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Macc-Pops: The Search for the Elusive Iced Coffee

July 26, 2011 By Tristan Leave a Comment

Damn, Macc-Pops, you lookin' good today...

Yes.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we’ve done it again.

I know there were thoughts of “Oh, the sun’s not out, Moja’s not cooking anything up” or, “Oh, those lazy baristas, where the summer drinks at?” and even “Why oh why doesn’t the Moj’ have anything iced?” (Which is untrue, why would you think that? We make iced EVERYTHING except Capps… I guess thats the only thing we don’t ice…)

But now, our crack team of coffee scientists have done the impossible. Three baristas at Moja have pooled their collective cafe experience to bring you the never-anticipated but much underestimated and never, ever duplicated:

Orange Maple Macc-Pops

Oh, you heard me the first time.

It’s a one of a kind popsicle to be enjoyed by everyone, and inject a little summer into everyones… well, everyones lack of summer.

Fresh-squeezed Orange Juice, Cream, Double Espresso, and a dash of Maple Syrup. Frozen to a stick. Yours, for $3, while supplies last.

If they go over well I’ll make a whole bunch of them and keep them around for the summer. Ben and I are going to make MochaPops this afternoon with a single spro, cream and chocolate. I guess Ben though the Macc-Pops were a little espresso-y for the uninitiated.. I dunno, I thought they were great. But chocolate is chocolate, and I don’t want to deny people they’re chocolate.

Anyways: Macc-Pops. Get while the gettin’s good. Like… before the staff gets to ‘em.

Look out!

Filed Under: Coffee Experiments, Fun at Moja

Life at the Moj’

June 29, 2011 By Tristan Leave a Comment

So I guess I should post here on occassion.

I love the idea of having this blog, I just have to tear myself away from the cafe to post on it more often. Maybe it’s just that I psyche myself out, and figure nothing I publish online is worth reading, stuff like “Today I rocked out a cappuccino and it was killer” isn’t really the inspiring internet literature one desires to send forth into the world. But I’ve got a few things to say that I think are half-decently interesting, and I’ve made several coffees this morning and sitting down at the staff computer doesn’t seem all bad.

First of all, thank you to all the Moja crowd that came out and supported the last theatre show I performed in. As some of you may or may not know, when I’m not slinging lattes I’m pursuing a carreer in the performing arts in so many different disciplines I figure one of them’s got to work out. The last show ended on the 24th, was called ‘Forty-Deuce” and went really really well. I’ve got another show coming up in a few short week, I’ll make sure to post it here.

Tristan as a crackhead.

That’s me on the far right, there. A change from jeans, a bar towel and collared shirt, no? Fun fact: Those are my girlfriend’s pants.

But seriously: Working in a place that cares about its employees is an amazing thing. I get nothing but support from Doug and Andrew who will let me tear out of the cafe at a moments notice for auditions, classes, shows, you name it. It’s a stellar thing. The icing on the cake (the crema on the ‘spro?) is that the customers, some of whom I see 5 days a week, 52 weeks a year, show up and support. To those of you who came out: Thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It moves me to see a community like Moja support their own. I could be just a coffee maker to you all, but you chose to make it more than that. It moves me beyond words, and I am proud to come to work every day to simply make coffee and hang out with my friends, whether I’ve known you for years or you just walked through the door.

That being said I’m glad the show’s over because playing a crackhead every night and coming to work every morning was wearing me out.

In other news? Other sad news: The wonderful and incomparable Eva Simcikova is headed back to the Czech Republic early next month, and her last day in the cafe is… tomorrow. Out turnover is really low, and it’s always sad to see someone as passionate, uplifting and simply good at her job leave us, but homesickness and work permit expiration is somewhat understandable, and we all wish her the best.

In other, better news: We have a brand new hire! Shelby joined the team as of a few shifts ago, and is getting used tolife at the moj’. So be nice, she’s new. Or don’t, and tip big. I’m gonna leave that one open.

The best news of all? El Salvador has finally made it’s long awaited appearence on the Back Shelf. We ran it as an espresso, but it was so finicky and acidic that it made no sense. But in the French Press, this coffee sings: Beautiful spicy orange fragrance off the dry grounds, while in the cup the aroma leans towards the floral but not wihout depth. Caramels, a medium body, and a good (almost berry?) sweetness are supported by a firm orangey acidity. A complex coffee, but some of the coolest El Salvador I’ve tried this year. We’ve also still got some Tanzania AA as well, with all it’s blackberry-y goodness, sitting there. I think it’ peaking out pretty quick though… we pressed it today and got a lot of blackberry juice with a nice upfront acidity and a cocoa tail, but I can feel it fading away. Get while the getting’s good.

Filed Under: Coffee Culture, Life As A Barista, Moja Cafe, Moja Community

Orange Spice, a Blast from Moja’s past…

February 10, 2011 By Tristan Leave a Comment

Orange Spice the Way you Remember...

Whirrrrrrrrrr…

Clickaclickaclickaclickaclicka…

Tap-Tap…

Hisssssss…sssss…

Shunck…

Ding!

…Well, everything but that last bit. These are the sounds that have summed up my mornings for the last couple of years.

Hi, I’m Tristan, and I’m a barista.

Not only do we have this snazzy new site up and running, but it means the cafe staff gets to try their hand at blogging about coffee and cafe culture, the industry in general, and basically waste time at work between lattes.

…You know as soon as all the tables are clean.

Those of you loyal to Moja over the last year or so may or may not recall the signature drink we offered to the general public at Christmas in 2009. I did up a really cool syrup that we called Orange Spice and then made it into Orange Spice Lattes. Little 8oz cups of Christmas to be enjoyed by everyone. The not-so-advertised part of the ol’ Spice syrup was that it was good on EVERYTHING. I had to make double batches so that staff could put it on croissants, danishes, cookies, etc. Pretty brutal. I’m pretty sure I caught Dave drizzling it on double-baked almond croissants and then making me swear I’d take it to the grave.

But nobody reads this blog, right?

In any case, I’m not generally in the habit of offering the same specialty drink twice, and this philosophy had more than a few customers choked up after a long, hard year went by and no Orange Spice showed up at the end to console them. Feelings of betrayal, hurt, anger and deep depression were not uncommon as the word spread that Tristan would not be offering his treasured Orange Spice to the world.

UNTIL NOW.

It’s true, I won’t be making this syrup again for use in the cafe (unless we start bottling my stuff and selling it… hmmmm….) but I will toss the recipe on here for any of you keeners to try. It’s actually super simple, and you can make great big batches of it and it keeps for ages. Then put it on everything.

ORANGE SPICE SYRUP

Ingredients:

2 cups Turbinado sugar

2 cups water

1 small handful Allspice

1 small handful Cloves

3 large cinnamon sticks, broken in half

4 tbsp ground nutmeg (This is what I used, because at the time I couldn’t for the life of me find whole nutmeg… but that would be better)

Zest of 2 large Navel oranges

Method:

Combine sugar and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Simmer for 10 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. the liquid should be a deep amber color with no sugar crystals visible. Congratulations, you’ve made simple syrup!

Reduce heat to low, and add all the ingredients except the orange zest. Simmer for 5 minutes, then freshly zest the orange directly into the saucepan. The idea here is to preserve some of the bright citrus-y orange flavor and not cook it all out. Simmer for another 10-15 minutes, stirring and tasting constantly to achieve desired balance of flavour.

IMPORTANT: After you’ve made your simple syrup, it’s important not to let it boil again. If you do, the sugar syrup will crystallize and harden up when you remove it from the heat and leave it in the fridge.

Remove the mixture from heat and allow to cool. Strain into squeeze bottles. Keeps in the fridge for 2-3 weeks.

And that’s it! Super easy and it really does go on anything. I gave it to all my friends for Christmas and heard rave reviews for everything from ice cream to tea to pancakes. We can’t serve these in the cafe, but here’s my buddy Scott’s recipe for a Orange Spiced Old Fashioned Cocktail:

2oz Canadian Whiskey (We used Alberta Premium)

1/3oz Orange Spice (or to taste)

2 dashes Angostura Bitters (But I bet cherry bitters or Peychaud’s Orange Bitters would be rad too…)

2 large ice cubes

Orange and lemon cheeks for garnish

Combine whiskey, syrup and bitters in a rocks glass, stir slowly until combined. Pinch citrus over the glass to release the oil, and run around the rim. Add ice, garnish and serve.

So give it a try at home, if you’re so inclined. If you have any problems, drop by the cafe and ask me about it. I made a lot of this stuff, so if you run into a speed bump, chances are so did I and I figured it out.

See you at the cafe!

-Tristan

Filed Under: Fun at Moja, Moja Cafe, Recipes Tagged With: , , ,