Great Lakes Barista Competition! - 2010

 For those of us who love coffee, coffee shops, coffee art and having fun, it is important to stay updated regarding the events that involve any or all of the above! And in this case, Milwaukee will have the great honor to host the 2010 Great Lakes Barista Competition which will take place on March 12th to March 14th at Milwaukee’s Discovery World Museum!

Alterra (my favorite coffee shop) will be the host! And I am sure it will be a great event, this is an annual competition of the best baristas of the 5-state area back to Milwaukee.

This is what the competition entails:

Time: 15 mins.
Four cappuccinos
Ffour shots of espresso
Four signature drinks.

All this will be prepared in front of a panel of judges, which will consider quality, cleanliness and professionalism.

I will keep you updated in regards to this event... You can also get more info at: US Barista Championship website

Let the best one win!

We are on a date... yes, the three of us!

Our date night was fantastic! And as romantic as it could be with a 16mo. girl as a "chaperone"... Still, the three of us had a lot of fun in Alterra (by the lake), this coffee shop is just great, the aroma, the service, the flavors, the atmosphere... everything is just so inviting and pleasant! Perfect for a date for those who love coffee! My girl started acting up when we tried to put her in a high chair, my husband was getting a little bit frustrated and annoyed by it, but leave it to mom! (we always know what to do) It had been a while since I was there (before my girl was born) so I wasn't going to let anything ruin it... I bought a slice of banana nut bread and brought some of the wooden sticks to stir the coffee to the table so she could play with, and that was it, she was as happy as she can be! I knew it would be fine, I wouldn't have stayed if she had continued being difficult, I mean... you don't want to disturb the rest of the people who are trying to enjoy a peaceful time and a cup of coffee in such a special place like Alterra! If you have never tried their coffee... you TRULY do not know what you are missing, they have coffee for EVERY TASTE, even the "pickiest" person will find something perfect for his/her taste!

Our dates are never too expensive and they are always SO MUCH FUN! You do not need too much money to have a great time if you are with the right company!  Hubby had a cup of his favorite coffee.... "El Salvador" which is a VERY VERY strong roast! You should see him right now as I type, he is not only VERY awake but he is looking for something to do! so hyper!  he also had a bar of milk chocolate, in my case I had a large mocha! it was so good! and a bar of dark chocolate... and there we were, the three of us! Enjoying our date... love was in the air! Hubby and I value our time on our own... but we also know that having children does not mean that " the fun is gone"  Our love for her strengthens our love for each other... so the date tonight was a date of 3 and it was the perfect date!

A bar of chocolate goes great with coffee

"El Salvador" For those who enjoy strong coffee!

Our girl....

My "date (s)" (sorry about the blurriness)

What a great place!

Our coffees and chocolate bars

Our girl and her banana bread

Date for three!

What a wonderful date it was!

Date night!... with a toddler!

 Hello dear coffee lovers! How is your weekend going? Mine is going pretty well... playing online and not doing much of anything else... Even moms deserve a lazy Saturday once in a while, don't we? Hubby said he is taking me to my favorite Coffee Shop (my favorite one is this one, where I write and I keep in touch with you ... followers, readers or stop by"ers") but let's say my favorite outside of the virtual world... it's a coffee shop in front of a beautiful lake (Lake Michigan)... I just love the coffee there and its location is perfect for a nice date! This date I am talking about will not be too romantic, because our daughter is coming with us... but it will definitely be fun! What about you? What are you doing this weekend? Share it with us!

My favorite.... Alterra Coffee Roasters

I must say that my favorite coffee shop (and coffee in general) is Alterra!

Their slogan is: "Aqui servimos cafe fuerte" (Strong Coffee Served Here!) and it's true! ...

I really enjoy going to their location by the lake in Milwaukee.... you feel you are somewhere else... out of the rush of daily life...

You can go there in winter and enjoy its beautiful (and historical) location... their building is the historic Milwaukee River Flushing and it was built in 1888 with beautiful cream city brick, the smell of the coffee, the people enjoying a good conversation, the students using this wonderful location to do homework or some project, the atmosphere in general is fantastic...

You can also visit it in summer and enjoy the music outside, feel the breeze of the lake and have an amazing dessert or just its freshly brewed coffee!

.... I am sure you will see more posts about Alterra soon... because I really enjoy going there.....

I hope you have the opportunity to go to Alterra some day.

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Debo decir que mi cafe preferido es Alterra!

Su "slogan" es: "Aqui servimos cafe fuerte" y es verdad!

Cuanto disfruto ir a su establecimiento en el lago en Milwaukee... te sientes como si estuvieras en otro lugar... fuera de las prisas de la vida diaria...

Puedes ir a Alterra en invierno y disfrutar su hermoso (e historico) edificio... el cual fue construido en 1888 con hermoso ladrillo color crema y que originalmente era una bomba de desague del Rio hacia al Lago, el aroma del cafe, la gente disfrutando de una buena convesacion, los estudiantes usando este hermoso lugar para hacer su tarea o algun proyecto, la atmosfera en general es fantastica...

Tambien puedes ir en verano y disfrutar buena musica, en las mesas afuera del cafe puedes disfrutar la brisa del lago y comer algun delicioso postre o simplemente una buena taza de cafe recien hervido.

... Pronto veran mas articulos sobre Alterra en este blog... porque me encanta ir ahi...

Ojala tengan la oportunidad de visitarlo ...

Coffee Lovers