The Q Note

The Q Note is an inspirational online publication that "was created to celebrate the authenticity and progressive spirit that define New York’s largest borough." Alia Akkam, the founder and editor is dedicated to shedding light on the extensive range of offerings available in Queens. Alia's pride in the cultural richness of Queens coupled with her expertise as a writer show through in The Q Note's weekly articles. By raising awareness within and without the borough The Q Note is raising awareness and increasing accessibility to those sometimes hard-to-find gems.

Last year we were lucky enough to have a conversation with Alia over a Flat White about all things Queens, including JET espresso. (access the article here)The Q Note's new website is now up and running so check out her run down on JET as well as her other great articles about all the goings-on in our neck of the City. If you like what you see, I recommend hitting the "subscribe" button to receive the few-times-a-week email. Then, get out there and enjoy the vibrancy of Queens.

What a nice surprise!

I was pleasantly surprised to see this article in AM NY the other day. (turn to page 22 once loaded) It is always nice to see Jackson Heights, Farmspot, New Zealand and Queens mentioned all together in one article, especially when it's about JET espresso! We were blown away and honored all at the same time. It is great to see more and more being written about specialty coffee, the more the better, keep it coming. Thanks to Farmspot and Jackson Heights for all the support.

Coffee background

Have you ever enjoyed the captivating smell of just-ground coffee, only to be disappointed by the taste once brewed? Our goal at JET espresso is to roast coffee so that when brewed it tastes as good as it smells, not an easy feat but one we love. Part of that journey is to share a bit about what it takes to make a decent cup so that you can share in what we're doing. This little blurb is a the first of a sporadic series of notes about coffee. Hope you enjoy.

Every coffee has unique characteristics that come through in the cup. These are categorized as; aroma, acidity, body and flavor. Like wine, it is the terra (land or origin) that gives each coffee these distinct flavors. Different regions within coffee growing countries are known for producing coffees with particular characteristics.

When it comes to brewing, it is about what one considers to be desirable in their cup that determines what they roast, how they roast it, and then how it is brewed. It is the bean that should dictate how it is roasted and subsequently brewed. For example a Brazilian Poco Fundo usually exhibits a medium to full body with a fruity zestiness. This bean needs to roasted to a medium-dark roast in order to bring out these characteristics. Any other roast would reduce the potential strengths of the bean. Some beans are versatile enough to be used for both espresso and drip while others should only be used for drip or espresso.