<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> There's a chain of coffee shops in the Eastern/Midwest U.S. named Caribou Coffee. They have a cardboard sleeve that they slip over their coffee cups so that it is not too hot to handle. On the sleeve is this: "The coffee in your beverage was roasted within the last 21 days. Guaranteed." |
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> Message You call that fresh? Best Regards, Tim Jolicoeur |
Compare it to most office coffee. The Folgers plant that produces those little vacuum packs is literally right across the street from the building I work in (a while back they moved pretty much all of that production to here in KC). Now folks here know that vacuuming fresh roasted coffee results in little pillows due to outgassing. Someone found out Folger's secret for nice tight vacuum packs: they 'rest' the coffee for a while (months, literally) before packing it. So to sum up, within the last 21 days is reasonably fresh, all things considered. Enjoy! Steve :-> http://www.svandyke.com<- my simple home page http://www.cafeshops.com/stevespics<- my little store of Impressionist & Special Events Photography stuff) |
On Wed, 2003-09-17 at 01:21, miKe mcKoffee wrote: <Snip> I haven't had a cup of coffee from Caribou yet that was up to Starbucks quality, even. They roast lighter, the coffees I've had tasted grassy or acidy, and they brew weak. I suspect the last is their biggest problem. Be well, Lissa -- To be a good civil libertarian is to spend one's life in a fairly constant state of alarm, which leaves the group somewhat frazzled. Molly Ivins, "Fish or Cut Bait" |
IMHO, they are much better than starbucks. Steven Van Dyke wrote: <Snip> |
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<Snip> Wow! THAT good? ;) |
That's my experience as well. The coffee tastes fresher than what you get elsewhere. The fact that they are tracking dates means they have a close relationship with their roaster, a sign that they are quality conscious. Besides their Caribou blend, they serve origin coffees, too. Of all the coffee chains, Caribou Coffee is my favorite. <Snip> building I <Snip> here <Snip> in <Snip> & <Snip>http://www.sweetmarias.com/maillistinfo.html<Snip>">http://www.sweetmarias.com/maillistinfo.html<Snip>http://www.sweetmarias.com/maillistinfo.html<Snip> |
On Wed, 17 Sep 2003 08:18:48 -0400, Ben Treichel wrote <Snip> Unless Charbux are better in the US than in the UK, that really is damning with faint praise! |
Quoting Lissa : <Snip> Hmm... I haven't noticed that myself. They tend to keep three pots of drip coffee brewed, in a "medium roast", "dark roast" and "decaf" style, varying the blends from day to day and marking what they were on a chalkboard. I haven't been a regular customer since I started home roasting but I have bought the occasional cup, and it's been decent coffee. My main complaint with their drip coffee is that they have too many non-descript house blends (Daybreak? Discovery Blend? Fireside Blend?). Don't know what they use in their espresso and I haven't tried it with my recently educated palate. My one bad experience was one time at the airport, where they listed Sumatra on the chalkboard as one of the choices, but when I asked for a cup they discovered it was out and refused to brew any more. Here in Minneapolis there is an upstart coffee chain called Dunn Bros. that goes much further in promoting freshness, with in-store roasters prominently displayed along with sacks of green beans and roast dates on all the roasted coffee dispensers. The roast dates are usually only 1-3 days ago at my local store, though I've seen 4-7 day old coffee for sale at one of their mall kiosks. They even use standard SCAA roast terminology (City, Full City, Vienna, etc) on their roasted coffee, and only stock single origin varietals and an espresso blend, rather than flavored coffees or colorfully named house blends. I'm not entirely sure the MN public is ready for them yet. Every time I visit my local store I wonder if they're really moving all the coffee in their bins in 3 days or less, or what happens to the 4 day old stuff. Steve Wall |
I'm also in Minneapolis and was the 3rd or 4th customer at the original Caribou. At that time, Starbucks wasn't even here yet, and it was clear that Caribou wanted to be a different kind of setup. They roast their own beans in a warehouse in downtown Minneapolis. I'm not sure what they do in their other locations (Ohio, NC, etc.). In the early days, their coffee was fantastic. After a while (several years) they were purchased by some out of town company, and while they still are very good (for a chain, in my opinion), they've gone way down hill. I agree that Dunn Brother's is great. Their coffee is always fresh, their shops less "corporate" and more homey, they have free computer wireless connections, and they welcome long visits. I hope they don't grow too big. They were in Saint Paul for many years before "growing". I've only been home roasting for about a month, and I can't imagine buying when I can brew such good stuff on my own! But I do miss visits to Dunn Brothers'. Oh, well. I'd rather be a roaster. But again, Caribou is still my favorite of the LARGE chains. Barbara On Wednesday, September 17, 2003, at 01:27 PM, steve_w wrote: <Snip> |
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> Thank you, David. That's the point I was trying to get across. It was my feeble attempt at being sarcastic. Randy |