If you were following along with us even a little last weekend, you were made aware a few times over of our eager presence at Coffee Fest in Chicago. We thought it only fair that we give you the "after" - a peak into what the boys learned and most enjoyed so we can continue our vicarious coffee adventuring.

Houston says...

"My favorite part of being at Coffee Fest was being able to jump into a connected community of people and interact as friends immediately- Traipsing around the city as a rag-tag group of baristas and roasters.

The competition was a lot of fun, and even though I didn't do so well- or as well as I did in New York- I did learn a lot. And I'm going to be practicing non-stop until next time.

It was amazing to visit different shops and to see very different ideas of what it means to create a space for your customers. "

Luke says...

"My favorite parts of the fest were:

--Experiencing once again what a passionate, dedicated and generous community this group of coffee nuts is. It was fun to share in that and see how much we all want to help each other succeed in bringing coffee greatness everywhere.

--Good coffee plus lots of coffee-related things equals lots of stimulating conversation about how we can keep moving Quills forward. That's a plus. I think we all came back eager to see the passion spread through the staff.

--seeing numerous other shops -each with its own focus, style and flair. And each being awesome in its own way. That stimulates a lot of ideas about how we can be who WE are, but even better.

--Being reminded once again that our importers, Cafe Imports, are so freaking awesome! They are generous with their expertise and generous with their time and resources. Love working with that crew!"

Jesse says...

"Yeah, we did the tourist thing.