Flat white fever....

[Gob]

''NEW York catches flat-white fever'' read the headline in New York magazine, one of this food-obsessed city's most-thumbed resources.

"Although spottily available for at least a decade, it has grown in prominence with the rise of our coffee culture," the magazine said, describing Australians as "laid-back blokes who turn vituperative on the state of our home-town brew".

They were ladling it on thick but they have a point. After all, this is the land of Dunkin' Donuts, weak drip coffee and the Starbucks mocha frappuccino.

But things are changing. An American espresso culture has struggled into life in cities such as Portland, San Francisco and New York. And on some espresso menus, the flat white is tentatively rubbing shoulders with its cousins.

In midtown, the 24/7 Pie Face opened its doors on Australia Day. They came for the pies, says chief executive Wayne Homschek, but they come back for the coffee. When Epicure visited on a Monday lunchtime, a line of customers stretched out the door.

"We had a big debate over flat whites," Homschek says. "[Americans] don't know what it is. But we wanted to evoke discussion. Flat white, it says 'Australia'."

Still, most order drip coffee. Store manager Kevin Nieves says: "New Yorkers look for one thing in coffee: strength. They want to be kept up and caffeinated. And a lot of people are scared that espresso will take too long; they want to get it and get back to work."

Down in Tribeca, in lower Manhattan, there's a more relaxed neighbourhood vibe at Laughing Man, which opened in October. In the corner of a chalkboard is a celebrity endorsement: "Try our flat white. My favourite!!! [love heart] Hugh J."

Hugh Jackman bought a share of the place after meeting an Ethiopian coffee farmer who inspired the charity-based, non-profit business. The owners are mostly involved in importing beans but opened the cafe to ''interact with the brand'', co-founder and chief executive David Steingard says.

"Early on we were sitting around with Hugh and the flat white came up. We had the traditional glass, the 'rocks'-style glass, and he said, 'Oh, yes, that's what I usually get a flat white in.' And we said, 'What's a flat white?' "

They knew it could be a marketing angle and a bit of fun. The flat white has proven to be both, becoming their most popular coffee.

"I think it's a particularly nice balance of a drink," Steingard says. "Like a cappuccino without having to suck through all that dry foam."

Over in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, they don't need to explain it so often. The hipsters know precisely what they want.

"They want to have a story behind their coffee," says Deaton Pigot, roaster and operations manager at Toby's Estate, an espresso bar that opened last month. "They want a conversation about what they're consuming."

It used to be about organic, fair-trade, shade-grown coffee. But the trend has moved on. Now it's about ''direct trade''. "They want to know we have met the farmers, that they are farming sustainably, they treat their workers well and pay them the right money."

But another big part of their customer base is expat and visiting Australians. "It turns out Australians are very patriotic," Pigot says drily. "They come in and say, 'Mate, I've been here eight years and I haven't had a decent flat white the whole time.'"

But trends are fickle. Toby's Estate is also embracing filter coffee, brewed on per-cup ''V60s''. Old becomes new, with a connoisseur twist.

"[With filter coffee] you can really discern flavours, like a glass of red wine," Pigot says. "Espresso is more like a shot of whiskey. But I think the flat white is here to stay. When it's done right, it's a really nice, balanced cup of coffee."

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/res ... z1n91lwifl

[rubato]

Yawn.

We've had great coffee since the 70s here in Santa Cruz.

Grow up, you're boring.

yrs,
rubato

[The Hen]

And a Flat White is?

[Sean]

Minging!

[Gob]

And a Flat White is?

Loved by New Yorkers apparently.

[Lord Jim]

Wow..... what a stunning example of bad writing.... they should use it in journalism classes....

How can anyone write an article that long about something and not once explain what the damn is?

[Gob]

Wow..... what a stunning example of bad writing.... they should use it in journalism classes....

How can anyone write an article that long about something and not once explain what the damn is?

Which damn?

[Lord Jim]

"damn thing"....

You try talking on the phone, typing, and bouncing a kid on your knee all at the same time...

[Sean]

They basically ruin a perfectly good espresso by adding milk to it Jim...

[Sue U]

They basically ruin a perfectly good espresso by adding milk to it Jim...

Ewww! Gross.

[dales]

They basically ruin a perfectly good espresso by adding milk to it Jim...

CRETINS!

[Gob]

Seeing as only plebs and the lower classes drink coffee I don't know what all the fuss is about.

[loCAtek]

Then why post about it?

[Jarlaxle]

What is the obsession with bad, overpriced coffee anyway?!

[dales]

Who gives a "rat's" right, Jarl.

from wiki:

Kopi luwak (Indonesian pronunciation: [ˈkopi ˈlu.aʔ]), or civet coffee, is one of the world's most expensive and low-production varieties of coffee. It is made from the beans of coffee berries which have been eaten by the Asian Palm Civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus) and other related civets, then passed through its digestive tract.[1] A civet eats the berries for their fleshy pulp. In its stomach, proteolytic enzymes seep into the beans, making shorter peptides and more free amino acids. Passing through a civet's intestines the beans are then defecated, keeping their shape. After gathering, thorough washing, sun drying, light roasting and brewing, these beans yield an aromatic coffee with much less bitterness.[citation needed] This coffee is widely noted as the most expensive coffee in the world with prices reaching $160 per pound.[2]

Good to the last drop, eh?

[Crackpot]

More like good to the last dropping

[Gob]

[Beer Sponge]

That made my day Crackpot! Thanks!