After a weekend of coffee, culture and cocktails in Houston, we're celebrating National Margarita Day with insights from one of KC's best bartenders and a Houston hotspot.
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Once upon a time, there was an earnest woman who lived in a cottage in the Missouri countryside with her red-bearded husband and small daughter. Toying with opening a coffeehouse in the middle of nowhere, she reached out to a dyno-man she hardly knew, and landed an internship in beverage marketing. Which led to a job in beverage marketing, which led to two years of fun. Across the continent (lots of times), rapidly learning business practices (sometimes the hard way), and full of the confusion that arises from changing careers in a halfhearted way (twice), giving birth, and marrying, all in short succession, that woman pursued her work with the dyno-man.
 ~ What we drank this week (and how we felt about it), in no particular order ~ 1. Rocking Caffeine Crawl San Diego was just one of the many ways Bird Rock Coffee wowed us this weekend. From caffeinating an early morning TV interview to hosting a fantastic double route kickoff and sending us home with a delicious Ethiopian coffee and the sunny flavors of San Diego, everyone behind the bar was genuinely delightful and helped us see just why San Diego's coffee community is so incredible. - Sadie
 A weekend of caffeine, sunshine and community - this is Caffeine Crawl San Diego's highlight real from the eyes, ears and taste buds of The LAB team.  Thursday After stuffing event bags full of awesome local swag with Jess from San Diego Coffee Network, staying in Little Italy made team dinner and drinks at Juniper and Ivy an easy walk. Solid cocktails and great food (a melt-in-your mouth biscuit was just the beginning) kicked off a fantastic weekend with flair.  Friday - Caffeine Crawl Encinitas A day of magic started with an early TV interview for the team at Bird Rock in Little Italy, and several buttery cappuccinos saw us through. A coastal train ride to Encinitas set the mood, and the team at Ironsmith Coffee Roasters welcomed us with enthusiasm and iced flash-brew. Other stops included Pannikin Coffee and Tea, Cafe Ipe for a roasting demo, and a gorgeous presentation of two coffees and a house made "cookie" at Lofty Coffee Co's gorgeous roasting facility.  Saturday - Caffeine Crawl San Diego With too many great shops to name, we kicked off an incredible day of Crawling at InterAmerican Coffee, Bird Rock Coffee and The WestBean. Watching Crawlers engage with the amazing people behind the coffee they drink everyday was a fantastic experience, and after a great after party at James Coffee Co, we ended the day at Craft and Commerce for excellent cocktails.  Sunday Exploration on our own time meant cappuccinos and donuts at James, lunch + beer at Ballast Point Brewing and plenty of time in the sun. An incredible weekend filled with the amazing people of San Diego's growing coffee scene has left us sun kissed and awestruck, and we can't wait for next year! Be sure to check out the article in U-T San Diego and the recaps from San Diego Jumble, as well as the Crawl Yelp reviews! ~ Join the Conversation ~  In lieu of our usual team top ten, we asked some of our friends to share a favorite coffee break moment. Grab a cup of your own and enjoy!
~~~ I thought I'd get a head start on today's salute to Hot Buttered Rum by making this easy, yet soul-warming cocktail on Thursday. First, the correct glassware, and I have a large collection, but for the life of me couldn't find a glass mug with a handle. Ok, I looked for maybe 5 minutes. Moving on.
Extremely easy to make and I went with David Wondrich's recipe on Esquire. Because Wondrich knows his shit. This drink breaks down to sugar cubes, hot water, 2 oz. of dark rum, butter and a sprinkle of nutmeg. Easy! I was grabbing for Appleton's Dark Rum and decided to go with a favorite of mine, the Special, which has been good to me. See, I've already stopped following the rules - first glassware and now the rum.  I ran some errands on a Saturday morning and decided to hop around to three different, yet terrific, coffee shops within a mile from one another in KC's midtown. What developed was not just a flight of unique and rewarding espressos, but also what coffee shops should deliver - a taste of community.
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