The blustery weather provided the perfect backdrop for this past Saturday's free Peace Coffee cupping, attended by more than 20 coffee lovers. When we arrived at Peace Coffee's Minneapolis headquarters, we were treated to Peace Coffee's new seasonal Pollinator blend (which replaces the well-loved Winter Snowshoe Brew), muffins and scones from the Birchwood Cafe, and Marketing Director Mel Meegan's tour of the warehouse and its impressive roasters. A few minutes later, we were sitting at long tables, staring at delicious-smelling cups of coffee grounds. I don't think any of us knew what to do.
Fortunately, Head Roaster Keith Tomlinson made it easy for us to follow along, offering all sorts of coffee factoids ("it takes three years for a coffee plant to bear fruit, and it will produce for seven years"), tips for keeping tasting notes ("if I smell something and I think of my Grandma, it's Guatemalan - where does your memory take you?"), and perfected slurping techniques (loud and quick!). It's clear that the folks at Peace Coffee are exceptionally talented, incredibly passionate about their work, and committed to fair trade ideals.
In the following 3-minute video, Keith describes what's happening in the fair trade market along with Peace Coffee's approach. The first few seconds are choppy, but if you stick with it, I bet you'll learn something. And if you enjoy Peace Coffee at all already, watching this video is bound to make you like it even more:
In many ways, the fair trade discussion is much like the organic food discussion - many companies see the advantages of aligning themselves with the growing market, but fewer of them are true to the ideals that define it.
Win a Pound of Coffee
SGT has partnered with Peace Coffee to offer our own organic, fair trade, Ugandan Peaberry coffee. (I don't like to brag, but many of the folks at this weekend's tasting thought it was the best one.)
To win a free pound of these glorious beans, post a comment below, telling us what kind of coffee (brand, roast, brewing method, etc.) is your favorite (don't forget to leave your email address). We'll pick a winner at random on Friday and let you know.
Comments
I don't really have a brand that I'm loyal to; I prefer medium roast and my favorite brewing method is a stovetop percolator. I've ony recently come to enjoy coffee; for years, I loved the smell, but just couldn't enjoy the bitter taste. One winter, it was cold and the heater in my work truck was broken. Too have some kind of warmth in the truck, I took to drinking coffee all day. I was won over.
I enjoy the dark roast coffee from European Roasterie, a MN company. We buy whole bean and use the drip method mostly. We are serious java heads in our house; it's not unusual that we make 3-4 pots a day. Sometimes if I want just one perfect cup, I use our tiny press pot to make it.
Med. Roast Sumatran, usually from peace.
My preference for espresso, as most esp roasts
go too dark, lose complexity.
Sadly, I can't get Peace Coffee here in Milwaukee!
My all-time favorite coffee is Peet's Kenya Auction Lot, but since I don't make it out to California very often, my stalwart blend is Alterra's Blue Heeler, a blend of regular and dark-roasted Sumatran beans -- fair trade, organic, smooth, and completely delicious.
As for brewing, we pull out the French press for special occasions, and use a standard drip machine everyday.
We like medium roast/light roast coffee and we buy organic when we can find it. . . although not always easy. Seems that most organic coffee that we run into is dark roast. We haven't found a brand we can be loyal to. We have a drip machine.
I don't care what the brand is as long as it is fair trade and dark, dark, dark roast. Black as night, black as pitch, please. I brew it in my trusty French press that I bought in 1999 at a rummage sale for 50 cents.
Sumatran Full City Roast! Complex but smooth.
I just bought some Peace Coffee this weekend and it is tasty! I use my french press every morning.
french pressed medium roast full body
peace coffee rocks :)
I'm in love with Peace Coffee's Mexican Dark Roast. Just one scoop per cup in Mr Coffee makes my day.
Hello, my favorite is Peace Ethiopian blend - light roast - brewed in a french press. It is as smooth as it gets, but still with complex flavors. As with most coffee, goes wonderfully with chocolate!
Complex, smooth, strong, dark, rich, and tasty.
Wait... are we talking about coffee or men?
I am a fan of Muggsy's Beans from St. Cloud, MN. His medium roast Organic Mexican is sooooooo goooooood! He has a blend called the Sunday Morning Blend that is part Mexican Organic part Peruvian that has both roasted nut and chocolate notes. http://muggsysbeans.com/ Lovely stuff. When I'm out of Muggsy's or out and about in the Twin Cities I go for Peace Coffee's Nicaraguan Medium roast :)
Love the Birchwood Blend from Peace made as espresso. A great tip from a coffee class!
Peace Coffee is my all-time favorite. I think I've always been fond of their Ethiopian blend but lately I've been veering towards their Mexican blend at Common Roots. After the tasting, I'm sold on Peaberry! STovetop perculator is my fav!
For the person who commented they can't get Peace Coffee in Milwaukee, you can always order it online!
i love a good dark roast, black. brands are less important as long as it's good quality.
Ethiopian yirgacheffe from The Bean Factory in Saint Paul is the best coffee I have tried around the cities. I have tried it from other places too and The Beat Factory seems to have the best.
Currently I have Sam's Choice Coffee (WalMart brand). It was the best buy, so I decided to try it. I buy regular ground coffee, because I find it more flavorful than decaffinated coffee. I have an auto coffee pot with a timer and an auto shut off.
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