RoastMonkey

I have been really impressed with Evan Williams Single Barrel, which is readily available and reasonably priced. Four Roses is a bit harder to find but consistently great. Maker's is pretty dull. I keep it on hand for occasional cocktails. Jack Rose has better selection of bourbon than Bourbon and better food as well. (Terrible coffee though.)

There is nothing discernibly superior about this coffee and it has lead to animal cruelty. Where the cat scat was once collected from forest floors, now the civets are kept in small cages and fed cherries, ripe or unripe. http://www.sweetmariascoffee.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=32&p=13391#p13391

The most expensive coffees are usually the ones that are hardest to source. They are rarely the ones that taste the best.

It's true that each bean has inherent flavor characteristics, but a roaster does have some influence over the balance. It's possible to enhance the brightness (acidity) of a coffee in the roasting process. In my experience many wholesale specialty roasters tend to do this as it effectively extends the shelf life of the coffee by a couple of weeks. This could be why some people experience CC coffee as being more acidic, in general. A good specialty roaster can bring up the brightness of the coffee without creating any roasting defects, although in my opinion doing so tends to mute some of the complexity and subtly of the coffee. On the other hand, you can tell if a specialty roaster is less experienced because the coffee will take on some astringency when hot and will sour as it cools. There is actually a relatively simple explanation for this. In the vast majority of restaurants, coffee service is handled by the wait staff rather than kitchen crew. They have neither the time nor training to manage proper brewing. I don't see that changing until chefs decide it's important enough to them that the coffee complement the meal or customers start complaining to the staff.

Thanks for the kind words. We have also been recognized as a Staff Pick in the Washington City Paper's Best of DC issue: http://www.washingto...counter-culture