|
by Stephen Lennstromk
Staff Writer
Coffee. Are you addicted yet? From big
companies like Tully’s and Starbucks to
smaller shops like Seven and Whidbey’s,
Seattle is definitely the coffee capital.
That is why I attempted to find the
best shop around Shoreline Community
College for those of you who are as addicted
to coffee as I am.
I decided the best way to judge would
be the difficult cappuccino; to be specific,
an eight-ounce, bone-dry cappuccino.
While a normal cappuccino is half
steamed milk, half foam, a bone-dry cappuccino
is “mostly” foam. This drink gives
a clear demonstration of 1) The barista’s
abilities (steaming foam is difficult) and 2)
The taste of the actual shot of coffee (the
lack of milk brings out the coffee taste).
I rated each cappuccino on a “hit or
miss” basis of the following points:
1) The weight of the drink must be less
than 125 grams.
2) The foam must fill at least 60% of the
cup.
3) Foam must be thick and made of
small bubbles.
4) The shot of coffee must be neither too
weak nor too bitter.
Come with me as I travel on a mystical
journey to café shops around our beautiful
downtown Shoreline.
Whidbey Coffee Company:
Located on Shoreline Campus, this coffee
shop is probably the closest espresso
bar to you right now.
Price: $2.25
Milk: two percent
Machine: Rio
Weight: 100 grams
Foam Percentage: 64%
Taste of Shot: So-so. The excess milk
definitely covered the shot taste. I prefer
a bold, in-your-face taste and in that respect
I was disappointed.
Foam Texture: Pretty sturdy, the amount
of lusciously small bubbles made me want
to lick my fingers in glee.
Overall Rating: 3 out of 4
Sweet Spot Café:
Located at Aurora Avenue and 161st
St., this coffee stand was obviously not
interested in giving me the best coffee
around.
Price: $2.75
Milk: To be honest, I was too busy not
looking inside the shop to ask the barista
what kind of milk she was using. I could
not understand why an espresso shop was
using sex to sell its product…until I tasted
their coffee.
Machine: See above.
Weight: 72 grams
Foam Percentage: 77%
Foam Texture: Not impressive, mostly
big bubbles.
Taste of Shot: As bitter as bitter gets.
The shot completely dried out my mouth.
It either took too long to come out of the
machine or the barista let it sit before
adding milk to it.
Overall Rating: 2 out of 4
Terravida:
Inside of TOP Food and Drugs where
this café is located, the barista told me
that for cappuccinos she uses nonfat milk.
Strictly from personal experience, nonfat
is the second best milk to steam into foam
(a great cappuccino is made with breve,
aka half and half ).
Price: $2.50 (for a 12 oz.)
Milk: nonfat
Machine: La Marzocco (hand made in
Florence, Italy)
Weight: 103 grams
Foam Percentage: 63%
Foam Texture: Definitely thick. However
big bubbles hurt the score (.5 points
given)
Taste of Shot: Mild and smooth, this is
how a good shot tastes (it’s all in the machine).
All those coffee grounds in the
bottom of the cup are “texture”.
Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 4
Caffé Appassionato:
Who would have thought that a coffee
shop in Central Market would taste
so darn good! The price is right and as
an added bonus, they serve their coffee
in a Seahawks cup. Not to mention the
fact that all their coffee is free trade and
organic.
Price: $2.12 (with tax)
Milk: whole
Machine: Sorrento
Weight: 72 grams
Foam Percentage: 75%
Foam Texture: So thick you can stand
in it.
Taste of Shot: Bitter but not dry. This is
the type of shot that I personally enjoy. It
spreads through your mouth and wakes
you up, but doesn’t leave you wishing for
water.
Overall Rating: A definite 4 out of 4
Safeway Starbucks:
OK I work for Starbucks. However
any “Starbucks” store that’s located inside
a grocer is usually not owned by the
Starbucks Corporation. Basically they get
to wear hats and their coffee is…sub-par.
Price: $2.25
Milk: two percent
Machine: When I asked the barista
what kind of machine she used she said,
“I think just a regular espresso machine.”
I raised my eyebrows and looked for a
brand name, which I did not find. I assume
it was the Verismo machine that
most Starbucks stores now have.
Weight: 202 grams. This is the prefect
weight for a latté. However for a cappuccino,
it’s as bad as it gets.
Foam Percentage: 29%
Foam Texture: Huge bubbles with little
pockets of smaller bubbles.
Taste of Shot: Taste? Well if it weren’t covered
with milk you might be able to taste
the weak shot that traditionally comes
from this machine. But that’s unlikely.
Overall Rating: 0 out of 4
Full Disclosure: The writer of this article
works at a Starbucks.
| 
