My first wake-up call that coffee in Austin had "leveled up" was a visit to Once Over in South Austin. I ordered a latte and was bewitched by the complexity of aromas and flavors that tickled my tastebuds. People will usually point to Seattle, Portland, Chicago and New York as the best cities for coffee, but I'm here to tell you that a few places in Austin are closing the gap.
I’ve loved coffee since I can remember. As a kid, I'd steal a sip from my parent's cups while they weren't looking and my favorite ice cream was Haagen Dazs’ Coffee. Fast forward 30 years, I still prefer coffee ice cream and it's a sad day when I don't have at least one espresso. Over that time, I’ve tried to stay updated on who makes the best espresso around the city. In the past, that meant frequenting places like Amy’s, Little City, the short-lived Peet’s on the Drag or the venerable Texas French Bread. Many of these places have closed, but a new breed has arrived and is changing the game.
In order to learn about this brave new world of java in Austin, I reached out to food writer Eli Castro. He writes a restaurant blog called Grubbus, is a member of the Food Blogger's Alliance, and his “best coffee in Austin” post is his most popular by far. His love of coffee runs deep - he unabashedly admits that he used all the money from a previous business venture to purchase a professional espresso machine for his home - and he was excited to talk about the leap in quality coffee around the city. We met at a new cafe on East Cesar Chavez called Cenote to grab a cup o’ joe and talk shop.
Eli does a lot of travelling for work and always scouts out the best coffee wherever he is. He says the coffee being produced here is getting national attention, going head-to-head with famous names such as Stumptown in Portland or Intelligentsia in Chicago. He points to local roasters Cuvee, which just last week won a Good Food Award for their “Witness” blend, and who, in 2009, hosted a Cup of Excellence competition, one of only five in the world. He says another Austin company, Chameleon Cold Brew, which was co-founded by Steve Williams of Bennu Coffee on MLK, recently got national distribution for its pre-made iced coffees and was recently featured as one of the best bottled coffees by Bon Appetit.
Riding Culinary Coattails
Castro sees a connection between the rise in coffee quality and Austin’s lively food scene, with the many urban farms, flagship markets such as Whole Foods and Central Market, gourmet food trucks and identity restaurants like Uchi all turning Austin into a destination city for something other than music. “Austin leapfrogged from a mid-level market to an innovator.”
He points to the opening of JP’s Java in 2002 near the UT campus as the launching pad. “They came from Zoka in Seattle and were trained by Branwin Serna who was the SBC National Barista Champion in 2003.” They also bought an $11,000 espresso machine hand-built by Stanford engineers called the Clover. It produced an incredibly smooth cup and so the bar was set. Soon after, Teo, the gelato shop in Hyde Park, upped their game, serving authentic Italian-style espresso. And in 2006 came Caffe Medici, which was started by a former JP's barista and was the first place to primarily use Cuvee coffee.
- Eli's Top 5 in Austin Coffee (Read his full review here):
- Caffe Medici
- Houndstooth
- Once Over
- Frank (that's right, the gourmet hot dog shop), and
- Thunderbird
What makes these places excel is a combination of barista training, the beans that are used and the techniques employed. “Many shops use the French press method while some are doing pour overs,” says Eli. Most people are familiar with the French press, but the hardware and technique for professional pour overs can be a bit more complex.
There are three basic styles: the Chemex, the Hario (from Japan) and the “clever.” Each requires special (but relatively inexpensive) hardware and techniques to optimise the results. At Houndstooth on North Lamar, located in the same strip center as Uchiko, they let you choose your coffee and your pour-over method, making it a good place to compare coffees and brewing styles. Funnily enough, all these methods, from French press to Chemex, have been around for at least half a century, but were abandoned in favor of the automated drip machines that now dominate the market.
- Tip: For a good overview of pour-over methods check out this article from prima-coffee.com.
The pour-over process demands more time and energy than an auto-drip but you are rewarded with coffee with no bitter aftertaste and often a hint of sweetness even without added sugar or milk. When you’re talking to an expert about coffee, a new vocabulary comes into play. Eli uses terms like “a good bloom” and “citrus notes” to describe a great cup, attributes that seem more applicable to wine than coffee. He says at home he’ll use his Chemex setup for one type of coffee and use his Hario for another (“my wife prefers Hario” he says).
It’s this same kind of attention to detail and craftmanship that we’re now enjoying in Austin, with people that are dedicated to the entire process: from the farm that grows the beans to the method of pouring water over the grounds. Each step is important to creating that perfect cup and it’s why many people in the business think it can be harder than crafting a great wine.
All In the Bean
And just like the grapes for wine, all this can only happen if you start with great beans. In Eli’s view, local roaster Cuvee is the anchor of today’s coffee scene, providing the beans to many of the best shops in town. He says Cuvee roasters spend 3 to 4 months of every year at various farms in South America. Another way they’ve solidified their presence in Austin is by offering professional one- to three-day training courses in their “barista labs.” Other notable distributors are Texas Coffee Traders, Third Coast, Casa Brasil and Owl Tree, with many other smaller operations taking hold.
In most cities, this increase in business would create a hostile cut-throat environment but, in a very Austin way, Eli says he sees a lot of collaboration between the top shops. “It’s just the least competitive people, sharing secrets in pursuit of the best coffee experience.” He also believes people are inspired by a new place opening and that, in many ways, it provides an anchor for the neighborhood and new local ventures.
Community is something that the coffee culture has always embraced. Cafes provide a public space where people can meet, collaborate or just use the space’s energy to get some work done. For some, the vibe of the room is just as important as the coffee, if not more so. Eli is quick to point out that in his own top coffee blog he focused on the actual cup of coffee itself and not the space. “Some places aren’t the best coffee but they do a lot for the community, like Dominican Joe’s or Ruta Maya.” He also gives big props to places like Progress and Jo’s for creating great places to hang and people-watch. Conversely, some reviewers on Yelp have criticized the decor and vibe of Houndstooth, while still praising the coffee.
Bring It On Home
Of course, most of us can’t frequent these top spots every day, so I asked Eli what the coffee lover on a budget could do at home to improve the morning cup. He suggests putting together a decent pour-over setup and using a hand grinder for the beans. “Hario makes one for around $50 and they’re better than any electric blade or burr grinder until you get to the Baratza Maestro, which would run you about $120.” He dismisses the all-in-one machines because they get away from the most important thing: the flavor. “Pour-over gives you more control over the water temperature, the dispersion... you can see what’s going on and adjust your approach.”
In many ways, that’s what it really comes down to: taking a little extra care to turn that everyday cup of coffee into a special treat .
