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Latte art is one of the fun parts of being a barista. We get to show off a little and beautiful drinks always make people smile. Latte art takes a while to learn, but once you get the basics down it doesn't take long to master the different designs.
This weekend, Team Gimme will begin our fundraising campaign for the 2010 Southern Tier AIDS Prevention Ride For Life. The grand prizes for this years raffle are two bicycles that will be
raffled individually. The bikes are on display in the front window of the Cayuga Street cafe. Tell me more about these mad whips!
The first is a 1971 Raleigh Twenty, a 20-inch three-speed folding bike. The folding frame is unique as it can be collapsed into a small, easy to stow package that begs to tag along wherever the day takes you. Modern folders are great utility bikes for large metropolitan areas, but they don't have the style that the Raleigh Twenty had. This bike is 99% original, and was given a complete rebuild from the frame up over the winter. A huge thank you to Alice Heise for contributing the bicycle.
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Here at Gimme we recently had the pleasure of inviting local yoga teacher Rachel Bush into our lab to teach us how to better protect and use our bodies while on bar. It was a very helpful hour and a half session and I am eager to share a bit of what we learned. Retail managers Liz Clark and Emily Thompson are the gracious models for these pictures.
Brazil is the world leader in coffee production, and Minas
Gerais is the largest producing region in Brazil. Coffee grown in this region
is typically known for mild fruit acidity, chocolate, nut and brown sugar flavors,
and big body. That is just what you get from our two new Brazil offerings: Brazil Santo Andre and Brazil Santa Clara (organic). Each coffee produces a cup that stays
true to the regional character, but they also hold their own ground
as distinct and unique specialty coffees. This is our second year offering both coffees, and
I anticipate they will be as popular this year as they were in 2009.
Omar Arango is the owner of Finca San Luis,
a 42-hectare farm in El Libano, in the department of Tolima, Colombia.
Finca San Luis is organic and Rainforest Alliance certified, and
located at an altitude of 1600 meters. Predominantly producing coffee
of the caturra varietal, Omar creates a cup profile that has well
structured acidity, and rich flavors that range from ripe stone fruit
to mild, sweet tobacco. While Omar often sells this coffee with the
producer group Cafinorté Orgánico, this year we are working with him to
separate some of his higher quality coffee in order to sell directly to
us as Finca San Luis.
It's been a little over one month that I've been hosting open cuppings in the lab in the back of the Gimme! Coffee on State Street and things couldn't be going any better. Each week there has been a different, small, very interested group of people showing up to talk about and taste coffee. We have had a diverse group of folks attend; roasters from other coffee companies, students from the universities in town and many regulars from our cafes. It's great to see how information is shared, and misinformation dispelled, when you get a good mix of people together. For many people this tasting was the first time they realized coffee can be sweet without sugar. So don't worry if you don't know anything about coffee or feel like a pro taster. If you've got a tongue you are welcome to join us.
This past Sunday, Gimme Coffee brought home the trophy which Team Gimme fought for in the first ever Battle For The Bean against Team Coffee Mania. Here Gimme's Tomas Reyer is enjoying the thrill of the win surrounded by Team Gimme rollers.
Check out the handmade trophy as it makes the rounds to each store. 
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