On the Stump for Coffee

Here it is. Coffee. A seemingly innocuous substance, yet Stumptown, a fair trade coffee brand based in Portland, Oregon, caused a fervor – and a backlash – as soon as it landed in New York this summer, the likes of which we haven’t seen since mid-90s Starbucks encroachment. A NY Press article questioning the boho spirit of the brand – true or poser? – incited a series of inordinately belligerent comments on Eater.

In the past few months, when I tell people I write about food, a couple New Yorkers immediately asked: Have you tried Stumptown coffee? Not what do you think about Bruni’s demotion of Union Square Cafe to two stars or what’s the best pizza place, but have you tried Stumptown coffee? Really, you haven’t? At this point, after proclaiming the merits of this miraculous beverage, they usually change the subject awkwardly, suddenly unsure that I would ever have anything useful to say about food.

One thing the Stumptown people have done is choose the perfect name: something about this coffee inspires people to get on the stump and proselytize.

Well, here it is, and now I’ve tried it. This iced latte at Cafe Pedlar, made from Stumptown’s “Hair Bender” espresso blend, is better than Starbucks’, but then again, so are many coffees. (The latte at Think coffee comes to mind.)

The irony is, some of the best coffee I’ve ever had anywhere is down the street from this cafe, at old-school Carroll Gardens Italian place D’Amico. Here they roast beans daily and serve a cappuccino with the perfect amount of foam over sweet, dark, super-potent espresso. It can instantly transport you to Italy in the same way Lucali’s pizza does.

Of course, D’Amico doesn’t have WiFi or any artsy writer-in-residence types to hang with. There’s nothing glamorous about the guys hanging out in front, who on this day were talking in a Brooklyn accent about somebody in a neck brace. But if authenticity is really your concern, this is where you should be going for coffee.

Not to give Stumptown the short end of the stick, I bought a bag to take home with me, the “Panama Carmen Estate” coffee. Here’s what Stumptown’s marketing materials have to say about it:

This is the world’s single most exquisite coffee. Price, Daniel and Rachel Peterson pioneered the boutique quality coffee movement from the producer side with their heirloom Ethiopian, geisha varietal. Batch #1 was harvested on February 15th north of the creek on the Peterson’s Hacienda La Esmeralda farm in Jaramillo de Boquete. This tiny portion of the farm is home to the most coveted geisha varietal in the world. We are proud to be the exclusive owners of this 600 pound lot. Due to the limited quantities of this exclusive treasure, we will only roast and ship it once a week.

Let’s hope I can properly prepare it at home, because if I don’t, the Stumptown people may order me to cease and desist making their coffee, as they have with several restaurants that didn’t prepare it correctly. And then, because it is such an exclusive treasure, I may have to limit myself to just gazing at it, not tasting it. I will report back to you at that point – unless, of course, I reach nirvana at first sip and depart this planet forever.