Chocolate City Coffee Palace & Bodega

11/30/2023

THE RETURN OF HOLIDANK!!!!

Shop Dark Matter Coffee's Holidank collection. Filled with Holiday blends, apparel, and gifts.

04/11/2023

Hello Beautiful people! Unfortunately, the great city of Chicago did it AGAIN...it seems Grand Avenue is under construction AGAIN...for now, we are temporarily closing the store down. Please come visit us around the corner at The Mothership, or Star Lounge while we all wait to be together again.

03/23/2023

In this weekend’s shows, he’ll stage “Francis Comes Alive,” that will see him attempt to create a live album a la the great “Frampton Comes Alive!”

03/14/2023

The Heroine blend celebrates International Women's Day on the 8th and kicks off Women's History Month. We are excited to highlight a coffee from an all-women coffee cooperative in Rwanda. The Women's Coffee Extension (WCE) Kawa Yacu cooperative was founded in 2017 and now has over 700 producers! "Kawa Yacu" translates to "our coffee!" This washed coffee has a surprising amount of acidity, with bright citrusy notes up front. We paired this with a washed Catuai from San Jeronimo Miramar to balance the cup bringing more sweetness.

Notes: Marzipan, Watermelon, and Tamarind

02/24/2023

Hey King, you dropped this, a sweet & tasty coffee aged in Copper & Kings Brandy Barrel! You may remember this bad boy from our Barrel Bonanza, but we loved this one so much we HAD to bring it back! Known for making brandy that doesn't use additives, Copper & Kings establishes how true American brandy should taste: with natural sweetness and spice. We aged our honey-processed bourbon from Santa Petrona inside, highlighting the same sweetness and spice delivered by the brandy.

02/10/2023

SANTA PETRONA PACAMARA
AN ELEGANT COFFEE FOR INQUISITIVE MINDS
This cultivar was produced by the Salvadoran Institute for Coffee Research in 1958, and combines the sturdy, resilient plant structure of the Pacas variety with the exceptional cup profile of the Maragogype. With a relatively high rate of reverting to Pacas, this coffee can be a challenge to cultivate, however, Federico has done a great job forming a strong and healthy population of Pacamaras.

Pacamara beans are also a bit larger than your average coffee and tend to cup peppery and spicy when they're young, but explosively fruity and lively when matured and properly cultivated! We find this coffee to have a slightly citrusy profile with a fun herbaceous character coming through on the finish. Both the high altitude of these trees and the size of the cherries cause these fruits to take more time to ripen, making them some of the last cherries to be harvested from Federico's farms each year, but definitely worth the wait!

02/03/2023

Let’s think critically, question bravely, and abandon bias in pursuit of something greater . . .

Intellectual Curiosity is back to continue our exploration of the journey coffee has taken from its origins in Ethiopia. We started with a Kenyan coffee, a rarity for us here at Dark Matter. There is a unique, tea-like, and bright profile to this coffee that stands out from the Central American profile we're accustomed to tasting. We paired this with Tamba, experimental hybrids grown at Finca San Jeronimo Miramar in Guatemala, that cross-breed coffee genetics from east Africa with Central American cultivars. Together these two components create a juicy, citrusy blend with a complex cup profile that is sure to spark conversation and demand a deeper look.

Artwork by Rahmaan Statik

01/20/2023

Get high on FREE Brown Acid (while supplies last), grab some grub, and support The Last Prisoner Project!

01/19/2023

Tamba was a lioness that prowled the land of Finca San Jeronimo Miramar in Guatemala years ago. She is now the spirit animal of the farm, safeguarding the pristine grounds under the shadow of the volcano.⁠
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Tamba begins with innovation and discovery. It is a culmination of new and obscure coffee cultivars yet to be released anywhere in the world. These wild, uncultivated coffees were discovered in the forests of Ethiopia and grown on the upper slopes of the Atitlan volcano.⁠
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These experimental lots are minuscule in size, but expansive in diversity. Tamba will evolve over time as an exploration of each individual genetic grown on the farm.⁠
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This year's harvest sees more fruit and citrus notes than years past, with a nice indulgent milk chocolate base that sparks feelings of familiarity while embracing something new and unknown.

01/06/2023

We wanted to create a blend that will warm you up on these cold mornings, using two Salvadoran coffees. The base is a washed Bourbon from Santa Petrona, a wonderful example of a classic coffee profile of El Salvador. We paired this with a honey-processed coffee that has a touch of roast, rounding out the body and adding more caramelized notes to the blend.

Art by FEDZ ART

12/27/2022

Santa Petrona cultivates some of our most revered cultivars of coffees we release every year. This washed expression is a great example of exceptional Bourbon. On drip, it is amazing and classic and a wonderful crowd pleaser. Try it on pour over as it opens up and allows you to really perceive the layers to this one.

Notes: Praline, Cantaloupe, Graham Cracker

12/26/2022

Hey King, you dropped this, sweet & tasty coffee aged in Copper & Kings Brandy Barrel. Known for making brandy that doesn't use additives, establishes how true American brandy should taste, natural sweetness, and spice. We aged our honey-processed bourbon from Santa Petrona inside, highlighting the same sweetness and spice delivered by the brandy.

Notes: Werther's Caramels, Concord Grape, Cinnamon