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Weekly Newsletter: Organic Honduran

Posted on January 23 2015 by Holly Fike

American River Header Organic Honduran

Last night about half of our employees got together and played with coffeemakers. We ate pizza (thanks Pete’s!) and brewed coffee a dozen different ways. The most interesting were the Hario Syphon pot, which looks like a science experiment, and the Aeropress, which brews espresso strength coffee without needing electricity. We also experimented with the different Capresso coffeemakers and grinders that we carry.

Watching the syphon pot brew.

We’ve all refreshed our coffeemaker knowledge, so if you have questions, come on in. You can find a list of the different brewers that we carry here. We have display models of each, and we’ll gladly demonstrate them for you.

Last night we also sampled our new coffee of the week, brewed several different ways. This is an Organic Honduran coffee, from the far west side of Honduras, high in the mountains. The bag is marked SHG, or Strictly High Grown. This means a lower yield, which will produces higher quality coffee. The beans themselves tend to be denser at higher elevations.

Our Organic Honduran is roasted light and it has a nice balanced acidity. I really enjoyed sipping it, even if I did stay up extra late with all the coffee I drank. It also has notes of sweet honey and lightly roasted nuts. The aroma is tremendous: the pound I took home has been perfuming my room all week.

Today marks the beginning of Nevada County Restaurant Week. You can find more information and a list of participating restaurants here. We’ve got a deal going on where if you mention the code “restaurant week,” you receive a dollar off the espresso drink of your choice. Many other local eateries have specials this week too: the event is new this year, so I look forward to seeing it grow.

In addition to restaurant week you can try our Organic Honduran this week with the code salmon fry.* I’ve got salmon on my mind since I spent Wednesday with my son’s class releasing baby salmon (or “fry”) into the American River. The students had raised the salmon from eggs, and now the fish were big enough to start their three year journey down to the ocean and back. For some of the kids it was a joyful experience, and some were sad to say good-bye.

Whether you’re sad or joyful, I hope you get outside for this (yet again) sunny weekend. We’ve still got our gourmet foods half off if you head this way. No matter how you spend your time, drink good coffee. Cheers.
–Holly Fike

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Organic Honduran. Code expires on 1.29.15. 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.

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Free Coffee, Honduras coffee, Organic Honduran, Weekly Newsletter | Comments Off

Weekly Newsletter: Spreading Cheer with a Giveaway

Posted on December 26 2014 by Holly Fike

Kayak Header Spreading Cheer with a Giveaway

Edited, 1.02.15 :: The winner has been randomly selected and notified, and it is Brenda Kersieck. Congratulations Brenda, and thank you to everyone for entering.

And just like that, it’s all over. Last night, late, when I was tucking my kids in bed, little Caroline said to me: “Christmas goes by too fast, doesn’t it Mom?” I actually felt like our day had a nice pace to it. The kids got up early, but didn’t leave their room until the magic hour of 7 am. We opened gifts and stockings together for a few hours, and then had a big breakfast. Jack got to try out his new kayak, and he paddled his sister around for a while.

A gift basket of goodies chosen with care by this smiling seven year old.

In the middle of the day we all relaxed–I even got a short Christmas nap in. Then the day finished with more family and friends gathered around a prime rib that Trace cooked to perfection. What could be better than eating and laughing with those you love? I know that not everyone has the privilege of having so many people around, and I am grateful for each of those who were available to celebrate with us.

Some of you may not have had a joy filled day like we did. I was talking to my daughter today, and we decided that to spread cheer we would like to give away a gift basket. So we walked around the store together and chose items that we thought someone would enjoy. It even includes a page of original seven-year-old art.

All you have to do to win is leave a comment on this post.* We’d like to know one thing for which you are thankful this holiday season. If you have more to share, we’re glad to hear that too. The winner will be chosen at random next Friday, January 2nd, so you have one week to enter.

In other news, our Christmas Coffee is only available until the end of the year, so come get it before it’s gone. May you have a good remainder of your holiday season, and I hope that you are looking forward to 2015. I know that I am. The next time I write, the new year will have joined us in all of her shining glory. Shine on.
–Holly Fike

*All the details: no purchase necessary to enter or to win. Giveaway is limited to residents of the United States. Entrants must be 18 years old or older. Duplicate entries will only be counted once. Winner will be chosen at random and notified via e-mail on January 2nd, 2015. Prize must be collected by January 16th, 2015 for Nevada County residents, or a shipping address must be provided by that date if winner is out of county.

Posted in Celebrations, Giveaway, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, giveaway, Weekly Newsletter | 60 Comments

Weekly Newsletter: Discounted Bulk Coffee This Week

Posted on December 12 2014 by Holly Fike

Birds on a wire header Organic Rainforest Alliance El Salvador Las Lajas

As of today there are less than two weeks until Christmas. Can you believe it? I feel like as a public service announcement I should state that we do gift wrap for free, for those of you who are still shopping. Better than that, we serve coffee drinks while you wait. The retail side of our shop is fairly slow most of the year, while the cafe side is nonstop. But in the month of December, coffeemakers, gift baskets, and bulk coffee sales keep us hopping at both registers.

Visiting Santa at Cornish Christmas

After regular brewed coffee, eggnog lattes and peppermint mochas seem to be keeping people going this holiday season. There’s a perpetual line for those items. Our 2014 Christmas Coffee is hard to keep on the shelves, and our dark chocolate covered espresso beans are the hottest stocking stuffer this year. It’s always interesting to me to see how tastes change over the years, and which items remain as favorites. It’s fair to say that coffee and chocolate are always popular.

This week we have a different kind of promotion for you. In order to include all of those whose favorite coffee is something other than what we usually feature (decaf drinkers, dark roast lovers etc.), we are offering $2 off per pound of the bulk coffee of your choice. You can use the code my choice* this week to receive your discount.

We do have a featured coffee this week, even though the discount is for bulk coffee. We’ve brought in an Organic Rainforest Alliance Certified El Salvador Las Lajas. The Rainforest Alliance has a website here that tells about their mission to aid coffee farmers while also protecting the land on which they farm. This means that this El Salvador was grown more like coffees were originally: under a canopy of trees, on healthy land.

This El Salvador is from the Izalco region of western El Salvador. It is produced by a cooperative of farmers who collectively own the estate. The coffee is a washed bourbon, and it is still hand-sorted at harvest. There are more details here. We’ve roasted it light, and the first thing you notice is the aroma of sweet caramel and nuts. It actually reminds me of this salted caramel popcorn that we carry. I bet they would be good together.

When you sip the El Salvador, the flavor is more nuanced. It does have a nutty taste, but also a light acidity that enhances the sweetness. It has a medium body and a long finish. Honey and nuts come to mind–those were the words being bandied around as we all sampled it. It was a favorite among our employees today.

Whether the skies above you are gray or blue, enjoy your December. We’ll be open until 9 pm tonight for Cornish Christmas, which goes forward rain or shine. I think that each week has had a threat of rain, only to hold off for most of the event. Hopefully tonight goes the same way. Whatever the weather, drink good coffee. Cheers!
–Holly Fike

*Code good for $2 off per pound of the bulk coffee of your choice ($1 off per half pound). Code expires on 12.18.14. Valid only at Carolines Coffee Roasters, 128 S. Auburn Street, Grass Valley, CA. Code/Offer has no cash value.

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Downtown Events, Holidays, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Organic coffee, Organic Rainforest Alliance El Salvador, Rainforest Alliance, Weekly Newsletter | Comments Off

Weekly Newsletter: Sophia Colombian Supremo

Posted on December 5 2014 by Holly Fike

Christmas Header Sophia Colombian Supremo

Welcome to December. In our home we’ve made the transition from fall decor to Christmas trappings in the last week. Each year the kids decorate the Christmas tree, and while I loved their youthful clusters of ornaments, I’m appreciating the symmetrical beauty of our tree this year. We’ve been getting up and having “cuddle time” in front of the tree in the mornings. It’s a peaceful way to begin the day.

Warm up this December with a peppermint mocha.

I’ve been drinking our Christmas Coffee this week, and thoroughly enjoying it. For next week I’m considering switching to the Panama Geisha. It’s a remarkable coffee, and perfect for a treat this time of year. Traditionally we have served our Jamaican Blue Mountain at Christmas, but since it is unavailable, we will be treasuring the La Esmeralda Panama Geisha instead. If you would like to join us, it is $5 off both online and in the store this week.

In other news, Cornish Christmas is going on tonight, and we will be open until 9 pm serving drinks to warm you up. The first event last week was a busy success, and we’re looking forward to the three remaining nights (December 5th, 12th, and 29th). Also, in the spirit of giving, we gave away a bag of our Christmas Coffee on our Facebook page this week (follow us there and on our blog for more seasonal giveaways), and we contributed to this awesome giveaway from the Outside Inn, which you can still enter.

Today we have a new version of an old coffee for you to sample. We have always carried a Colombian Supremo: it is a perennial best seller for us. In fact (true confessions), when I worked here in high school, over twenty years ago, this was the coffee we would recommend as an entry point into specialty coffees. That was back when most people drank coffee out of a can, and “gourmet coffee” was new and unknown–and seen as very expensive at $5 a pound.

Our Sophia Colombian Supremo comes from small farms in the Andes mountains, on the west side of the country. These are farms that also grow crops of bananas and pineapples, a diversification that helps with economic stability. It is a screen 19, meaning the the beans themselves are large. While this does not necessarily relate to the flavor in the cup, it does help them roast evenly, and the beans were gorgeous flowing out of the roaster today.

Brewed in the cup this Sophia Colombian has an earthy flavor, with a twinkling acidity. It has a medium to full body and the taste lingers as you sip, so that you want to try more. You can sample this Colombian on us with the code Yule Log* this week.

I wish you all a December full of peace and twinkling lights. Cheers.
–Holly Fike

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Sophia Colombian Supremo. Code expires on 12.11.14. 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.

Posted in Downtown Events, Holiday Drinks, Holidays, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged 2014 Christmas Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Colombian Coffee, Free Coffee, giveaway, Panama Geisha, Sophia Colombian Supremo, Weekly Newsletter | Comments Off

Weekly Newsletter: Christmas Coffee 2014

Posted on December 2 2014 by Holly Fike

Thanksgiving Centerpiece Christmas Coffee 2014

I hope that each of you enjoyed your Thanksgiving, and found someone with whom to share it. We had a small group this year, an even dozen around the table, and it was the right size to be able to talk to everyone. Although by the end of the meal conversation died down: I think that we were all in a food coma. There were so many delectable choices that it was hard to decide what to eat, and a little bit of everything made for a very full plate.

Our day began at the MEBII Turkey Trot, with a couple thousand other people. We have brewed coffee for the event since its inception nine years ago, and both of my kids have run/walked it every Thanksgiving of their lives. Each year I appreciate how Mike Bratton stands in front of the crowd and shares how his son took his own life, and how this event supports suicide and depression services in our community. It’s a powerful and brave statement. It causes me to reflect on the blessing of family–a good way to begin a day of gratitude.

Today we have for you our limited edition Christmas Coffee. We did something entirely different this year with the label: we have a set of four different themes. They’re all based on Christmas songs, and acted out by our employees. The four featured labels are “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” “I Saw Mommy Kissin’ Santa Claus,” “Walking in a Winter Wonderland,” and “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.” We took all the photos here at the store, and at the bottom of this post you can see a preview of each (in order from left to right).

The coffee itself is the same, no matter which label you get. The back label with the description reads:

“It’s been over 30 years since we started
roasting coffee, and we’ve had a Christmas
Coffee blend almost that long. In all that time, it
has never contained cloves or cinnamon or any
flavoring: it’s simply great coffees that we think
will go well together.

This year is no exception. This Christmas Coffee
is a blend of Celebes Kalossi and Rwanda with a
hint of French Roast. It’s fragrant, with a bold &
balanced taste. Enjoy it with as much laughter as
we shared creating the photos for this label.”

This week you can sample our 2014 Christmas Coffee with the code goofy picture*. Check back next week for the beginning of our December Deals–there will be more variety in the coupons for the next month. We like to spend the month of December appreciating our customers, so look for giveaways too. Enjoy the rest of your holiday weekend, and drink good coffee. Oh, and come see us at Cornish Christmas tonight: we’ll be open until 9 pm. Cheers!
–Holly Fike

From left to right: “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” “I Saw Mommy Kissin’ Santa Claus,” “Walking in a Winter Wonderland,” and “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.”

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of 2014 Christmas Coffee. Code expires on 12.04.14. 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.

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Downtown Events, Holidays, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged 2014 Christmas Coffee, Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Celebes Kalossi, Christmas Coffee, coffee blends, Cornish Christmas, Free Coffee, MEB2 Turkey Trot, Rwanda Akagera Bourbon, Weekly Newsletter | Comments Off

Weekly Newsletter: Hacienda La Esmeralda Panama Geisha

Posted on November 21 2014 by Holly Fike

Fall Header 2 Hacienda La Esmeralda Panama Geisha

Thanksgiving is right around the corner. For us, it is a day off among the busyness of the holiday season. A respite before the whirlwind that is the month of December. We start off the day with the MEB II Turkey Trot, and then we have plenty of time to cook and bake before family arrives in the evening. There will be time for gratitude, for friends and family and food. I look forward to it.

We have a treat for you this week. This is a coffee that has made quite a splash in the coffee world. I don’t often discuss the different varietals that make up the coffee we drink, but this one is worthy of mention. In very broad terms, there are two main species of coffee plants, robusta and arabica. We source only coffea arabica, which is higher quality.

La Esmeralda bag Within the arabica plant, however, there are a number of different varieties or cultivars. The Celebes Kalossi that we featured last week was a typica, and the Rwanda from the week before was a bourbon. You can read more about the different botany terms in this SCAA article here, or find an overview on Wikipedia here.

I bring up the varieties of coffee, because this week’s coffee is unique. It originated in the Ethiopian town of Gesha, and was planted in Panama in the 50’s as an alternate variety, resistant to leaf rust. In the coffee world it has caused quite a stir in recent years, since the Peterson family, who own Hacienda La Esmeralda, in Boquete Panama, isolated the variety and its special flavor.

This gesha or geisha (either spelling works) has a flavor very different from any other variety the Petersons grew on their extensive acreage. After discovering how unique it was, they processed it as single variety, and it won the Best of Panama (similar to the Cup of Excellence), and the SCAA’s World’s Best Specialty Coffee for several years running. You can read more details in this excellent post, and the Hacienda Esmeralda website here.

This Hacienda La Esmeralda Geisha is so sought after, that we have never carried it before. It so impressed the judges in the competitions ten years ago because the taste is so unlike other Central American coffees. It is bright and floral, with strong fruit tones, more like the Ethiopian beans where it originated.

After isolating the geisha as the source of these extraordinary flavors, the Peterson’s took it one step further. They systematically cupped geisha grown at different areas and elevations on their land, and found that the higher grown beans showed even more exquisite characteristics. Over the last seven years they have auctioned their coffee by the area in which it is grown.

This geisha is not their reserve (which has been auctioned at over $100 dollars a pound, green). It is the 1500, meaning that it is grown above that elevation. We are selling it to you for $39.95/lb. Because it is so expensive, we are not brewing it for the free cup (sorry), but we are giving you a coupon for five dollars off a pound. You can use the code geisha variety for your discount in the store–on the website it is already on sale.

Trace roasted this today so that we could all experience it. It was a treat to taste: dancing in your mouth with herbal and citrus tones. As it cooled it had a depth of flavor, with dried fruit notes coming to the forefront. It is very reminiscent of the Ethiopian Yirgacheffe that we carry. It is completely different than any other Panama coffee that we’ve ever had.

So this week you have the opportunity to purchase this exclusive coffee for $5 off a pound. We’ll have it in stock until it runs out–hopefully until Christmas. Our brewed coffee sample this week will remain the Celebes Kalossi, by popular demand (you can use last weeks code of rich brew to try it). And next week will mark the beginning of our limited edition Christmas Coffee, so check in for more details about that. Happy Thanksgiving to one and all, and know that we are thankful for each of you.
With gratitude,
–Holly Fike

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, geisha, Geisha 1500, La Esmeralda Geisha, La Hacienda Esmeralda, Panama coffee, Panama Geisha, Weekly Newsletter | 1 Comment

Weekly Newsletter: Celebes Kalossi

Posted on November 14 2014 by Holly Fike

Award Picture Celebes Kalossi

I apologize for the blurry header photo. It commemorates our Wednesday night, when we received an award from the Grass Valley Downtown Association as the 2014 Business of the Year. It was a surprise and an honor to be chosen. We love our downtown association, and all that they do to promote our business district. You can read more about the event on the Sierra FoodWineArt blog, here.

fall2 We had a great dowsing of rain yesterday, which cleared up into a misty foggy morning today. There are still fall colors around, and the yellow and red leaves dripping delighted my heart this morning. If you love the brilliance of autumn like I do, check out the Instagram contest that the Outside Inn is hosting here. Among other things you could win a Pumpkin Spice Latte from us.

This week we transformed the store into a Christmas theme, since Good Day Sacramento was filming downtown on Wednesday morning. You can see a video clip featuring Tess’ Kitchen Store here. The local merchants came together to decorate and make downtown festive. It makes it feel like the holidays are rapidly approaching to see the stockings hung and the tree ready. We even have eggnog lattes!

I know that the mention of eggnog lattes sends some of you running to get one immediately and the rest of you running the other way. They seem to be a love it or leave it kind of item. For those of you who prefer straight black coffee, we’ve got a treat for you this week. Our coffee of the week is our Celebes Kalossi.

This comes from the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. It is a tradition to call it Celebes, since that was the former name of the island. This coffee is roasted light, but the flavor is bold and smooth. It is almost creamy as you sip, with a sweetness that lingers. I could drink this all day.

Yesterday I spent the day sick in bed, listening to the rain. That so seldom happens to me that it seemed rather a treat, at least once I was feeling better. I missed my coffee yesterday, so I’m looking forward to brewing this Celebes Kalossi tomorrow morning. If you would like to try this rich brew*, mention those words to us this week. Enjoy!
–Holly Fike

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Celebes Kalossi. Code expires on 11.20.14. 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.

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Celebes Kalossi, Free Coffee, Indonesian coffee, Sulawesi, Weekly Newsletter | 1 Comment

Weekly Newsletter: Rwanda Akagera Bourbon

Posted on November 7 2014 by Holly Fike

Yuba River Rwanda Akagera Bourbon

Welcome to November. We’re one week into the month and so far it has been downright lovely. Last Monday I had the fun of rafting on the Yuba River with my son’s fourth grade class. What a way to spend a day. I was bundled up in layers that came off at our first stop. The header picture was taken that day, and you can see that the skies are as clear as could be. We saw salmon in all stages of the spawning process, and their redds (nests) were fun to spot.

Goofy Staff Pic Last night we had a staff meeting and a photo shoot all rolled into one. We were taking pictures for our Christmas Coffee label, so I won’t ruin the surprise, but we had a lot of fun. This team is great at having a good time together. The picture to the right is one of the outtakes from our group shot.

The holiday season is approaching. In downtown Grass Valley we’re kicking it off with the Holiday Open House tomorrow. Participating merchants will have sales, samples and more going on. We are giving away one of our Breakfast Baskets, so come on in to enter.

This week our special coffee is the Rwanda Akagera Bourbon. The term bourbon, besides being a type of whiskey, is a particular variety of arabica coffee. When arabica coffee was planted on Bourbon Island, it mutated, and formed a new distinct variety. Now bourbon beans can be found around the world, where in the way of plants they continue to change into new varieties of arabica.

This particular bean comes from family-owned farms organized around a co-op in the far southeast of Rwanda, almost to Tanzania. There are pictures of this coffee being harvested here. These are hand-picked beans, processed in community, that have traveled the world to be roasted for you. This coffee is roasted light and has a strong herbal finish. Becky said the lingering flavor on her palate reminded her of horseradish.

I found it to be sweeter than many African beans, with a bright acidity. It definitely fills your mouth with flavor. You can try a cup on us this week with the code Team Carolines. We will be working as a team this holiday season. Enjoy your November weekend, and if you live around here, get outside. It’s supposed to be gorgeous again. Cheers!
–Holly Fike

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Rwanda Akagera. Code expires on 11.13.14. 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.

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Downtown Events, Employees, Giveaway, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged African coffee, Free Coffee, Rwanda Akagera Bourbon, Rwanda coffee, Weekly Newsletter | 1 Comment

Weekly Newsletter: Fair Trade Organic Peru

Posted on October 31 2014 by Holly Fike

Pirates Header Fair Trade Organic Peru

Argh mateys! And happy Halloween. It’s already the last week of October. The rain has arrived, just in time to welcome November. Around here we spent the morning greeting preschool trick-or-treaters. The theme in the store was pirates, and the entire morning was filled with “avasts,” and “ahoys.”

A penguin and a falconer ready for school.

This is definitely the day of the year with the cutest customers. There is an album on our Facebook page, here, filled with darling children. My favorite was dressed as a stop light, homemade, with lights that actually worked. People are so amazingly creative. The scene as I dropped my kids off at school this morning was also filled with intricate and original costumes.

My two children hopped out of bed this morning, eager to dress in their creations. Caroline was a penguin, and Jack was a falconer. Both were ideas they had come up with on their own, and they had a lot of fun designing their outfits. Caroline hates scary things, but she sure enjoys dressing up.

I wish I could say that this week’s coffee had some great creepy or scary name, for a perfect segue, but alas we are featuring our Fair Trade Organic Peruvian. There’s nothing unusual about the name, but it is a tasty bean. It is grown on family owned farms on the eastern side of the Andes, and it is fully washed and sun-dried.

This coffee is processed by the Pangoa co-op, which was founded in 1977 to support its members in growing quality coffee. You can read more about Pangoa here. They work with farmers not only to improve growing practices, but also to support education opportunities and life necessities for their members.

Fair Trade Organic Peru is roasted light, and has a pleasant acidity. It has a light body and sweet mellow tones that taste of caramel. It’s easy to drink and goes well with Halloween candy, if you have kids with a bit extra. You can try a cup on us with the code creepy coffee* this week.

This evening we’re heading out trick-or-treating, and Aunt Becky is even making potato doughnuts for the kids: a family tradition. You can’t have too much sugar on Halloween, right? Whatever your plans are, enjoy your evening, and drink good coffee. Cheers!
–Holly Fike

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Fair Trade Organic Peru. Code expires on 11.06.14. 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..

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Downtown Events, Holidays, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Fair Trade Organic Peru, Free Coffee, giveaway, light roast, Peruvian coffee, South America, Weekly Newsletter | Comments Off

Weekly Newsletter: Fair Trade Organic Mexican Chiapas

Posted on October 24 2014 by Holly Fike

Sitting at anchor Fair Trade Organic Mexican Chiapas

Last week my two kids were out of school for Fall Break, and we took the opportunity to visit their older brother, who is at Naval Submarine School in Connecticut. It was a great trip of seeing the fall colors (I learned the term “leaf peepers”), touring Boston, spending time on the Atlantic ocean, eating local lobster and oysters (yum!), and trying to find places to watch the SF Giants playoff games.

A fine looking Navy man.

In short, we had entirely too much fun. The kids reinforced their grasp of American history as we toured the Boston Freedom Trail and visited Plymouth rock and the Mayflower II. Their favorite part, however, was playing on the beach each morning. We actually stayed in Rhode Island, right on the water, and by the end of the week our hotel room table was covered with their “treasures.”

This week’s coffee is a treasure in itself: it is certified both organic and fair trade. The Chiapas region of Mexico is the furthest south bit, not far from Guatemala. The coffee is grown in the Sierra Madre* mountains, by farmers who work together in a co-op to process their coffee. It is a fully washed, clean coffee, with beautifully even green beans.

My first thought upon tasting this Chiapas was the strong nutty flavor. I think that I could drink way too much of this, especially on a rainy day, like we have forecast for this weekend. It has bittersweet chocolate notes and finishes with a light acidity that lingers.

Enjoy your October weekend, rain or not. Next Friday will be Halloween, so I’m sure that we’ll have some great pictures of the downtown Preschool Trick-or-Treat. I think that the theme here is leaning towards pirates, so arrrgh matey! More details next week. Cheers!
–Holly Fike

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Fair Trade Organic Mexican Chiapas. Code expires on 10.30.14. 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.

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Fair Trade Organic, Fair Trade Organic Mexican Chiapas, Free Coffee, Mexican coffee, Weekly Newsletter | Comments Off

Weekly Newsletter: Papua New Guinea

Posted on October 9 2014 by Holly Fike

Fall Ball Pic Papua New Guinea

I have to say that October is a beautiful month. Cooler weather (well, maybe next week anyway), brilliantly colored trees, and for this San Francisco Giants fan, playoff baseball. I also had the joy of watching my son playing ball this week. Despite the black eye from a wild pitch, he had a great time. My apologies for the blurry header picture–I forgot my camera and had to resort to my phone.

Pouring a cup of Papua New Guinea

I know that whenever we feature a coffee from Papua New Guinea I talk about my mother. She is a teacher in an international school there, and I certainly know most of my PNG facts because of her. Papua New Guinea is a country with extreme topography. This makes internal infrastructure difficult, and airplanes are the principal means of transportation around much of the country.

Despite these difficulties, and the fact that there are hundreds of different ethnic groups and over eight hundred indigenous languages (can you imagine?), coffee continues to be grown and processed in Papua New Guinea. It is quite a feat to get this quality of coffee to the market.

This week’s coffee is a flat-bean, as opposed to the peaberry that we have often featured. This simply means that the normal two beans grow inside each cherry. Each bean thus has a flat side, where they face each other.

We brewed up a French press of this coffee today, and the overwhelming comment was that it had Indian spice flavors, predominantly cardamom. As it cools you taste more of a lingering acidity and a mild nuttiness.

Sometimes a light roast coffee has such subtle flavors that someone whose palate is accustomed to a darker roast misses the nuances. I think that even a dark roast lover could taste the vibrant spice notes in this bean. You can come in and try a cup on us using the code challenges overcome* this week.

I hope that you are each enjoying your October. One bright side of the drought we are experiencing is that there are so many opportunities to be outdoors. Hopefully we’ll have more rain soon, but in the meantime, savor these beautiful fall days, and drink good coffee. Cheers!
–Holly Fike

*Code good for one free 12 ounce cup of Papua New Guinea. Code expires on 10.16.14. 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.

Posted in Coffee Descriptions, Weekly Newsletters | Tagged Carolines Coffee, Carolines Coffee Roasters, Free Coffee, Papua New Guinea, Papua New Guinea coffee, Weekly Newsletter | Comments Off

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