Great link by the California Milk Processor Board on how to make a latte at home for around $.35!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Where do you get your coffee from?
I have had lots of people ask where I get my coffee from. As a wholesale coffee roaster, we get our coffee from a green coffee importer. They import the green coffee from 20+ countries, of the 40+ countries coffee comes from. They usually buy the coffee in shipping containers of 200+ bags. We buy it in burlap sacks of 132 or 152 lbs. They coffee comes to our roasting facility on shipping pallet through a freight carrier on a semi truck and trailer. Hopefully someday we will able to travel to the farms where our coffee is grown to get the full "seed to cup" story first hand.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
The Story of
New Roots Coffee Company
How is the world did you get into
the coffee roasting business?
This is one of the first questions that people ask us when we tell them what New Roots Coffee Company is. I thought I would tell you the abridged story of how I came to be roasting coffee in Northern Wisconsin.
About a year before we would get married Katie and I 'went out for coffee' together for the first time. It was a tiny storefront coffee shop/café with loads of hippy college students, bare brick walls, worn hardwood floors, a single bathroom in the basement and great local artwork on the walls. The place was Coffee News Cafe and it is still located on Grand Avenue just west of Snelling Avenue in St Paul, MN. It was here that both of us shared that we would love to own a coffee shop someday. That was late 1999.
After five years in my (Joseph's) first career, I got burnt out. Then, I worked construction for two years and decided that it didn't fuel my passion. I saw a coffee shop for sale and investigated purchasing it. After deciding that taking over someone else's business wasn't for me, I looked at starting a coffee business from scratch. I discovered that there was not a single wholesale specialty coffee roaster within one hour of Wausau,WI, so I wrote a detailed business plan and finagled the financing to do things right.
We remodeled half of the basement of our home and shoehorned a used 1400lb. Probat L12 coffee roaster down the stairs.
Getting the coffee roaster through the door and down the stairs
We ordered bags of green coffee from Colombia, Ethiopia, Papua New Guinea, Guatemala, Rwanda and Sumatra through Cafe Imports in St. Paul, MN totaling 834 lbs. On November 13th, 2007 New Roots Coffee Company LLC was officially in business.
Joseph using his farm-boy skidsteer skills to unload the green coffee from the semi.
I had the honor of being trained by coffee legend, Victor Allen Mondry, who dropped out of medical school in 1979 to start a little shop in Madison called Victor Allen's. Victor is still my mentor and friend and recently told me, "I'm proud of you." which did my soul well. Victor also helps me source some of the coffees that I have offer.
Sample roasting at Victor's old cupping lab in Paoli, WI
Along they way we became members of the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) and attended their annual convention in Long Beach, CA. We were blown away by being in the midst of coffee farmers, baristas, roasters and other professionals from over 30 countries. Through SCAA we have received extensive hands-on training in coffee cupping, roasting, brewing and espresso.
We became a Fair Trade Certified licensed coffee roaster and have done everything we can to be a business that is socially and environmentally responsible and that makes the world a better place to live in. We believe in roasting coffee that helps coffee farmers make a reasonable living, is grown sustainably and is exceptional in your cup so everyone wins.
We got into coffee roasting because we have a passion for coffee. We will never have a huge selection, but you can be assured that the coffee that we offer will be carefully selected for its outstanding aroma, taste and body.
New Roots Coffee Company
How is the world did you get into
the coffee roasting business?
This is one of the first questions that people ask us when we tell them what New Roots Coffee Company is. I thought I would tell you the abridged story of how I came to be roasting coffee in Northern Wisconsin.
About a year before we would get married Katie and I 'went out for coffee' together for the first time. It was a tiny storefront coffee shop/café with loads of hippy college students, bare brick walls, worn hardwood floors, a single bathroom in the basement and great local artwork on the walls. The place was Coffee News Cafe and it is still located on Grand Avenue just west of Snelling Avenue in St Paul, MN. It was here that both of us shared that we would love to own a coffee shop someday. That was late 1999.
After five years in my (Joseph's) first career, I got burnt out. Then, I worked construction for two years and decided that it didn't fuel my passion. I saw a coffee shop for sale and investigated purchasing it. After deciding that taking over someone else's business wasn't for me, I looked at starting a coffee business from scratch. I discovered that there was not a single wholesale specialty coffee roaster within one hour of Wausau,WI, so I wrote a detailed business plan and finagled the financing to do things right.
We remodeled half of the basement of our home and shoehorned a used 1400lb. Probat L12 coffee roaster down the stairs.
Getting the coffee roaster through the door and down the stairs
We ordered bags of green coffee from Colombia, Ethiopia, Papua New Guinea, Guatemala, Rwanda and Sumatra through Cafe Imports in St. Paul, MN totaling 834 lbs. On November 13th, 2007 New Roots Coffee Company LLC was officially in business.
Joseph using his farm-boy skidsteer skills to unload the green coffee from the semi.
I had the honor of being trained by coffee legend, Victor Allen Mondry, who dropped out of medical school in 1979 to start a little shop in Madison called Victor Allen's. Victor is still my mentor and friend and recently told me, "I'm proud of you." which did my soul well. Victor also helps me source some of the coffees that I have offer.
Sample roasting at Victor's old cupping lab in Paoli, WI
Along they way we became members of the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) and attended their annual convention in Long Beach, CA. We were blown away by being in the midst of coffee farmers, baristas, roasters and other professionals from over 30 countries. Through SCAA we have received extensive hands-on training in coffee cupping, roasting, brewing and espresso.
We became a Fair Trade Certified licensed coffee roaster and have done everything we can to be a business that is socially and environmentally responsible and that makes the world a better place to live in. We believe in roasting coffee that helps coffee farmers make a reasonable living, is grown sustainably and is exceptional in your cup so everyone wins.
We got into coffee roasting because we have a passion for coffee. We will never have a huge selection, but you can be assured that the coffee that we offer will be carefully selected for its outstanding aroma, taste and body.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Acidity in Specialty Coffee
Acidity is generally considered to be a desirable aspect in specialty coffee. It give our senses the wonderful notes of lemon, grapefruit and orange. It can also make a coffee taste "winey" which is something I really love in coffee.
Much of the acidity in coffee comes in the form of chlorogenic acids, which are powerful anitioxidants with proven health benefits. Coffee also contains phosphic acids which can contribute to a cup of coffee feeling sweet. These are commonly found in coffees from East Africa like our Ethiopias, Rwanda, and Congo.
When I roast a coffee as a light roast, like our Guatemala or Ethiopia, it will usually have a higher perceived acidity then our darker roast coffees like our Sumatra, Peru or Midnight Blend.
Just to make things interesting our new Snowshoe Winter Blend is a blend of light roast and dark roast coffees. It makes for a wonderfully unique coffee to spice up the bland midwinter months. Email me to order a bag or look for it at newrootscoffee.com soon!
Much of the acidity in coffee comes in the form of chlorogenic acids, which are powerful anitioxidants with proven health benefits. Coffee also contains phosphic acids which can contribute to a cup of coffee feeling sweet. These are commonly found in coffees from East Africa like our Ethiopias, Rwanda, and Congo.
When I roast a coffee as a light roast, like our Guatemala or Ethiopia, it will usually have a higher perceived acidity then our darker roast coffees like our Sumatra, Peru or Midnight Blend.
Just to make things interesting our new Snowshoe Winter Blend is a blend of light roast and dark roast coffees. It makes for a wonderfully unique coffee to spice up the bland midwinter months. Email me to order a bag or look for it at newrootscoffee.com soon!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Coffee and Other Vices
A few weeks ago I saw a great article in Newsweek on how people in the face of bad economic times, people are still going to bars, smoking and hitting strip clubs like they always have. It seems that these things insulate us and comfort us. I wonder if coffee is the same. Do people whose pocket books are smaller and who feel a bit depressed drink less coffee? I think not. Interesting. Isn't coffee great! It is the ultimate affordable luxury.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Choosing a roast that fits your tastes.
Coffee Tip # 3
Coffee beans are unlocked by the roasting process. As green coffee is roasted it goes from being a hard little light green bean with little taste to how it tastes when you brew up a cup of your favorite New Roots coffee, aw...(wait for it)...some!
Our coffee tip this week is a quick guide to coffee roasts.
Light Roast
After coffee reaches the "first crack" in the roasting process at about 380 degrees F, it begins to develop as a light roast coffee. This is generally considered the lightest coffee most people would want to drink.
Light Roast Characteristics
High Acidity, medium body, low sweetness and maximum amount of origin characteristics.
This means that when you brew a cup of our light roast Ethiopia Yergecheffe you get a full dose of the citrus, floral and melon notes that make a great referred sing.
Medium Roast
Medium Roast coffee can also be referred to as a full city roast. This is the point around when the coffee reaches "second crack" and "pops" a second time. This is the lowest level that is usually used for an espresso blend.
Medium Roast Characteristics
Fully developed aroma and complexity, medium acidity and increased sweetness
Our Sawtooth Autumn Blend, Colombia Decaf and Rwanda are medium roasts.
Dark Roast
Little coffees from the green mermaid place (*bucks) fall below this roast level. My mentor, Victor Allen Mondry, got me hooked on light and medium roast, but we do offer a few dark roast coffees. At this roast level, the beans have a shiny surface and can have oil droplets on the outside of the bean.
Dark Roast Characteristics
Low acidity, full aroma, full body, full sweetness and the minimum amount of origin characteristics
Our Midnight Blend, Peru and Sumatra at dark roast coffees, with the Sumatra being the darkest.
Beyond
After this you reach super dark roast territory which includes French and Italian Roasts. We don't offer any beans this dark because at this point all of the origins just seem to taste the same. It's just not our style, because all of the hard work we did sourcing exceptional beans kind of goes of the chimney.
Enjoy your Autumn,
Joseph Zimmermann
New Roots Coffee Company
Coffee beans are unlocked by the roasting process. As green coffee is roasted it goes from being a hard little light green bean with little taste to how it tastes when you brew up a cup of your favorite New Roots coffee, aw...(wait for it)...some!
Our coffee tip this week is a quick guide to coffee roasts.
Light Roast
After coffee reaches the "first crack" in the roasting process at about 380 degrees F, it begins to develop as a light roast coffee. This is generally considered the lightest coffee most people would want to drink.
Light Roast Characteristics
High Acidity, medium body, low sweetness and maximum amount of origin characteristics.
This means that when you brew a cup of our light roast Ethiopia Yergecheffe you get a full dose of the citrus, floral and melon notes that make a great referred sing.
Medium Roast
Medium Roast coffee can also be referred to as a full city roast. This is the point around when the coffee reaches "second crack" and "pops" a second time. This is the lowest level that is usually used for an espresso blend.
Medium Roast Characteristics
Fully developed aroma and complexity, medium acidity and increased sweetness
Our Sawtooth Autumn Blend, Colombia Decaf and Rwanda are medium roasts.
Dark Roast
Little coffees from the green mermaid place (*bucks) fall below this roast level. My mentor, Victor Allen Mondry, got me hooked on light and medium roast, but we do offer a few dark roast coffees. At this roast level, the beans have a shiny surface and can have oil droplets on the outside of the bean.
Dark Roast Characteristics
Low acidity, full aroma, full body, full sweetness and the minimum amount of origin characteristics
Our Midnight Blend, Peru and Sumatra at dark roast coffees, with the Sumatra being the darkest.
Beyond
After this you reach super dark roast territory which includes French and Italian Roasts. We don't offer any beans this dark because at this point all of the origins just seem to taste the same. It's just not our style, because all of the hard work we did sourcing exceptional beans kind of goes of the chimney.
Enjoy your Autumn,
Joseph Zimmermann
New Roots Coffee Company
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Choosing a coffee that fits your tastes- part 1
Choosing a good coffee that you will like can be very daunting. Just a few years ago I would just randomly pick a bag off the shelf and unfortunately I had a hard time telling the difference from one to the next. When I decided to start roasting coffee, I was my basic goal that no one would be indifferent about the coffees that I roast. I carefully choose the coffees that I roast so that each of them have a very unique flavor and aroma profile. We don't expect anyone to be in love with all our coffees but we believe that almost everyone will be able to find the one the best fits them.
Coffees is grown in more then 40 countries around the world. The following is a breakdown of the world's main coffee growing regions.
Americas
This group includes that coffees grown in Central and South America as well as Hawaii. Coffees from Guatemala, Colombia and Costa Rica are know for the punch of bright acidity that they bring to the cup. Our Guatemala Huehuetenango and Colombia Decaf are great examples of these coffees.
Coffees from Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Panama, El Salvador, and Nicaragua are generally more mellow and nice breakfast coffees. The also make sweet and chocolaty dark-roast coffees. Our Mexico Decaf and Peru are smooth dark roasts.
Africa and Surrounding Countries
Coffees from this growing region really shine in the cup with their unmistakable wine and fruit note following full acidity. This includes the coffees of Ethiopia (Harrar, Sidamo and Yergecheffe), Yeman, Rwanda, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Uganda. Our bestselling Ethiopia Yergacheffe with its delightful citrus, floral and melon notes, and our winey Rwanda are some of the region best coffees.
Indonesia and surrounding Pacific Islands
The jungle coffees of the third growing region have whole flavor profiles of their own. They can have rich deep acidity and funky earth tones that can occasionally be a bit musty (in good way). They can include coffees grown in Sumatra, Sulawesi, Papua New Guinea, India and Timor. Our Sumatra Mandheling and Papua New Guinea AA showcase some the this regions best.
Next week we will look at some more aspects of choosing a coffee that is right for you.
Coffees is grown in more then 40 countries around the world. The following is a breakdown of the world's main coffee growing regions.
Americas
This group includes that coffees grown in Central and South America as well as Hawaii. Coffees from Guatemala, Colombia and Costa Rica are know for the punch of bright acidity that they bring to the cup. Our Guatemala Huehuetenango and Colombia Decaf are great examples of these coffees.
Coffees from Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Panama, El Salvador, and Nicaragua are generally more mellow and nice breakfast coffees. The also make sweet and chocolaty dark-roast coffees. Our Mexico Decaf and Peru are smooth dark roasts.
Africa and Surrounding Countries
Coffees from this growing region really shine in the cup with their unmistakable wine and fruit note following full acidity. This includes the coffees of Ethiopia (Harrar, Sidamo and Yergecheffe), Yeman, Rwanda, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Uganda. Our bestselling Ethiopia Yergacheffe with its delightful citrus, floral and melon notes, and our winey Rwanda are some of the region best coffees.
Indonesia and surrounding Pacific Islands
The jungle coffees of the third growing region have whole flavor profiles of their own. They can have rich deep acidity and funky earth tones that can occasionally be a bit musty (in good way). They can include coffees grown in Sumatra, Sulawesi, Papua New Guinea, India and Timor. Our Sumatra Mandheling and Papua New Guinea AA showcase some the this regions best.
Next week we will look at some more aspects of choosing a coffee that is right for you.
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