i'm fighting off another damn cold.
it's hard to move from the desert to western Oregon in winter (if you know what i mean).

worked another fun bar shift. great crew, some fun customers, minimal annoying customers. had to fight with the grind a bit at one point but it worked out.
it's interesting... i'm starting to realize just how different espresso machines are - always. all our machines are (theoretically) the same. in other words, same manufacturer and same model. they're all set up the same, calibrated the same and maintained the same (all by the same person).
but working with each one is very different. and what's in the cup with each one is very different.
where this is most obvious is with steaming milk. it's actually turning out to be very hard to switch machine to machine throughout the week and have steaming dialed. i almost have to relearn the quirks of the machine each and every time.
ahhh... the joys of espresso.

we rolled out new Rwandan coffee into the cafes. the Rwanda Karaba... really lovely. raspberry-dark chocolate truffle with some lovely vanilla in the finish. as it cools, the raspberry shifts towards cranberry and a great tropical floral note emerges as well. love it.