From Seed to Cup: A Tulsa Experience

So today for Adjusting the Grind, I am going to do a coffee shop review for you. This weekend, I did a quick trip to Tulsa, OK, to visit Travis's momma. While I was there, I took the opportunity to check out Topeca, a coffee shop two Baristas suggested I check out.

http://www.topecacoffee.com/

Topeca is located in downtown Tulsa, OK, in an interesting hotel building. The decor is fabulous--very inviting, cozy, and Latin-inspired. It serves a full food menu along with coffee.

The menus are hanging chalkboards behind the bar. My favorite part is how they list each size for the coffee drinks, and next to cappecino it says, "Only the perfect size". Love how they turned what can sometimes be negative (only serving the traditional 6oz or 8oz cappecino) into something special.

The coffee of the day was Santa Ana, a blend of coffee grown in the highest elevations of Finca Manzano. They describe it having a lime fragrance, and it is a fully-washed coffee. However, I ordered a cappecino for there, and a bag of beans of Santa Ana to take home with me.

My cappecino was very good, a little too foamy for my liking, but overall a great drink. I gave the Barista working a lot of grace, though, because the place was packed on a Sunday afternoon. It was evident this was an unusual amount of people on a Sunday afternoon because there was only one Barista and one chef on duty.

Travis's mom ordered a Turkey and Swiss Panini, which she let me try. It was delicious, and so was the side salad with some sort of raspberry dressing.

However, what makes Topeca stand out in my mind is not the atmosphere, the coffee, or the food, (even though all of those things are excellent) but how they source their coffee. The coffee farm, roaster, and cafe is all owned by the same people. This is called a "Seed to Cup" method. Their farms are all in El Salvador and have been around since the 19th Century when the founder brought coffee trees from Colombia to El Salvador. Now, six generations later the legacy lives on through their shop and roaster.

This process allows them to control the quality and create meaningful relationships between farmers and Baristas and roasters. All of the people involved are intrinsically connected on a deeper level. I like that.

They also are able to give back to the communities they grow coffee through an El Salvador non-profit called "Libras de Amor".

I greatly enjoyed my experience at the shop yesterday and my cup of coffee in my El Salvador mug this morning. If you are ever in Tulsa, you should check Topeca Coffee out!

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Adventure Ideas 5, 6, & 8

5) Work in a coffee farm with my wonderful friend in St. Louis.

6) Go to Spain to visit my Aunt (maybe with my lil sis).

AND

8) Just move to a Spanish speaking country for no reason.

I put these last three ideas from my original list together because they are still possible dreams for the future, but they will probably not happen this year--which is okay.

Kudos to T. Bill

Being a Barista in the coffee industry, I would still love to visit a coffee farm with the intent of learning all I can about the process. Tom Billionis, owner of The Coffee Ethic (my boss), visited the Los Planes farm in El Salvador. I would love to spend some time there someday.


My friend, Lizzy, is also interested in learning this process, and we have tossed around the idea of going to work on a farm together, but the details are probably not going to work out this summer. She is applying for an internship with the Bread and Puppet Theater, and I really hope she gets it. I think it is still a good possibility for the both of us in the future. We both love adventure, the Hispanic culture, travelling, and coffee.

Kudos to Weheartit

Spain. I want to visit Spain a lot. My mom's sister, Lynne, lives in Spain with her husband and adorable son, Andrew. I would love to visit her with my mom...possibly with my sister as well. This is still a possibility, but it would be a short trip. 

Originally, I thought it would be awesome to spend a month there with my sister because she and I both like to expand our Spanish skills. She is also graduating high school this year, and I want to take advantage of the time we have together before we live miles apart from each other.

Kudos to Me

Moving to a random Spanish-speaking country was appealing to me at one time because it would be much cheaper than studying abroad. Who needs school credit anyhow? However, this suggestion is probably the most "dangerous" adventure because I would be alone in a foreign country for a significant time period. I would learn Spanish really quick though and be able to eat Pollo Campero whenever I want. I love Pollo Campero!

Kudos to Weheartit

I have been thinking all semester about my possible summer adventures. I have made a decision, but I am not going to tell you yet. I will announce it on January 15th, so be looking. 

P.S. I am going to be starting a new blog series on January 3rd involving coffee tips. It will essentially be a weekly post with coffee making and history basics. I am no expert, but I hope to share my little knowledge of the coffee industry with you. 

P.P.S. My blog's one year anniversary is right around the corner, and I plan on having a special for it.


Good-bye 2010! Hello, 2011!
Happy New Year! 

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I Want to Travel the World

thanks to weheartit

As you may have guessed by the content of this blog, traveling is something that is really important to me. I have been out of the country four times to the same country, El Salvador. And right now, it has been a year and a half since I have used my passport.

I am getting an itch to travel again. 

I don't know what it is going to look like or where I am going to go or when I am going to go, but I am going to go.

Here is my bucket list of countries I want to visit:

(1) Spain:  (because I love the Hispanic culture and my aunt lives there)

(2) Morocco:   (because I love both the Hispanic culture and the Middle Eastern culture and Morocco mixes them both)

(3) Italy:     (because I have always wanted to go there since I was a little girl)

(4) Guatemala:  (because I like Central America)

(5) Australia:   (because I LOVE the movie...)

(6) Wales:    (because my family is originally from there)

(7) India:      (because it has such a distinct yet diverse culture)

(8) Thailand:   (because I like Thai coffee...)

(9) Canada:    (because it is the US's neighbor)

(10) France:   (because who doesn't want to see the Eiffel Tower?)

thanks to weheartit

We will see where this adventure bug takes me.

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