Tuesday, November 01, 2005

The NWRBC

Hotwires own Karl "Ice Man" Smeltzer makes the NWRBC finals in his first competition.

Karl was cool and calm in his first competition and showed tons of potential.

Our other barista who competed was Sean "Tornado" Lee

and Jeremy "the Tickler" Summer.All three did a great job representing Hotwire and look forward to competing in NC.

It was a great weekend and I had a great time hanging out with my coffee friends. The only bad part was that the lens on my camera broke a couple of days before the NWRBC and I had my kids all weekend so I couldn't go to everything or stay as long at the things I did attend.

It was great to see my friend Jen Prince win and to see Victrola representing. Great jog Daniel. If Victrola keeps it up it may not be long before we see a US champ from their company.

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

Another satisfied Hotwire customer


IMG_5580
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
that's when Hotwire stepped in and saved the day with fresh roasted coffee and drinks made to order by barista's who care for the working stick.

Fired!!!


IMG_5583
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
the big bosses said "Your fired" and the stickmen were kicked to the curb.

Stickmen Unite!!!


IMG_5588
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
Tired of stale coffee the local stickmen union went on strike to guarantee fresh roasted coffee.

Monday, October 10, 2005

Ballard Locks


IMG_5479
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
Boats entering the locks.

Ballard Locks


IMG_5499
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
Jumping Salmon

Ballard Locks


IMG_5523
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
This has no relation to coffee other then I was there on Sunday and it is in Seattle. On Sunday my family and I went to the Ballard locks to watch the boats being raised and lowered into and out of the Pudget Sound to and from Lake Union. We also wanted to watch the Salmon run in the fish ladder. It was a beautiful day and the fish were running strong and heavy. This is a great place to see nature up close and personal right in the middle of the city. This is one of the things I love about Seattle. To see the rest of these pictures click here http://www.flickr.com/photos/dismas/sets/1110749/

Thursday, October 06, 2005

The Barista

Now this is something that I have thought about for awhile and it was brought back to mind when I was in Denver for Nascore during a conversation I had. It is the role of the barista right now and how many barista view themselves and where the role of the barista could be. While I think that the "barista" has made great strides over the last five years I think we still have a long way to go. I guess what I mean is that for the most part most barista at best are really good latte makers. There are efforts to take the "barista" past that which is good, but I guess the thing that gets me is some of the egos I have seen. I guess this is just the way humans are wired. You see a barista who has won or done well in a barista competition which is fine and well, but all that means is you made a few drinks well at a given point in time. Competitions really don't show if the barista has any depth of knowledge in not just his/her chosen craft but the coffee industry as a whole. It strikes me as funny that someone with maybe two, three or maybe five years experience like to wax eloquent about what they know. It seems like the less experience the more waxing. If you go to the Court of Master Sommeliers web site http://www.mastersommeliers.org/ and look at becoming a sommelier you will notice the amount of knowledge one needs to know and at each level the requirements a exponentially larger. I think that here in the states any way we are a few years away from any organization like this from starting. In Europe I think there are at least two that I know of that are beginning to develop the knowledge and skill necessary. The two schools are the London School of Coffee http://www.londonschoolofcoffee.com/ and the Copenhagen Coffee Academy http://copenhagencoffeeacademy.com/index2.php?menuid=1&parent=0 , but even these if you look at their courses they are still very basic. I guess I'm not sure what I am trying to say just that I think the position of barista is going in the right direction, but we need to go in that direction with a certain amount of humility and guidance from those who have been in the industry much longer then us. Well I could write more but my "ADD" is kicking in.

Tuesday, October 04, 2005

Terry Davis of Ambex Roasters


IMG_5408
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.

"This is a coffee roaster man. Not a easy bake oven."

To see all my pictures from Nascore click here http://www.flickr.com/photos/dismas/sets/1073377/

Get your motor running.


IMG_5413
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
Another Espresso Smith creation.

A custom lever machine


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Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
This lever machine was being used by Novo Coffee at Nascore in Denver the weekend of Sept 23. The machine was designed by Espresso Smith.

Coffee roaster


IMG_5426
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
This a Italian Roaster called Vittoria used by Novo Coffee Roaster in Denver Colorado.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

espresso tasting


espresso tasting
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
I like my espresso straight!

Monday, September 19, 2005

Updates In my life

I've been busy lately getting our warehouse that we will be roasting in. We took possession of it I think September 9. Now comes the hard work of getting it up and running. We are getting a 15 kilo Ambex roaster with some special features at the end of October and hopefully our afterburner should be here before then. There is also all the permitting which can be a nightmare. Then comes the outfitting of the warehouse with grinders, scales, shelving, espresso machine and the list goes on. When this is done a new roasting company will be done. Our roasting company will be a separate company from our Hotwire coffee houses http://www.hotwirecoffee.com I've also been roasting three days a week for our two locations which I am doing out of my garage (I'm not proud you gotta do what you gotta do).
I'm also working on a barista certification that I'm hoping will be a industry standard. I think I will be able to start it by the end of October.
We also started training our barista that will compete in the NW regional competition. Now don't get me started on that. It is extremely frustrating as far as I've been told the competition is still the end of October. This means that whenever they open up registration people will have less then a month to register and make plans to attend. I would think that this would be extremely burden some to those who have to travel from Alaska, Oregon or even Western Washington. You would think that the USBC committee would make it a requirement that whoever is the competition host would need to have it announced and start taking registrations two to three months ahead of time. It seems to me that it would be better if they secured a location for after the first of the year then it would wouldn't seem so disorganized and unprofessional. I feel better now that I've got that off my chest.

Friday, September 02, 2005

My last day at Zoka July 04


My last day at Zoka July 04
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
I enjoy roasting coffee and preparing it for customers to drink. I don't think if I was only just a barista or just roaster I would be happy. If I could I would grow coffee roast it and then serve it in its final form. I think that would make me truly happy.

My last day at Zoka July 04


My last day at Zoka July 04
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
I started this blog mainly to have a place to put my pictures of experiences in the coffee world currently and over the past six years. This is Craig my good friend and manager of Zoka.

Wednesday, August 31, 2005

Lady's Man


Lady's Man
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
I will do latte art!

The Man


The Man
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
If you think you have what it takes step up.

The Enforcer


The Enforcer
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.
Me and my eighteen wheeler will run over your drive through coffee stand.

ghost hearts


ghost hearts
Originally uploaded by Dizzy Mouse.

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

Hotwire latte art world championship


We decided to hold a impromptu world latte art championship at our hotwire north store last night. The participants were Jeremy, Karl and myself. I figured this would be a easy win for me being the great latte artist that I am, but sometimes things don't work out. Jeremy went first.


Here is his best effort.

Karl was next.







Not his best effort.
A little better
I went next. Not to great
I should have stuck with what I was good at instead of experimenting.
If you would like to see more photos click here http://www.flickr.com/photos/dismas/sets/853154/

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

Training


I just finished training a Japanese fellow by the name of Shinya. He flew in from Japan and was here for a month. We trained for three weeks. He was a super fast learner which doesn't surprise me since he had studied to be a Sushi chef and had lot's of other restaurant experience. By the end of second week he was doing very nice latte art. I enjoy training people, but it sure takes allot out of me. Shinya hopes to be opening a coffee house in Sapporo, Japan. I hope to go and visit I am sure it will be excellent.
I will put some pictures on flickr

Thursday, July 28, 2005

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

The Head of Danish Mafia (Jens) and His top hitman Martin



Planning the take over of the coffee world.
Trieste, Italy 2004

Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Tuesday, July 05, 2005


Micah future barista champ Posted by Picasa

The Quest

At some point after getting into the coffee industry I have been on a quest to develop the perfect coffee house. Part of the problem is that my vision for the perfect coffee house continues to change and grow. The other problem is that it gets more and more expensive. To start I must say that the perfect coffee house is some what subjective or very subjective. Here is one thing that it must have "coffee". Lot's of coffee. Different types of coffee. Over five different coffees from the same country repeated in different countries designated by farm and finca and cultivar (ie. typica, Burbon, etc.) It would be awesome to have two or more coffees from the same farm of differing cultivars. You could then do coffee samplers from around the world or from a single country.

Saturday, July 02, 2005

Good times

Well my espresso is coming along nicely. It has a nice smooth creamy chocolate body, light acidity with a incredibly sweet after taste. It is not perfect but very good.
I have also been drinking a Kenyan Kathangariri that we got a few weeks ago. It is incredible.
Our store is located in a area not know for good espresso and coffee houses so people are always surprised when they get good coffee. I love it when people order a straight espresso and are surprised when it is really good. This happens on a daily basis.
One of my favorite things is roasting coffee and then making drinks for customers and watching them enjoy the coffee. The next best thing would be to grow it, roast it, serve it. You never know.
It is also fun that we are getting more people who are wanting to work for us who have passion for coffee. This fun.

Wednesday, June 22, 2005


I believe this is a yellow Caturra Posted by Hello

King of the drying patio Posted by Hello

Some History

Just did a preliminary taste of my latest creation. I roasted this yesterday, but I already notice a difference. We will be using it in our store tomorrow.
Just briefly a little about me and where I am at now. I have been working in the coffee industry since early in 99. I started as a barista running one of the many kiosks on the campus of Microsoft. I actually enjoyed this a lot, but I hated commuting two hours a day. I then moved to Zoka in November of 99. I started managing the store at the first of the year (January of 2000). I will back up for a second. Before Microsoft I was looking to buy a small coffee shop or a kiosk. I spent some money researching running a coffee shop I bought Bellisimos starter pack (espresso 101, 501, bean basics) I also bought David Schomers book. These early material made a huge impression on what I wanted to do. When they trained me at Microsoft I already new more then the person training me.
When I started at Zoka I thought I would be trained, but that never happened. I started a rudimentary training program. It didn't take long for me to realize that I wanted to learn how to roast coffee. One of the owners was Tim McCormack who holds a mystical status to many. After almost two years of bugging and hanging out at the roaster every available chance Tim agreed to let me begin a six month apprenticeship with him.
Not long after finishing my apprenticeship Tim left Zoka and I found myself in the scary position as head roaster. This also coincided with me winning the 2002 North American Barista Championship (Now United States Barista Championship) even the losers get lucky sometime. He left about a week before the competition. So, after I won I had to get ready for the WBC to be held in Oslo, Norway. Again I got very lucky with the judges I had in the semi-final round and placed fourth. In the final round I place sixth. I can still say that I am the only U.S. citizen to make the finals. Like I said even the losers get lucky sometime.
I then begin to train Chris Davidson how to roast. He has since surpassed me. He is very smart and learns quick. I have since then been very lucky to travel all over the world training and judging.
I started moving over to less roasting and more Training.
July of 04 I left Zoka? I started to work on opening my own coffee house. Main obstacle being lack of money. During this time Lora Vickrey from Hotwire Online Coffee House approached me about working some hours in her stores (a Zoka account). After several months of working with her she approached me about becoming a partner with her. After agreeing to come on I approached Tim about joining us and now we are partners.
We have a lot to do to make the type of company that I think we can be. I think if we can put into practice half of what we talked about we should be a cool and innovative company that is unlike anything out there.

Tuesday, June 21, 2005

Ok I will write

All right many people have been asking when I will post again, so here it is. I don't really have much to say I just wanted a place to show my pictures. I wish I was as smart as Chris Taci.
I am working on my espresso blend. It is a on going project. It is extremely frustrating at times. Right now I am not real happy with it. I just got some new green coffee in today and I am excited to try some of them in the espresso. I will give feed back on my thoughts of the espresso later. I don't have a name for it yet I am thinking espresso 101. Right now I just give each new variation a different number. I think I am up to 38 even though I will be 35. Well all this writing is exhausting for me. I will try to write more tomorrow when I am more awake.

Tuesday, June 07, 2005


The BGA (Barista Guild of America) 2004, 05 Task force. Chris, Andy N, Ellie, Jay, Sany, Dismas, Andy C, Michelle Posted by Hello

My First Blog

I am still deciding what I am acutally going to do with this blog. It's mainly dedicated to coffee and other related interests. I hope to use it to post and share pictures I have taken in my coffee travels. I hope to use it to post my thoughts on coffee, people and anything else that takes my fancy. I hope that I am not to boring.

Monday, June 06, 2005


Donar of the Netherlands and yours at WBC 04, Trieste, Italy Posted by Hello

Tuesday, May 31, 2005


spreading pulped naturals Posted by Hello

Monday, May 30, 2005


drying patio Posted by Hello

Brazil Cafe Supplicy and fazenda Posted by Hello

Thursday, May 26, 2005


Martin at the bar Posted by Hello

Cafe Europa Posted by Hello

Cafe Europa June 04 Posted by Hello