While cleaning out some old paperwork, we came across these original sketches of our logo that we thought would be fun to share with you
 
Back in 2004, we gave my brother some coffee beans that we thought looked slightly grumpy.
A couple of simple sketches later, inspired by those coffee beans with imagined faces, we had a logo!

We are looking forward to watching the NERBC at the Coffee & Tea Festival this weekend.
All of you baristas out there – please join us on Saturday evening 8-11pm in DUMBO for a get-together at ReBar.

The harvest is only in the very beginning stages in some regions in Costa Rica and has yet to start in others, but it was still a very informative and exciting trip. I visited producer’s mills in Tarrazu, Costa Rica then flew to Panama to visit Volcan and Boquete. The next week, I headed back to Costa Rica to visit the Central and West Valleys.
 
Since this was my first visit to Costa Rica, it was great chance to spend time visiting mills and speaking with producers to learn more about how the coffee industry in Costa Rica works. They are moving away from having centralized processing mills where producers would simply deliver their coffee cherry to a mill to now processing their own cherry and working directly with an exporter. This is especially exciting for us as coffee roasters because it means the conversation between us and the producer has fewer intermediaries.
 
During this trip, I also had the opportunity to meet a producer we have been working with for the last couple of years – Richardo Calderon. His coffee has always been an exceptional arrival. In fact, it is the one I wait all year to receive and then feel sad when we roast through it all! Richardo and his sons have a few farms and a very thoughtful perception on producing coffee as well as pride in their mill. It’s very promising to see an entire family dedicated to such high quality production and it looks to be that the next generation of Calderons will be great farmers, just like the current generation.
 
The second half of the week in Panama was just as interesting as our time in Costa Rica. Over the last two years, both lots of coffee we have featured from Panama were bought through the International Best of Panama Competition. The selections entered into these competitions have always been impressive and I took this visit as a chance to discover what factors in to producing such great coffees.
 

There is, in Boquete, maybe even more pride and friendly competition between producers then I have ever before seen. Boquete is a pretty remarkable place for growing coffee due to its many micro-climates. All of the basic rules of quality are strictly adhered to so it is almost like crossing off any external variables and tasting truly how the available nutrients, moisture, and maturation of each micro-climate effects cup quality.
 

I returned from this trip very excited and hopeful for the coming year in coffees.
 
-Colleen
 
View more photos from this trip here.

It is that time again! Over the next two weeks, we’ll be posting some holiday gift ideas for your coffee-loving friends.
 
We are proud to present these three unique coffee selections from Colombia. We have been working with the El Meridiano Co-op, Desarrollo Co-op & Jose Ider Zapata for a couple of years now. We feel that these selections showcase the hard work and dedication of these producers with their distinct and complex profiles.
 
-El Meridiano, Produced by El Meridiano Co-op, Herrera, Tolima
Mellow sweetness with notes of honey and red apple. Tangerine brightness. Waffle cone in the finish.
-Desarrollo, Produced by Desarrollo Co-op, Gigante, Huila
Red grapefruit, candied apricot, peaches & cream, brown sugar, tangerine.
-La Coqueta, Produced by Jose Ider Zapata, Herrera, Tolima
Delicate herbal rose aroma, maple sweetness, citrus zest.
 
The Colombian Coffee Sampler Set ($40) contains three ½ lb bags of coffee beans (sealed in bags with one-way degassing valves). The set comes in a kraft gift box with our logo stamped on it. For our out of town friends, you can order the sets online here.

We are happy to support Action Against Hunger’s online charity auction with this fun coffee experience: Indulge your coffee habit for 6 months with our VIP card. We’ll buy you coffee every day for six months as well as sign you up for three of our coffee education classes. This would also make a great gift for your coffee-enthusiast friend. Start bidding now!
 
Check out all of the other unique experiences and auction lots here.
 
“Recognized as a leader in the fight against malnutrition, Action Against Hunger | ACF International saves the lives of malnourished children while providing communities with access to safe water and sustainable solutions to hunger. With 30 years of expertise in emergency situations of conflict, natural disaster, and chronic food insecurity, ACF runs life-saving programs in some 40 countries benefiting five million people each year.” Learn more about Action Against Hunger here.

From November 1st through November 30th, we will be donating $1 to Grounds for Health for every bag of Aragón, Guatemala beans we sell.
 
Please help us support this worthwhile cause. You can find bags of fresh-roasted beans at all of our locations or you can order through our online store.
 
About the coffee:
This selection comes from Alejandro Zelaya Andrade’s farm Aragon located in Antigua, Guatemala. Cultivating both Bourbon and Caturra varietals, Alejandro Zelaya Andrade brings the ripe coffee cherries to his cousin Louis Pedro Zelaya’s Beneficio – Bella Vista, where the coffee is pulped and fermented employing the washed process. Careful attention is paid to cleanliness, separation of lots and drying times on the patio. After resting in parchment for three to four weeks, the coffee is then milled and carefully packaged in grainpro liners ready for it’s voyage to our roastery. The Zelaya’s teamwork helps insure that the quality of this beautiful coffee is maintained during its processing and journey.

Tasting notes: Candied apple, plum, caramel, tangerine.
 
About Grounds for Health:
• Grounds for Health is a non-profit organization that focuses on women’s health issues in coffee-growing communities.
• Specifically: Grounds for Health works with communities to establish sustainable cervical cancer prevention, screening and treatment programs.
• Cervical cancer is the #1 cause of cancer death among women in developing countries, even though it is preventable with early detection.
• Grounds for Health currently has programs in Latin America (Mexico and Nicaragua) and Tanzania.