Go inside UC Davis’ new one-of-a-kind coffee research center: ‘It’s really fascinating’
The fall academic quarter begins Monday. It’s time to rise and shine at the new UC Davis Coffee Center.
The 7,000-square-foot facility, opened in May, is the first academic center in the U.S. dedicated solely to advanced coffee research and education.
Formerly a military research building, the coffee center been renovated and equipped with laboratories, industrial coffee roasters and a double-blind cupping (tasting) room. Private donors kicked in nearly $6 million to its founding, from philanthropic alumni to industry titans such as Folgers, Peet’s Coffee and La Marzocco.
UC Davis has had a coffee lab in Everson Hall since 2015, but the new center allows for deeper, graduate-level research. Having a controlled environment to see what molecules are present in certain beans, test soil pH levels for optimal plant growth and examine how green beans respond to different storage temperatures will lead to new discoveries — and job opportunities, center director and chemical engineering, said professor William Ristenpart.
“We’re trying to create an academic talent pipeline to help support the coffee industry, which is extremely important for the American economy and American culture,” Ristenpart said.
UC Davis’ first real foray into the world of coffee came in 2013, when Ristenpart began teaching a class called “The Design of Coffee.” What began as an 18-person lab class now has 800 students enrolled or waitlisted for the fall quarter, which starts Monday; Aggies voted it as UC Davis’ best elective course in 2016.
Ristenpart lectures with chemical engineering professor Tonya Kuhl before students break out into 36-person labs. A few have prior experience in the world of coffee, such as Keegan Thompson, a Philz Coffee barista and communications senior who was hired as a UC Davis Coffee Center intern roaster near the end of the summer session.
“It’s really fascinating to learn the impact that the temperature of the water, the hardness of the water versus the coarseness or fineness of your coffee grind,” Thompson said. “And then as a barista, you learn a lot of ‘I’m going to grind the beans and hand this coffee to somebody,’ but you don’t learn as much about the process that goes into getting you those coffee beans and having them roasted and having them picked by people all across the world.”
You can buy bags of the UC Davis Coffee Center’s dark roast beans (Aggie Bold) or medium roast (Aggie Blend) at the campus bookstore or online at coffeecenter.ucdavis.edu/shop. The cow-spotted bags run $10 for three ounces or $20 for 10 ounces, with proceeds supporting student research. Ristenpart recommends grinding just before brewing, as with all coffee.
What I’m Eating
After advocating for September trips to Apple Hill in last week’s newsletter (early season = no crowds, and many varieties are ripe now), I put my money where my mouth was on Sunday. Apple picking at Pine-O-Mine Ranch, browsing the shelves of Abel’s Apple Acres and wine tasting with a side of pie at Delfino Farms all led up to dinner at Smith Flat House, Placerville’s premier fine dining restaurant.
Founded in 1853 as a Gold Rush hotel and community hub, Smith Flat House weaves its historical setting with modern California cuisine. The spacious courtyard patio was rented out for a private event during our visit, relegating all other customers to the subterranean cellar dining room that still bears signs of its past as a mine.
Wooden booths and tables atop wine barrels give Smith Flat House’s cellar a rustic feel, forming an apt backdrop for the risotto pizzaiola ($27). Housemade marinara sauce swallows up roasted red peppers, whole grape tomatoes and sheets of mozzarella in a stew-like dish that feels like ratatouille’s cousin.
There are a range of brick-oven pizzas as well, including the seasonal stone fruit ($17 for a 9-inch pie, $30 for a 14-inch) hanging on the menu through the last bit of summer. Contrasting flavors fold nicely together atop the medium-thick crust: salty prosciutto and Sierra Nevada Cheese Co. feta, sweet peaches from Beals’ Orchard and caramelized onions, tart lemon juice coating peppery arugula.
I’m still trying to wrap my head around the bourbon chicken’s ($40) dark brown sauce, a complex-tasting mix of dijon mustard, brown sugar and the namesake alcohol pooled around an 8-ounce, candied pecan-crusted piece of breast meat. It was served with mild garlic mashed potatoes and purple slaw, inoffensive counterparts for the sauce’s intense flavor.
SMITH FLAT HOUSE
Address: 2021 Smith Flat Road, Placerville
Hours: 5-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. and 4-9 p.m. Friday-Sunday
Phone: 530-621-1003
Website: smithflathouse.com
Drinks: Full bar, with lots of El Dorado County wine in addition to locally-produced beer and cider.
Vegetarian options: Entrees are based around meat or seafood, but one can enjoy the risotto pizzaiola or Margherita pizza as a main dish.
Noise level: Depends on setting — sound bounces around more in the cellar than on the patio.
Outdoor seating: A choice patio, though it’s not always available.
Openings & Closings
▪ Legend Has It opened Saturday at 410 L St. in downtown Sacramento. The “hi-fi bar” targets audiophiles with its top-notch sound system and extensive vinyl record collection, along with locally produced beer and wine.
▪ Garcia’s Mexican Restaurant will close its sole California location Sunday at 6049 Madison Ave. in Carmichael’s Madison Square shopping center. The sit-down plate house has five Arizona outposts, one in Idaho and one in Utah.
▪ High-end sushi concept Okesutora has closed after a year in midtown Sacramento at 1801 L St., Suite 70. Opened in October 2023 by the owners of neighboring restaurant Saigon Alley Kitchen & Bar, it began with an exclusively omakase menu before moving to weekday à la carte service.