Category Archives: Coffee

Introducing Classic Italian Espresso Blend

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Based on the recipe from Sweet Maria’s, Classic Italian Espresso Blend is a full bodied, full flavored coffee with just a hint of acidity and bitterness that one would expect from an espresso blend. It is great as a drip brewed or pressed coffee, but it’s even better made in a moka pot or espresso machine. This blend will be available starting 7 July at the Piqua Farmer’s Market, and you can also pick some up at the Covington Farmer’s Market (Facebook) or the Downtown Troy Farmer’s Market.

DLH

Breaking things in

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Well, all of the parts of the new roaster arrived over the weekend, and right now, I am engaged in the process of breaking my roaster in with the hope of doing my first test roasts tonight. If all goes well–and I expect it will–I should be back to roasting on a normal schedule tomorrow.

In the mean time, I should also pass along the fact that I will be selling coffee at the Downtown Troy Farmer’s Market at least for the month of June. I will decide toward the end of June whether to do the rest of the season based on sales during the four weeks I know I will be there.

Also, as promised, I will be adding some new coffees to my lineup, specifically Brazilian, Guatemalan Villa Herminia Estate, Mexican Turqueza Estate, and Mexican Chiapas Free Trade Organic. In the near future, I will also add a classic espresso blend, a house espresso blend, and a dark roast blend. If all goes well–again depending on sales–I plan to add more varieties toward the end of the year.

Finally, and unfortunately, the run-up in commodity prices has hit the coffee market pretty hard over the past year, causing some single origin coffees to go up as much as 50 percent in price since last year at this time. Because I price my coffees based on my wholesale cost, I have no choice but to increase my prices in order to cover the cost of buying green beans. Most of the increases will be between 1o and 20 percent ($1 or $2 per pound).

Stay tuned for further developments.

DLH

The last of the Coatepec and a nearly perfect dark roast

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Today was something of a sad day as I roasted the last of my stock of Genuine Mexican Coatepec (it is no longer available), but on the bright side, I nailed the dark roast I was trying to achieve with it. The finished product has definite hints of chocolate, caramel, and  (I know this will seem strange to some) freshly tilled earth. It’s beautiful, and I’ll miss having it.

On the bright side, I will be replacing the Coatepec with a similar coffee (Mexican Altura). Unfortunately, it’s a lot more expensive than the Coatepec I’ve been roasting, but it will be there for southern Mexican coffee fans.

Speaking of new coffees, I will be adding two new varieties to the mix soon as well: Mexican Chiapas FTO and Mexican Turqueza Estate (sense a theme here?). We’re also experimenting with new blends to add to our current very popular House blend.

Stay tuned, there’s always more coming.

DLH

The last of the Coatepec and a nearly perfect dark roast

Posted on by

Today was something of a sad day as I roasted the last of my stock of Genuine Mexican Coatepec (it is no longer available), but on the bright side, I nailed the dark roast I was trying to achieve with it. The finished product has definite hints of chocolate, caramel, and  (I know this will seem strange to some) freshly tilled earth. It’s beautiful, and I’ll miss having it.

On the bright side, I will be replacing the Coatepec with a similar coffee (Mexican Altura). Unfortunately, it’s a lot more expensive than the Coatepec I’ve been roasting, but it will be there for southern Mexican coffee fans.

Speaking of new coffees, I will be adding two new varieties to the mix soon as well: Mexican Chiapas FTO and Mexican Turqueza Estate (sense a theme here?). We’re also experimenting with new blends to add to our current very popular House blend.

Stay tuned, there’s always more coming.

DLH