A tale of things to come.

So in the coming weeks I intend to post reviews of the various coffee shop's of Salt Lake City. Now I know you are saying to yourself "But Mike, Utah is full of Mor(m)on's." Now while you might be correct, Salt Lake City is full of local culture.

There are a ton of local Coffee shop's that range from drive throughs for those on thier way to take care of various tasks. To the hang out spot for those that choose not to contribute to the GDP! There is the ever elitest local shop where the coffee is fantastic but pricey, to the philanthropically oriented mainstay of the downtown strip. Lastly you have the college hang out spot that seems to invite collegate studiers to the under 18 late night hang out spot.

So Salt Lake City offer's a ton of local coffee shop's and while it may take me a while to get through all of them, I fully intend to visit the many coffee shop's of Salt Lake City.

Now in order to undertake such a venture one has to have a standardized methodology with which to measure each of the fine establishments. For starters, espresso is a standard. While we all enjoy a good mocha from time to time, the very ingredient that makes a Mocha a Mocha (namely: Chocolate) is more than capable of hiding the very thing I will set out to judge. So, a Mocha is off the list. Next, the latte is the gold standard of any self respecting espresso shop. The first time I visit any new Espresso shop I always order a latte in order to adequately judge the quality or the establishment. Now for me...the true tell of a quality espresso shop is the Cappuccino. Now the problem with a cappuccino is that it varies so much from shop to shop. While a Latte is espresso and steamed milk, the Cappuccino is an artform.

To be fair any slackass can make a latte, however one's ability as a barista can be the final stop in the long chain of variables that end up in your cup. The quality of the raw bean that specific year, the quality of the individual beans as they are roasted, the final blend that makes each shop's signature "espresso blend" and lastly the abilities of the individual Barista to control the extraction process of the espresso. Espresso is not a simple task, but rather requires a passion for the art. This is ultimately what ends up in your beverage for your enjoyment.

So, since I have finished that diatribe I have an important decision to make. Which beverage will I use to judge the many coffee shops of Salt Lake City. Well, ultimately I believe that the Latte is the best beverage to judge both the quality of the espresso as well as the skill of the barista at each specific shop. So, while the beverage is the simple task, there is more to be decided. All beverages come in various sizes. 8 oz, 12 oz, 16 oz and in some cases 20 oz and in the rare case a 24 oz!! I believe that the best beverage to use as a benchmark is a double shot of espresso in a 12 oz. latte.

There is a whole other catagory of factors that one can use to judge an espresso shop by. The cheerfullness of the baristas, the tangible skill of the baristas, the artfull abilities of the barista, the clenliness of each espresso shop, the thoughtfull ness of the marketing and the menu. The overall impression of the establishment and one could even go so far as to judge a shop by the quality of thier retail products and selection of music.

For this first round of judgement we will focus not on the overall quality of the establishment but rather the quality of the beverage in the cup. The test begins.....now...