Author: TJ

TJ is the Marketing Director for Camano Island Coffee Roasters. TJ is a wannabe coffee snob, who enjoys writing and photographing coffee, reading books, watching movies with his wife, and hiking with his dogs.
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April’s Coffee of the Month 2010 – Guatemala Medium Roast and Ethiopia Reserve

Last month we brought back a yearly favorite, our blend of Papua New Guinea and Sumatra. We call it “PapuaMatra.”  For April’s coffee of the month, we’re bringing you another coffee blend that received quite a warm welcome last year.

“Introducing the Coffee of the Month: Guatetopia!”

April’s coffee of the month, our Guatetopian coffee, is a fun melding of our Guatemalan coffee with our Ethiopian coffee. Our Ethiopian brings a distinct blueberry-like fruitiness to the combo while the Guatemalan rounds the flavor with a steady base and a slight citrus tone. It’s an amazing, “odd couple” combination that leaves us all wishing it were around all throughout the year not just for the coffee of the month.

What exactly is in our coffee of the month: Guatetopia?

Our Guatemalan Coffee

This Guatemalan coffee is a medium roast coffee.  Our wonderful Trapichitos Guatemalan coffee bean has more than a great flavor to it. It’s the first coffee CICR has carried that has a direct connection to our relationship with Agros. Check out this link to read about Agros’ work in Trapichitos. The country of Guatemala is bordered by Mexico to the north, Belize to the northeast, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast. It is known for having some of the best coffees in the world with its high elevation being among the hardest beans available (dense coffee is GOOD coffee).

For more about our Guatemalan coffee’s taste profile, check our our coffee description on our blog at this link: http://cicrblog.com/coffee/coffee/guatemala/.

Our Ethiopian Coffee

Our Ethiopian coffee is one of our two current reserve coffees. The reserves are harder coffees for us to come by for one reason or another. This Ethiopian coffee is one of the most expensive coffees. We offer them because they add a flavor nuance to our coffee offering list that our other coffees miss. The Ethiopian coffee is among my favorite coffee choices as it has an extremely distinct blueberry tone that really gives this coffee a uniqueness all to itself. As I type this description from home, I’m sipping a french pressed cup of Ethiopian coffee and I have to add… it’s hard to concentrate on what I’m typing!

For more info on our Ethiopian coffee, check out our description on our website: https://camanoislandcoffee.com/buy-coffee-online/ethiopian-coffee-roasters.html

 

This is perhaps my personal favorite coffee of the month as it has both of my favorite French Press coffee beans and I’m a big French Presser! It makes awesome drip as well so I’m pretty much covered whether I’m at the roaster or at home. This coffee is a deal at the standard price too! If you like it, make sure you get your fill of it this month and enjoy the deal because next month, the mix is only available if you buy both the Guatemala Medium Roast coffee and also purchase the Ethiopia Reserve coffee at its full reserve price!

Enjoy!

Dan Ericson
“Coffee Guru”
CICR

 

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An Ethical Coffee Meeting with Agros International

An Ethical Coffee Meeting with Agros International

This past Wednesday, Dan and I had the opportunity to visit Agros HQ in Seattle. It was a great time and they were very hospitable to us.  We were able to share some of the new things CICR has been working on.  Many new faces (for me at least) were there for the meeting.

Our customers all know of our close relationship with Agros as we talk about it all the time.  Just as it’s important for us to communicate to you the changes you create through being members of our Coffee Lover’s Club, it’s also important for us to spend time communicating our focus on ethical coffee with Agros as well.  For us, giving Agros a check from our Coffee Lover’s Club orders is only a sustainable act if we can also communicate with Agros and allow them to communicate back.  Knowing of Agros’ future goals is part of responsible giving and ethical coffee.  Allowing Agros to communicate their goals back is part of responsible receiving.  We’re so happy to have a wonderful relationship with Agros.

Dan brought his camera and took a few pictures in between making Frozen X-plosion’s and serving brewed coffee.

The table we sat at had a wonderfully colorful tablecloth.  Emily at Agros provided Dan and I very delicious sandwiches! Shannon grabbed Dan’s camera when he came out with the Frozen X-plosion’s for everyone and took a couple great pictures: Here are a few of the Agros workers enjoying Frozen X-plosion’s. The purpose of our visit was for me to share CICR’s vision for ethical coffee with Agros and “update” them on the things happening around CICR. All-in-all, we had a great time celebrating ethical coffee and sustainability.

Jeff – CICR

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If you could change the world on your own…

Why Do You Donate To Charity?

If you could change the world on your own, what would you change? Why would you change it? I ask myself that question often.

It baffles me that the new “richest man in the world” comes from a nation with many poor individuals. Using the current idea of “charity” in America, to most of us it would seem like “the right thing to do” would be for an individual with a lot to give to those with nothing. That idea, however, is exactly the opposite of what would help those in need. You see, giving to those in need is a great idea and will help them in the moment. Unfortunately, for being such a “great idea”, it actually can make things worse by causing a dependency. The long term, however, is left untouched which brings them back to the same problems they had in the beginning.

I personally give to Agros because of one reason alone. I believe in sustainability. Not just the buzz-word that seems to be tossed around. No, I believe in something much more than being a “good neighbor” or being “generous”. I’d much rather give $5 to something that will create change for more than a day than $50,000 into something that will change lives for 1 day and allow them to fall back into poverty as soon as the money is gone.

Here’s an interesting fact. For only $10,000, Agros is able to break the cycle of generational poverty for one family. Why donate to something that will grant dreams for a moment when you can contribute to something that will grant dreams for a lifetime?

It’s so easy – Purchase our ethical coffee and enjoy the wonderful flavor of creating sustainable change!

Dan

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March’s Coffee of the Month – Papua New Guinea Medium Roast and Sumatra Medium Roast

Our fun blend of Sumatra Medium Roast and Papua New Guinea Medium Roast has been a yearly favorite by many. Just typing this, I can think of a dozen customers that get excited every time we bring this special blend back. At the Roaster, we’ve lovingly dubbed this coffee as “PapuaMatra”.

Usually we are a straight “Varietal Roaster”, meaning that we sell coffees that are only from a single country of origin (with the exception of our Varietal Supremo espresso). One of the reasons I enjoy our “Coffee of the Month” is for the shear joy of exploring great coffee pairings. As usual, we only try to make very easily replicated blends so our customers can enjoy this at home.

The profile of this coffee is an interesting, yet perfect blend of flavors and nuances that make this coffee as unique as it is interesting. Both Papua New Guinea and Sumatra are Indonesian countries and enjoy similar weather systems. This lends towards the compatibility of the two beans. The Sumatra coffee brings a full, rich, nutty base with a subtle dried fruit tone into the mix with a rich chocolate overtone found in our ever-popular Papua New Guinea. The result is this heavenly blend!

On a fun side note, the artwork on this Month’s coffee label is a new painting HOT off the press by a local artist out here, John Ebner. He’s actually a pretty well known artist and his work is amazing. This is the 4th label made from his artwork that we’ve done. I encourage you to check out his other paintings. His website is www.johnebner.com.

For those who’ve been waiting, it’s finally back! For those that haven’t tried this yet, you’re in for a treat! I know you’ll enjoy our “PapuaMatra” coffee immensely!

Dan – CICR

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Success is More Than Money

Success is More Than Money

During frequent small talk between customers and us, inevitably the questions come up: “How’s business? Are you feeling the recession? Are you keeping busy?”

We are always happy to say that we are indeed thriving amidst this slow economic time. Part of this is due to the local events that encourage visitors onto Camano Island and the surrounding areas. A few weeks ago CICR held a geo-caching kickstart party for over 100 local geo-cachers, which was catered by Westside Pizza. Another great attraction to our area is the Great Northwest Glass Quest that started towards the beginning of the month and continues until this Sunday, February 28. Several local businesses are participating in this treasure hunt and it is attracting people of all ages from all over Washington.

That said, we do not judge our success by the profit that we make but by the lives we change. People are recognizing the value of supporting a company that creates change through their purchases. Our “Prosumers” realize that by spending their “coffee money” at Camano Island Coffee Roasters, they are not just purchasing  healthy coffee but also providing the coffee farmers a way to continue growing a quality crop on land that they own and can pass on to future generations.

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February’s Coffee of the Month – Brazil coffee

brazil coffee

Last month’s coffee of the month (Guatemala Light/Medium) was a big hit with many of our customers. For some it’s a great coffee to drink once in a while for a treat and for others (like myself) it’s the coffee they usually turn to when they think of coffee in general.

brazil coffeeThis month’s coffee is another one of my personal favorites. Our Brazil coffee is the fastest growing in popularity of our coffees. We introduced it a couple years ago and ever since it’s been on a steady incline towards the #1 coffee at CICR (the only coffee it has left to take over is our ever-so-popular Papua New Guinea coffee). This medium roast coffee is perhaps our most complex bean offering a bright caramel overtone with a soft, nutty base. Its awesome flavor is rounded off with a hint of spice creating an extremely enjoyable brew.

Coupled with the Aeropress (below in Cristy’s gift selection), this makes a superb cup of coffee (of course it’s awesome no matter how you brew it). Cristy and I both enjoyed many Aeropress-ed americano’s and lattes with the Brazil Medium Roast bean.

Regardless of how you brew it, enjoy one of the finest organic beans to come out of Brazil for the month of February!

Dan – CICR

 

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What is True Success for a Coffee Roasting Business?

We’re happy to report another record year for CICR in 2009. In spite of a rocky economy, our customers have realized that there is more to purchasing coffee than just enjoying a delicious hot cup of coffee. Our success is a direct reflection on our customers’ desire not only to enjoy the finest coffee available but also to create positive changes worldwide. Our shade grown, organic, fairly traded coffee may be enough to keep us afloat in rough times, but if our outreach weren’t intact, it wouldn’t be a contributing factor to the successes of the third-world farmers that grow the coffee.

We talk a lot about our “mission” as a business as well as the quality of our coffee. Many of you may be becoming used to our constant championing of our customers and the change they create. That is good as far as we are concerned! It means you’re relating the purchase of our ethical coffee to the change it creates and ultimately, understanding the entire purpose of our company.

Just remember, it’s far more valuable to support third-world farmers through your purchase of the product they grow and your support of Agros than it is to support a charity that just throws money and support at people who need more than just a “gimme”. Of course if you can do all that and support a great ethical coffee roasting company at the same time, you get the rare pleasure of enjoying the perfect mix!

CICR

 

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January’s Coffee of the Month – Medium Roast Guatemala and Light Roast

The Holiday Blend coffees are gone until November 2010….
Are you upset you won’t be able to get them? Don’t worry about it! This month is the chance for something different, yet unique and delicious. We’re bringing you a very special blend of Guatemala coffee for January that is sure to keep you wanting more.

Our “Coffee of the Month” is a wonderful Agros coffee. It’s my personal favorite actually. From the village of Trapichitos in Guatemala, comes this wonderfully rich, full flavored, original Guatemala coffee bean. We carry Guatemala all year but for the Month of January, we’re blending the light and medium roasts of this exquisite bean. The result is a mellow, yet medium/full bodied coffee with a slight citrus highlight.

Agros’ website gives us a little more insight:

Trapichitos
“Place of the Sugar Mills”
Nebaj, Quiché, Guatemala
Size: 635 acres
Population: 61 families
Founded: 2000

Also known as La Trinidad (the Trinity), Trapichitos is an Ixil community that has persevered through great challenges. Squeezed together for many years on just 25 acres of land, the original 85 families organized themselves to purchase land 25 minutes from their homes. After five frustrating years and many fruitless attempts to acquire land, the community approached Agros for assistance in April 2000. Agros had never worked with previously organized groups in the Ixil, thereby, presenting a new opportunity. With Agros’ support, local leaders finally had the financial backing to approach the landowner. The 635-acre tract of Trapichitos was purchased in November 2000

Read More: http://www.agros.org/ag/our-villages/guatemala/trapichitos/

I hope you enjoy what is my personal favorite of our coffee beans!

Dan – CICR

 

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CICR’s Last Blog Post of the Decade…


Well, the Holidays are upon us! It’s been a crazy (in a good way), busy year and we’ve be extremely blessed and fortunate. We’ve enjoyed a lot of success in spite of the current economy. The farmers that we support have been able to feel our success as well. Our loyal, prosumers have given us a lot to be thankful for and have blessed us beyond what we could have ever hoped for.

As the end of the year (or as the title suggests – decade) is upon us, we all wanted to give our most heartfelt “Thank You” to our customers. Without your constant support. Without your passion for the best coffee in the world. Without your support of ethical coffee –we’d not be here today.

We hope your Holidays have been and continue to be blessed and full of family and loved ones.

Happy Holidays!

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Last Call for Free Holiday Shipping!

The Holidays are upon us and if you’re not already, many of us will soon be with family enjoying time together. If you’re still looking for a great gift to send to family that won’t be with you… or even family that will, look no further! All of our holiday gift boxes have FREE SHIPPING until December 15th! That means that after Tuesday you’ll be out of time!

Click Here to See our Gift Boxes!

Keep in mind, any orders placed by December 15th will also be able to make it to any recipient in the United States without a problem. Any orders received after that point can’t be guaranteed to make it by the holidays!

It’s so easy so don’t delay any longer! Make sure you add the promo code holiday09 to every order you place through the 15th to get your free shipping!

Click Here to See our Gift Boxes!