Monthly Archive for April, 2010

Paradise Roasters

Published on April 21, 2010 in Coffee Roasters. 5 Comments


One tactic for coffee fiends in Korea is to ship coffee from the states. Compared to the ~$30/lb price you pay here, it can be just as economical. And unless you’ve found a competent and well sourced roaster in Korea (see our reviews here), it’ll probably be much more interesting coffee, roasted with more finesse to bring out the unique character of the coffee.

I’ve found that Paradise Roasters, who routinely score highly on Coffeereview.com, offer $11 shipping for 2 bags of coffee, or $23 shipping to Korea for up to 8 lbs of coffee. I’ve ordered from them twice and recieved the coffee between 7-10 days post-roast date on the bag. A little longer than I’d like, but still good, and at the price I can’t complain.

Above is the latest batch delivered, and below a few notes.

Ethiopia Awassa - a blend of natural and washed Ethiopia Sidamo, it’s one of my favorites. Earthy and rich chocolatey base with mild acidity and lots of fruit coming through. It’s really enjoyable and well rounded, definitely recommended.

Brazil Ouro Preto SO Espresso – I tried this as pour over and espresso and wasn’t really blown away. Could be my fault though or the dubious set-up at the cafe I have access to.

India CxR Robusta SO Espresso – I wanted to try a “good” Robusta to see what it’s like. After half of one cup I put this bag away and haven’t touched it since (not bad, but really lifeless). Now it’s too late to try pulling any espresso shots with it, so I guess I’ll never know.

Ethiopia Yirgacheffe – Really nice! I wrote some notes when I first tasted it – they go like this: “brown sugar, chocolate, fruit – tastes like a spiced pancake with strawberries and blueberries and maple syrup. Aftertaste reminds me of a black tea.” Yeah. Tasting is subjective, enjoy it.

Sumatra Decaf – Wow. This was one of the bags my coworker bought so I only tasted one cup, but I was very impressed. Earthy, with a complex spiciness, I wanted more. I’ll have to order my own bag next time. I tend to buy more African and Latin coffees, maybe I need to explore Asia more.

If you can’t get good coffee near you, especially you guys outside the major cities in Korea, this might be a good bet.

I’ll be on the lookout for other quality roasters with good shipping prices. I wanted to ship some Intelligentsia coffees and teas, but the shipping price came out to $65 so I passed on that.

Caffe Themselves

Published on April 12, 2010 in Cafe Reviews, Coffee Roasters and Korea. 3 Comments

When I came to Korea in 2007 for a summer at Yonsei University, I was excited to see that Seoul is jammed full of cafes – in fact, I don’t think there’s any place in this city where you’re more than a five minute walk from a cup of coffee (if you know of a place, maybe you should open a cafe there…). I had been learning more about specialty coffee and espresso around that time, trying all the best cafes in Los Angeles, and I was determined to find great coffee in Korea as well.

That search was initially difficult given that instant coffee mix is so popular here, and that even the nicest looking cafes with Probat roasters, expensive espresso machines prominently displayed, and enticing menus full of single origin coffees, usually serve terrible, acrid, bland, or diluted coffee.

I think many foreigners in Korea give up and assume Koreans just don’t know anything about coffee. Luckily, that summer, a friend of mine introduced me to Caffe Themselves and my hope was rekindled when I had my first good espresso shot in Seoul.

Last week I went back to Caffe Themselves (don’t question the awkward name… it’s Korea, anything goes…) for the first time in quite a while. In the three years following my first visit I’ve been to quite a few awesome specialty cafes in Korea and I wondered how Themselves would hold up.

Click here to read more! Continue reading ‘Caffe Themselves‘

Caffe Themselves

Published on April 12, 2010 in Cafe Reviews, Coffee Roasters and Korea. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

When I came to Korea in 2007 for a summer at Yonsei University, I was excited to see that Seoul is jammed full of cafes – in fact, I don’t think there’s any place in this city where you’re more than a five minute walk from a cup of coffee (if you know of a place, maybe you should open a cafe there…). I had been learning more about specialty coffee and espresso around that time, trying all the best cafes in Los Angeles, and I was determined to find great coffee in Korea as well.

That search was initially difficult given that instant coffee mix is so popular here, and that even the nicest looking cafes with Probat roasters, expensive espresso machines prominently displayed, and enticing menus full of single origin coffees, usually serve terrible, acrid, bland, or diluted coffee.

I think many foreigners in Korea give up and assume Koreans just don’t know anything about coffee. Luckily, that summer, a friend of mine introduced me to Caffe Themselves and my hope was rekindled when I had my first good espresso shot in Seoul.

Last week I went back to Caffe Themselves (don’t question the awkward name… it’s Korea, anything goes…) for the first time in quite a while. In the three years following my first visit I’ve been to quite a few awesome specialty cafes in Korea and I wondered how Themselves would hold up.

Click here to read more! Continue reading ‘Caffe Themselves’

9 Days in LA Part Three: Intelligentsia

Published on April 6, 2010 in Coffee Roasters and Los Angeles. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Last winter I was able to go home to Los Angeles with Claire for a quick 9 day holiday vacation with my family. Here’re some pictures of our visit to Intelligentsia’s Venice and Silver Lake locations.

I feel like everyone knows about Intelligentsia already and a review would be redundant, so I’ll just share some photos. But in case you’ve been living under a rock, Intelli is a specialty coffee behemoth with multiple locations in the US and two roasteries in Chicago and Los Angeles. You’ve probably seen their baristas competing in many of the regional barista competitions, in online coffee how-to videos (1, 2, etc.), or even referenced on Gossip Girl.

With that brief introduction, click below for a ton of pics! Continue reading ‘9 Days in LA Part Three: Intelligentsia‘

Korean Cafe Photos

Published on April 5, 2010 in Photos. 3 Comments

Had a really bad experience at this cafe, definitely wouldn’t recommend it. But their interior is insane, check it out.