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.

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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. 

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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 »

I have attached a picture of the BOSCO espresso machine now in place at the Caffe Vita in Fremont.  

This machine is a classic lever machine.  The use of a spring instead of a pump to provide brew pressure is the main difference between lever machines and conventional, traditional-style espresso machines.  The BOSCO lever has no pump and motor–so brewing is quiet.  

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A tour of Seattle cafes reveals that some prominent wholesale roasters are both coffee suppliers and cafe operators. This is especially true in the emerging Third Wave segment. Notably, Stumptown, Caffe Vita, and Zoka roast coffee as well as operate their own cafes. 

The dual role of these companies raises a question: Should someone who plans to open a cafe view the cafe operations of a potential coffee supplier as a competitive threat?

The answer to this question might seem obvious. Afterall, a roaster has a huge advantage in terms of their coffee price. The highest quality green coffee can be had easily for $3-4 per pound even in small quantities. And with the economies of scale that go with roasting commercially, each additional pound of coffee that is roasted diminishes unit costs.  Fixed overhead costs remain constant and at higher volumes, green coffee generally gets cheaper the more you buy.  Meanwhile buying higher quality pre-roasted coffee can cost $10-14 per pound.  This seems like a wide spread. However, there is more to this than meets the eye.

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Many of you have likely heard of Caffe Artigiano in Vancouver, heard how busy they are likely have heard of brothers Vince & Sammy Piccolo who created and ran this group of cafes. If not, I’ll give you a 2 second rundown: They opened January 2000, have 5 locations in Vancouver and Sammy was the Canadian barista champion from 2003 through 2006. The one I frequent, when in Vancouver, is the location on Hornby. I’ve been at least 10 times and at all times of the day, all days of the week…this place is slammed. There is always a lineup, the tables are filled inside & out and their baristas handle this madness through the operational efficiencies crafted by Vince & Sammy.

I love going to cafes and watching/studying what going on and pay attention to small details and one thing I can say, is this place has it figured out - as it relates to drink delivery, and that is what this video is focusing on.

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