So during a recent conversation with an acquaintance, the topic of over-caffeination came up—something that I had never heard of, nor could understand. "I have at least five to six cups a day," I explained. "Does that count as being overly caffeinated?"
- Coffee: Is this image an animated .gif? Or am I having eye spasms again?
To which I replied, "Stumptown? Pish posh, madam, there are so many other fine coffee roasters to try in our fair city. There's..." And I began listing some of them off. Which for some reason made her go all cross-eyed and she soon left the table. So much for our first date.
Anyway, despite my acquaintance-now-turned-enemy's rudeness (she left a half-drunk quad americano on the table, for pete's sake) she did get me thinking: Wowzers! There sure are a lot of amazing micro-coffee-roasters in Portland. And while I know some, I want to know about more.
So how about it, Blogtownies? Shall we start a conversation about the best-of-the-best roasters in Portland? See my picks after the jump, and leave your own picks in the comments below.
PDX Coffee Roasting Picks:
- Image of Extracto's beautiful four group La Marzocco
For me Extracto is the cream of the crop. From what I've gathered they easily have the best straight cup of drip coffee in town, and their well trained staff are always helpful, polite, and will never give you any PDX-Coffee-Snobbery. Also, a big bonus has been their 14th and Prescott location that features an amazing pour-over bar for anyone who wants to venture out for one of the smoothest cups you'll find perhaps in the country.
I've spent some time at the Ristretto locations, but not a ton. I've found their coffee to be pretty great, although a bit on the strong side when made in a press. I think their espresso is the way to go and I wasn't disappointed by just a simple americano, which is usually my litmus test for most coffee places I'm trying for the first time. Worth checking out.
OMFG these guys have got the goods and they've only been around since 2009. I have yet to make it down to their location on Grand but I almost always opt for their beans when getting a cup at Red E Café on 1006 N Killingsworth. Their Ardi, Ethiopia Sidama is easily one of the best beans I've encountered in Portland and you owe it yourself to check these guys out.
All right, that's what I got. What do you got? Leave 'em in the comments.
