:02 “tootsie roll, black tea tannins, apricot, finishing with lemon curd” – @barber_jordan on @intelligentsia Brazil Agua Preta espresso – “short bread and caramel” in the capps.
3:07 sig drink: english breakfast tea, simple syrup, gelatin, ice cubes, meyer lemon zest, espresso
3:07 calls time at 15:06 – if there can be only one @intelligentsia competitor at #NERBC, they def chose a good one.
24. Ashley Rodriguez, Daily Press, Brooklyn, NY @ashcommonname @DailyPressBK
3:15 “the cappuccino is basically an adult s’more…by mastering the familiar we allow our customers to trust us.”
3:27 ms. rodriguez competes using @KittenCoffeeBK naturally processed Brazil
3:27 serves judges “lollypops” made w honey – “i want you to be able to stir or manipulate the drink as much as you want”
