august @ thump

ART: Michael J. Caligure Photography (throughout August)

Michael J. Caligure, a full-time Bend firefighter since 1982, exhibits images of professional Bend Fire & Rescue firefighters during training and local emergencies in his August photography exhibition this month. Having the experience of both a photographer and a firefighter, Caligure depicts first-hand the energy, emotion and magnificent blaze of the fire scene, while documenting the heroes who risk their lives everyday for our community.

The exhibition at thump is a personal statement of Caligure’s career and his enthusiasm for depicting firefighters in action on the scene. Caligure’s photography tells stories of the personal tests, experiences and conquests in the life of a firefighter.

In this exhibition, Caligure’s subject is firefighters in action, however Caligure also enjoys capturing images relating to everyday life and important landmarks in one’s own journey. “My passion for photography began around 1979 when I purchased my first camera,” Caligure says. “ I enjoy outdoor activities, so many of my photographs consist of landscapes and aerials.” His body of work also includes portraits and sporting events.

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Thumpology: Coffee Blends - A Different Story

July’s Thumpology explored the seasonality of coffee harvesting and how, like eating fresh produce when it’s in season, drinking coffees brewed from newly harvested beans is a more flavorful and enjoyable experience. Some coffeehouses — like thump — feature ever-changing drip coffee offerings that reflect what coffees have been recently harvested around the world. As mentioned last month, coffee blends have a different story to tell.

If you visit a coffeehouse and notice the same blend of beans being served throughout the year, the coffee roaster might use the same beans each time to create that blend (for example, a combination of Guatemalan, Indonesian and Brazilian). Those green beans might be up to a year old — the time passed since the last harvest.

Here’s a different scenario: Throughout the year, the roaster uses different, newly harvested beans in the blend and recreates a consistent flavor for the blend. For example, thump uses Stumptown Coffee Roaster’s Hair Bender Espresso Blend 365 days of the year. It’s Stumptown’s challenge to maintain a consistent flavor profile in this blend using an ever-changing selection of coffees.

Stumptown continually explores the body, complexity, acidity and flavor compatibility of their coffees. Each coffee that makes up the blend is roasted separately to develop its individual flavor profile so it will be optimally compatible with the other beans in the blend as well as to address its unique physical aspects, such as bean size, density, and moisture content (see past thumpologies on roasting). The beans are then blended together at the proper ratio to maintain that beautifully complex flavor that keeps us all coming back for more.

If you strip away the milk and flavorings and just taste the espresso, you’ll appreciate that this blend is dynamic and changing subtly and tantalizingly throughout the year because of its ever-changing “ingredients” — but it’s consistently delicious! To blend well without taking the beans to a dark roast, which effectively roasts out the flavors of the individual beans, is a true art. Three cheers for a great blend and a talented roaster!

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CUPPING: Sunday, August 10 (NOT the third Sunday this month!) 1:30pm - 2:30pm
Cuppings are usually the third Sunday of the month at 1:30pm - get details at our website and by subscribing to our email newsletter.

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Traditional Cappuccino Happy Hour Fridays, 2:30pm to close
Join us every Friday for a celebration of the classic Italian espresso concoction, the Traditional Cappuccino. During TradCap Happy Hour — or Cappy Hour, if you will — enjoy half-priced traditional espresso drinks, dopios, macchiatos, and traditional cappuccinos. Many people have never ventured to try these delightful little drinks. No syrup, no chocolate, just espresso and perhaps a small embrace of milk steamed to sweet, velvety perfection!

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Gratis Grounds Make Killer Compost
Thump has wonderful organic and sustainably grown coffee grounds available for composting and worm bins. Coffee grounds' very jagged microscopic surface area helps speed up the breakdown of the biomass being composted. Call 388-0226 to arrange a pick-up time for your coffee grounds.

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ART: Mark Bernahl's “Wishes” Installation (ongoing)
Grab a plank and let everybody know your heart's fondest desires. From the absurd to the profound, the Wishes reveal the full range of human concerns and humor. Artist Mark Bernahl will continue rotating newly minted wishes into the existing installation.