Bruce,
Would that be the boat responsible for all the Mercury pollution that's
effecting the sea life? :O)
I have noticed that many, far too many, good baristas are using lousy
beans. I found a great restaurant in the Texas Hill country and was
excited to see all the right coffee equipment. I watched the gal pull a
couple of shots and decided to risk it and ordered a double.
PTWEEEW!!!!!!!! So I asked how often the changed the beans - when the
canaster runs empty! And that would be? Oh once a week. Then you get a
new supply? OH NO - We get a 20# bag from San Antonio once a month!
John - definitely travel with my own coffee
On Tue, 2003-04-29 at 11:57, Bruce Harlick wrote:
I just got back from spending a week on the Mercury, cruising down the
California Coast. It was a great time; I highly recommend Celebrity Cruises.
The food and the service was outstanding.
The coffee was even drinkable, amazingly enough. The espresso, however... I
tracked down one of the bars with an espresso machine (there seemed to be
two -- the cigar bar (yay!) and the martini bar) and bellied up to the bar
for a shot. My visual inspection revealed good things -- portafilter locked
into the group head, cups warming up on top of the machine, a grinder, etc.
I ordered my shot and watched the bartender do her thing. She didn't grind
to order, which was the first warning sign, but everything else was good.
She filled, tamped, and polished the grounds, locked the PF in place, and
pulled a 30 second shot. (Yes, I timed it.)
The espresso came, and I took a moment to admire it and then took a sip.
Disappointment. It has almost no taste. I don't know how old those beans
were, but they had lost any semblance of flavor. That was my first and last
espresso for the duration of the cruise. I had to console myself with food,
the ocean, and beautiful scenery. Poor me. :)
Bruce
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Bruce Harlick
Freelance writer, editor, game designer
http://www.newblackboard.com
ICQ #4166560
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