Pour: Gourmet coffee downtown Cleveland
If you are like me, you like a nice pour-over cup of coffee more than pretty much any other beverage ever. With pour-over coffee being my favorite I naturally want to know where to get a good pour-over when I am traveling and I turned to Google for help. Several hits came up, but the choice was obvious: with a name like Pour, there were no other options.
Pycon 2019: finding good coffee in walking distance of downtown Cleveland
I went to Cleveland, Ohio at the beginning of May for Pycon 2019, a conference for tech people who use the Python coding language. I was surprised and delighted to see that someone at Pour knew the conference and had a sense of humor! The code reads in laman’s terms: if groggy, drink Pour until coffee is gone then crush you work.
When I was searching for good coffee spots in downtown Cleveland it was vital that I had a place within walking distance as I had carpooled in a minivan with a bunch of other guys, so foot travel was the best option. This location was about half a mile away from the Drury Inn we stayed at and is on Euclid Ave, which is a very popular street with lots of fun venues including a cute cupcake store next door, and a candy and soda shop a couple of doors down that has an incredible selection of gourmet sodas (if you are into coffee everything, check out Fitz’s Coffee Cola). Pour is also .8 miles from the Rock and Roll Hall of fame, so very convenient.
Roasted Coffee From Top Roasters Worldwide
One of the things that fascinates me about Pour Cleveland is their unusual business models. In most cafes I expect to find a variety of coffees that have been globally sourced, maybe even hand picked by the owner, and roasted on site or by a wholesaler. In the case of Pour, they source roasted beans that come from top roasters around the world. So, you may have the option of drinking beans roasted by the top roaster in the Netherlands, or Japan, or Oregon, or any number of other places. This is a fascinating concept for me. It makes a lot of sense. You can buy super expensive beans, but if they are not roasted well, what good it is?
Current Offerings
They are currently (5.6.19) carrying Verve Coffee which I reviewed a few weeks ago, and coffee from Koppi in Sweden, which I opted for. It was a pleasant, slightly acidic light roast that had the clean flavor you would expect from a pour-over, carefully crafted by Pour’s baristas. They also have cold brew, and Espresso Tonic like I had at Verve in CA.
Phoenix Coffee Company: Cleveland Original
Named after the mythical creature, Phoenix has been a mainstay in artisan roasted coffee in the Cleveland area for 25+ years, with six locations. Current director of Phoenix, Christopher Feran, describes how the fiery bird epitomizes his company in this news article: “first, the company “rose from the ashes” of Arabica Coffee and second, the metamorphic change that happens to coffee when it goes into the roaster.” While focusing on quality artisan coffee, Phoenix also seeks to pay coffee growers above fair trade value for their beans, roast and brew in environmentally friendly ways, and contribute to the local community.
Upon reviewing the menu, the item that I found simply irresistible was the Maple Brevee. I do not typically go for a cappuccino (favoring pour-overs) but mixing high quality gourmet coffee with maple syrup was too intriguing to pass up, and I am glad I did not! I shared a bit with my friends, and I think the statement that best sums up the experience is that the Maple Brevee “is like a warm hug.” Sweet, with a lingering maple aftertaste. It was so good, I got up early a second day in a row just to get this again. If you are in the Cleveland area, check out one of their six locations.
If you want a nice, inexpensive pour-over coffee maker for your home brew, check out the Beehouse, Coffee Dripper Small White
