Well, I finally got a chance to spend the day in my old coffee stomping grounds Athens, Georgia, this past weekend. It was honestly good to have extra time to really see the new coffee scene there. I had met a couple of guys off here that I knew were in coffee there, and was excited to see what they had going on nowadays. I wasn't disappointed, and was really pleasantly surprised. I visited a couple of shops I had been to before, of course Jittery Joes, and Walker's Coffee and Bar (or whatever it's called now. I know it as where Blue Sky Coffee used to be, the best coffeehouse I have ever been in to this day.) The two new shops I was able to visit were Two Story Coffee in Five Points, and Red Eye in the Bottleworks complex. I had met both Zech White and Dave Delchamps on here, and it was cool to meet them in real life. Two very cool shops doing really cool stuff.
First off, Two Story Coffee.

A great coffeehouse a mere block away from the classic Five Points Jittery Joes. The shop inside was impeccable, warm, and full of cool little talk/work cavities I love. The bar, really nice layout. Nice menu, clean, purist, and no brewer, all french press or pourover. Nice Aurelia and Mythos combo. Baristas were all really cool, as were the owners who happened in as I was there. I had a pourover of their Costa, and it was a nice clean, buttery, smooth cup, just as I had envisioned. Dave Delchamps was super cool, and really passionate about coffee and espresso, which I think is rad. He thinks he may compete in the SERBC, and to that, I raise a glass of Cheers!
Now, onto Red Eye Coffee, off Prince Avenue.

Red Eye is a great new shop in Athens. Has a very minimalist feel, reminds me of Albina Press in Portland. Shop is nice, good seating, and nice size. Bar is cool, Aurelia and Super Jollys. Gregg, the owner was really cool, as was a bX regular Zech White. They do Chemex and french press, and also have a real basic, purist menu. It's good to see these kinda shops popping up in the Southeast. Coffee and Crema in Greenville, SC is another example of a great shop like this. I had a latte that was perfect. Another great shop.
Both shops left me rejuvenated at the coffee scene there, and in the Southeast overall. It also encouraged me to keep on the path of spreading this love for good coffee and espresso, to helping more of these shops open up, and for making other shops better. If you get a chance to go through Athens, I highly recommend both of these shops.