Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

Out Now: The February + March 2024 Issue of Barista Magazine!

In our new issue we feature Lisa Lawson from Glasgow, Scotland, take a look at the newest grinders, explore spring drink inspiration, see how more women are getting involved in coffee tech, and much more! BY SARAH ALLENBARISTA MAGAZINE We’re stoked to announce the release of the February + March 2024 issue of Barista Magazine, […]


Cup of Excellence to Offer El Salvador Immersion Program

The immersion experience will allow participants to grow their knowledge on Salvadoran culture and coffee varieties. BY J. MARIE CARLANBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Photos courtesy of Cup of Excellence Cup of Excellence is launching a new learning opportunity in 2024: the Origin Immersion Program, to be held in El Salvador from February 26 to March 5. […]


Is the World Barista Championship too exclusive & expensive for competitors?

There are a number of competitions in specialty coffee designed to test the skills and knowledge of industry professionals. However, many consider the World Barista Championship (WBC) to be one of the most esteemed and highly regarded events, acting as a platform to showcase excellence in the barista profession. There are many reasons to celebrate […]


The 2023 Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide Has Landed

The 2023 edition of the Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide (SCTG) guide went live today, providing actors throughout the coffee chain a data-driven tool for green coffee price discovery. The full…

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

The First Women-Only Coffee Championships Held in Costa Rica

Feria del Café Frailes seeks to increase the gender diversity of coffee competitions. BY SUNGHEE TARKSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Cover photo by Sunghee Tark The coffee industry has come a long way in the past 20 years, with innovations happening in many parts of the world and in different links of the supply chain. […]


U.S. Coffee Championships 2023 Baltimore Qualifiers Results

More than 100 competitors brought their talent to Baltimore to take part in six competitions, and 63 will progress to nationals in April. BY NATE KLOCKBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Photos by Matthew Temple courtesy of the U.S. Coffee Championships Last weekend, my hometown welcomed the U.S. Coffee Championships (USCC) qualifiers with the charm only Baltimore could […]


Don’t Skip the Budding Specialty-Café Culture in Quito, Ecuador

Introducing the specialty cafés of Quito, a city worth exploring on your coffee quest. BY JORDAN BUCHANANSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE Featured photo courtesy of Stratto When traveling across South America, Ecuador can be forgotten between the high profiles of Colombia and Peru. Similarly, coffee from Ecuador may be overlooked due to its giant neighbors, including […]


Interest in coffee & health is rising – what do consumers need to know?

There is a wealth of scientific research available about the many health benefits of coffee – as well as the undesirable side effects of drinking too much. But like all fields of science, research about the impact of drinking coffee on human health is ever-changing as we uncover new findings.  Interestingly, the continuous discovery of […]

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

Florencia y Fortunata: A Café Empowering Women in Peru

The Cusco café, founded by Carolina Peralta Minaya, sells coffee from women producers and features women demonstrating their skills behind the bar. BY JORDAN BUCHANANBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Photos courtesy of Carolina Peralta Minaya Traceability, sustainability, and conscientiousness are key values pervading the specialty-coffee trade. For many consumers and traders, these values inform their decision to […]


Sumatra Coffee Farmers See Gains Through Agroforestry and Organic Fertilizer

Farmers in Indonesia’s Lampung province are making their own organic fertilizer in order to lessen reliance on volatile external supply chains. They’ve also diversified the number of crops they grow,…


Serving Coffee in the Epicenter

The Turkish specialty-coffee community is coming together to support earthquake relief. BY MICHAEL BUTTERWORTHSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE When Niji Coffee went live on Instagram, it felt as though the entire Turkish specialty-coffee community was watching with bated breath. Niji Coffee made a name for itself in the Turkish specialty-coffee scene when, as a relatively […]


The Origin Story of Turtle Island Coffee in Vancouver, B.C.

A new Indigenous-owned coffee company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, called Turtle Island Coffee has launched with the goal of exposing more people to high quality specialty coffee and Indigenous…

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

minimum dose size?

Jan 31, 2024 |

I use the Hario switch to brew my coffee and am trying to reduce my caffeine consumption. Hence I would like to brew smaller cups of coffee. I am currently using 10g of coffee with 160g of water. (1:16 Ratio) I am wondering if there is a minimum amount of coffee...

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

The banshees at Barista Magazine bring you part one of ’Drinks From the Crypt’—spooky drinks for this most ghoulish of seasons. Warning: These brews are not for the faint of heart.

BY J. MARIE CARLAN
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE

Cover photo from Artem Maltsev via Unsplash

The weather has cooled, the leaves have turned, the pumpkins are being carved, and the graveyard ghosts are preparing for a night of revelry. This time of year, the ghouls and goblins come out to play. But first, they’ll need a little something to sip! This Halloween season, there is a “Drink From the Crypt“ for every witch, werewolf, and wendigo to imbibe.

An iced drink with chocolate and cherry syrup topped with whipped cream. A creepy red gummy hand is plastered to the side of the glass, and cherry blood oozes onto the table.
The AHHHHHH! from the Dancing Bean Coffeehouse. Photo courtesy of Emma Newman.

The AHHHHHH!

This drink arose from the lab at the Dancing Bean Coffee House in the Dancing Bear Lodge located in Townsend, Tenn. Marketing Manager Emma Newman says the AHHHHHH! is worth shouting for. ”This creepy concoction can be made hot or cold, and is a mixture of espresso with chocolate and cherry syrups—and it will leave you SCREAMING with energy!” Not pictured: the mad scientists behind the creation.

A spicy mocha in a paper cup from Kingston Bread and Bar. The top of the beverage features a skull stenciled in with cocoa topping.
The Nightmare on Front St. features a (real?) skull. Photo by Brett Jones.

Nightmare on Front St.

This sinister spicy mocha potion brewed by Jason Michaels contains Mulato chile syrup, dark chocolate ganache, choice of milk, and espresso. Those ready to play with fire, head to Kingston Bread + Bar (+ crypt) in Kingston, N.Y., to try it for yourself.

An iced latte with whipped cream, topped with kettle corn and "blood" splatter syrup.
The Woodsboro Slasher is one of several horror-themed beverages at crossroads. coffee.
Photo courtesy of Montana Telman.

The Woodsboro Slasher

The crossroads. coffee crypt keepers in New Haven, Conn., have a full line of dungeon delights, all inspired by horror films, says owner Montana Telman. One intriguing find: The Woodsboro Slasher (inspired by the slasher classic Scream): a vegan brown butter sea salt caramel latte with whipped cream, kettle corn, and “blood” splatter. All the crossroads.coffee syrups are made in-house (even the blood splatter).

An iced horchata latte in a soda can-shaped glass, topped with whipped cream and caramel.
La Bruja Spice from the Coffee Mugg. Photo courtesy of Susana Almaguer.

La Bruja Spice

Witches and warlocks, grab your brooms! Muggles, keep walking. The Latina-owned Coffee Mugg in Corpus Christi, Texas, is a place ”where all houses are accepted and loved,” says owner Susana Almaguer (this Slytherin breathes a sigh of relief). La Bruja Spice is a drink perfect for filling your leaky cauldron: a pumpkin-spiced latte made with horchata!

A glass filled with green melon tonic water on bottom, espresso and ice floating on top, with a little gummy fish sticking out of the drink. Gourds are lying on the wood table beside it.
The Beetlejuice at Third Space Café. Photo courtesy of Erin Ryan-Mosley.

Beetlejuice

Say this name out loud three times, and Tim Burton may appear at your doorstep with a skeleton crew! This concoction is for anyone seeking the strange and unusual: The Beetlejuice is made with melon syrup, Fever Tree tonic, and espresso at Third Space Café in Minneapolis. Not only is this drink worth dying for, it also promotes women in the workplace. ”We are currently 100% owned, managed, and operated by female staff with the intention to positively shift the coffee industry and reputation of industry workers. We all see this as career-based employment,” says owner Erin Ryan-Mosley.

Not spooked enough yet? ”Drinks From the Crypt” shall be reincarnated next week!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

J. Marie Carlan (she/they) is the online editor for Barista Magazine. She has been a barista for over a decade and writing since she was old enough to play in the yard by herself. When she’s not behind the espresso bar or toiling over content, you can find her perusing record stores, collecting bric-a-brac, writing poetry, and trying to keep the plants alive in her Denver apartment. She occasionally updates her blog.

The post Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill appeared first on Barista Magazine Online.

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

Perfect Little Beans

Chinmey Hill Coffee uses specialty-grade beans with zero primary defects (such as black beans or sour beans) and less than five secondary defects (such as broken beans). This is important because primary defects will greatly affect the taste of the coffee. Having zero defects allows the coffee to be the most optimal flavor.

Window for Optimal Flavor

Chimney Hill Coffee ships our coffee the same day it was roasted, so you will receive it before it enters the window of optimal flavor.  This means you’ll never miss the opportunity to enjoy the coffee’s peak flavor.

Coffee Ratings

Coffee undergoes many scoring processes by professionals who achieved their Q Grader certification. Coffee is first graded when it’s green. If there are defects the coffee is determined to be “not-specialty grade”. For those coffees that pass green grading, they are sample roasted and cupped. (Cupping is the official term for critically tasting and scoring coffees. The official cupping form is standard worldwide, and where the 100-point scoring system comes from.) A coffee’s dry fragrance, wet aroma, flavor, aftertaste, body, acidity, balance, and overall impression are taken into consideration while uniformity issues and defects, will lower the overall score.

Specialty Coffee

Specialty coffee, coined by Erna Knutsen in 1974, refers to a coffee that receives a quality grading score of 80 percent or higher. While “premium” or “gourmet” seem like they’re synonymous with “specialty,” they simply are marketing terms with no defined standards. Specialty coffees are grown in specific and ideal micro-climates, and have distinctive and unique flavor profiles, with little to no defects.

Third-Wave Coffee

We’re currently in the third wave of coffee. The first wave of American coffee put pre-ground, vacuum-sealed cans in kitchens across America. The second wave started with the late ‘60s introduction of Peet’s coffee (by Alfred Peet) through the proliferation of Starbucks. The third wave of coffee focuses on origin transparency, nuanced flavors, and artisan roasting. The term “third wave” is synonymous with specialty coffee.

Drinks From the Crypt: Halloween Libations Sure to Thrill

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