Middleburg Common Grounds, Independent Coffee House on 144 W. Washington Street in Middleburg, VA

[darkstar965]

Out Loudon County way (Middleburg in particular) , there seem to be two main coffee shop options. This one, Middleburg Common Grounds (MCG) was less familiar to me (maybe it's newer than Cuppa Giddyup on E Washington) so in we went.

They serve a typical variety of baked goods, some described as "made locally" and others as "from our distributor" (I didn't ask; didn't want to know). Didn't try any of those. They also serve a limited range of breakfast and lunch foods. We got some chicken salad and it was fine, fresh and with good flavor.

Coffee, and to a lesser degree, wine, seem to be the foci. Two coffee notes I found interesting.

First, the equipment. They have a large Marzocco espresso machine which often (though certainly not always) is a good harbinger of fine espresso drinks. Also a Marzocco grinder which, in my experience, is less common in good coffee shops. One of the owners explained to me that the grinder was superior in its ability to ensure a consistent grind and pack across staff.

Second, the roaster. They buy their coffee from a Silver Spring roaster I'd never before seen around DC or MoCo called JDKA. No website but some info available online. Friends of MCG's owners, JDKA seems to be an older, small roaster than competes to some degree with lower/middle tier roasters like Mayorga.

We ordered a double espresso and an espresso macchiato and didn't enjoy either. Something about the roast or, perhaps, the pull, led to one of the drinks tasting watery and the other bitter.

Not sure how big the market would be for seriously good coffee out this far but, suffice to say, it's a niche not yet occupied.

[DonRocks]

Second, the roaster. They buy their coffee from a Silver Spring roaster I'd never before seen around DC or MoCo called JDKA. No website but some info available online. Friends of MCG's owners, JDKA seems to be an older, small roaster than competes to some degree with lower/middle tier roasters like Mayorga.

Thanks for this post, darkstar. Unless I know firsthand that independent coffee houses aren't distinctive (and some are just ratty), they're the only genre of "restaurant" that always gets initialized in Italic. JDKA used to be (called?) Clear Mountain Coffee.