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The Man Who Caffeinates Silicon Valley
In 2008, my wife and I drove to San Francisco. All over the city we saw signs that read, “BEST HANDMADE COFFEE IN THE CITY.” What is handmade coffee? That’s what my wife and I wanted to know.
We entered a medium-sized coffee house with comfy sofas, old wooden chairs and vintage photographs of trolleys on the wall. Every seat was filled with hipster types immersed in laptops and iPads. A large chalkboard over the front counter boasted names of coffee blends like “Silken Splendor,” “Jacob’s Wonderbar” and “Anesthesia to the Upside.”
After 15 minutes in line, we were summoned by a smiling barista. I ordered something called “Tantalizing Turkish.” My wife opted for “Philharmonic.” We watched as the barista ground a fresh batch of beans, put them in a coffee cone, poured hot water over the cone, poured the brew into a second cone, then added some kind of powdered spice and a sprig of mint. The process took about five minutes. The barista slid the cup forward and said, “Try that and make sure it’s perfect.”
I took a sip. I was greeted by a taste I’ve never encountered before. The coffee was smooth and aromatic and imbued with the middle-eastern flavor of cardamom and mint. The taste was like chai tea but had the unmistakable bite of coffee and chocolate. “Holy crap,” I said to my wife. “This is the best coffee I’ve ever had.” My…
