.

Thoughts on business on Slayer on the past and future year.

.

This post is rather a rambler.

.

So before going further, I want to thank you all for your support this year.  2009 was an epic year for us.  This was the year we completed designing, and finally introduced, and began building the Slayer.  For over two years prior we’d been working toward 2009.

And our work continues.  We continue to fine-tune Slayer.  There are some components that we are improving and some features that we are adding in 2010 to make the machine better yet. These improvements are based on what we’ve learned from the field, from cafe operators using Slayer in the real world.

Many people have experienced both espresso and brewed coffee on Slayer already.  Even more will hopefully get the chance when we introduce a brand new brew mechanism early next year.   Over the past few months my attention has been galvanized on getting this work completed, which has been both exciting and all-consuming!

Read the rest of this entry »

Bean Scene Magazine (click here to view)  in Melbourne featured Slayer as the cover story for their November issue.  The article was an over-the-top free association on Slayer and I just loved it.  I especially enjoyed the way Steve captured the essence of Slayer as “an irrational exercise in exuberance” because this joy in creating a new super-functional machine that celebrates the human element illuminates our path even now.

You can read everything in the issue, but one final feature of the article worth noting is the way Slayer the machine is described in the context of the important new ways independent roasters and retailers are considering their business.  They are making money with coffee, raising the bar on quality for their customers, and doing good at origin through innovative thinking and exploration. . . and action.  Even if you are not roasting your own coffee, it is possible to align your cafe with an independent Third Wave roaster who is.

My thanks to Steve Agi, the editor of Bean Scene, coffee fanatic, and beloved “caffiend”.  Your article was terrific!

Eric in Seattle

Coming to terms–finding the right words!

Espresso machine manufacturers like to lay claim to a tradition of hand-made espresso machine manufacturing.  Maybe you’ve noticed this too.

Read the rest of this entry »

Dear Reader, 

When you share your thoughts on this blog, we sit up and take notice. We love hearing your musings, answering your questions, and listening to your wise words of advice.  

In fact when I think about it, there is really only one thing that makes us happier. This is your Art. . . 

Read the rest of this entry »

Check out the latest video. If you recall – on our last road trip we were investment casting the brew actuators and group covers. Well now we complete the polishing of the stainless parts then travel to Evert Sodergren’s studio to pick up the finished actuators which he’s wrapped in Peruvian Walnut and hand shaped for us.

Check it in low-fi if you have a slower internet connection on YouTube here.

The Slayer espresso machine sports some remarkable design–in my admittedly biased opinion.  One reason for this has been the involvement of artisans and craftsmen from a range of disciplines from lost-wax sculptural metal casting to knife-making to rapid prototyping through SLA models.

In building the Slayer, we augmented our own knowledge and experience by seeking the help of specialists in each of the disciplines we needed to bring our vision of the World’s Greatest Espresso Machine to reality.

  Read the rest of this entry »

One of the challenges of developing a product from scratch is converting improved concepts of function into new physical forms that are robust and practical–and anticipate the brewing needs of the growing boutique coffee segment.  Traditional European manufacturers of equipment have a huge stake in equipment fashioned to perform a particular way.  Most notably the “Italian Tradition” of espresso brewing. 

Read the rest of this entry »

I’m not one to keep my mouth shut, so the last year and a half have been a struggle for me – especially the last several months. 18 months of planning, arguing designing and delays. Stressed, yet excited as hell to finally give birth to the fruits of of our labor.

We feel that some times you need to throw the baby out with the bath water and simply start over…so thats what we’ve done. Over 2 years ago we started with pages of notes on whats wrong with machines today and lists of what our dream machine would do. We interviewed countless baristas & cafe owners and started building our own versions of what we called Frankenbots. We tested our theories with the ultimate end goal of creating a true barista machine. Read the rest of this entry »

The Season is here, and I hope everyone is enjoying this time of jolly abandon as much as we are–finding an uplifting tonic (figuratively, if not literally) to fend off the doldrums of these long, dark days of the winter solstice. I wish this, indeed, but maybe not as much as all that if you must drive, do calculus, or study for the GRE’s.

But if you are in fair Seattle this holiday, Slayer hopes you seize the opportunity to enjoy the heffeweisens, stout ales, and hearty brews of all descriptions that are being poured by the flagon-full at the numerous breweries and public houses around town. You never know for sure what the future will bring your way, so make sure you enjoy these boisterous beverages and the merry companionship of your groupies, hearties, and special someones in a way that warms your soul and brings a smiling to your heart.

This season has been so merry for our tribe that I nearly forgot to post this one last note–before we bid 2007 farewell and welcome in a new and hopeful year. Forgive me for keeping this missive un-customarily brief. However, I know you will understand what a pull the winter festivities have on our time and attention–and what a toll these activities can wreak on clear writing and logical narrative. However, if you are one of the ones reading this (which is to say, you are) you are welcome to join our table no matter where, so we may hoist a glass of good cheer to you and yours. So to begin. . .

Read the rest of this entry »

Why have this blog, you ask? The purpose of Slayer is to share information, stories, and developments from the world of professional espresso. We want to explore it all–the coffee, the Culture, the people, the equipment, technique, and philosophy, the things that define the world of espresso when it is taken to a professional level. We want to hear from those in the specialty coffee industry who may at this very moment stand at the top of their game with tremendous depth of experience and expertise. You may already have a creed firmly in place around your Art based on years of exploration and practice. We want to know how this is working for you–so we can learn from it.

Slayer is also for everyone who just wonders if there is a better way. What comes after perfection? What lies on the other side of Caffe Artigiano, David Schomer, PID, FB80, Fair Trade, Cup of Excellence, and all the dreams of an organic, authentic, Coffee Universe now circulating and seemingly just beyond our grasp? Whether we call ourselves this or not, the players in this industry are really coffee argonauts, students, on a journey of discovery and personal improvement around this one special thing– professional espresso–which remarkably offers us a context to improve not just the coffee, but possibly the World.

Everyone, welcome aboard!