Category Archives: travel

Out with the old, in with the new

Tickets are set, container has been shipped off already, apartment in the Netherlands arranged.

We leave in three weeks and will be back home by the end of Spring.

I’m selling most of my barista equipment because I can’t use it on 230V or 50Hz or both. Check Facebook and Instagram for good deals.

If you are a coffee house or catering company in Amsterdam, Utrecht or Amersfoort (of anywhere in between) and you are looking for a skilled (head) barista to cover shifts during the Summer, please get in touch with me using the contact form on this site.

Caribbean Coffee Culture

Coffee culture is fascinating. Different in Puerto Rico from St Maarten in many ways but essence is the same, that’s my conclusion after aspending 2 weeks in and around  San Juan. They favor more bitter cups of coffee in the Caribbean, IMHO. Dark roasted (French or Italian) blends of Latin American beans, some strengthened with Robusta beans.

The body is always unbalanced, though. Coffee is rarely ground on demand so it spoils quickly in the heat and humidity. In Puerto Rico they favor the espresso and cortadito whereas in Sint Maarten they favor plain filter coffee and lattes or flavored coffee with syrups. Saint Martin goes for espressos and cappuccinos but people often overheat the milk here.

Pack of coffee beans
Uncommon “medium roast” coffee from Puerto Rico

It’s just painful to taste all the uncleaned portafilters and old grinds together with the “spoiled” grinds that have been sitting there too long. Such a shame. Keeping up the spirit for a good coffee. Even if one in a hundred.

cappuccino cup
Cappuccino