21st Street Coffee
Posted by mike | Filed under Coffee, Meta
Luke, one of the owners of 21st St Coffee chimed in on something I said in my Voluto follow-on post. I posted a lengthy response to clarify my position on 21st St Coffee (and the meaning of the word snob). I don’t want it to get lost in the comments, so I’m going to re-post the whole thing here. I also want to make perfectly clear that 21st Street Coffee isn’t “forcing” me to write this response. Nor are they providing me with any incentive to do so—other than a more friendly response the next time I stop by one of their locations. ;-)
I’ll start by repeating the particular comment that bothered him from my original post.
Now, I’m not enough of a coffee snob to really appreciate the clover. In fact, I wonder how many people in Pittsburgh really are. The Clover really carried 21st Street Coffee into too much coffee snobbery for me. The moved themselves right out of my market.
Luke took that comment the wrong way. In particular, the use of “snob” really didn’t sit well with him. I can understand that—I think “snobbery” runs against everything he and Alexis aim for over at 21st Street Coffee. If I understand their vision, it is for approachable coffee. Not everyone is a coffee expert, but many people would like to better appreciate great coffee. Over at 21st Street Coffee, they are doing just that, and doing it for quite a large number of people these days.
What follows is a re-statement of my response from the comments. The basic idea is that “snob” is a loaded word, and that “connoisseur,” might be a more accurate (and less offensive) term to use.
Hey Luke! Great to see that you found my new blog–I’m just sorry that you had to find it through something about 21st Street Coffee that you took negatively. I unnecessarily dragged you guys into this whole conversation for the sake of an example.
I guess I use the word snob a little more loosely than you do. I often don’t mean it to be taken negatively at all. I’m the first to admit that I’m a bread snob, a beer snob, and even a chef’s knife snob. I use it to mean that I have an intimate knowledge of each of those things–enough that I can tell good from bad and even know what makes for good and what makes for bad. Maybe A less loaded term would probably be “connoisseur,” but it doesn’t quite have the flare I was looking for.
connoisseur:
“1: Expert. Especially one who understands the details, technique, or principles of an art and is competent to act as a critical judge. 2: One who enjoys with discrimination and appreciation of subtleties. A connoisseur of fine wines”If I rephrase my snob comment with “cleaner” language…
“Now, I’m not enough of a coffee [connoisseur] to really appreciate the Clover. In fact, I wonder how many people in Pittsburgh really are. The Clover really carried 21st Street Coffee [too far beyond my level of expertise]. They moved themselves right out of my market.”
I certainly meant that to be as much a comment about myself as a comment about you guys. 21st Street Coffee is a great place for an artfully crafted cup of coffee. I started off using it as a place to grab a cup of good coffee and maybe a little conversation on my way to work. Perhaps the appearance of the clover really drove home the point that mine probably wasn’t the best use of 21st Street Coffee.
The fact that you guys have long lines waiting for a drink from the Clover is great. I’m thrilled for you. If there’s a place capable of helping a non-connoisseur better enjoy a coffee that reaches beyond their typical quality horizon, it’s 21st Street. I would stand by my claim that most coffee drinkers would have trouble differentiating between great coffee and exceptional coffee (i.e., be capable of really appreciating the Clover for all it’s capable of).
For the record, I no longer work in the Strip District. The fact that I haven’t been in to 21st Street Coffee for such a long time has more to do with that than anything else. I will always think it’s a worthwhile place to stop for a special treat.
Hopefully that clears things up. I certainly didn’t want to drag anyone’s name through the mud or rub anyone the wrong way.
Now. Go visit 21st Street Coffee. Experience the place, and decide for yourself whether they succeed in making you feel comfortable while trying to help you better appreciate the finer points of a cup of great coffee. I suspect you will—you just probably won’t be stopping in every day. Think of it is a special occassion destination.
