The Best Coffee Shops in Portland, Oregon + What Is a Coffee Cupping?
When I think about Portland, I picture those golden trees with leaves galore, the nippy mornings, the endless walking, the delicious donuts, & the coffee. Oh, the coffee. In order to stay alive & function with all the steps we trekked, Fred & I definitely needed some caffeine.
Related reading: How to Spend 48 Hours in Portland, Oregon: A Travel Guide
Thanks to Third Wave Coffee Tours*, Fred & I spent one morning exploring some of the finest coffee options in Portland, Oregon. I opted for their Pioneering Eastside Roasters Coffee Tour, a three-hour guided tour on the east side of the Willamette River.
The Eastside tour starts at 10 a.m. on Fridays & introduces you to top-notch espresso, cold brew variations, & even a cupping experience — the practice of observing the tastes & aromas in brewed coffee, basically a coffee tasting. This tour introduces you to the pioneering micro-roasters that sparked the third wave coffee revolution.
The Eastside tour starts at 10 a.m. on Fridays & introduces you to top-notch espresso, cold brew variations, & even a cupping experience — the practice of observing the tastes & aromas in brewed coffee, basically a coffee tasting. This tour introduces you to the pioneering micro-roasters that sparked the third wave coffee revolution.
The tour began at Portland Roasting Coffee — a sustainable & carbon neutral company — where we waited a few minutes for the rest of the tour members to join. We tried the small but mighty macchiato with a bite of cookie before we were on our way to the next stop, Steven Smith Teamaker.
Yep, we went to a tea place during the coffee tour. Steven Smith is actually the mastermind behind Tazo Tea as well as Stash Tea. Go figure. We tried nitro chai tea with a touch of half & half. It was utterly glorious; I still dream about it. We also sampled both the iced & hot tea versions of the Sparkling Strawberry Honeybush. As a tea fan, this was my favorite stop of the day.
Then we began the journey to Stumptown Coffee Roasters, a brand that focuses heavily on sustainability, direct trade, & paying their coffee farmers liveable wages. The Stumptown visit was abundant in its information & coffee samplings. We sipped on quite a view varieties, but I was particularly in love with the Stumptown Chocolate Cold Brew, which is essentially coffee spiked chocolate milk. Yes please.
Next up on the tour was Coava Coffee Roasters with their cool & open wooden interior. Instead of using the traditional but wasteful paper filters, they created their own handmade cones with tiny holes to strain the coffee. We tried a single shot Guatemala macchiato & nibbled on bits of a cookie.
Our last coffee shop spot was Upper Left Roasters, where we sipped on their cold brew coffee with hazelnut macadamia milk. To wash everything down, we got a bite of their delicious country wheat toast with macadamia nut butter & banana. I'm not ashamed to admit that I grabbed a second piece of toast.
I left the Pioneering Eastside Roasters Coffee Tour feeling high on coffee & ready to take over the world. It's the perfect experience for any coffee lover, & I give it bonus points because there was time for tea. If you're in Portland & enjoy your fair share of coffee, Third Wave Coffee Tours is spot on.
Then we began the journey to Stumptown Coffee Roasters, a brand that focuses heavily on sustainability, direct trade, & paying their coffee farmers liveable wages. The Stumptown visit was abundant in its information & coffee samplings. We sipped on quite a view varieties, but I was particularly in love with the Stumptown Chocolate Cold Brew, which is essentially coffee spiked chocolate milk. Yes please.
Next up on the tour was Coava Coffee Roasters with their cool & open wooden interior. Instead of using the traditional but wasteful paper filters, they created their own handmade cones with tiny holes to strain the coffee. We tried a single shot Guatemala macchiato & nibbled on bits of a cookie.
What is a Coffee Cupping?
A cupping is a coffee tasting where you observe the tastes & aromas in brewed coffee. For our cupping experience, we ventured to Buckman Coffee Factory. The cupping begins with smelling the freshly ground coffee & pointing out any odor descriptors such as earthy, floral, spicy, etc. Step two is to add water & smell again. The third step is to break the crust by taking a spoon & pushing the floating coffee grounds away while smelling again. The last step is to taste the coffee & compare notes with the others.Our last coffee shop spot was Upper Left Roasters, where we sipped on their cold brew coffee with hazelnut macadamia milk. To wash everything down, we got a bite of their delicious country wheat toast with macadamia nut butter & banana. I'm not ashamed to admit that I grabbed a second piece of toast.
I left the Pioneering Eastside Roasters Coffee Tour feeling high on coffee & ready to take over the world. It's the perfect experience for any coffee lover, & I give it bonus points because there was time for tea. If you're in Portland & enjoy your fair share of coffee, Third Wave Coffee Tours is spot on.
* Disclaimer: Third Wave Coffee Tours provided the tour in exchange for an honest blog post about my experience. All opinions are 100% mine aka Carmen's. Learn more about my disclosure. :]
Mocha Oatmeal: An Easy, Hearty, & Caffeinated Recipe
This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. & its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #TasteTruvia #CB #CollectiveBias
Ever find yourself running late in the morning with not much time to create a hearty & healthy breakfast? If you're anything like me then it probably happens a lot — sometimes those extra 10 minutes in my warm cozy bed are too irresistible. To combat unhealthy decisions on those hectic mornings, add a bit of caffeine to breakfast with an easy & undeniably delicious bowl of mocha oatmeal.
I'm making 2017 the year of personal bests by feeling good about myself & taking care of myself. Self-love & self-care, y'all! In order to keep myself on track, I created this breakfast recipe to save time & still fill me up.
I've made this so many times, it's essentially foolproof. It'll give you a nice kick of caffeine while simultaneously filling you up for hours on end. Keep reading & you'll find out how to make this simple mocha oatmeal recipe. Let's get started!
Ingredients
1 cup soy milk
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1 cup water
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
Directions
1. In a medium saucepan bring soy milk & water to a boil.2. Stir in oatmeal. Reduce heat & simmer uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. After 5 minutes or when your oatmeal is almost to your desired texture, mix in the cocoa powder & coffee. Stir until thoroughly combined. Let sit for 2 minutes.
4. Remove pan from heat & stir in Truvia® Natural Sweetener Spoonable.
5. Add desired toppings & enjoy!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 7 - 10 minutes, depending on preference
Servings: 2
Servings: 2
This recipe is simple & I absolutely love using Truvia® Natural Sweetener Spoonable since it's a zero-calorie, stevia-based sweetener. Oh, & it's effortless to use. I bought my Truvia® Natural Sweetener Spoonable at Ralphs. You may find it in the baking aisle along with your cake mixes, flour, & sugar. Truvia® is easy to spot because the packaging is bright green!
Make this mocha oatmeal once & I promise you'll never look back. It's insanely delicious. The proportions are straightforward & easy to remember. This recipe makes two servings, one to share or one for tomorrow. The Truvia® Natural Sweetener Spoonable adds the perfect amount of sweetness since it provides the same sweetness as two teaspoons of sugar, making it the perfect natural sweetener for those looking to reduce calories.
You can make your bowl of oatmeal even more beautiful by adding toppings like chia seeds, flaxseeds, fresh berries, chopped nuts, or more Truvia® Natural Sweetener Spoonable. We can make wiser decisions this year. Let's start breakfast off right. :]
You can make your bowl of oatmeal even more beautiful by adding toppings like chia seeds, flaxseeds, fresh berries, chopped nuts, or more Truvia® Natural Sweetener Spoonable. We can make wiser decisions this year. Let's start breakfast off right. :]
* Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Collective Bias, Inc. & its advertiser. As always, all opinions are 100% mine aka Carmen's. Learn more about my disclosure. :]
How To Be A Local Influencer & Get Invited to Events as a Blogger
In a world where bloggers are everywhere, how can you stand out? How can an influencer reach new people?
I went to an @midnight taping a couple years ago in Los Angeles & wrote about my experience. I never knew what an impact it would have on my blog.
Every day people search for @midnight related content, which leads them directly to my blog. Some of those people come to be regular readers. If you're wondering how to be a local influencer & how to get invited to events as a blogger, you've come to the right place. These are my insider tips to moving up that blogging ladder.
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Poop & Smell the Roses Toilet Bowl Freshener Review
Let me start off by saying: we all poop. Okay now we got that out of the way, have you ever walked into a bathroom & breathed in a heinous scent? Your mouth twitches & immediately turns into a cringe. You plug your nose & frantically drag a breath through your mouth. That my friend is poop. You could use a bathroom freshener or potpourri spray. Toilet sprays are almost a necessity in a full household or busy office.
There are so many on the market these days. There are popular brands like the Poo-Pourri Before You Go Toilet Sprays as well as plenty of other brands. Find particular scents, brands, sizes based on your household needs.
Poo-Pourri Before-You-go Toilet Spray 10 ml Original Citrus 10 ml Lavender Vanilla 10 ml Tropical Hibiscus 10 ml Lavender Peppermint & 10 ml Vanilla Mint, 5 Count. Shop it on Amazon.
Muse Bath Apothecary Flush Ritual - Aromatic & Refreshing Toilet Spray, Use Before You Go, 8 oz, Infused with Natural Essential Oils - Aloe + Eucalyptus + Lavender, 2 Pack. Shop it on Amazon.
You ask yourself if it's worth it to stay in this box of fumes or if you should exit immediately. There are some cool products on the market like a toilet air freshener that may assist with this dilemma. I was at the store & was immediately drawn to beautiful pink rose packaging. The bottle was colorful, whimsical, & romantic. I saw the word rosewater & got closer. What is it? is a bathroom freshener.
You can find other rose sprays that aren't necessarily marketing specifically for bathroom use. There's the Positive Essence Rose Linen and Room Spray, which is a natural pillow spray made with pure pose essential oils. You can use it as a home fragrance or as a toilet spray. It's multifunctional. Shop it on Amazon.
As I got a closer look I realized this is no room spray or body spray, but was, in fact, a toilet bowl air freshener also known as a poop spray. What in the world? I open it up & smelled it. It was true to its name & smelled like a delightful rose. You could use spray it generally as a bathroom freshener.
The Poop Culture "Before You Go" Toilet Spray Bathroom Freshener Poop and Smell the Roses packaging suggests spraying about four potpourri sprays directly in the toilet water prior to pooping &/or after. Definitely an easy-to-use toilet air freshener & the best poop spray or best bathroom spray for the price.
The Poop Culture "Before You Go" Toilet Spray Bathroom Freshener Poop and Smell the Roses packaging suggests spraying about four potpourri sprays directly in the toilet water prior to pooping &/or after. Definitely an easy-to-use toilet air freshener & the best poop spray or best bathroom spray for the price.
What's the best poop spray bathroom freshener or best bathroom spray? I must say this works quite well. PoopCulture Collection/Poop Culture's Poop and Smell the Roses toilet bowl freshener is perfect to use at home with a significant other, family, or roommates. It could genuinely help out, especially if everyone understands how to use it. Although it would be even more applicable in larger bathrooms like an office or a public restroom, it's not really feasible to explain to everyone how this works.
True Story: My roommate exited the restroom & I went in to wash my face. The room smelled like fresh roses. I immediately knew that business had been done but at least the smell was quite pleasant. It was the toilet air freshener. Simply use the potpourri spray.
It's the best poop spray bathroom freshener for the price. This toilet air freshener tames any poop scent, giving off a lovely rose aroma. I've heard stories of people going on first dates, where they didn't feel comfortable pooping at their date's house. This would be a lifesaver. Yes, this is a superfluous & unnecessary purchase but it's fun, the scent is spot on, & I enjoy the PoopCulture Poop and Smell the Roses toilet bowl freshener packaging.
It's the best poop spray bathroom freshener for the price. This toilet air freshener tames any poop scent, giving off a lovely rose aroma. I've heard stories of people going on first dates, where they didn't feel comfortable pooping at their date's house. This would be a lifesaver. Yes, this is a superfluous & unnecessary purchase but it's fun, the scent is spot on, & I enjoy the PoopCulture Poop and Smell the Roses toilet bowl freshener packaging.
What do you think of a toilet bowl freshener? What's the best poop spray or best bathroom spray? :]
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