The New York Coffee Festival happened last weekend in the Flat Iron area. Roasters, vendors, baristas and every coffee person in between came to taste, drink and talk about coffee. Even on 10 a.m. on a Saturday, the lines were out the door just to get into the event. And if you missed the entire festival, which ran from Friday to Sunday, here's 10 truly cool things you missed.
1. The Mocu Coffee Cup
The first thing I saw when I walked in was The Good Roast. Australians who know how to make good coffee, I also stumbled upon the Mocu coffee cup by Mato.
"Passionate about coffee, MATO pondered the notion of enjoying a fresh brew as one would a glass of wine. Drawing on wine glass geometry, with its wide bowl and tapered aroma collector, MATO has taken what wine lovers have long known and applied it to coffee, to create the first cup design with serious coffee appreciation in mind" (Mato Design).
Essentially it's a coffee cup inspired by wine, how much better can you get? Also, it's a stacking system so it can turn into whatever you need it to be.
2. Whiskey, Dutch Cream and Espresso?
After almost buying five of the Mocu cups, I stumbled upon Magnum coffee. I was served a Magnum Martini which consisted of 2 oz. Magnum Cream Liqueur, 2 oz. whole milk, .5 oz. chocolate syrup, shaken with ice. Mind you, it was 10 a.m., but hey the party never can start too early.
It was also served to be with women wearing white tank tops that read, "I heart Magnum." Not only was it a good head start into the day of tasting new things, it was quite different than another cold brew.
They also had on the rocks drinks, espressos and milkshakes.
3. Rebel Kitchen
Being dairy free and trying to drink coffee drinks are nearly impossible (as told by the previous example). That's why I was pleasantly surprised and delighted that I then wandered to Rebel Kitchen.
Rebel Kitchen was founded in the United Kingdom in 2014. They make dairy-free coconut beverages and drinks and their slogan is simple: literally simply right. They sustain a commitment to sustainable business practices and also are non-GMO verified, dairy-free, refined sugar free, carrageenan free, gluten free, soy free, vegan and use only paleo-approved ingredients. If that's not a mouthful of goodness, I don't know what is.
I sampled all three flavors of the the coconut milk drinks. Being that I was at a coffee festival, I found it fitting that I liked the coffee flavor the best. It seriously tastes like the store bought Starbucks drinks you buy, but it's actually good for you.
Rebel Kitchen can be found on shelves at select Whole Foods Market, Sprouts, Shaw's and various other retailers across the country. Make sure to check them out and seriously get your hands on the coffee flavor!
4. Green coffee in your cup in 10 days
Next, I stumbled upon Devocion. Their claim to fame? Green-to-cup in 10 days. Talk about super green. I had a taste of their cold brew, which was super refreshing. Next I was handed two little cascara antioxidant drinks. You are probably wondering, what the heck is cascara?
"Cascara is the Spanish word for the peel or skin of a fruit. Coffee is a fruit, though most people don't think of it that way. Like cacao, it's processed opposite most fruits: The skin and flesh are discarded, and just the seeds are dried, roasted, and ground to make the beverage many Americans drink daily" (NPR).
It tasted like cherry and was great ice cold. It has a lot of health benefits and doesn't go down too hard. Probably will stick to my normal coffee routine for now, but I am definitely happy I got the experience to try this.
5. I saw lattes being made in front of me
The coolest part for me was when I literally got lost in a huge wave of people and ended up front row for the latte art live booth. This woman, wearing very cute denim shorts, made an even cuter latte in front. The whole day was streamed and the latte art was literally live. I'm always amazed at how food and coffee especially can be art. This latte that was set on the counter before me was rather gorgeous.
6. Oat Milk is the new soy.
Next, I had a pretty big moment in my life: I had an oat milk cappuccino. And it was the best cappuccino I have ever had. Oatly is a company based in Sweden that is literally changing the world.
"Oatly was founded back in the 1990s and is based on Swedish research from Lund University. The company’s patented enzyme technology copies nature’s own process and turns fiber rich oats into nutritional liquid food that is perfectly designed for humans.
Today, the Swedish company remains independent and dedicated to upgrading the lives of individuals and the general well being of the planet through a lineup of original oat drinks.
The company operates out of the southern region of Sweden with Headquarters in Malmö and our Production & Development Center situated in Landskrona. The Oatly brand is available in more than 20 countries throughout Europe and Asia" (Oatly).
The warm flavor of the oats paired so well with the espresso, I don't think I'll ever truly love my regular soy lattes anymore. Apparently it is huge in Sweden and I can't wait for it to take over the United States.
7. Butter Scotch Everything?
I felt like I was drunk at this point. My stomach was full of oat milk, cold brew and such unique coffee, my heart was racing. But I trekked on. Giving up is for the weak.
I found myself in this really nice area that had a fake brick wall. In front of the brick wall? What seemed to be coffee drinks topped with whip cream. The fat kid in me screamed and I obviously moved closer to see what was up.
So basically, the drink is #WhenCoffeeMetBaileys. You can check the story out more on Instagram, but rumor is that they are even creating a pumpkin spice one? I already need bigger pants.
8. Who doesn't love a good candle?
Move over Bath and Body Works, we got coffee candles. A company started by two sisters out of New Jersey, Light and Sweet hand-makes beautiful candles from salted caramel to the classic coffee smell. At first, my racing thoughts actually believed they were real lattes, but turns out, my mind wasn't working properly.
If I had not already spent a lot of money on coffee, I would've totally picked up a few to refresh my apartment with. But, I'm in luck, they are available online?!
9. We can't forget about the chai
In the mix of all of these things from candles to green coffee, I found a huge, HUGE pile of chai. I'm talking about like a mound of dirt, but it was beautiful. I sufficiently stalked the entire booth and was thankful I found it in the midst of everything.
Hailing from Australia, Prana Chai only has "the good stuff."
"In their four years travelling the globe, Vincent Conti and Mario Minichilli discovered authentic masala tea throughout Asia. Upon returning to Australia they opened a café in St Kilda and began developing a chai blend inspired by those they’d fallen in love with in India. As they perfected their recipe, customers grew to love their chai and fate brought about a friendship with Koray Gencel. Prana Chai was born!" (Prana Chai).
10. The beautiful typography
Besides coffee, handwriting, fonts and everything in between are my passions. Conveniently enough, people who know how to handle coffee, also know how to handle a font book or pen.
