Klatch On and Don't Let Go

Awhile back Jonathan Deane posted a response on my blog about our trip to Handel's Ice cream and pointed out that the company was based in Ohio. He then asked if anything good could come from the IE. Now I had already been aware that Handel's was from Ohio, but still I was speechless, for I could not think of one good product that has come out IE. But then, a couple weeks a go I came across an article in the Press Enterprise about a local coffee house and a Barista who won #2 place in the WBC (I didn't know there was such a thing, but OK). This is the highest rated Barista in America and her coffee shops located in my very own Inland Empire. So while Kellee was in the hospital I decided to make a little trip and stop by this award winning coffee shop to see if it was really up to all the hype.


I ordered a iced almond roca mocha; I figured that I couldn't really go wrong since I had one or two at Disneyland and sort of knew what was in store. The best part was I didn't have to order a Venti- I could just call it what it was...large. Then I took a sip and to be honest, in that moment I knew what Keanu Reeve's charcter Neo in the Matrix felt like when he woke up out of the Matrix. I woke up for the first time in my coffee experience. Why had I wasted so many moments at the Green mermaid chain, sucking down their inferior fast-food/drink processed product?

I took Kellee back that day on the way home from the hospital. She was in awe as well. This is my new coffee spot on the way to visit my daughter or to go to church in the mornings! Below is all their awards and an article from the press interprise.

The proof is in the pudding:

2003 United States Barista Champion
2007 United Sates Barista Champion
2004 3rd place United States Barista Champion
2004 Western Regional Barista Champion
2005 Western Regional Barista Champion
2006 Western Regional Barista Champion
2007 Western Regional Barista Champion
2003 1st, 2nd, 3rd place California Regional Barista Champion
“Best Espresso in America” LA Times “Best Espresso in the World” WBC 2007

Inland barista takes silver in world competition; her espresso wins gold



Don't let the capri pants, sandals and giggle fool you. Heather Perry, 24, doesn't joke about her java.
Perry ranks first in the nation and second in the world when it comes to making coffee.

"It's what I love, it's what I know," said Perry, who makes her brew in the Inland area.
Perry understands how coffee beans behave; she can extract the perfect balance of flavor from them and can talk about their characteristics as a sommelier would talk about wine.

"This tastes like sweet mud, sort of like rain on grass," she said, slurping her coffee with a spoon on a recent morning.

Perry knows how to cup, or properly taste coffee, and has traveled the world scouting the finest beans for her family's business, Coffee Klatch. The business has retail stores in Rancho Cucamonga and San Dimas and a roastery in Upland. As the director of training for the family business, Perry doesn't prepare customers' orders daily, but sometimes patrons can get lucky enough to find her behind the espresso machine.

Heather Perry won second place in a world barista competition held recently in Tokyo. For the competition, she crafted an espresso blend that she describes as having chocolate notes with an orange citrus background, subtle spice and hints of berries with a honey finish. It won first place.

It was her passion and knowledge of the industry that earned her second place in the World Barista Championship earlier this month in Tokyo, said her father, Mike Perry.

The win is the highest finish by an American and a woman in the competition. Perry also won first for her espresso, which she crafted with her father.

"While the area has not been known as a hotbed for coffee and espresso, the success of Heather -- plus our espresso being ranked best in the world -- has put Southern California on the world coffee map," Mike Perry said.

To compete at the world level, the coffee guru had to edge out 47 competitors at the United States Barista Championship in May. But Heather Perry still isn't satisfied.

"I've never taken a loss so hard," the Ontario woman said, referring to her second-place finish in Tokyo. "I'm pretty bummed about it. It's like I tasted gold but went away with silver."

In a fusion of "Iron Chef" and Olympic figure skating, the world's best baristas are judged on technical skills, presentation, style and taste. Each competitor has 15 minutes to wow the judges with 12 beverages: four espressos, four cappuccinos and four signature drinks showcasing their creativity.

Everything, from spills to the judges' overall impressions, is evaluated. Two of the judges don't even taste the drinks. They are there to watch that each action is performed just so, from the grinding of the coffee and the tamping of the grounds into the filter to the timing of the espresso shots.

"It's about consistency," said John Sanders, chairman of the technical standards committee for the World Barista Championship.

"It sounds so easy; make the 12 best espresso shots of your life," Heather Perry said. "But it is so difficult."
The baristas also must describe their espresso blends and the science behind why they chose them.

"They have to have intimate knowledge of their blend," said contest judge Tracy Allen, owner of Seattle-based Zoka Coffee Roaster & Tea Co. "It's like a symphony. At some point you want strings, brass and percussion, but when it all plays nicely together, it creates harmony."


Heather Perry has traveled the world to find the best coffee beans for her parents' business, Coffee Klatch. The business has stores in Rancho Cucamonga and San Dimas, and a roastery in Upland.

Heather Perry finessed the judges with her extreme confidence and knowledge of her blend, Allen said.

"She gets it," he said. "And she explains it in a way you would only dream a server would explain the special to you."

Producing 'God Shots'
The road to the competition wasn't easy. Heather Perry began preparing in January, spending her weekends at the family's roastery, playing with various coffees to come up with the perfect espresso blend. It's the grind that is often misunderstood, she said.

"It's like brewing through a glass of sand or a glass of rocks," she said.

If the grind is too fine, the espresso will taste overly extracted and bitter. But too coarse and it can become flavorless, she said.

Perry and her father also worked with different roasts. Too dark and the beans will taste burnt and won't produce enough "crema," the golden layer on the surface of properly made espresso. Too light, and the espresso will taste sour. The amount of coffee, the temperature it's brewed and how long it's brewed also factor into producing the perfect shot of espresso.

But when it's done right, there's no mistaking a "God shot," or perfect shot, she said. Heather Perry describes her winning blend as having beautiful chocolate notes with an orangy citrus background, subtle spice and hints of winelike berries with a honey finish.

Her signature drink, Espresso in the Clouds, included steamed milk, infused with orange and lemon zest, cinnamon, ginger and vanilla bean. Perry prepared the mixture into a drinkable whipped-cream texture and then topped it with a rich, hand-whipped layer of espresso, egg yolk and brown sugar. The flavors highlighted the flavors of her espresso, she said.

"I was very happy with my drinks and my performance," she said. "I just didn't have what the judges were looking for that day."

Her second-place finish in the world competition has only strengthened her yearning for first place.
"Competing has made me a better barista," she said.

That's the purpose of the competition, coffee experts said.

"A barista isn't just someone who pushes buttons behind the espresso machine in a wrinkled apron. Their heart, mind and spirit are wrapped up in making quality drinks. These competitions are celebrating the craft," said Sherri Johns, president of Oregon-based Whole Cup Coffee Consulting and a founder of the United States Barista Championship.