Brew Alert

Word from Brew is they could be selling beer by Thursday! Stay tuned...

Update: Grub Street just got the word from Aaron as of a few hours ago. The word is "snags"... various snags seem to be preventing those lonely refrigerators from getting stocked with beer. In the meantime, we have delicious Counter Culture coffee and 4 Worlds Bakery baguettes to sweeten the wait.

Apparently protesting is one of the aforementioned snags. As a Newbold resident, albeit one a few blocks from Brew, I'm curious to know who is up in arms against the place. I wonder if the Newbold Neighbors Association could be of assistance. They were definitely helpful with getting Lucky Old Souls moving along.

Brew Post on uwishunu

From uwishunu.com:

Picture an airy coffee shop serving individually hand-dripped coffees made from beans cultivated on small farms in Colombia. That coffee called Ariel Pajoy? Ariel Pajoy is the farmer who grew those beans.

Now imagine this same place also sells between 400 and 600 microbrew beers to-go, a selection curated by the same man behind beer hotspot, the South Philly Tap Room.

You can stop dreaming, because it’s here. It’s called Brew, one part coffee shop(known as Ultimo Coffee at Brew) and one part bottle shop, and it’s the latest addition to the Newbold neighborhood in South Philly. While the combination of beer and coffee under one roof would seem to be a no-brainer, Brew is the most cohesive
partnership of the two beverages to come to Philly.

Ultimo Coffee at Brew is a relaxing neighborhood coffee shop, but also a destination for people who take their coffee seriously. Ultimo showcases coffees from all over the world, many from the La Golondrina coffee project in Colombia.

Coffees are made in small batches until 11 am, after which they are hand-dripped to order. Customers choose from among 5 different coffee varieties, the majority of which come from microlots: a practice of culling the best coffee beans from batches
submitted to the La Golondrina coffee project. By going to cuppings - the coffee version of a wine tasting - Ultimo brought the coffees that he found truly exceptional to Brew.

Such attention to quality extends to the food offerings as well. Ultimo serves up excellent small bites, primarily from local food purveyors. Bread and pastries come from Four Worlds Bakery, brownies hail from BT Brownies, and r + d
chocolates provide truffles. Simple sandwiches on Four Worlds baguettes include triple cream brie with apples and honey or goat cheese, arugula and olive tapenade. The sandwich options, like the coffee, will be seasonal.

The beer area of Brew is currently a line of empty refrigerators along the back wall. The liquor license is still in the application process, but SPTR’s John Longacre hopes to have the beer side of Brew open by his Wheat Beer Fest on June 27st. Expect an excellent collection of microbrews to fill up that row of refrigerators.

And when they do, stop by on a Saturday night for your six-pack of Founder’s or Yard’s; then return Sunday morning for that much needed caffeine pick-me-up. Why hasn’t this come to Philly sooner?

Counter Culture Coffee Cuppings

Part 1 in my series on The Triangle, NC

Two weeks ago, a pair of my close college friends wed in Durham, North Carolina. The Triangle (Durham/Raleigh/Chapel Hill) is also home to Counter Culture Coffee, where Ultimo Coffee at Brew gets their beans. When I told friends I was planning on hitting a coffee cupping at Counter Culture on Friday at 10am, I was met with a couple different reactions, all some variation on the theme of surprise. Most people didn't believe I would make it up that early after a bachelorette party the night before. This response was typically followed by, "What the hell's a cupping, anyway?"

In my ignorant pre-cupping days, the easiest comparison to make was that it's like a wine tasting, but with coffee. I now think that a better description might be, it's like a first-year college seminar, but on coffee.

After a night of mechanical bull riding and many glasses of a new cocktail named in honor of the bride and groom, I managed to get myself out of bed for the cupping. Shockingly, I was even able to wrangle a coffee cupping partner-in-crime, Melanie.

I can't speak for Melanie, but I was overwhelmed by the coffee cupping process. About 20 people, mostly good-looking, hipster, twenty and thirty-somethings, were sniffing and slurping coffee with acumen, tasting for brightness, body and aftertaste. The crowd also included a three-week old baby and a 9-year old boy.

We were greeted by Lydia, who gave us a sheet for taking notes, a pencil and a spoon. She briefly broke down the different coffee qualities for which we would be tasting: fragrance, aroma, break, brightness, flavor, body and aftertaste.

Fragrance: Each glass, or cup, contains a couple tablespoons of dry ground beans. Stick your nose in the cup and smell the beans.

Aroma: Hot water is poured over the beans. Again, smell the beans in their wet, brewed state.

The Break: Using a spoon, "break" the top layer of foam, releasing steam and fragrance. Dive in with your nose to capture the smell.

The Slurp: capture a bit of coffee on your spoon and literally slurp it, quickly and cleanly, into your mouth, tasting for brightness (acidity), flavor (sweet, salty), body (mouth-feel), and aftertaste.

Once we had experienced the coffee in its various forms, we gathered around a white board and the group discussion began. Three coffees were cupped that day and we discussed each of the aforementioned qualities for each coffee, finally guessing the specific coffee type at the end.

Baked beans, cinnamon sugar, citrus splash, rooty/medicinal, peaches, bright summery were some of the words used to describe the first coffee, which turned out to be Counter Culture's Bwayi coffee from Burundi.

I can't say that a novice such as myself tasted with such specificity, but everything that the other tasters said made sense to me. The first coffee was brighter, sharper, citrus-y; the second coffee did have mellow tones of chocolate and toffee (it turned out to be La Golondrina, my standby at Ultimo Coffee, which maybe explains why it was my favorite of the three). I feel like I'll be a bit braver at my next cupping and trust my instincts enough to taste with confidence. The cupping was followed by a tour of the roastery, but the previous night's fun was catching up to me and I needed to go home and take a little nap, so we skipped out on the tour.

Counter Culture's emphasis on coffee education is not limited to their Chapel Hill headquarters. They have opened up training centers along the east coast, including DC and NYC. Melanie sent me a Washington Post article on Counter Culture's educational mission that came out just a few days after our first cupping. Aaron Ultimo has mentioned that he hopes to bring cuppings to Brew in the near future. I'll keep you posted.

Brew/Ultimo Open for Business

I'm writing you from the newest addition to the Newbold landscape, Brew/Ultimo. kitchenplay readers know that I have been eagerly anticipating this opening. To my left is a smooth and delicious cup of coffee from the microlot of Ariel Pajoy. Farmers like Ariel bring their beans to the La Golondrina coffee project in Cauca, Colombia. The coffee beans that meet a certain standard are separated from the others and sold as separate microlots. Ariel's beans met that standard. Brew/Ultimo offers four other coffees that are hand-brewed when you order them. Co-owner Aaron Ultimo puts on a little show for you when he systematically runs hot water through the grounds in a beautiful ceramic filter.

The beauty of Brew/Ultimo is that it offers two of my favorite beverages under one roof: coffee and beer. The liquor license should come through in about a month. Till then, the row of industrial refrigerators stands empty. But when the license does go through, we'll have a great selection of boutique beers-to-go from which to choose, curated by John Longacre from SPTR.

Food options include simple baguette sandwiches and pastries from Four Worlds Bakery, brownies from B.T. Baking and chocolates from R + D Chocolate, all local businesses. I’m eating a triple crème brie and sliced apple sandwich on a soft and delicious baguette.

Good food and beverage aside, I am so excited to have Brew/Ultimo in Newbold. This neighborhood has a lot to offer, but it was missing a place like this, a place where people can congregate at all hours of the day, spend as little or as much as they want, and enjoy the neighborhood. Plus, it is clear that Ultimo brings a great deal of respect and love for what he is doing, where he is doing it and for whom he is doing it. I’ve seen a wide variety of people come in over the past couple hours and it seems I'm not the only one feeling the love.

It's good to be home.

Newbold News

When it rains, it pours... Newbold news always seems to come in pairs. This week, Ultimo coffee (the coffee half of BREW) unveils its logo and the Broad Street Diner is officially out of Stephen Starr's hands.

BREW News

Thank God Meal Ticket is following the opening of BREW so closely. They just posted a link to Aaron Ultimo's blog. Ultimo and wife Elizabeth are the owners of the coffee part of BREW, what they refer to as Ultimo Coffee. (The beer part of the business is owned by Longacre; the coffee part by the Ultimos... together, they form BREW.) Aaron has photos documenting the build-out AND showing off pretty, shiny espresso machines and pastry cases.

I left a comment expressing my interest in checking out the space myself and posting about it. Wouldn't that be cool?

BREW Update

From the latest Feeding Frenzy in City Paper (January 14, 2009)

"Look for this combination beer and coffee shop, from South Philly Taproom's John Longacre, to open in February. The shop, at 15th and Mifflin, will feature a 500- to 600-bottle mix-a-sixable selection on the beer end. As far as the beans go, Aaron Ultimo, formerly of D.C.'s well-regarded Murky Coffee, will handle all java, with plans for educational coffee classes and cuppings."

What kind of beer do you want to see? I want to know who's doing their food, baked goods specifically...

More Newbold News

The Sad News

The Philly phood scene was abuzz in June with news that Stephen Starr had purchased the Broad Street Diner at Broad and Ellsworth. It was definitely a good sign for me as I looked into buying a house south of Washington and close to Broad. Since then, rumors have been swirling as to what the concept would be... another Continental? Something fun and Greek? Upscale Mexican?

Well, the latest rumor is that nothing will be moving into the old diner. Apparently the site has "environmental issues," a dealbreaker for Starr. And just yesterday, Michael Klein of the Inky revealed Starr's plans for the coming year: bringing back his Blue Angel to 7th and Chestnut and possibly making "fun and Greek" the concept of his Washington Square location. No word about the diner.

That said, nothing has been made official as far as I know. Maybe I'm a Positive Polly, but from reading these various blog postings about Starr, it appears he changes his mind a lot. I'm not giving up on BSD just yet...


The Good News

Another pro of my new neighborhood-to-be was word in July that the owner of the South Philly Tap Room, John Longacre, was planning a coffee shop and take-out beer joint for 15th and Mifflin, Bierista. While take-out beer is plentiful this side of Broad, coffee shops are not. And besides, this was going to be a mix-a-six kinda place, with the fancypants beer one expects at SPTR.

Well, after reading of the Starr fall-out yesterday, I was wondering if Bierista was awash too. After all, the economy isn't doing so well. Maybe you've heard...?

Just last night, word comes from Meal Ticket that Bierista is still in the works, but under the name BREW. Buildout should be completed within the next month, followed by the opening of the coffee shop while the liquor license application goes forward.

I feel slightly conflicted about patronizing a local coffee shop other than B2 at Passyunk and Dickinson, which I LOVE. But I want community business in Newbold to thrive, so I am super excited for BREW to open. If it's anything like the Tap Room (fun, comfortable, with special attention paid to good food and beverage), I think it's going to be a welcome addition.