Interesting article and graphic on coffee in today’s Seattle Times. I am partial to Kona with price being the only major obstacle to drinking it daily.

Seattle Times: Taster’s Choice: Coffee experts describe the coffee they love

3 great coffee houses in the Belltown neighborhood just north of downtown Seattle. If they are on this list, they are worth checking out.

Uptown Espresso at 4th and Wall is a great meeting space with free WiFi. Home of the “Velvet Foam”.

Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts has been a favorite for awhile now. Old fashioned doughnuts and great coffee. Very Seattle. Worth checking out when you visit. Free WiFi too.

Cherry Street Coffee House at 1st and Lenora is a great place to take in the city. Near Pike Place Market.

Coffee is a lot of things in Seattle. If you are an independent coffee house in this town you need to elevate and differentiate your game. Nice read in the Coffee City blog about Fremont Coffee. They have recently started roasting their own beans. What they have really started doing is elevating their core competency. As a fan of the peaberry, I wish them luck.

Seattle Times Coffee City Blog: Fremont Coffee starts roasting to gain cachet, control flavor (and, it saves money)

Another read on Amazon’s private brands. I would love to think that the WSJ got inspiration from my earlier post Amazon’s private brands. Plus I re-learned that Pinzon is the name of the Spanish explorer who discovered the Amazon River. In reality, the new products and accounting for “general merchandise” are getting mainstream attention.

WSJ: Amazon Is Selling Designs of Its Own

Disclosure: The wife is employed by Amazon, but she steadfastly refuses to read my blog.

Very excited that my alma mater, Michigan, beat Notre Dame yesterday. Great game.

Mitch Joel’s Six Pixels of Separation blog is a must read for marketing, branding and social media. Check his What’s In Your Bag? post for some an interesting take on Amazon Widgets.

I took a turn creating my own widget about some of the coffee related products I have blogged about and a few that are essential. This is a very cool way to talk about the things you love and generate word of mouth.

Disclosure: The wife is employed by Amazon, but she does not read my blog or drink coffee.

Great time of year for the smoker. I always make sure to get at least two salmon smoked in the late summer. Less fuel needed and better fish. There are many different recipes and methods. For example, the flower pot smoker as a DIY project. Check out the link on Dave Naffziger’s blog.

Happy Labor Day!

Dave Naffziger’s Blog: The Alton Brown Flower Pot Smoker

Interesting coffee related read at Gizmodo. Covers a lot of ground on various methods. Worth checking out.

Link: Giz Explains: How to Actually Make Coffee

I hope to make this a regular feature documenting 3 great coffee houses in each of the many neighborhoods of Seattle. If they are on the list, they are worth checking out.

Zeitgeist, Cafe Umbria and All City Coffee are all in Pioneer Square. Great places for a meeting or First Thursdays Art Walk.

Cafe Umbria
320 Occidental Avenue South
Likely my favorite overall. Lack of WiFi keeps conversations down to conversations.

Zeitgeist
171 S Jackson St
Great place to meet. Everyone knows where it is. Can be crowded. Free WiFi keeps helps keep it popular.

All City Coffee
125 Prefontaine Pl S
A little further out from the hub of Pioneer Square, but great access to downtown. Large tables and upstairs provide great places to sit.

Check out Caffeine and Calories. True coffee aficionados will be towards the espresso/double espresso side of the buzz versus bulge equation.

Happy Friday.