With a new thermal coffee pot and grinder at home, we're going through a lot more coffee than we did before. I'm curious, where do people buy coffee beans?
Sometimes we do Starbucks beans, but we like the Blackwater or Commencement Bay Coffee route better we can swing it. Are there any coffee connoisseurs who know where we can get a really excellent pound of beans in town?
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
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5 comments:
Ah, coffee...
If you are concerned about the environment and social justice, please consider buying only Fair Trade certified coffee. The growers recieve a fair price for their coffee, we get coffee that is grown in a sustainable manner, i.e. no rain forest or bird habitat destruction and organic farming methods. For more info, please visit http://www.transfairusa.org/content/about/overview.php
Now, for local vendors. My new favorite is Satelitte
Coffee where you can buy really good Stumptown (Portland) beans. Firehouse Coffee is headquartered in University Place and sells their beans at Origin 23 on Sixth & Union. Some of their coffee is Fair Trade certified. I have not yet purchased their beans. Top Foods carries Tony's (Bellingham) coffee, which is usually a little less costly and still delicious. Tony's has several great fair trade certified coffees. I also like Tully's coffee; they get extra points for their recent fair trade and compostable cups initiatives. You can buy Tully's beans at any Tully's location as well as Albertson's. Fred Meyer carries Green Mountain Coffee. My good friend and former professor at Puget Sound, Matt Warning, has been working with a cooperative in Oaxaca for years whose beans are carried by Green Mountain.
If you are tempted to order beans on-line, Peace Coffee (www.peacecoffee.com) is a great outfit in Minneapolis that uses bicycles to deliver their beans all over their city. The coffee is tasty too!
Can't get more local than Mandolin!
(Though, I think that's what they sell at Blackwater)
I buy Satellite, whenever possible. Their beans start at around $11 something, which is really not bad for direct trade, high quality beans.
When I'm at the Metropolitan Market late at night, I buy Valhalla beans, roasted at the Mandolin. They are also excellent.
If you're buying online, try Nossa Familia - run by friends of mine from UP and DELICIOUS. It's one of the guys' family who grows the beans, and they give lots of money to charity.
If you're buying in town, call me biased, but I always liked Bertolino's house blend. I do like Stumptown beans from Portland, too.
It's a matter of taste, of course. But for my money, Valhalla is the best roast in town. What ever you decide on, you want to make sure it's fresh. You can pick up Valhalla at Mandolin, Blackwater, or Metro Market. At home, I use the Viking blend in a French press. Mmmmmmmmm.
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