Guest Roaster: Ipsento Coffee
Connect. Sit. Read a book. Three values the original owners of Ipsento Coffee set out to instill in their business.
These days, owner Tim Taylor, (he acquired Ipsento in April, 2009) has calmly hewed to that same path as far as the cafe itself, while nurturing measured spurts of growth as they make sense for himself, the company and his daily guests which some also call customers…we guess. (We at The Wormhole feel much close to our daily denizens, too; that’s why we reserve the right to growl every now and then–family is as family does. Raaaaarrrr!)
You can hear the steady heartbeat of life at Ipsento, the very term rooted in the concept of self-discovery, says Taylor: “We’ve tried to keep and honor that original concept. I actually had staff volunteer [when I acquired it].
“Then, I found out I could bring in the roaster, and [a culture came together],” continues Taylor. “We made Ipsento our Chicago coffee laboratory, retail shop and roasterie, all in one–constantly educating ourselves and our customers.”
Toward these high and lofty goals, Ipsento offers a nice range of coffee-centered knowledge enhancement opportunities: “Coffee 101,” for instance, is about the history, selection and brewing of coffee. First, it’s a presentation and conversation upstairs, then it’s a hands-on demo at the brew bar. There’s also “Barista Basics”: it covers the making of ‘spro, as well as lattes, cappuccinos and forays into latte art (chills running down your spine? you may very well be destined to be a barista and should approach this class with caution). Register at ipsento.eventbrite.com.
The crew at Ipsento also works with wholesale customers in staff training and such, staying connected to their beans and those who serve them. Staying connected is huge, says Taylor: “[Our goal] is to remain boutique,” and involved in the entire process of serving high-end coffee. “I bought the beans they’re serving at Wormhole this month last year in Panama. With my first company, I established direction relationships with growers to continually buy from them and work with them to grow high-quality coffee. I jumped on that ship and now it’s about continuing to do that.”
ALL ‘BOUT THE BEANS
In the current aspect of the time continuum in which we all hover–most of us, most of the time–Taylor gets help on the roasting side of things from Jon Colón.
Although he’s fairly new to the roasting side of things, Colón put two years in as a barista before roasting and that has served him well. “Tim was doing most of the roasting and just needed someone to fill his shoes for a week and everything just kinda clicked for me,” says Colón. “I wasn’t super versed but when I was behind the roaster, it just clicked.
“Having the barista background, [there are] a lot of parallel concepts, the way different properties of the coffee develop over the length of a brew. The way I roast is very similar to the mental process I go through to brew a cup of coffee.”
TECH TALK: PACKING THE HEAT
Ipsento’s roaster? A Dietrich IR3. “The things I like and hate about it are kind of the same. It’s a three-kilo [roaster] and I end up roasting five to six pounds per batch,” says Colón. “It’s got an infrared ceramic heater and air control, which gives it a nice, soft, gradual roast. it’s easy to control and to have these gently sweeping curves in the profile, which translate to a delicate, subtle, enjoyable cup of coffee.
“Small batch is great in terms of quality control, you can make small profile changes batch to batch,” he continues. “I actually profile and make changes on the machine I’m roasting with, which can be a plus if properly managed.”
The roasting style here is to buy good beans and leave them alone as much as possible. “If we’re sourcing high-quality coffee, it’s going to come through in the roast,” says Colón. “I don’t want to balance everything out, I want the crop to be itself.”
Then, the next words out of Colón’s mouth stop us dead in their tracks even though we weren’t moving at the time (on this plane, anyway, to be clear). “It’s a time test.” Knowing our reputation in such matters, we waited, ready to step up to the plate, discuss these things that we know and of which we have notes, but he moved on, and so did we. Maybe that was how it was all supposed to happen, maybe not. And we were talking about coffee, right?
Enough about the principles of the matter. Back to the bean. We’ll be serving Ipsento’s Panama Elida Estate processed in three different ways: natural, washed and honey. It’s the same crop from the same farm harvested right around the same time and processed in three different ways; try them side-by-side and see how much the process affects the final product. “It’s something you don’t ever get to try.”
QUICK BRAND CLARIFICATION
You might have seen Ipsento’s beans packaged as Coffee Ambassadors in the past, but from here on and thenceforth, Coffee Ambassadors is the import side of the business and Ipsento roasties will fly proudly under the Ipsento Coffee banner.
