Category Archives: Coffee

March 10, 2012 · 6:49 am

Do you like Coffee and Chocolate? Help Cocoa Cinnamon Become A Reality in Durham!

The founders of the mobile business bikeCOFFEE are looking to raise money to help them launch a brick-and-mortar shop in Durham called Cocoa Cinnamon.  This wouln’t be your run of the mill coffee place. Cocoa Cinnamon will be a community space  built around coffee, chocolate, spices and teas.

The husband-and-wife team behind the business, Leon Grodski de Barrera and Areli Barrera de Grodski, have launched a Kickstarter fundraising campaign with a goal of raising $20,000. This money will be put towards purchasing equipment and plumbing & electrical work needed for their planned location at 420 Gear Street in downtown Durham around the corner from Fullsteam and Motorco.

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420 Geer Street Durham,NC ~ Future home of Cocoa Cinnamon

Cocoa Cinnamon will feature espresso drinks, drinking chocolates, and handmade chocolates in addition to the hot chocolate and coffees from local roasters that they currently offer through their mobile business bikeCOFFEE. Remember, while you  they work on opening their brick and mortart location you can still find bikeCOFFEE set up each Saturday at the Durham Farmers’ Market and Sundays at Motorco’s “Bloody Brunch”. They are also regular participants in food truck events and rodeos like the one happening this Sunday, March 10th at Durham Central Park.

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bikeCoffee at Durham Farmers' Market

To contribute to their Kickstarter campaing to make Cocoa Cinnamon a reality GO HERE. Be sure to check out the awesome rewards they are offering as a way to say “thank you” for helping them reach their goal.

More Information:

Cocoa Cinnamon Website: http://cocoacinnamon.com/

Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/cocoacinnamon

Twitter: @cocoacinnamon

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February 23, 2012 · 9:56 pm

Luchadoras 3 – Lady “Lucha Libre” Wrestling Returns to Motorco Music Hall in Durham ~ February 25th!

This Saturday lady wrestling in “lucha libre” fashion returns to the Motorco Music Hall in Durham. The previous two events have been sell outs so get there early to get your tickets. This is a family friendly event. Check out the video at the bottom of this post for scenes from Lucharodas II back in January.

From the Motorco Website:

  • Date: Saturday, February 25, 2012 Show Starts: 12:30 pm
  • Cost:$5.00
  • With: Las Jarrochitas Taco Truck & bikeCoffee

LUCHADORAS have taken a firm stranglehold on the Triangle, selling out consecutive shows with a dizzying display of tactical wrestling and acrobatics. The growing buzz and widespread fanfare are evident each time the expanding team of masked female wrestlers take the ring.

Each Luchadora has committed to further researching the history of lucha libre to ensure a proper tribute is issued each time they put on their mask. “LUCHADORAS 3” is sure to be another installment of memorable excitement as Motorco Music Hall welcomes veteran and incumbent Luchadoras. The exuberant Mexican wrestling spectacular that marries astonishing acrobatics and exhilarating aerial maneuvers with flamboyant masked characters and outlandish story lines will be on display, Saturday, February 25th at noon.

In Mexico, lucha libre (free wrestling) rivals soccer in attendance, and boasts a 75-year history of imaginative, family-friendly entertainment. The tradition of wearing masks dates back to the Aztecs and the designs are meant to evoke the power of animals, gods and other ancient heroes. The “luchador” or wrestler takes on that identity and the mask is so sacred that to wager and lose one’s mask in a battle is considered a disgrace.

Like the first two events, LUCHADORAS 3 will bring the well-loved Mexican tradition to Durham with a slight twist – only female wrestlers will be permitted to compete. The 3-hour daytime spectacle will feature numerous one-on-one matches, tag team bouts, and entertaining intermissions involving crowd participation. Additionally, patrons will have an opportunity to consume authentic Mexican street fare from famed area taco truck Captain Ponchos Tacos, drink some “Los Luchadores” coffee from Counter Culture prepared by bikeCOFFEE, and to meet and greet their favorite Luchadoras after the event.

The Luchadoras’ costumes have been assembled using recycled materials from Durham’s beloved Scrap Exchange, while Fanaticmasks of Carrboro camouflages many of the athletes with their authentic, North Carolina-made lucha libre masks.

LUCHADORAS 3 will benefit the NC Dream Team and the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle.

NC Dream Team, is an organization composed of undocumented immigrant youth and allies dedicated to the creation of a sustainable, community-led immigrant rights movement in North Carolina. The group aims to help undocumented youth recognize their individual and collective power to activate their communities, working to achieve a just reform that is acceptable to–and guided by–the voices of those directly affected by our broken immigration system.

 The Inter-Faith Food Shuttle, is an organization committed to pioneering innovative, transformative solutions designed to end hunger in our community.

Video Courtesy of Brandon Hoe: http://www.brandonhoe.com/

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January 30, 2012 · 5:08 am

New Local Coffee Discovery: Red Rooster Coffee Company of Wake Forest!

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So it has been a while since my last post, but with the start of a new year I am determined to keep the blog rolling with a new entry every week or so as I continue to discover new things in the Triangle. This first post for 2012 deals with one of my favorite topics … locally roasted coffee! On Saturday I was driving by the North Raleigh Farmers’ Market in the Falls River Shopping Center off Falls River Avenue and Durant Road and noticed a black trailer with the name Red Rooster Coffee Company and a big Rooster Logo painted on its side.

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Since I am always on the prowel for the latest local coffee offerings I stopped and chatted with the owner Steve. He told me that and he and his wife run their coffee roasting business out of Wake Forest. They have been coming to the farmers’ market for about three months now but they also offer free home delivery in the Raleigh and Wake Forest area and are scouting out other local spots to sell brewed coffee and beans.

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Red Rooster is a “micro roaster” meaning they roast small batches to order so their beans are always fresh. The coffee beans they were selling at the Farmers’ Market on Saturday had only just been roasted the day before! On this particular day they were offering beans from Hondurous, El Salvador, and a decaf roast. I ended up getting a half pound of the decaf roast and had a sample of the Hondurous coffee which was excellent. As an added plus most of their coffee beans are either organic, fair trade, and/or rainforest alliance certified.

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As you probably kow he cost of coffee has been creeping up over the past year, but the Red Rooster coffee bean prices are excellent at just $6  for 1/2 pound and $12 for a full pound of beans and decaf at $7 1/2 pound and $14/pound. When you purchase their coffee, the beans are packaged in a biodegradable paper bag.

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You can read more about red rooster coffee company on their website and facebook page. The folks at Red Rooster do special events and are on the lookout for additional locations to offer their coffee so give them a shout if you want them at your place of business and don’t forget to check them out at the North Raleigh Farmers’ Market each Saturday from 9am-12pm!

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July 28, 2011 · 10:50 am

Latte Art Throwdown at Jubala Village Coffee in North Raleigh ~ July 28th 7pm!

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Scene From May 2011 Latte Art Throwdown at Jubala!

If you enjoy the  local coffee scene, tonight is your chance to catch some of the Triangle’s most talented baristas put their skills to the ultimate test at the Thursday Night Throwdown (TNT) latte art competition at Jubala Village Coffee in Raleigh.

The event is hosted by Counter Culture Coffee and the great folks at Jubala. It features numerous barsitas from the various coffee bars throughout the the Triangle. If you haven’t experienced one of these competitions yet you are in for a treat. Baristas go head to head crafting their best latte art which is then judged by the audience. The winner moves on to the next round to compete again until the ultiamte champion is crowned.

Want to check out the action from the comfort of your own home? Imprompt2 Films will be on hand as well providing a Live Stream of the event on the imprompt2 website  for folks like who can’t make it!

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Example of "Rosetta" Latte Art

Event Details
– Date/Time: Thursday July 28th 7-9pm
– Location: Jubala Village – 8450 Honeycutt Road – Raleigh, NC
– Free admission
– Open to the public (Vote for your favorite latte art!)
– $5 for baristas to enter the competition

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May 13, 2011 · 10:01 am

A Visit to Cup-A-Joe in Hillsborough

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Lately I have been visiting a lot of Triangle Area coffee shops.  I enjoy the different vibe each one offers and am a big fan of how they all feature great locally roasted coffee.  Awhile back I checked out a cool little coffee shop called Cup A Joe in Hillsborough.  The shop is housed in a small and somewhat narrow brick faced building and has some really neat exposed brick wall along the interior.  Despite its small size, it does a great job of providing a cozy and welcoming environmental to enjoy some excellent coffee.

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As you enter the coffee shop there are a small handful of tables on either side along the exposed red brick walls adorned with works from a local artist (this month’s art work by Dorothy Whitmore).  If you liek to enjoy your drinks outside there are also two tables set up out front along the sidewalk.  Cup A Joe serves coffee roasted right there in Hillsborough by local coffee roaster Joe Van Gogh.  I am not a coffee expert, but my wife and I both agreed it tasted fantastic and made for some excellent cappuccinos and lattes.

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If you want to take some of their great coffee home with you or get some as a gift for a friend they have a self serve station where you can scoop and weigh out your own whole bean coffee for purchase.  Several different roasts are available including decaf options.  If you don’t have your own coffee bean grinder at home the barista is more than happy to do it for you there at the shop.

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Downtown Hillsborough is a place I still need to explore much more, but I am happy to have already discovered this cool coffee shop where I can relax and plan my future visits.  You can learn more about Cup A Joe and stay updated on upcoming events at the shop by following them on their facebook fanpage here. 

If you are looking for a good excuse to head out that way for a visit consider visiting downtown Hillsborough for one of their Last Friday artwalk events organized  by the  Hillsborough Arts Council.  During these monthly events the dowtown area is buzzing with people visiting local art galleries, studios and shops and a free concert is featured on the old courthouse lawn.  However, no visit for Last Friday would be complete without stopping by Cup A Joe for their monthly Pie Contest!  The pie contest for May will feature Strawberry Pies.   For more info about the Last Fridays festivities check out the event website.

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