Barista is a little more Pearl District and a little less indie than former tenant Acorn, but the place is still entirely coffee-geeky. Their beans come not only from the perfunctory Stumptown whizzes, but from equally epicurean roasters in Chicago, Durham, and the Bay Area. Pastries from the excellent Nuvrei also mean business.

The windows of this shabby, old brick building glow warmly in the fog and drizzle of an early morning. There’s something about stumbling in here, sans adrenaline and hope, that makes the able hands of your barista no less than mystical. Coffee is, after oil (and sometimes steel and grain), the largest market in the world; it’s been shown that people who drink coffee are less likely to commit suicide (one more day, one more cup). So no wonder that in Portland—which is the perfect storm between gastronomic obsession and coffee addiction—there are more and more places making coffee with devoted precision and artisanship.

These baristas are generous with their knowledge and passion for coffee; they will patiently offer information to help you choose, and will explain the various processes used to make it (just please don’t expect this during rushes—we’re in line behind you, and we’re on the edge).

Most basic is the French press, done expertly with a uniform grind for the best extraction; then espresso shots of your choice of coffee, pulled short with a fine crema; macchiatos, lattes, and cappuccinos are made with specific espressos to best suit the milk, and don’t bring any 2% nonsense in here—it’s only whole milk, baby (or soy). From there, you may indulge in a vanilla or mocha latte, but it will be made with organic cane sugar and Guittard chocolate. That’s as far from the pure product as they’ll go.

But the Ferrari experience comes in the form of a $10 cup of vacuum-pot-brewed coffee. Seeing these glass-and-brass contraptions lined up together reminds us of the workshop of some Victorian mad scientist. This method will drip you a cup so gently (and slowly) that the nuanced flavors all sing clearly, where they are otherwise somewhat pummeled and muffled, even by careful hands. Try a cup, and decide for yourself whether it’s worth the money.