Intelli’s Black Cat changes again

Yesterday morning I stopped by my favorite cafe – South Side – with my wife. South Side is a great coffee shop located in the southern section of Park Slope on 6th Ave and 18th St. The decor inside is very simple – couches, tables and chairs. The shelves are not adorned in syrups and flavorings, rather french presses, a chemex brewer, and bags of Intelligentsia. The focus is on coffee, pure and simple. The baristas are great. Hands down, the best coffee served in Brooklyn.

Joshua was the barista for the morning. My wife ordered a cappa and I ordered a double espresso. I picked up a bag of Black Cat to purchase and as I was checking the roast date, which was 6/2, I decided to check the varietals that were in the blend. I know that Intelligentsia likes to switch it up sometimes in their quest for the perfect espresso. The last batch I had, which was last week, was a blend of a Brazilians and a Rwanda varietal. This was a very delicious blend. This batch, roasted on 6/2 is comprised of Brazilians and a Bolivian. As I sipped the double that Joshua had pulled, I tasted bittersweet chocolate and got a bit of some smokey, earth notes that I believe came from the Bolivian. It was tastey – different from their blend with the Rwandan, but tastey nonetheless. I’ll have to do some experimentation at home now and see if I can get close to what Joshua had pulled. I felt as if I had the Brazillian/Rwandan blend dialed in pretty well on the home machine, so we’ll have to see how this version of The Cat tastes at home. With such a fresh roast date, I’m going to let it rest for a few more days and then start pulling shots with it.