Author Archives: SaarrahRahim

Parlor Coffee

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White Noise Coffee Co is located in Auburn, Flushing. White Noise Coffee Co is in partnership with Parlor Coffee. Upon finding this store one day on my way home from work I stopped in and met with the staff. They were very open and friendly. I learned from the staff that the coffee they use is received from Parlor Coffee a roasting company in Brooklyn.

The staff was very knowledgeable of Parlor Coffee’s roasting, they explained that Parlor coffee began in the back of a barbershop.They are a small group of professionals who seek coffee from the origin. They travel on laborious journeys to gather their coffee from a farm based in a west Ethiopian village named Gesha. Gesha consists of semi-arid highlands. Adam Overton’s farm is ingeniously located here right near the border of South Sudan. South Sudan is the birthplace of coffee arabica. David Stalling is one of Parlor Coffee’s green coffee buyers and he visits Adam’s farm to shop for coffee.

Another location where they source coffee beans is in Kenya. John Njoroge is a farmer in Kenya that Parlor Coffee is associated with. In Muranga County the Kenyan Kiumu bean is described as a beautiful flavor with a range of stone fruit, with a touch of succulent citrus and blackberry. John manages a farm of 100 acres of this bean. This is a new export relationship Parlor Coffee formed in June 2016. A second estate in Kenya is the Ibutiti estate. This farm they began sourcing from in 2015. It is located 60 km north of Nairobi. William Murathe has managed the Ibutiti Estate for more than 40 years. His water well, drying beds, and pulping equipment are in top notch shape. He was once involved in the wine and liquor business but now age 84 decides to put all of his time into his coffee farm.

This is a photo taken from the Parlor Coffee website. This image shows the roasting machine they use in Brooklyn.Parlor Coffee. (n.d.). Retrieved May 27, 2017, from https://parlorcoffee.com/blogs/parlor-coffee/a-day-at-pulley-collective

Parlor Coffee has a wide range of coffee beans. A few include Prospect, Wallabout, Ethiopia Kochere, and Burundi Gaharo. The coffees range from $14.00- $16.00 for an 8 ounce bag. Each bag contains a bean from a unique village in Africa or Colombia. The bean that I tasted was Prospect. Prospect is an Ethiopian/Colombian blend and it is White Noise Coffee Co’s signature blend. It has notes of spices, florals, and grapefruit. It is rather bitter but its also smooth and has light hints of cocoa. Having not drank coffee for almost three months this cup had me strung out. It was definitely a high quality bean because after a few sips I could sense a headache. The caffeine was extremely strong in the brew. I really enjoyed the aesthetic of White Noise Coffee Co. It was really relaxing and had couches with pillows, strung lights, and palm trees. This is definitely a place away from NYC, so if you find yourself wanting to escape the city head to Auburn, Flushing and enjoy the feel.

Enjoying the aesthetic of White Noise Coffee CO.

References: 

Parlor Coffee

Parlor Coffee. (n.d.). Retrieved May 27, 2017, from https://parlorcoffee.com/blogs/parlor-coffee/kenya-ibutiti-estate

“Travel Journal From Gesha Village – Parlor Coffee”. Parlorcoffee.com. N.p., 2017. Web. 27 May 2017.

“Kenya Ibutiti Estate” –Parlor Cofee”. Parlorcoffee.com. N.p. 2017. Web.

27 May 2017

“Parlor Coffee.” About Us – Parlor Coffee. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 May 2017. <https://parlorcoffee.com/pages/about-us>.

Prof. Goodlad I used Parlor Coffee’s site to obtain my information about their company and roasting practices. They have a blog where it includes articles about each individual coffee buyers trips to where they get their coffee beans and about the source farm and farmer. There was no other way for me to discover this company information. The information I included in my last paragraph about the beans was from the staff at White Noise Coffee Co including price, taste notes.

 

 

 

 

 

Retail Wine Shop Blog -Saarrah Rahim

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I thought the banner was creative and eye catching.

This being my first visit to a retail wine shop I wasn’t sure what to expect! I called Chamber Street Wines and Heights Chateau. I decided on Chamber Street Wines as Amanda who assisted me on the phone seemed very willing and accommodating. She informed me that she would try her best to answer all my questions and if not she would ask her colleagues to assist. Chamber Street Wines is located at 148 Chamber Street, NY 10007. Upon arriving I noticed the store by this banner they had hanging. Once I entered the shop seemed lively as there were wine salespeople introducing their latest wines to the shopkeepers. They were having a tasting session and seemed comfortable and engaged.

I met with Amanda who greeted my friends and I warmly and we went right into the questions.

-What is your best selling wine? Sparkling Prosecco

-What is something you would like to improve about the shop? In store customer service can always be improved.

-What regions of wine do you offer? France, Italy, Spain, US-Georgia, Austria, Germany

-What clientele do you target? We are a neighborhood shop so definitely those who live and work around here.

– Best recommended white/red? Elizabeth Spencer- Chardonnay & California Pinot Noir.

How did you learn about wine & what does it take to work in this particular shop? By working retail and having a strong education in wine, grapes, and regions. Particularly for this store we also focus on understanding natural wines.

Next, I took a walk around to identify the different types of displays the shop offered.

There was an assortment of shelves like above with wines standing up. There were also cardboard boxes containing what Amanda explained to be everyday sellers. The wines in this store are sorted by region with maps of the region posted above the shelves.

This is a photo of the sparkling wine section. I was a little confused as to how I could identify the sparkling wines and champagnes. An employee approached us and explained that the caps on these bottles are crown caps which is how they are identified. He then went down the line of bottles mentioning that they were sorted by sparkling champagne, and sparkling wine and according to region. He named the regions as he went down the line and explained that some of the spirits are from right here in Brooklyn, NY. being a neighborhood shop this was clear proof.

This is a refrigerator which contained more sparkling wine selections.

White Wine Display

Red Wine Display

 

This is what a display would look like in this shop. They are laid down and posted above is a map of the region. It felt relieving to see the Pinot Noir from Oregon as we’ve studied this region and also to see the Russian River Valley Selby Chardonnay which I remembered is an AVA in California!