I took the day off last wednesday and got time to do some stuff that I normally never have time for, like stopping by Temperato (dealer), shooting pictures, drinking some nice coffee at Stockfleths etc. It was really nice to talk to Alexander again. When I was unemployed I stopped by quite frequently. Now I seldom get the opportunity since they close at around 3pm. We sampled some shots of "Ottolina Z" and discussed photograpy. Another guy who is fascinated by both coffee and photography!
The Ottolina Z coffee is very demanding, but when it is fresh and the extraction is spot on it is very nice and sweet with hints of black currant. Nice coffee indeed. I also bought a bag of Ottolina Classica, a very popular espresso coffee among enthusiasts here in Norway. Yesterday evening I sampled it, but it didn't taste quite right, a bit bitter and with some tiger flecking that had become almost black streaking on the surface. Telltale signs that the brew temperature may be too high. I dialed it down to something like 1.0-1.15/1.20. Bingo! That did the trick. I was dancing and enjoying classica as good as the one Alexander makes in his shop. A double espresso, a double cappa and some single shots later I was pretty happy and buzzed on caffeine.
Bonus: meeting Tim at Stockfleth's Grensen and drinking a nice cup of Sumatra (french press..mmmm).
Next week: qualification rounds in Oslo for the norwegian barista championship. Looking forward to it.
