Introducing: Thanksgiving Coffee Company!

Um. Thanksgiving Coffee Company is awesome.


Why, you may ask? How bout the fact that their trucks run on Biodiesel? Or that their president Ben knows every employee's face and name? Maybe because they have been in the business since 1972 and they've been visiting several of the same coffee farms and families to this very day?

The list goes on and on, but perhaps the number one reason why Thanksgiving Coffee is so awesome, is because the coffee is ON. POINT.

Pia, Carl, Rey and I made the 3 and a half hour trip up to Fort Bragg this Monday. I rolled outta bed and somehow made it to the office by 6:30am. I knew I was going to have a lot of coffee that day, so I didn't have my morning cup which resulted in me falling asleep almost immediately in the backseat of the van. I was awoken by a bump in the road and the smell of burnt rubber. Yes folks, we had a flat tire. Luckily, Pia and I were in the company of two manly men who removed the flat and replaced it with an extremely sketchy doughnut spare tire from the trunk. I was nervous about driving up the winding forest road with a weird tiny tire, but we made it with all limbs intact.

We finally arrived at the Thanksgiving roasting facility and met up with Ben, the president. He made me a killer (and well-deserved) Americano using their Northern Italian Espresso which I sipped on while we roamed the property. We took a tour of the facility and met several of the employees--many who have been working there for decades. It was amazing to see sacks and sacks of green coffees from all different regions of the world. We were in luck--a shipment of brand new coffees had arrived that weekend and we were going to have the privilege of cupping the first batch of these beans with the company heads!


After the tour, we headed to the cupping room where Jacob, the Quality Control Manager had already laid out the dozen or so coffees that we were going to taste. He ground the coffees in their individual cups and had each of us smell the grinds. Even without water, each coffee totally took on a character of its own.





Jacob then filled each cup with hot water and the coffees really came alive. We took turns smelling each coffee again and I was totally surprised at how the aromas changed as the grinds married together with the water. Some coffees smelled earthy while others smelled like berries and fruit. We skimmed the tops of the coffees and prepared to actually taste them. I was nervous and feeling pretty self conscious about my slurping technique--I had secretly practiced it the night before. I wanted to look cool and everything for the extreme coffee pros, but after everyone rolled up their sleeves and really got into it, I realized that one night of slurping wasn't enough. No one seemed to say anything, so whatevs.



While tasting, we listened to Ben describe the differences in coffee regions, drying and roasting processes--every little factor helps to form the character of the bean.












Thanksgiving has a monthly single origin it features to their customers. The single origin of the month is the Musasa, Rwanda which just happened to be my favorite out of all the coffees on the table. Thanksgiving describes it as sugary-sweet with deep chocolate overtones and the pungent sweetness of grade-b maple syrup, this elegant coffee opens up on the palate to sparkling, juicy hints of orange and plum. I describe it as: awesome.

All of us in the cupping room:
Carl, Jacob, Pia, Emily, Ben, Jenais

As if our day couldn't get any more action packed--we headed over to Mendocino to the Thanksgiving Coffee Cafe and had a killer lunch. Paul Katzeff, the co-founder of Thanksgiving Coffee just so happened to be in the cafe roasting beans in a small roaster. We sat and picked his brain about coffee, the coffee industry, and Mendocino County.






After a fun filled day, I was sad to say goodbye to the Thanksgiving crew. I was also slightly sad to say goodbye to them, because I knew we'd be driving back on the weird tiny tire and I feared for my life a little. But, we had to do what we had to do. This time, I had enough caffeine in me to stay awake the entire drive home. We were all jazzed about our trip and can't wait to get back up there again.

As I sit here sipping on the Musasa, Rwanda, I can honestly appreciate every careful step it took to allow me to enjoy this killer cup of coffee. I know that the company that brought it to me seriously knows their stuff and I can't wait to learn more from them.

New Favorite of mine....mmmm

Todd told me that it was his wife's favorite and now I can say it's certainly my new favorite as well! Tony's Coffee has this amazing Organic and Fair Trade certified offering, Cafe Carmelita and my new favorite. It has a memorable rich flavor with a hint of coco-nutty caramel, but just barely a smidge; enough to be very intrigued. This blend is an awesome espresso! The first sip takes you into a pleasant pause as the flavors swirl down and your grin rises up. Drip lovers will find that this blend has a large following in its drip counterpart too. I think the exciting experiences are yet to come especially when Joshua takes me under his wings to create some REAL latte art with Tony's offerings!

Turning over a new Leaf

With a new year upon us, it's almost perfect timing that we turn over a new leaf! Primo's newest product offering, Numi teas. As I clear my throat and I experience the Toasted Rice Green tea, I am instantly enamored by the warm comfort and savory nutty flavor it brings to my taste buds. Ahhhh, exactly what I needed in these cold days of winter. Almost especially perfect for right now since there is certainly something to look forward to in that next cup without all the holiday hustle and bustle. The longer my tea sits the more it's enjoyed. Here's to starting new things and great things to come in the New Year!

Holiday Cheers!

As we pass through this Holiday season, I am reminded of the tumultuous challenges that we have all faced over the past year but have certainly overcome. We continue to work on best practices as we are in a continuous improvement process. However, I certainly don't undermine all the great work throughout the year and all that team Primo has done and continues to provide; especially to our great customer base. We've all worked very hard together and I'm thankful that we've got such an awesome team that works together to provide exceptional service to all our valued customers in all aspects of our business. Primo is certainly about adding that extra value and experience to our awesome customers.

Cheers to all the hard work our fantastic customers have put in this year in partnership with the Primo team and many many wishes to a very prosperous 2010 New Year!

The Streets of Milan

Crazy to imagine that I was thinking more than twice about heading to Milan this year but by the time I actually made it on the plane, by the hairs of my chiny chin chin by the way, I started to get really excited about my upcoming adventure at HOST & Out of the Box.


The day after I arrived, I headed straight to the local Salumeria to grab a baguette, some prosciutto and a few slices of aged provolone with a nice cappuccino, from the cafe next door, just as I hopped on the Milan Metro that would take me to the first of my excursions, HOST.

HOST was hugely amazing. The Italians certainly know how to throw a convention for sure! No expense was spared on the exhibit booths especially in the coffee bar area featuring all the major players in the coffee equipment industry. I also had a chance to represent, with Magister, their
current/new line of products. Introducing the Stilo. It's Magister's newest equipment line

offering customers a selection of body colors to choose from. Watch out for this in the new year from Primo! My personal favorite? Of course, the Primo red!

Other cool stuff that fascinated me was the Franke equipment that was just crazy innovative with the cold foam. Too early for the US market but that has got to be the most cutting edge engineering of its kind. Not to mention the sleek euro looks too! I am definitely a fan of the Franke.

With those 2 exhibits alone, it was mission accomplished at HOST. Everything else was captured with ooo's and ahhh's as I passed through the aisle's on the lookout for new & exciting products.

Saving the best for last, of course, nothing else could've topped the trip any better than 'Out of the Box'; La Marzocco's rebel exhibit/experience from HOST. By far, from the moment I started my adventure to get there, thank goodness for smartphones, it was truly worth the effort. I don't know if it was also because I was sitting next to hardcore La Marzocco enthusiasts (wow, she had a big tatoo of the La Marzocco insignia smack dab on the center of her chest!) or if it was because I felt I was in a who's who of the espresso equipment industry! Likely that and more. It was certainly a global representation of La Marzocco's footprint worldwide hearing from the Netherlands distributor on customer profiles all the way down to one of our own, a highlight done on Peet's Coffee & Tea. The exhibit was full of surprises as well as featured the unveiling of the Strada with it's electronic paddle control.


Okay, but even on top of all that, for me at least, one of the more highlighted moments was that same evening from 'Out of the Box' where I was meandering the museum of espresso machines on display upstairs. I happen to catch a glimpse of what I thought was a familiar face. Soon as I double slinged my neck to place the face, a hand extended out to greet me. "Hi, I'm Terry Ziniewicz" from EspressoParts.com. After several years of doing business and seeing his company transform into what it is today, it was certainly noteworthy to meet such a passionate entrepreneur as he. We chatted for a bit and I'd have to say, he's a pretty cool guy.

Getting back to the aged provolone cheese; note to self, don't leave aged provolone in your hotel room even if in frig. Your room will smell like sewage!

Until next time, Ciao Milan....

Well, it's obviously winter.

I woke up this morning with a smile on my face. I got a great nights sleep. I woke up with "Take On Me" by A-ha playing in my head. I'm having a great hair day. FEELIN GOOD.

I French Pressed myself a to-go mug of coffee (Major Dickason's today), roamed the internet, looked down at the clock and realized I was running late. So I gathered my things and ran out the door to my car. When I looked up at the driveway, I noticed my car covered in snow. Yes. SNOW. Now, keep in mind that I live in Walnut Creek, CA--not Tahoe, not New York. Snow is not normal. So I wasted a few more minutes scraping ice and snow off my car before I could finally head down the road to work.

I showed up with frozen hands and toes (but hair still looking great) and was so so happy to find that Angel had just brewed a fresh pot of even more Major Dic. I poured more into my mug and held it for a few minutes--letting my frozen digits defrost. It was just what I needed.

I'm so lucky to work in a place with fellow coffee enthusiasts. I love drinking coffee and will drink it alone, but there's something so comforting and awesome about drinking coffee with other people. It evokes conversation and creates a warming atmosphere that seems to lighten any mood. It finally felt like winter. Cheesy, maybe, but I felt like the holidays just began.

Oh, and to further solidify that winter is here, Angel went outside, scraped some snow from my car, and made a mini snowman outside my window. I named him Major Dickason.

My New Obsession: Peet's Winter Solstice Tea

I'm a coffee drinker. I love my coffee strong and black. I rarely stray from the normal cup of joe in the morning.

Somehow, Pia was able to talk me into trading in my regular coffee morning routine for a different approach: tea. Now, don't get me wrong, I have no reservations about teas or tea drinkers, but I'm a woman of habit and my habit (addiction) is coffee. The Winter Solstice tea has changed all that.

It tastes like the holidays. Hints of cinnamon, all spice, cloves, and citrus bring me back to my childhood drinking warm spiced cider with my family. It's my new obsession. I love the way the aroma fills the room. I love the way it warms me. I LOVE THIS TEA.

The only thing I don't love, is that it's only available during the holidays. Stock up on it now, because it's a limited item. I guarantee that you and everyone you know will become obsessed just like I have.