Guiyang Coffee Review

Quick trip to Guiyang left me with the ever present challenge of finding coffee. This will be a short review as I truly found nothing to even review. Kunming seems like a more modern city than most other Chinese cities at times but it seems like it will be the last Chinese city to see true foreign investment. Guiyang a city a much smaller population and the feel of a not so modern city has foreign hotels all over the place and even the ever-growing Papa Johns pizza. For coffee I have never seen a hotel with coffee even worth trying but Miracle Plaza's coffee was truly one of a kind. I have never seen a pot of coffee literally boiling for hours on end especially considering even a few minutes on a hot plate usually ruins a coffee's flavor I can only imagine what a continuous boil will do for those beans.

One thing that was pretty memorable in Guiyang was this street artist.

See if you recognize his borrowed "masterpiece."

Ethiopia Yirgacheffe

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Yesterday I roasted and sampled a fantastic new coffee, Ethiopia Yirgacheffe. From the rolling hills of southwestern Ethiopia, Yirgacheffe coffee is one of the world's most distinctive coffees featuring floral and lemony flavors, a soft acidity, medium body, and a delicately complex overall taste. Defintely now one of my top 3 favorite coffees. Ethiopia Jimma, the only Ethiopian coffee we carry on a regular basis is very similar to Ethiopia Yirgacheffe but with more muted floral and citrus tones.

Intelligentsia Coffee- My 2nd Favorite Coffee Company

Founded in 1995 Intelligentsia Coffee and Tea Inc. brings a passion for coffee and a focus on exceptional quality. This coffee company with three locations in downtown Chicago and one in L.A. has received many awards and their baristas continually perform well in barsita competitions around the world. My favorite coffee shop in the western hemisphere has a simple setup but their roasting, their drink preperation, and the excellent taste of their drinks is anything but simple. Although Starbucks started the coffee revolution I beleive it is Intelligentsia that is perfecting it.

The Chengdu Coffee Review

Good Wood CoffeeVery popular in Chengdu. Lots of locations. One of them (pictured) had the musty feeling of a gym locker room. Otherwise they have good decor, full menu, and ok coffee. Quite pricey. They are also one of the few places that advertise they don't use 100% Arabica beans. Usually if people use cheaper beans they keep that secret internal. They also had five different levels of espresso you could choose from. I would prefer they only offer the best one.
Price- 3 Feel- 6 Coffee- 4 Overall- 4
(All ratings are 1-10: 10 = perfect, 1 = unacceptable)

The Big Green Giant (Starbucks)
One of the few batch of Starbucks' I have ever seen so empty. 4 visits... not even a single person in line. Although 2 of the Starbucks' went off the cookie cutter plan for a very unique Chinese interior design. Well done.
Price- 8 Feel- 7 (on the account of the two uniquely designed ones) Coffee-7 Overall- 7.5

Coffee Beanery
Classic coffee shop. Well done. Tasteful. Good Coffee. Good Feel. 4 or 5 locations in Chengdu.
Price- 8 Feel- 6 Coffee- 6 Overall- 7

Coffee
Simple name. They list price and estimated times for each of their drinks. Something a little weird with the iced latte. Somehow put frothed foam on top of the iced latte.
Price- 5 Feel- 6 Coffee- 4 Overall- 5

MidtouchThe Cahones to open directly across from Starbucks. So close in fact that their employees often receive Starbucks free samples when they are out passing samples. Props for in-house roasting. Special Belize made coffee contraption for some sort of special coffee. But 168 RMB to try it. If you order 5 cups they will roast it on the spot but who can drink 5 cups (not to mention the 5 cup price was 7 times the price of one cup.) Deeply enjoyed their Kenya AA. Fresh roasted and a brilliant cup. Favorite cup of coffee in all of China outside of Kunming. Worth trying although prices are high.

Price- 2 Feel- 7 Coffee- 8.5 Overall- 7

Kenya AA Coffee

Kenya coffee is finally back at a local coffee shop near you. Its been over 6 months since the flow of Kenyan coffee dried up. This was largely due to political unrest and internal strife in Kenya. Its interesting to see how connected and affected a coffee shop in China is to events across the world in Africa. Kenya Coffee is definitely a favorite with its berry and wine tones and full-body.