Designing Coffee, Part 1

This is my favorite task under the process of making a good cup of coffee. With all the samples ready we began today to roast them in a small Probat at 3 different stages, remember that all about coffee is a matter of taste, so we try different roasting times to verify which one works better and which one we like the most.

Imprescindible V

The drive of this song is given by Jones' bass line and Hakim's upbeat ride cymbal. I think these group of jazz musicians (Marsalis, Kirkland, Jones, Hakim, Pendarvis and McDonald) has been the best band Sting have ever had.

The Usual Suspects

1:05 our coffee is there!

Me!

I have found this Simpsons' site where you can customize an avatar. You can also create avatars of your friends and send them direct to their mails, it's really funny.

Read how at:
www.simpsonsmovie.com

Nice Coffee Samples

This morning i got a couple of samples of pergamino coffee from the 2009 cropping season. Next week me and my team will blend them with other Guatemalan beans to design the Café P11 formula for this year.

Joaquín Torres García's Toys

Celebrated for his work as a modernist painter, teacher, and author, Joaquín Torres García is also known for breaking new ground in the realm of wooden constructions or “maderas.” Beginning in the late 1920s in Paris, Torres García adapted the language of Neo Plasticism from his colleagues Mondrian and Van Doesburg into a new three-dimensional concept for grids and planes made of wood. These maderas informed his simultaneous experiments in children’s toys, which he promoted and sold as educational tools for young minds.

Pictures from Torres García Museum in Montevideo.

Read about the artist at:
The Menil Collection

Storing your Coffee

That perfect cup of Café P11 depends not only on the right preparation you choose; it also depends upon the proper storage of the coffee. Improper storage can result in a poor taste.

Coffee have natural enemies that they must be protected against.
- Heat
- Oxygen
- Light
- Water
- Refrigerators

Another valid point well worth mentioning is that you should only purchase whole beans. Ground beans loose their flavor rapidly.

It is recommended, for that freshest cup, to only store ground coffee for no more than 10 days in an airtight container at room temperature and away from its enemies. Purchasing coffee in lesser quantities will help to keep its full characteristics.

Try the Café P11 experience for yourself and share it with the ones you care, Its your rite, its your passion!

I Love this One

Imprescindible IV

Casa Santa Rosalía

This house with open spaces surrounded by glass walls with view to Guatemala City is one of my favorite works of architect, designer and artist Alejandro Estrada.

Read more at:
www.substancia.com.gt/

Antonio Gaudi's Batllo Bench

I can imagine myself and the one that i love sipping coffee while sitting on this marvelous piece of wood.

Read more at:
www.nova68.com

Principles of Design

These ten principles defined Dieter Rams’ approach to “good design”:
Good design is innovative
Good design makes a product useful
Good design is aesthetic
Good design helps us to understand a product
Good design is unobtrusive
Good design is honest
Good design is durable
Good design is consequent to the last detail
Good design is concerned with the environment
Good design is as little design as possible

Mine are these
Design must be:
- Perfectly functional
- User friendly
- Respectful with the environment
lfp

Goya's Ghosts

Last night i was watching on TV the movie Goya's Ghosts directed by Milos Forman. My mind was transported to year 1996 when my wife, a friend of us and i made the first opening of our fine art gallery showing a complete series of Salvador Dalí etchings based on the Goya's works Les Caprices, some of them i am showing here. The experience was great but art is a really hard business to keep. After almost two years we closed but that ignited my artist solo career.

Posada del Angel

The Posada is a romantic hideaway with the splendor of a Mediterranean villa, captivating architecture and beautiful landscaping. Posada del Angel is set within the Panchoy Valley in historic Antigua Guatemala which is said by many to be the most beautiful city in Central America - others call it the loveliest Spanish colonial town in the world.

Read more at:
www.posadadelangel.com

Mariebelle Chocolates

Maribel Lieberman, originally from Honduras, Says "Chocolate has the power to make one happy, from simply saying the word to tasting it. I love creating a complete experience through my chocolates."

Have you try Café P11 accompanied with bits of chocolate?

Read more about Maribel's recipes at:
www.mariebelle.com