La Colombe!

La Colombe was (and is) my ultimate stop for coffee in D.C.  Ultimate in both senses of the word- final, as well as the best.  If you want to have the best coffee that I found in D.C., this is absolutely the place to go.  Sadly, I did a terrible job of getting photos of it, so you will have to bear with a mostly-words description.

La Colombe is decorated with sedate walnut stained wood, warm brick, and cool steel.  Everything else is black.  The lights are a slightly warm white, and are augmented (and overpowered) by a large skylight and by the windows.  The indirect light from is very warm since it is reflected off the reddish brick and wood surfaces.  The chairs and furniture appear to be site-specific and have matching stain and hardware across the store.  One notable feature is the black and brass features on the furniture- something I have not seen elsewhere.

The coffee was amazing.  I had something fruity from their workshop selection, and it was easily the best coffee I have had in at least a year- maybe more.  I described it in my notebook as “it smells and tastes of cherries.  It is acidic, fruity and clean”.  The coffee was served in a highly decorated mug, with blue and red floral and bird patterns.  The saucer had a matching bird and floral pattern.  Easily the coolest mug to date, aside from the old monkey-on-a-rocket-ship mugs from Diesel.  That is high praise coming from me!