This week, we're talking coffee, with special guest Marc Maron. I wasn't able to be there for the taping, but that hasn't stopped me from doing a little coffee field work. I checked out the heavily hyped Blue Bottle Coffee, which just opened a New York store.

Normally I steer clear of expensive coffee houses. Some of the best espressos I've ever had came out of greasy pizza joints, from big, powerful machines that have been sitting on counters for decades, maybe even hauled over from the old country by the owner's ancestors. They're delicious, simple, fast, and much cheaper than at the ritzy coffee shops.

There's nothing simple, fast or cheap about Blue Bottle. Merely ordering requires plunging into a flowchart of decisions, including the machine they'll make it in and what beans they'll utilize. There are several permutations of espresso alone, to say nothing of the multiple lattes, cappuchinos and mochas possible when milk or chocolate come into play. Everything is made to order, even drip coffee. This makes for slow going at the counter. Most folks waiting didn't seem to mind, presumably because it gave them time to snap photos with gleaming DSLRs and ponder their upcoming Yelp reviews.

The elaborate setup above makes the "Kyoto" iced coffee. It's a long and apparently painstaking process that produces an unusual brew, with intense, boozy flavors of chocolate and dark fruit. Making coffee taste like barleywine or Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout is a neat trick, but at $4.50 for a tiny cup, I don't plan on purchasing the overpowering drink again. The "New Orleans" iced coffee is spiked with chicory. I'm pretty sure that's cheating, but it's undeniably delicious and a notch cheaper than its Japanese cousin. I also liked their drip coffee, though I'm not sure the theatrics of making it one cup at a time substantially improved it.

The coffee is tasty, but requires ample funds and patience. I think the store will pick up equally passionate fans and foes. Anyone else tried Blue Bottle, in New York or at its established West Coast stores? /mg