The temperatures are starting to officially dip, and we’ve brought many of our less hardy plants indoors.
We wish we could provide a warm environment for you to enjoy your coffee, but with the pandemic continuing to rage on it seems most appropriate to continue in the same fashion that has been keeping our staff and customers safe since the beginning - we remain take out only, with masks required indoors, and with outdoor seating in the patio. Cheers to bundling up and making the most of the cold season!
For those in the holiday spirit, we’ve got tons of great options for your coffee loving friends and family. Brewing equipment, beans, new tee shirts and gift cards.
Wishes for a bright holiday season and peaceful end to the year from your pals at Constellation!
Batlle Selection /
If you’ve been a fan of our pour over program, you may notice that we’ve been featuring some peculiar coffees. Many have been exquisite, rare, or hard-to-find, and none have been available for sale by the bag. What gives? We have been working with Scott Rao at Facsimile Coffee - a monthly subscription program designed to make folks better coffee tasters. This relationship has allowed us to get our mitts on beans a small shop like us wouldn’t otherwise have access to.
We are extremely honored to be able to serve a coffee from Finca Kilimanjaro, the farm in El Salvador run by Aida Batlle. The beans are composed of 70% Kenya mix - SL-28 & SL-34 - and 30% Bourbon. Aida Batlle had made waves in the coffee community by winning the Cup of Excellence competition back in 2003 - her first year producing coffee. She was also the first woman to win this award. The merits continued to pour in, as she was also the first person to win the El Salvador Cup of Excellence, and her coffees were continually selected by competition baristas.
Ms. Batlle’s relentless curiosity has led to developments across the industry. Thanks to her, coffee processors experiment with cherry selection as well as fermentation techniques to increase quality and flavor rather than just prepare beans for export.
The coffee we are serving has been processed four different ways, giving us four different options for brewing. The washed version is depulped, dry fermented for 18 hours, washed and dried for nine days on shaded beds. From the Facsimile website, the “Burundi-style” process “undergoes two 24-hour fermentation cycles--one dry, one wet--interrupted every 12 hours with a rinse of cold water. After washing, the coffee soaks for another 24 hours before drying for nine days on shaded beds.” The natural process includes soaking the fruit to remove any unripe fruit, then leaving the beans to dry on shaded beds for 10-11 days. The fourth process is called an “Iced Cascara Tea” process, where the hot cascara (which is made from spent coffee pulp/skin) is brewed, brought to room temperature, and then frozen into giant iced tea bricks. The coffee is depulped and the cascara ice cubes join the beans in the fermentation tank for an 18-hour soak. Unwashed, the coffee is happily put to bed for nine days.
As you have likely surmised, the different styles of process enhance different qualities inherent in the beans and fruit of the coffee. The washed process reveals classically dark chocolate, nutty, and stone fruit notes. The Burundi process encourages a more pronounced floral character, with a clean finish and amazing aroma. The natural process is incredibly fruity, showing off with notes of pineapple, banana and chocolate. The iced cascara is perhaps the most complex – with the processing becoming both colder and more wet, the floral, orange, blueberry and red apple notes are dynamically connected flavor experiences.
All four processes create standout coffees. We are selling these as a set – two pour-overs in about 6oz portions are available of the washed and Burundi style, as well as the natural and cascara style. They are available as online order only coffees on our website, www.constellationpickup.com.
These coffees will be brewed to order, so we thank you in advance for your patience and using our online ordering system.
Beans on Sale! /
The Summer is winding down. We wanted to take the opportunity to offer a special - $5 off your retail bag purchase from August 22 through 29th. If you normally order online, use the code “TAKEFIVE” at checkout.
We’ve brought in a variety of roasters during the pandemic - this is a great time to find your new favorite offering. See you soon!
No gratuity necessary! /
The past year has afforded us a lengthy look in the mirror. This reflective time has manifested in many decisions based on where we’ve come from and where we’d like to go. In alignment with our goals of being a world-class establishment for coffee quality while keeping our community in mind, we are happy to announce a no-tip policy at Constellation.
Tipping has always been an interesting part of the arrangement at a café. Coffee people have honed in a specific skill set that can take years to master, and even when we are tired, busy, or over-caffeinated, we are going to do our best to make your drink because we are proud of our craft.
Finances have been complicated for everyone over the past year. We would never want our customers to feel like they can’t come in and get a beverage or snack because money is too tight. Based on what we’ve heard and seen over the past year from many of you, safe trips out of the house have been a necessary diversion and anticipated delight.
We appreciate your business. Having people who understand our style and what we do is the most rewarding part of running a small operation such as ours. Seeing familiar faces and catching up daily then adding a gratuity feels, well, gratuitous. We hope for increased equity among all our service industry folks, and with that in mind, we’re doing what we can to get our establishment up to par with our ideals.
There are some of you who took to leaving large tips to help the business during the pandemic. If you love what we do (thank you!) and want to make a donation to support continued operations, there is a paypal link on the website, or, just visit us more often! Cheers!
Alternative Milks /
We had removed almond milk from our menu after learning of the environmental impact of growing the nuts back in 2019. Not only does it take approximately 15 gallons of water to produce about 16 almonds[1], but they are predominantly grown in drought-prone California. The USDA Pesticide data program has found residues of nearly nine different pesticides on almonds, five of which are toxic to honey bees. Bees are recruited from all across the states to help force pollinate the almond trees grown in California. This unnatural process is a strain on the bees. Traveling outside of a normal flight radius and mingling with different hives brings more diseases such as mites, parasites, and viruses home with the bees, resulting in a routine loss of 30% (or more! [2]) bees per year.
We keep dairy milk on our menu, despite its environmental drawbacks, because we buy our milk from local farms engaging in sustainable practices and not practicing monoculture style growing. We enjoy supporting our neighbors and the rural economy. If you’d prefer a non-dairy option, we also carry soy and oat milk, and many of our drinks taste great without any creams or sugar.
The pandemic has made issues of care and maintenance for the community prominent topics. It has always been our MO to provide a safe, clean, and professional environment with reliable quality. We value responsibility – this encompasses not only the sustainability practices of the café, but showing up to work each day with a sense of appreciation and attention. We are endlessly grateful for our guests who understand this commitment to thoughtfulness and integrity applies to every facet of the café, even if that means we have to say “no” sometimes. Thank you and stay warm and safe this winter season, we hope to see you soon.
[1] https://sustainability.ucsf.edu/1.713
[2] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/07/honeybees-deaths-almonds-hives-aoe
We saved you a seat! /
Be sure to visit our new physically distanced outdoor seating.
Come on in and order in person, or order in advance with our online site, constellationpickup.com . All drinks remain takeout only.
The gravel portion of the lot has room to space out and enjoy your visit. In the garden area we are working on growing lots of bird, bee, and butterfly friendly pollinator plants. Thanks for understanding that it’s still under construction - as soon as the sidewalk is ready we'll be happy to share this space with you as well!
We’re so grateful for your support and happy to offer some fresh drinks and fresh air!
We're back, baby! /
We’re happy to announce our return to business. We will be open for takeout only starting Wednesday, July 29th. We will be open Tuesday through Sunday from 8am to 2pm.
We ask that customers use our online ordering system, www.constellationpickup.com, and wear a mask while collecting drinks. We have the store set up so baristas are safely distanced from customers, and vice versa. We thank you for your patience and support while we get through this pandemic together!
Temporarily Closed /
We hope everyone is taking proper precaution to stay safe during the new yellow phase for Pittsburgh. We have decided to temporarily close. We are tremendously grateful for people who have supported our shop during the pandemic and are sorry to depart just as the economy is beginning to reopen.
However, the safety of our staff and community come first, and with warmer weather and increased walk in traffic it is becoming more difficult to maintain the level of safety and product quality. We are very thankful for your support and please stay well, we’ll see you in the green!!