Fair Trade Rwanda Dukunde Kawa
Last week my kids had their fall break, so we took the opportunity as a family to continue our national park tour. Our original plan was to head north, and see Crater Lake, Mt. Rainier, and Olympic, but the weather was so stormy that we had a last minute change of plans. Two weeks ago on Friday we drove to Pinnacles National Park, where it was not raining, and set up camp among the oak trees. The next day we hiked through Bear Gulch Cave, which the kids loved, and went up to the Bear Gulch reservoir.
In the caves at Pinnacles National Park
We also took a boat out to Channel Islands National Park, Santa Cruz island. That was certainly a highlight of our week, especially seeing dolphins both coming and going. We stayed on the ocean that night. After that we headed to Joshua Tree National Park, where we had the best camping spot among the boulders at the Jumbo Rocks campground.
The most interesting part of our week may have been stopping at Manzanar National Historic Site on our way home. It was a Japanese internment camp during the second world war, and they have done a great job of telling the stories of those who lived there. The theme as we walked around was that we’ve made mistakes as a nation and we need to remember them. It was good to discuss with the kids.
This week we’re all back to work and school, and it’s good to be in a routine again. Road trips are fun, but so are our daily lives. This week I have two coffees for you, since there was no newsletter last week. The featured coffee for this week was our Costa Rica Dota Santa Maria, which was the first carbon neutral farm in Costa Rica. It’s a sweet, smooth bean with brown sugar notes and a light vanilla finish. You can read about it in this newsletter from last year.
We are featuring our Fair Trade Rwanda Dukunde Kawa this week. This is a completely different tasting profile from the Costa Rican, so you are welcome to try whichever appeals to you. This coffee comes from a cooperative run by mainly women farmers, who have come together to process their coffee. They are giving back by helping build washing stations across the country. You can read what we wrote about this coffee (different crop, but from the same co-op) here and here. In the cup, this coffee has light citrus notes, with a medium body and a nutty finish.
You can try either of these coffees this week with the code road trip*. If you like to travel, I hope that you get out on the road soon. If you live nearby, enjoy your rainy weekend. Drink good coffee while you listen to the drops pounding down. Cheers!
–Holly Fike
*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Fair Trade Rwanda Dukunde Kawa or Costa Rica Dota Santa Maria Tarrazu. Code expires on 11.03.16. Limit one free cup per customer please. Valid only at Carolines Coffee Roasters, 128 S. Auburn Street, Grass Valley, CA. Code/Offer has no cash value.