The Perfect Caffe Latte

I’ve always had a tremendous amount of respect for those who’ve become successful by doing one thing very well. La Colombe Torrefaction makes coffee and arguably does it better than anyone else in the country.

There are many places to get the Philadelphia-based company’s artisanal coffee blends and chances are you may have had it in other coffee shops, markets and in many of the finest restaurants in the country—including, La-Bec Fin, Daniel and Le Bernardin. My favorite place to enjoy the full flavor and richness of this wonderful product is by ordering a caffe latte in its original retail location just off Rittenhouse Square.

High ceilings and large windows allow plenty of sunlight inside. A simple layout of chairs and tables allow folks to mingle or relax and provide something that is rare in a retail environment of any kind: space. Behind the mahogany bar, skilled baristas prepare drinks with precision, efficiency and artistic flare. Housed in Italian hand-made Fima Deruta cups and saucers, the caffe latte is the perfect blend of warm milk and espresso. Its silky texture and rich, mild flavor warms the soul. It also is consistent, so no matter who is behind the bar, the results, even with its high standards, are the same.

The coffee bar is located in the city’s swankiest neighborhood, a half-block from its most popular park, and a quick stroll from its business district. This results in a true mix of office workers, creative folks, students, those who toil in the leisure arts (unemployed), and workers from the small businesses in the neighborhood. It’s a great place to people watch, read or meet others without the corporate pressures to buy more or move along that are part of the environment of chain coffee houses. In fact, its owners, Todd Carmichael and Jean-Philippe Iberti, are open about the fact that their primary focus is producing great coffee, even if it turns off consumers. For example, the cafe serves a limited number of coffee drinks and serves them all in a single size. The only other things customers can purchase are a small selection of French pastries, excellent French hot chocolate and coffee beans to go, which they will grind for you.

The company specializes in blending coffee. With few exceptions (such as a blend made only of beans from Africa), it has offered four blends since its beginning nearly 15 years ago: Corsica, dark roast; Phocea, medium dark roast; Nizza, medium roast, used for Espresso; and Monte Carlo, decaffeinated. At home we mainly use Corsica and Nizza.

It’s hard to believe that 25 years ago there were only a handful of places to get good coffee in the U.S. Then along came Starbucks, which educated Americans on the wonders of European coffee. But the company, along with other chains that followed, became more interested in world domination than in producing good coffee in a quality environment. Many independent coffee houses fall short because the owners and their staff often lack the experience and skill to make a quality product or create the proper experience.

By sticking to what it does best, La Colombe gets it right.

Phils in Phive

The World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees begins Wednesday. Meanwhile, the trash talking between the fans in each city started the moment the Yankees clinched the American East title Sunday night.

In typical New York Post fashion, the tabloid placed an image on its front page that combined stupidity, childishness and homophobia. It Photoshopped, poorly, Phillies centerfielder Shane Victorino in a dress and called the team “Frillies.” I guess it was an attack on the manliness of the team that led the National League in home runs. New Yorkers in general are already talking like the victory has already been decided as if its legacy makes it a foregone conclusion.


Here's a picture of Victorino holding something that the Yankees haven't been near for years.

Of course the game will be played on the field and it has the potential to be an epic battle. While watching some of the series between the Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (a team that can’t seem to decide where it resides) I did not see great baseball, particularly by the Angels. I saw teams that the Phillies should be able to beat rather handily.

Apparently, Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins agrees. He told Jay Leno Tuesday night that the Phillies will win in five games. Rollins has made a number of predictions about the Phillies during the past three years that all came true, including winning the World Series last year. I’m certainly not going to argue with him. The only thing that may dampen what should be a true "fall classic" is the damp weather predicted for much of the week.

The Windows of Florence

Photographs of the windows in the Piazza San Martino taken in July 2009. It is best known as the neighborhood where the 13th Century poet Dante Alighieri was born and spent a great deal of his life.

Philadelphia Philanthropist’s Diamond Ring Fetches $7.7M

A 32 carat diamond ring owned by billionaire philanthropist Leonore Annenberg sold for $7.7 million at action Wednesday at Christie’s, New York to an unidentified buyer, according to news reports.

Annenberg purchased the square emerald-cut diamond for her 90th birthday. The ring was offered for sale by Annenberg's estate. She died in March at the age of 91.

The ring is designed by Manhattan jeweler David Webb. It is flanked by two pear-shaped diamonds, one of them 1.61 carats and the other 1.51 carats.

“The Annenberg Diamond … combines the best of the 4 C’s: top color, perfect clarity, ideal cut, and excellent weight. And if you add to this the impeccable provenance of the Annenberg name, you have one of the finest gems to appear on the market for many years,” François Curiel, chairman of Christie’s Europe and International Head of Jewels, said in a statement prior to the auction.

Annenberg, served as chairwoman and president of the Annenberg Foundation and was the U.S. chief of protocol during the Reagan administration. Her husband, Walter H. Annenberg, was a prominent newspaper publisher, broadcaster, diplomat, and philanthropist. He died in 2002 at the age of 94.

The Annenbergs lived in the suburban Philadelphia community of Wynnewood. Several of Walter Annenberg’s businesses were located in the area, including the newspapers, The Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News, and TV Guide, which he founded in 1952.

More information is available on Christie’s Web site.

The Doors of Florence

Photographs of the doors in the Piazza San Martino, the tiny square best known as the neighborhood where the great 13th Century poet Dante Alighieri was born and spent a great deal of his life.

The doorway to Torre Della Castagna, built in the 13th Century and used for a variety of purposes over the years.

The entrance to the Trattoria del Pennello, one of Florence's oldest restaurants.

The doorway to the tiny chapel of Compagnia dei Buonomini di. Founded in 1441, it consisted of twelve men—the Buonomini—with the mission to help “i poveri verghognosi,” wealthy families that had fallen on hard times. People were down to their last pennies lit a candle at their door. This is expressed as “essere ridotti al lumicino”—“to be reduced to a candle.”

The entrance to a modern day courthouse.

Life in the ‘Fast Lane,’ if Only for a Moment

Journalist and entrepreneur Tyler Brûlé has become an international cultural icon. In the mid-1990s he created Wallpaper, a groundbreaking international style and fashion magazine, which he sold to Time Warner. More recently he founded Monocle, an international magazine that covers international affairs, culture and design for wealthy, cosmopolitan readers. He also owns design agency Winkreative and writes a weekly column in the Financial Times called "The Fast Lane."

Whether jetting to Japan for all-night Karaoke sessions, traveling by train from Zurich to Milan, or moving his entire magazine operation to the Spanish island of Mallorca for the summer holiday, Brûlé lives a life (at least in his writings) that is of constant movement surrounded by creative people, high-design and luxury.

While vacationing in Europe this past summer, I had a brief opportunity to experience the Tyler Brûlé lifestyle. After spending a day at the Montreux Jazz Festival I went to Geneva for a day of sightseeing before taking a flight to Florence, where I would meet my wife, Maria, in a couple days after her visit with family members in Holland.

Brûlé is big on regional airlines that are able to provide a better level of service, efficiency and reliability in short-haul flights than the larger airlines. I was traveling on Baboo, a Brûlé-approved airline based in Geneva. Its five planes provide service to 19 destinations in Europe. After picking up the July issue of Monocle, I headed over to the well-designed and heavily branded Baboo waiting area, where I dozed off while sitting on a low, red-leather couch.

Boarding was quick and easy and before I knew it I was in the air with a commanding view of the Swiss Alps. The Dash 8 wasn't full, so I had two comfortable leather seats to myself, which led me to again descend into a restful slumber.

Even though the flight was just over an hour, the crew offered small ham and soft cheese sandwiches on flat bread, tiny skewers of marinated vegetables, and strawberry yogurt for dessert. It wasn’t an elaborate offering but it was appropriate for the size of the propeller-powered aircraft and the short length of the flight. The service throughout the flight was well prepared and well executed.

Before I knew it the plane landed in the shabby Florence airport (I thought it was recently renovated). After a long wait in the customs line inside the dimly lit processing area, I was finally and thankfully able to leave the airport.

In the darkness outside the airport I walked past the line of taxis, across the parking lot and onto the lonely bus stand, waiting for the local bus to take me into town—leaving the fast lane behind.

A Park with a Purpose

One of the best kept secrets in Philadelphia is Fitler Square, a park so small and unnoticed that it doesn’t even appear on Google maps.

Less than the size of a full city block, the park on Pine St. between 23rd and 24th streets serves as the centerpiece of the Fitler Square neighborhood, one of the best neighborhoods in the city (and also a best-kept secret). It's a quiet place with brick walkways, leafy plants and trees, and plenty of comfortable benches. There’s a fountain in the middle and several attractive animal sculptures, all of which fit the park’s small dimensions. It’s a clean and comfortable respite that is just a few blocks south of the much more active Rittenhouse Square. Despite its center city location tourists as well as many city residents don’t know of its existence.

The park serves as the stage for a weekly farmer’s market, and annual occasions—such Halloween and Easter events. There’s even a Christmas tree lighting ceremony.

Fitler Square was created in 1896 and named after Edwin H. Fitler, mayor of Philadelphia from 1887 to 1891. Its success is a testament to the Fitler Square Improvement Association, which raises money and works with the city’s parks and recreation department for its maintenance. I’m sure Mr. Fitler would be proud to see that a space named after him has served the community so well.

More images follow:

Grizzly by Eric Berg

The Ram by Gerd Hesness

Turtles by Eric Berg