Food | Coffee
Urth Caffee
While driving down Main Street in Santa Monica, California one evening, I saw this tiny sign lit up in the dark that said “Exclusively Organic Coffees & Fine Teas.” I couldn’t stop right then, but went back the next day. It was crowded with a line out the door and Starbuck’s a block away was empty. “Founded in 1989, Urth Caffe is widely considered the first coffee roasting company in America to offer exclusively organically grown, heirloom coffees. Each season we choose the very finest beans from our farmers – carefully selecting only a small percentage of the crop representing the coffee’s finest seasonal flavor & characteristics. The flavor profile of our blends changes from season to season – always presenting exciting new characteristics. All our organic coffees are small batch roasted using secret, innovative techniques in roasting and blending developed by us, to give the coffee its full potential of depth and complexity of flavor…Heirloom means that the trees have never been genetically modified, and are like their ancient ancestors found growing wild in the rainforests. Heirloom species such as Bourbon, Geisha, Heirloom Culitvar, Typica (to name a few) can grow up to twenty feet tall, require deep shade, and produce less coffee yield than hybridized trees. Heirloom coffee has superior flavor, has a more distinctive aroma, and is naturally lower in acid for easier digestion. “ Their exclusive selection of fine loose leaf teas include black, fruit scented, oolong, green, white, matcha green teas, and herbal infusions. “Each source garden is carefully selected by Urth Caffé based on highest quality, commitment to purity, uniqueness, and sustainability.”
MiCacao
Cacao tea. “Cacao tea is produced from the shell, or husk, of the cacao bean, which is often discarded in the process of making chocolate. During this process, cacao beans are harvested, fermented, and dried. The shells are then removed from the beans, leaving the remaining nibs to continue forward in the process. Although only a byproduct of chocolate making, the shells are rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals and serve as the foundation for MiCacao.”
Groundwork
Organic, fair trade coffees and teas from a popular Los Angeles coffee spot. Chose from single origin, signature blends, limited reserve and decaf coffees—every coffee has a story. Honey-processed coffee anyone? You’ll get a whole different view of coffee here. Flavors are described like poetry. “Groundwork was one of the first certified organic coffee roasters in Southern California and a pioneer in sustainable, relationship-based, and organic coffee sourcing.”
Cafe Altura Gourmet Coffee
“The original organic coffee, since 1980.” This coffee comes from the Finca Irlanda farm in Chiapas, Mexico, which has now been growing coffee using organic and Biodynamic techniques for decades. It is believed to be the first certified organic coffee farm in the world. Choose from whole bean, ground, and even instant certified organic coffees, including water processed decaf.
ButterBuzz
If you like “bulletproof” type coffee, but don’t like all the bags and jars of different ingredients, ButterBuzz is perfect for you. “Each BuzzPod is packed full of ingredients that are proven to have a variety of health benefits including boosting metabolism, aiding in weight loss and management, improving cognitive brain function, and supporting your hormonal system.” Each pod contains grass fed butter, raw unfiltered honey, raw vanilla powder, raw cacao butter, ground Ceylon cinnamon, cocoa butter—all organic—and hydrolyzed marine collagen.
Cafe Mam
European-grade Arabica coffee—100% organic, 100% fair-trade, shade grown, fresh roasted. The coffee is grown by fair trade cooperatives of native Mayan farmers living in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico and Guatemala. The farmers believe that by taking care of the soil, they are taking care of the entire biosystem. Though this site sells only one type of bean, you can select a level of caffeine, a particular roast, and your preferred grind (and all are explained on the site). Half-pound sample bag is only $5.25.
Beantrees Gourmet Coffee
One of my readers told me about this website because it’s the only coffee she can drink, and it turned out to be the first company to sell only organic coffee. Beantrees started in 1993, at a time when nobody was selling organic coffee and nobody knew about it. And today, Beantrees is known for it’s gourmet organic coffees, including naturally-flavored coffees and mountain-water decaffinated. They have many celebrity clients and their coffee was even served at the Cannes Film Festival.
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Listen to my interview with Barrie Gromala, Cofounder and President of Beantrees Fine Organic Coffee |
