Higher Grounds Trading Company - Fair Trade and Organic Coffees and Olive Oil

Holiday Gifts Galore!

2012-12-10T11:57:00.005-05:00

Yes, it's that time of year again: the time when many of us are scurrying about, trying to find just the right holiday gifts for everyone on our lists. This year in the HG Coffee Bar, we have a bunch of awesome stuff for you to choose from. But "stuff" doesn't do these treasures justice. And speaking of justice, buying these items actually is an act of justice--they're fairly traded (some locally, some globally), meaning their very existence is evidence of a fair wage for creative, hardworking artisans. Here are just a few of the gifts you'll find in the Coffee Bar.

Jewelry & accessories.

One of our favorite new sources of fair trade jewelry is the Andean Collection, designer styles made by South American artists. This company has an awesome & inspiring social mission -- not to mention gorgeous accessories made from natural materials like tagua nuts & acai seeds. The circle earrings are my personal favorite.

African baskets.

We have these in stock all the time, though the selection varies - we never know what colors they're going to send us! But these handcrafted baskets are perfect for putting together the perfect personalized present--just fill them up with a selection of other items for a gift that is both beautiful & functional.

Coffee brewing accoutrements.

Grinding your coffee just before brewing will always result in a more aromatic, flavorful cup. We have two excellent grinders: an electric Bistro burr grinder by Bodum ($130) & a manual Skerton burr grinder by Hario ($60). Both have grind settings ranging from fine to coarse, & either one would be a fantastic gift to help the coffee lovers in your life take their at-home brewing to the next level. [Yes, these grinders are more expensive than the ubiquitous electric blade grinder. But as with most things, you get what you pay for. Check out my previous "Back to the Grind" blog posts (here & here) for more reasons a burr grinder is the way to go.]

We also have several manual brewers, including the Beehouse ceramic dripper, & reusable K-cup filters for Keurig users (avoid all that plastic waste created by single-serving K-cups!).

Like I said, this is just a small selection of what's available here at HG. Come on in & browse for yourself!

--Jennifer

The Roast with the Most

2012-12-03T13:28:00.001-05:00

It's been a while since my last post. I keep looking at the "On the latest blog..." section of the HG Happenings chalkboard here in the Coffee Bar & thinking that I really need to get back to it. There must be at least a few of you out there paying attention! So let's go back to some coffee basics.

Stacy, a fellow barista here at Higher Grounds, recently sent an email to the whole staff with a great refresher on what the "city" roasts actually mean in the context of HG's roast profiles. I'm pretty much going to steal the content from her email to share with you. If you're anything like me, you've been befuddled in the past by all the different names for roasts that go beyond light, medium, & dark. We don't actually use the "city" terminology here at HG, but it's helpful to make sense of it. Here's a primer, including some extra info about the roasting process:

In the beginning stages of roasting, the coffee beans lose water in the form of steam & first give off a hay-like aroma, then a more toasty smell. As they become hotter & hotter, they approach the first audible roast reaction (which sounds a bit like popcorn popping): first crack.

City: For a City Roast, the roasting process is stopped right at the end of first crack (somewhere between 400-425° F), at which the bean has approximately doubled in size, turned light brown, & lost about 5% of its weight. City Roasts are generally characterized by a light body, highlighted acidity, & many origin-typical characteristics.

City+: This roast is taken beyond first crack but is cooled before reaching second crack--a time window of only about 15-30 seconds. At about 435° F, the bean has slightly more body & slightly less acidity, with still many origin characteristics remaining.

As the beans approach second crack, the bean structure begins to fracture. On the verge of second crack--which has a shallower sound, more like a snap--the beans have a slight oil sheen & softer edges. Here's some science for you: whereas first crack is the physical expansion of the coffee seed (as water & carbon dioxide split & CO2 outgassing begins), second crack is the physical fracturing of the coffee's cellulose matrix, organized cellulose that reacts to heat & not-so-organized cellulose that doesn't. Because every coffee is physically different--in size & density depending on cultivar, origin, altitude--it's logical that each coffee's cell matrix behaves differently under these conditions. So second crack is a little more difficult to predict. That means the two roasts that appear next on the list might not be consistent across several origins of coffee or several different roasters.

Full City: A Full City roast is taken right to the verge of Second Crack (444° F). Body begins to increase at the cost of acidity, origin flavors begin to become diminished, & a sweetness is introduced thanks to caramelization of sugars. The beans are medium-dark brown with occasional oil sheen. Full City is good for varietal character & highlighting bittersweet notes.

Full City+: The roast is taken just into Second Crack (around 450° F). A few snaps are heard, & then the roast is stopped. Acidity & origin flavor decrease as body & sweetness increase. This stage of roast is very popular for Northern Italian Espresso. Visually, a Full City+ roast results in just a bit fuller bean, with more small cracks on the flat side.

Vienna: (also known as Continental, or Light French): The roast is taken well into second crack (somewhere around 465° F), & the beans may begin to be coated in a very thin layer of oil. (Oil will increase over time as the beans rest & degas.) Origin characteristics generally become overshadowed by (often very carbony) roast flavors, while body increases. Also very popular for espresso close to the Northern Italian tradition.

French Roast (sometimes known as Italian roast--though Italian can be even darker, which is scary, as you'll see if you keep reading): French is generally taken towards the end of second crack, which for HG happens around 450° F, though some roasters take it further than that (closer to 475° F). Flavor is diminished, body is thinned, & a charcoal flavor dominates. Unfortunately, this is typical of much American espresso & most of our population’s perspective of what is considered gourmet. When I describe French Roast to our customers, I often note that it's as dark as we can go without actually burning the coffee (& setting the whole place on fire--our roaster actually has an auto-shut-off safety feature at 470° F, so the hottest we go is 450° F). The bean's sugars are heavily caramelized & degraded; the woody bean structure is carbonizing & the seed continues to expand & actually lose mass (seems counterintuitive, I know). A brewed French Roast has a thinner & lighter body since the aromatic compounds, oils, & soluble solids have been burned out of the coffee. So it may be strong & dark, but it's not really full, & you're not actually tasting much of the original bean.

Here's how Stacy categorizes our single-origin coffees in the context of these roast names:

City: Ethiopian coffees, Guatemalan Rio Azul
City+: Most of our coffees: Guatemalan San Marcos, Colombian, Honduran, El Salvador. Bolivian is on the cusp of City+ & Full City.
Full City, Full City+: Yachil, Peruvian, Sumatran.
French: I bet you can guess!

You can meet the highest roast potential for each coffee by maximizing sweetness & aroma while minimizing bitterness & acidity. Many people just focus on the latter, roasting extremely dark, especially for espresso (Starbucks did this for years, until recently when they've begun to include their "Blonde" roast options). But espresso will never be palatable without sweetness & aroma, which explains the popularity of espresso-based drinks with generous additions of flavored, sweetened syrup & large amounts of milk.

Compare the taste of pure, raw sugar to that of caramelized sugar: the raw sugar is much sweeter. The dark color of coffee directly corresponds to the caramelization of the sucrose in coffee. So to maximize sweetness, it's important not to over-roast--but you also need to roast dark enough to break down the bitter tasting compounds.

Sound complicated? Sort of. There's a lot to know, & our roasters spend a lot of time & effort developing the ideal roast level for each coffee. And the degree marks referenced here are just for general reference--they don't necessarily reflect the way things always happen with each Higher Grounds roast.

I'm not a roaster, but I like knowing what's going on next door in our Roastery. And when those beans make their way from that other corner of Higher Grounds into our bins in the Coffee Bar, & eventually into my cup, that's when all the magic makes a little more sense.

--Jennifer

*This post was edited on 12/11/12 to clarify that the temperatures referenced are not necessarily indicative of Higher Grounds' roast profiles; they are simply a point of reference for the general industry, to illustrate that a very small shift in temperature can result in dramatic changes in the bean.

True Fair Trade: Buying "Local"

2012-11-01T17:40:00.002-04:00

Last year around this time, I published a series of posts about the issue of fair trade. (If you haven’t read those, you can check them out here, here, here, here, & here...yes, there are five of them, which tells you just how complicated the issue can seem.) Over the past year, there have been many conversations & opinions floating around the blogosphere/interwebs/online world, as well as in person here in our Coffee Bar. I’m here today with some updates.

Let’s review a few main points. Here’s some info from a great one-page reference guide published by the Fair World Project.

Both fair trade certifiers & fair trade membership organizations (two very different kinds of groups) agree on a handful of basic principles:

* long-term direct trading relationships

* prompt payment of fair prices & wages

* no child, forced, or otherwise exploited labor

* workplace non-discrimination, gender equity, & freedom of association

* safe working conditions & reasonable work hours

* investment in community development projects

* environmental sustainability

* traceability & transparency

Third-party certifiers go straight to the source, inspecting producers’ growing/processing methods & trading operations, & compare performance against fair trade standards. To the left are a few 3^rd-party certifiers & their logos.

Fair trade membership organizations, on the other hand, evaluate fair trade commitment & practice of companies using that particular organization’s criteria. Here are a few of those membership organizations:

Here’s the thing, though: a product sold by a company with membership in a fair trade organization may not necessarily have achieved third-party certification. And a “certified fair trade” product is not necessarily from a company wholly dedicated to equity & social justice.

At the time this particular issue of the Fair World Project’s magazine, For a Better World (in which this reference guide can be found) was published, Fair Trade USA (which resigned from the Fairtrade International system in 2011 & was the source of much of the controversy addressed in last year’s blogs) had not published its final standards & procedures for review.

So.

What does all this mean for you, the consumer?

Well, it certainly makes it more difficult to shop with a clear conscience. And there are a lot of little logos & labels to keep track of. Certainly purchasing locally-grown food & gifts crafted by local artists are ways of going straight to the source. But though it’s probably not impossible, it is fairly tricky to only buy items grown or produced “locally”—particularly if you’re a coffee drinker, since the last time I checked, Michigan didn’t have any organic coffee farms.

The best thing to do is learn as much as you can about the companies making (or importing) the products you buy. Do a little research; scour their websites for mission statements & values; read every inch of their packaging. Look for transparency in their business practices. When you get to know the people at the source of a product, they become a part of your community as well.

At Higher Grounds, we aim to make that education as natural & straightforward as possible, & we believe we're creating a new kind of "local." We know our farmers, & through us, you know them too. HG lives in that little section of the Venn diagram where the bottom two circles overlap: we’re members of the Fair Trade Federation & founding members of Cooperative Coffees (both considered fair trade membership organizations), & we’re absolutely dedicated to equity & social justice. And while we’re not certified by a third-party certifier, Cooperative Coffees—our green coffee importer—is certified by Fairtrade International (formerly FLO, the international Fairtrade Labeling Organization). All this hullaballoo about certifiers makes our heads spin a little bit, since we think the most important thing is transparency. We use a label called Fair Trade Proof, which indicates that you can go to fairtradeproof.org & view all our contracts with the people who grow our coffee.

To most people, “local” means within a certain physical distance, likely not more than a hundred miles. But our friendship with coffee farmers has built a bridge between their communities & ours. So while your morning cup of coffee surely comes from the other side of the world, Higher Grounds brings another kind of “local” straight to your mug.

Thanks for reading. Through ongoing dialogue & education about fair trade, we're continuing to strengthen our communities both here & around the world.

Cheers,

Jennifer

The Reality of "Herbal Teas"

2012-10-05T17:03:00.000-04:00

Keeping with the subject of beverages sans caffeine, I had a conversation the other day here in the Coffee Bar with a couple who spends summers at their cabin on Arbutus Lake. The gentleman specifically wanted to try our dark roast decaf, while his wife was interested in sampling a few different herbal teas.

But here’s the thing.

What usually gets called “herbal tea” isn’t actually tea at all; it's a misnomer. Tea, by definition, comes from the plant camellia sinensis: the tea plant. Two leaves & a bud are typically harvested for tea production, & they contain caffeine at about 3% of their dry weight, which results in anywhere between 30-90 mg of caffeine per 8 ounce cup of brewed tea. Tea can be decaffeinated using various methods similar to those used for decaffeinating coffee (see previous blog post), so if you do buy decaffeinated tea, check to see that it was naturally processed using carbon dioxide. Other techniques can leave harmful chemicals behind (methylene chloride, ethyl acetate) & reduce the flavor quality of the tea.

So if it’s not herbal tea, what is it? Well, many different spices, herbs, flowers, & other plants can be used to create naturally-decaffeinated beverages when you steep them in water. You’ll find them called herbal tisanes, teasans, & infusions (& probably other things I haven’t heard of yet). Some are 100% one ingredient (pure peppermint is one of my absolutely favorites), while others are blends.

There are a couple other things we sometimes call “tea” as well: rooibos (pronounced “ROY-bus,” often called red tea) & yerba mate (or just mate, pronounced “MAH-tay”). Rooibos is a naturally-decaffeinated African red bush; yerba mate is a subtropical South American tree. Both are cultivated, dried, & used just like tea. Yerba mate does contain caffeine, though it’s been found that the xanthine combination (caffeine, theobromine & theophylline) in mate has a different effect on our bodies than the caffeine in coffee & other teas; while it affects the central nervous system similarly (keeping us awake & raising alertness, for example), it actually helps to relax smooth muscle tissue—so we don’t get that jittery feeling after a few cups. Both rooibos & mate have similar antioxidant benefits to tea.

Here at Higher Grounds, we carry a range of both teas & herbals/teasans from Light of Day Organics, a local Traverse City company. Light of Day produces 100% organic, biodynamic teas & herbals (& rooibos & mate) just about ten miles from HG, south of town on M-72, where you can stop in on Fridays & Saturdays (10 AM-6 PM, & possibly other days – call ahead to be sure; the phone number is on the website) to taste, shop, & tour the farm. The ingredients they don’t grow themselves are all 100% fair trade certified. They also offer private classes & tours by appointment.

Here are a couple of the Light of Day teas HG offers in our Coffee Bar:

Just Plain Green (100% Ceylon green tea) – a lovely standard green. Best when steeped at about 180-190 degrees for 3-4 minutes, no longer.

Enlightened White (white tea, tangerine, orange, & lotus petals) – white tea is the least oxidized (& has the lowest caffeine level) of camellia sinensis. A lower temp & shorter steep is also good for white tea.

Creamy Earl Grey (our most popular: a blend of black tea, lavender, calendula, bergamot, & vanilla) – best steeped in water just off the boil for 4-5 minutes. It’s also great in an Earl

Grey latte, where it’s combined with steamed milk & a splash of our house-made vanilla syrup. We also make an Earl Grey syrup from this tea, which is a surprisingly tasty addition to hot cocoa.

And a few of the teasans:

Always On (yerba mate, lemon balm, ginger, lemon, ginseng, gingko, noni, pepper, schisandra, ashwaghanda, & astralagus) – this one is my go-to in the late afternoon when I have a couple hours of work left & my energy is waning!

Lemony Ginger Sunshine (lemon peel, chicory root, ginger, lemongrass, lemon balm, lemon myrtle, orange peel, hibiscus, & cinnamon) – great when you’re feeling a little sluggish or under-the-weather, or to ward off the ill effects of cold & flu season.

Mittentime Mint (rooibos, peppermint, cacao nibs, apples) – delicious after dinner or on a chilly winter evening.

Those are just a few of my favorites. We sell all of these & others both by the cup & in bulk, by the ounce.

When it comes down to it, I’m not really all that bothered whether you call them all “teas” or something else entirely. But hopefully now you’re a little more knowledgeable about what goes into the whole business of teas & herbals--& most importantly, what’s going into your cup.

P.S. I almost titled this post "RealiTEAS of 'Herbal Teas.'" I decided it was over the top. But I couldn't help but include my silly pun anyway.

Decaf Nation

2012-09-24T13:14:00.002-04:00

Preface: Thanks to my fellow barista Stacy for coming up with this clever blog title. Also, this post is dedicated to my mom & her friends (hi Mom & friends!).

Okay, the blog officially starts here.

Recently, a family friend was diagnosed with breast cancer. Thankfully, her treatment went very well, & she's recovering smoothly—but there's nothing like a cancer scare to kick you in the butt & motivate you to start paying more attention to the things you're consuming. For this friend, decaffeinated coffee is one of those things. Before her diagnosis & treatment, she'd just purchased whatever decaf was on sale at the grocery store. But now, she's browsing her local organic food co-op for healthier options for both food & beverages (hooray for co-ops & organic food!). And if a decaffeinated coffee is to be considered organic, it can't be chemically processed, which is the method used for the vast majority of decaf coffees out there.

There are both direct & indirect methods of chemical decaffeination. Here's how they both work:

Direct method

Green beans are first steamed & then rinsed repeatedly with one of two solutions: dichloromethane, which is widely used as a paint stripper & degreaser, as well as an aerosol spray propellant & blowing agent for polyurethane foams, or ethyl acetate, for several hours. Then, the solvent is drained away, & the beans are steamed again so the remaining solvent will evaporate. This takes about 8-10 hours. Finally, the beans are air- or vacuum-dried to remove excess moisture.

Indirect method (sometimes also called water process, just to confuse you—there are still chemicals used here)

Green beans are soaked in extremely hot water for several hours. Gradually, the caffeine & other water-soluble compounds dissolve into the solution. After the beans are removed, one of the same solvents referenced above is added, which bonds with the caffeine, & the mixture is heated again to evaporate the solvent & caffeine. Lastly, the liquid is reunited with the original beans, which reabsorb most of the coffee oils & flavor.

A few more words on dichloromethane (DCM), also referred to as methylene chloride. Extremely volatile, it's a definite health risk & inhalation hazard. It's metabolized by the body to carbon monoxide, potentially leading to carbon monoxide poisoning. Extreme inhalation has led to optic neuropathy (damage to the optic nerve, leading to loss of eyesight) & hepatitis. Extended contact with skin can dissolve some fatty tissues & result in irritation or chemical burns. DCM may also be carcinogenic, seeing as its been linked to lung, liver, & pancreatic cancer in lab animals. In some countries, products that contain DCM are required to be labeled as such, warning of these health risks. Though it's often pointed out (at least on many of the coffee blogs & research sites I perused) that the solvent actually never touches the beans in the indirect method, it does seem like at least traces of the solvent must be left behind in the coffee. Friends, I'd rather not take any chances.

Hopefully, most of the decafs you'll find at your local co-op or natural foods store (or organic section of your grocery) will be labeled “water processed.” To be sure that the method truly doesn't use any chemicals—& that the solvent used is simply water—also look for the phrase “naturally-processed,” or ask someone who works there.

For the not-so-coffee-savvy consumers out there, this label can result in some confusion—particularly if the coffee is labeled “Swiss water processed.” What makes Swiss water so good? one might ask. Actually, the phrase is a misnomer: the point is not that the water is Swiss. (The grammarian English major in me would like to label the error as a “misplaced modifier.”) The nationality is actually referring to the origin of the method.

The Swiss process, developed by the Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Company in the 1930s, involves soaking green (unroasted) coffee beans in hot water, releasing their caffeine. Once all coffee solids & caffeine have been released into the water, the beans are then discarded. The remaining water travels through a carbon filter, trapping the caffeine but letting the coffee solids (flavor) pass through, creating “green coffee extract (GCE).” Next, new green beans are added to the GCE, which is now simply coffee solids without the caffeine, so the caffeine diffuses from the new green beans, & the GCE passes again through carbon, capturing the caffeine. This process is repeated until the beans are 99.9% caffeine free, after which they are removed from the solution & dried, & later roasted.

Higher Grounds sends our beans to be decaffeinated at the Mountain Water Decaffeination Plant in Veracruz, Mexico. In this case, the water is actually pure mountain water, & the process is basically the same as the Swiss process. The Mountain Water process is certified organic by the OCIA (Organic Crop Improvement Association) & NOP (National Organic Program). We carry two decafs, a medium roast & a dark roast. And while some high-brow coffee drinkers will snub their noses at the prospect of sipping a cup of decaf, with the widely-held notion that decaf can't possibly taste as good as regular, there is a growing movement recognizing that well-done decaf can be just as good as well-done regular. A New York Times article from March 2010 points out that the highest-quality beans often go into creating a roaster's signature blends & distinct single-origin offerings, & sub-par beans get sent to the decaffeination plant. “I think there was & still is an idea in the trade that it’s just decaf, so use what you can get away with,” said Doug Welsh, the VP for coffee at Peet’s Coffee & Tea. “That’s why the vast majority of decaf isn’t very good. They didn’t start out with the same coffee.”

Here at HG, we choose beans for our decaf that we believe hold up well to the extra processing, & we roast them with a careful hand to preserve & highlight their best qualities—just like we do with all our coffees. Many of our dedicated customers say that unlike with other decafs they've tried, they can't actually identify a difference between our decaf & our regular coffee. And we think it's a worthy cause, since (according to the National Coffee Association) 10% of coffee drinkers have a cup of decaf every day. When you consider that 50% of the U.S. population drinks some kind of coffee each day, that 10% represents a huge number of consumers (15.6 million people!) who deserve a cup of joe as tasty as the rest of us are enjoying.

When it's all said & done, nearly all decaf coffee still contains a little caffeine—nobody has figured out how to get 100% of it out of the beans (though much research is still being conducted on how to grow a decaffeinated coffee bean—check out this detailed article in Nature if you're curious about that). So if you drink 5-10 cups of decaf, you're getting about as much caffeine as you would if you had 1-2 cups of regular (at least according to research at the University of Florida). So if you need to cut out caffeine entirely, you'll have to quit the decaf habit too.

Mom (& friends), I hope this answers your questions. I have to say, I learned a whole lot in my research as well!

Small Attitudes, Big Impact

2012-09-18T15:21:00.000-04:00

“Being good should always be good for business.”

These are the words of Nasser Abufarha, founder of the Palestine Fair Trade Association & Canaan Fair Trade. He & I sat down last week during his visit to Traverse City for the premiere of The People & the Olive, Stone Hut Studios' documentary about On the Ground's Run Across Palestine back in February.

Nasser is a stylish, stately & well-traveled man, but he also carries a self-ease that made me immediately comfortable. As we sat at a picnic table on the Higher Grounds patio, his friendly warmth matched that of the early autumn sun dripping through the maples overhead. I had scribbled down a few questions to ask him: about the highlights of his visit to Northern Michigan (HG owner Chris Treter's wedding, touching base with the runners he'd met in Palestine, & salmon fishing near Honor), what the film represented for him (a way to bridge communities not connected through politics but able to connect through food), & what's on the horizon for PFTA & CFT (almonds, a new crop for farmers there; new markets in Europe). Through all of these subjects, our conversation kept coming back to one thing.

“What's the biggest challenge in your line of work?” I asked.

“Managing the growth,” replied Nasser, “staying focused on the mission, & keeping small attitudes.”

Small attitudes. That phrase resonates with me. In the midst of steady growth as a business—something currently experienced by both Canaan Fair Trade & Higher Grounds—maintaining our commitment to justice & our valuable relationships with farmers is essential. It would be easy to get caught up in the excitement of growth & expansion; more business obviously means more consumers are aware of our product, & brand recognition is spreading. We could ride the wave & follow the corporate & societal model that says bigger is better. But even though our pocketbooks might win, without nurturing the mission that motivated the very birth of our organization, without keeping our egos in check & our attitudes small, we could lose sight of what really matters: community.

“[At Canaan], we want to create a model of community,” Nasser explained, “where we work together based on certain shared ethics. Building it, having it be visible while showing the capacity to succeed. Business doesn't need to be unfair or exploitative to be successful.”

There's a dual pressure in any business selling goods, a positive tension between the producer base & the customer base: you need to have one to have the other, & when you strengthen one, you strengthen the other as well. And it's important to demonstrate transparency in the structure & financing of our company, illustrating the components of a sustainable business so that everyone in the community understands our role & how we work, even behind the scenes. Equally important is that our business recognizes our connection to the community that surrounds us & uplifts us. The day after my chat with Nasser, I was accompanying Ruth, HG's bike delivery girl, on her route (to get a feel for her job & meet some of the people she sees regularly). One of our last stops was the Oviatt House Bed & Breakfast on 8^th Street, where we delivered two five-pound bags of coffee & two bottles of Palestinian olive oil. As we parked our bikes, we were greeted in the driveway by Franny & Ken, the owners--& by Nasser, who was staying there. It was the perfect manifestation of Higher Grounds' mission: connecting our global community with our local community. And even when we don't all meet face to face, we're still close-knit, via the path our products travel from the field to us.

We completely agree with Nasser that our success as a business should never rely on unfair or exploitative practices; in fact, I'd hesitate to call those things “successful” at all. We treat our workplace environment as a community as well; we're definitely a family around here. Personally, I can say that I feel appreciated & respected by my coworkers for what I do. That in itself makes me want to do the best job I can, which benefits not only Higher Grounds but my wellbeing too. So I'll repeat Nasser's words, a declaration that rings true to us here at HG & will echo in my brain for all time: Being good should always be good for business.

Changing the World, One Bean at a Time

2012-09-06T12:54:00.001-04:00

Okay, it sounds trite. Go ahead, roll your eyes. We hear about people wanting to change the world every day. And one bean at a time? Come on. All you have to do is swap out the word “bean” for just about anything else, & you've heard it a thousand times. You're thinking, Jennifer, you can't change the world with a bean.

But people, this is serious. Our state faces some big time issues, & they're far from simple. Here are some sobering stats for you:

Michigan was the only state to lose population between 2000 & 2010.

One in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually abused before the age of 18.

42% of people served by Michigan food pantries in 2010 reported having to choose between paying for food & paying for utilities or heating fuel.

And nearly 15% of Michigan's population lives below the poverty level, a number higher than the national average.

Here at HG, we've decided to do something about it. But what does a coffee company know about tackling these issues? We can talk about the subtle nuances of Ethiopian coffee or the fine points of various coffee brewing methods all day long. We're espresso experts, pouring pros, vacuum sealing virtuosos, specialist servers (see what I did there?). But we also care deeply about the things that impact the world we live in. Our communities are precious, & we want to take care of them.

So we look to the people who are already there in the trenches, working hard to protect our fine state from the problems we face. The Michigan Land Use Institute (MLUI) focuses on sustaining our beautiful cities, farms, & beaches so we gain citizens & investors instead of losing them. The Traverse Bay Children's Advocacy Center (TBCAC) takes a stand against child sexual abuse by providing case review services, medical evaluations, & victim advocacy. Gleaners Community Food Bank distributes millions of pounds of food each year & provides meals to those who would not otherwise be able to afford to eat. Focus: HOPE addresses economic disparity, inadequate education, & racial divisiveness through career training, community art & development programs, & the HOPE Village Initiative.

To help our friends at these hardworking organizations continue to do their jobs, & to join with them in creating an even more awesome Michigan, Higher Grounds has launched a brand new line of coffees.

Michigan Coffees for Change includes four distinct blends, each crafted especially for one of these Michigan nonprofit organizations. Proceeds from each directly support the corresponding nonprofit: Michigan BOLD is for MLUI, Michigan STRONG is for TBCAC, MichiganBRIGHT is for Focus: HOPE, & Michigan SMOOTH is for Gleaners. Each coffee represents our support for the important work they do.

Through Michigan Coffees for Change, Higher Grounds engages with our communities & demonstrates support for others working towards a vibrant and dynamic Michigan. We're gonna keep roastin' & brewin' like it's our job. Because it is our job. But we're excited to find more ways our work (& our beans!) can support even more important work, work that means our fine state will get better & better in the years to come. We hope you'll join with us--& with these fine organizations—to make that happen. Can we change the world with a bean? We certainly can try.

Here's where you can find Michigan Coffees for Change:

Traverse City: Tom's Food Markets, Oryana Natural Foods Market, Olesons Food Stores, High Five Threads, Higher Grounds Coffee Bar
Petoskey: Grain Train Natural Foods Market
Bay City: Thunder Brew Coffee
Grand Rapids: Grand Central Market & Deli, Kingma's Markets, The Crushed Grape, Forest Hills Foods
Detroit area: Market Square (Birmingham, West Bloomfield)

Learn more about all the Michigan Coffees for Change & our partner organizations at michiganbold.com. We've also gotten some press lately: check out Chris' interview with Channel 9/10, this story in the Ticker, & this Traverse City Record Eagle article.

There's Something in the Water: Water Filtration Part 2

2012-08-27T13:42:00.001-04:00

A few weeks ago, I gave you all the mumbo-jumbo technical stuff about water filtration systems. Now I'm on to what really matters: the coffee.

After all, the most important thing is the result, right? What most of us are interested in is the consequence of brewing our coffee with one type of water over another. So a few of us here at HG conducted a cupping with three different coffees, brewed using three different types of water. The first time I did this, I was with Bill, a representative from the Traverse City company Pure Water Works, who brought the water varieties:

1. Softened water

2. NextScaleStop water (a chemical-free scale prevention method, which converts hardness minerals into harmless, inactive microscopic crystals)

3. Reverse osmosis water

Using coffee-industry standard cupping techniques, Bill & I sampled Higher Grounds' Bolivian, Highland Humanity blend, & Justice blend with all three waters. Though Bill knew which water was which, I didn't; we simply labeled the cups by number, so my experience would be totally unbiased. Here's what we found (our reactions were fairly aligned throughout the whole tasting process):

The coffees brewed in softened water (#1) tasted a bit watery & bland & had little staying power. The subtle flavors present dissipated pretty much immediately.

NextScaleStop water (#2) produced a fuller, richer mouthfeel & much more dynamic flavors across the board.

Reverse osmosis water (#3) made for a decent cup, but without the lingering finish we were looking for. Even though our sips lacked richness, the distinct flavor profiles of each coffee were present; if this had been the only coffee I'd been presented, I likely would have enjoyed the cup, However, next to option #2, it wasn't nearly as delicious.

Bill admitted that as a water filtration professional, he had fully expected to prefer the RO coffee, since the claim is that RO water is so pure & clean that it allows all the individual coffee flavors to shine. But we both agreed that the NextScaleStop water made the best cup: full, rich, & carrying the distinct profiles of each coffee we tried.

I repeated the cupping with two of our Roastery staff, Karin & Byron. Like me, these two are constantly tasting our coffee—indeed, it's our job!—so they have a very strong sense of what each bean should taste like. And during our cupping, they both had the same reaction that Bill & I had: water #2 made the best coffee. HG has since upgraded our filtration (which had previously utilized a more basic system) to NextScaleStop.

So I'll leave you with my strong recommendation for NextScaleStop as an affordable, high-quality solution to your water filtration needs. (Do I sound like a commercial or what?!) Honestly though, it was a worthwhile experiment, since I was curious about the effects of both softened water & reverse osmosis on my cup of joe. It might be fun to do a similar cupping at home with tap water vs. filtered water, either from your fridge or a Brita pitcher. If you do, let me know—I'd love to compare notes!

--Jennifer

There's Something in the Water: Water Filtration Part 1

2012-08-13T11:22:00.001-04:00

Every once in a while, a customer will come in & say something like:

“Your coffee always tastes great here, but when I brew it at home, it never tastes the same. What am I doing wrong?”

Certainly there are several factors that contribute to the successful creation of a tasty brew—freshness, grind, extraction time, & water temperature to name a few—but often the most likely culprit is overlooked: water quality.

Coffee is about 98% water, so it makes sense that good-tasting, high-quality water is essential to a delicious cup. There’s a lot of information about water filtration out here on the interwebs, but most of it appears on sites that want to sell me their particular systems. So I’ve been hunting rigorously for the down-low. What kind of system is best? Do I have to spend thousands of dollars if I want the perfect cup of coffee (at home or in our Coffee Bar)? Is there one ideal filtration system, or will the ideal be different depending on the particular water coming out of my faucet?

Here’s what I’ve learned.

First of all, it’s important to pay attention to what’s coming out of your tap or boiler spout. In the case of a boiler, scaling, lime, & other deposits inside can affect the taste of the water (& hence your coffee) as well as damage your equipment. Keeping all your equipment clean is always essential. So take a closer look at the water: is it clear or cloudy? Does it have bubbles? Does it become clearer as it settles? Does it smell? Does it taste different hot vs. cold? What subtle things do you taste? Is your water harsh? Muddy? Bitter? Dirty? Acidic? Metallic? Does it taste like any chemicals? Once you’ve observed your water, you’ll have a clearer sense of what you want/need out of a filtration system.

As any relatively-informed individual might guess, no two water supplies are the same. Each supply encounters different soils, municipal treatments, & distribution channels. And your pipes are different from your neighbor’s pipes (age, materials, condition), making your water unique in several ways:

* chlorine, which can cause corrosion – determined by the type of disinfectant used by your utility company

* minerals, determined by the composition of soil & rock in your area

* total dissolved solids (anything present in your water that you probably can’t see)

* hardness, which can create off-tastes & make soft ice

* turbidity: cloudiness or haziness as a result of suspended particles usually invisible to the naked eye, determined by runoff conditions

Finally, if you use water softener, it’s important not to over-soften, since that can damage good coffee flavors & increase bitterness. There are differing opinions about the precise numbers, but here are a few guidelines for ideal coffee brewing water quality:

In general, we can leave the complicated stuff to the experts, since a good water filtration system will be designed to produce the ideal water for your needs, taking all these variables into consideration. Just make sure you find a good technician who knows what he/she is doing! Still, it’s good to have some basic context before jumping on board with a new system.

The water filtration company Everpure discusses a lot of this info on their website—in great, tedious detail. Here’s the gist of it:

Using a good filtration system, it’s possible to get rid of some microbiological contaminants, most suspended solids (both organic & inorganic), & some chemicals. If you have dissolved minerals or gases in your water, many experts recommend additional treatments like softening or reverse osmosis. (Caveat: the specialty coffee industry generally eschews reverse osmosis as an option, with the claim that some of those dissolved mineral solids actually help carry flavor. Though I can't seem to find any empirical evidence to support that, my personal experience does concur - watch for a later post with details.)

Most water filtration systems have at least a two-stage filtration:

1. Mechanical

Mechanical filtration removes suspended solids from your water. Basically, the filter is a barrier with many, many super-tiny holes—finer than the finest mesh strainer you’ve ever seen. The water is pushed through the barrier at high pressure, & solid particles larger than the holes are trapped. These filters come in various micron ratings: the lower the micron rating, the finer the filter, the more (& smaller) particles it will catch. One micron is about 1/25,000 of an inch (a human hair is 40-120 microns). Most mechanical filters use a simple design that catches about 85% of particles the size of the micron rating.

When choosing a mechanical filter, consider 1) the micron rating, 2) flow rate requirements for the particular product (can your system work with that filter?), & 3) total capacity of the filter (what kind of volume will you be filtering?).

Most foodservice setups use a type of mechanical filter called a sediment prefilter, with ratings ranging from 5-50 microns. These filters are used before other filtration procedures in order to extend the life of the overall system.

2. Chemical

It’s also essential to filter out chemicals (like chlorine & chloramine) from your water, which can’t be caught by a mechanical filter. Usually this is done using food-grade carbon, manufactured from natural materials like wood & coconut shell. Carbon is quite porous, giving it a ton of surface area.

Here’s where it gets a little more scientific—bear with me. (If you’re easily bored by science talk, skip the next section: since you’ve gotten this far, you already know more about water filtration than the average gal or dude.)

There are two types of filtration that use carbon:

1) Carbon Block, in which the filter cartridge (pictured to the left) is made with powdered carbon & polymer resins, either baked in molds or made into a spool shape. The spool can be wrapped with a filter membrane to provide the mechanical filtration (essentially killing two birds with one stone).

2) Granular Activated Carbon (GAC), in which the carbon is ground into powder & then fused together into granules of consistent size.

Organic chemicals are removed by absorption (where the chemical molecules are attracted to the carbon, grab them, & hold on for dear life), & disinfectants are removed by adsorption/catalytic reduction (in which the carbon actually breaks down the chemical—as with chlorine, which is reduced to a chloride ion when it comes into contact with the carbon). The total amount of chemical reduction is dependent on the particular chemical, how much carbon is used & what type, & the flow rate/contact time through the carbon bed.

You can get into fancier filtration systems, with more than two stages & multiple filters, as well as reverse osmosis systems (read more about those on Wikipedia like I did). Those will generally cost you the big bucks. But with a basic system that utilizes both mechanical & chemical filtration, you’ll be well on your way to better tasting water--& better tasting coffee.

Stay tuned for a future post when I'll explain the filtration system we use here at HG & my experience cupping (tasting) using three different kinds of water.

References:

Cipolla, Mauro. “It's In the Water.” Virtual Coffee Archives: Fall 1999. Web. 28 June 2012. Available:

“The Perfect Cup: What’s in Your Water?” Sarah’s Coffee Blog. 18 April 2011. Web. 28 June 2012. Available:

“Understanding Filtration.” Everpure. Web. 28 June 2012. Available:

Summer in the City: A Balancing Act

2012-08-01T16:29:00.001-04:00

Here in Traverse City, summer is in full swing, & summer means festivals.

crowds outside the State Theater
during the Traverse City Film Festival

Just when we've wrapped up Cherry Festival, & we think maybe town will quiet down a bit, here comes the Film Fest to remind us that yes, we do live in a place everybody & their brother like to visit.

But don't take this commentary the wrong way. I've been realizing lately that living here offers the best of two worlds: small town & big (okay, medium-sized) city.

Small town goodness: Quiet solitude. Gorgeous natural landscapes. Rural down-home friendliness. Smiles from strangers on the sidewalk.

Medium-sized city goodness: Dynamic downtown buzz. Concerts. Beer/wine/art/film festivals. Amazing chefs doing incredible things with locally-produced food.

In Traverse City, there's always something to do, somewhere to go—if I want to. I can also bike home from work to my little house (still within city limits), lounge on my deck, see absolutely no one, & do absolutely nothing except maybe water my meager garden & enjoy the late afternoon breeze.

I feel this lovely balance of two worlds at Higher Grounds as well. For example, right now I'm sitting out on the patio (which happens to be my office more often than not on these perfect summer days—rough life, I know) & I can hear a few things: cicadas (or some other buzzy insect high in the canopy). Traffic a few blocks away on Medical Campus Drive. The occasional dish bumping against the Coffee Bar's kitchen sink. Crinkles of a paper bag at the picnic table behind me. An airplane rumbling overhead. Overall, though, it's pretty quiet. In just a few minutes, though, or at any given moment, really, I might be called inside to switch roles & work some barista magic, accommodating a line of thirsty customers. Orders will be called out, grinders will whir, & the cash drawer will jingle open & shut. One minute: near silence. The next: a hubbub of activity.

I think everyone at HG would agree when I say that this ebb & flow, this yin & yang, is part of the beauty of working here. Lately it's been more flow: we've been busier than ever, & we love it. I like to ride the wave, embracing the busy-ness & the sometimes-hectic energy. As far as Film Festival is concerned, Higher Grounds is riding the wave as well, serving coffee at some VIP events & sponsoring a film on Saturday. Here's the lowdown on our film, a Palestinian documentary:

5 Broken Cameras chronicles one man's involvement in his town's peaceful resistance against Israeli bulldozers. The HG-sponsored showing is Saturday at noon at the State Theater, & it also shows Friday evening at 6 at the Opera House. Tickets are sold out, but if you haven't already gotten them, you can get in the standby line in hopes of snagging a spot at the last minute. The filmmaker & his family will be there—they've come all the way from the Middle East!

So whether you live here in Traverse City or not, take a minute to appreciate the ebb & flow in your own life. When it's busy, dig in & get the job done. Embrace the race. Check out a film at the festival or a filmmaker panel. And when things slow down, take a deep breath & let yourself stop moving. Consider solitude. Pack a picnic with Palestinian olive oil from Higher Grounds & a loaf of bread from Pleasanton Bakery, & head for a place where you can't see a soul. Recharge the yang with some yin: balance is a good thing.

How Fair is Direct Trade?

2012-07-18T16:00:00.001-04:00

There’s been a lot of buzz in the coffee world lately, with the phrases fair trade & direct trade getting tossed around, argued about, & generally serving to confuse the average consumer. My previous blog posts on the fair trade issue, which explained its history & timeline all the way through some of the current controversy & labeling issues, didn’t mention anything about direct trade, a tagline now used by several roasters. The premise of direct trade is that the roaster is working specifically with individual farms & farmers instead of larger groups or cooperatives.

Direct trade is a solid effort to satisfy the growing consumer interest in tracing our food to a specific farm. But 70% of the world’s coffee is produced by small family farmers who have fewer than 25 acres of land—too small to fill a container for export. Many of those, such as farmers in Ethiopia, one of the world’s poorest countries, have fewer than 5 acres. And while a roaster may certainly contact that farmer directly to purchase beans, the farmer is still pretty much on his own, working without infrastructure & organization, & often competing with other members of his cooperative to sell to a direct trade roaster. Also, many roasters that claim to have “direct trade” coffee haven’t met the criteria developed by the founders of the concept & instead simply buy coffee from an importer who markets it that way.

A farmer in Chiapas, Mexico
looks out over the rugged coffee-growing terrain

What’s more, in the remote regions of many countries, farmers get little if any support or services from their government & may not have roads, schools, or access to fresh water. That one roaster may only want a fairly small amount of coffee—a fraction of a container’s worth—to promote it as a limited special offering, which can sell for much more.

farmers on the drying beds at the Cecocafen co-op in Nicaragua

But when a farmer belongs to a fair trade cooperative, there are many benefits. That cooperative often provides resources the government does not. In addition to purchasing a fully-equipped processing plant, the Cecocafen coop in Nicaragua has used fair trade premiums to build schools and roads in coffee-growing areas, amenities that benefit entire communities, not just the coffee farmers. Membership in a coop means farmers can export their coffee themselves, substantially increasing their revenue, & their entire villages experience an increase in quality of life because of the support provided by the coop.

Higher Grounds believes that we cannot do good business without it being good—both beneficial & sustainable—for the farmers, without whom we would have no coffee to roast.

So how does it work? The cooperative structure, based on collective ownership & shared benefits, pervades the entire system: Higher Grounds joins 22 other community-based North American coffee roasters as part-owners of Cooperative Coffees, an importer of green coffee from small-scale farmer organizations, which in turn are comprised of independently-formed cooperatives of farmers in (often remote) coffee-growing regions. As mentioned above, those coops provide a wealth of benefits & support for their farmers.

We promote 100% transparency in all our relationships—you can follow each coffee’s path from field to cup at fairtradeproof.org—& we’re committed to providing the highest quality coffee available. When you drink Higher Grounds coffee, you can feel good knowing that you’re contributing to a fairer world with every sip.

The Other Black Gold: Compost with the Most

2012-07-10T15:59:00.001-04:00

Samantha Tengelitsch is a farmer with a mission. Several years ago, she learned the story of Lauren, the daughter of a prominent local (Traverse City) cherry farmer. In 2005, Lauren fell victim to non-Hodgkins lymphoma, often called “the pesticide cancer.” Less than a year later, Samantha was diagnosed with the very same disease. Since her recovery, she’s become passionate about teaching others how to grow food without the use of dangerous chemicals. She now runs Healing Tree Farm—currently on Division Street in Traverse City—with the mission of educating the public about urban farming.

Samantha & son Christopher Noble beside a newly planted Liberty Apple tree
on the urban Healing Tree property located at 707 S. Division Street in Traverse City

One of the methods that the farm uses in its quest for permaculture & healthy soil for growing food is composting. Several times per week, Samantha comes to Higher Grounds to collect a five-gallon bucket brimming with spent coffee grounds, mainly espresso “pucks” (the hockey-puck-like byproduct of an espresso shot) & the grounds from our French-pressed daily brew. In its place she leaves an empty bucket where our baristas deposit more grounds.

I visited Healing Tree last week to take a look at their composting system & learn more about permaculture, which is a method of farming that takes all elements (soil composition, natural ecosystems, native plants, insects, etc.) into consideration when planning & planting. Instead of focusing on one plant at a time, permaculture asks, “How does this plant contribute to & benefit from the other living things in this space?” This “do no harm” philosophy means that permaculture uses no pesticides or chemical fertilizers, instead relying on the natural balance of the existing ecosystem. Permaculture doesn’t just mimic nature—it is nature.

Whilst perusing the interwebs, I found two pretty cool graphics illustrating permaculture. This first one is from The Gardener's Calendar, a UK-based site for vegetable gardening resources. I'm choosing to forgive them for misspelling "currants" since they did such a nice drawing:

And this next one, from Transition Milwaukee, shows the larger aim of permaculture, not just in gardening but across all other aspects of life:

If you’ve ever taken a walk in the woods, making your own path & taking time to observe your surroundings, you’ve experienced exactly what permaculture farmers aim to achieve: that harmonious balance among living things. Everything has its place; everything is in its place for a reason. And as Samantha points out on Healing Tree’s web site, “diversity creates stability.”

So how does Higher Grounds coffee fit into the permaculture system?

Coffee grounds are a rich source of nitrogen, which is an important component of healthy soil (a 1:1 ratio of carbon to nitrogen is ideal). Their high ratio of nitrogen to carbon makes spent grounds the perfect candidate for layering with wood ash or cardboard to create some of the best fertilizer possible. And if you can scare up some worms (pick up a small container of leaf worms for about $4 at any bait shop), those little guys have a convenient caffeine addiction, so they’re a great addition to the pile, as they’ll speed up the soil-building process. Keep this compost concoction separate from your regular food-waste compost (separating isn’t necessary, but on its own, the coffee makes for a nice, even top layer to finish your beds) & let it break down over the winter. (Since coffee grounds are very acidic, they must be composted to achieve pH neutrality before being used on your garden.) In the spring, use this nutrient-rich black gold as a topper for your soil bed before planting.

Here’s a closer look at the compost pile. Note the layers of coffee & cardboard, like a compost lasagna:

You can repurpose other waste items to benefit your garden as well. Newspapers printed with soy ink (which is non-toxic) are a good source of carbon for soil creation. (Read Samantha’s whole soil recipe here. She uses old editions of various newspapers that would otherwise simply be traditionally recycled.)

Samantha’s been using HG coffee at their other farm location for a couple years now. Take a look at the gorgeous results:

Yarrow, rosemary, & strawberry growing strong in beds made using layer "no-till" methods
& topped with composted Higher Grounds coffee grounds

Blueberries

Butterfly bush and Russian sage cross paths in the garden
with some Jerusalem artichoke, yarrow, & bee balm blooming in the background

The gardens at the Division Street location haven’t yet benefited from Higher Grounds’ compost topper yet, since it takes at least a year (Samantha prefers two) before the concoction has reached its ideal composition. But she has a few plots started, & considering how good they look already, I can only imagine how well next year’s beauties will do!

VIP-Worthy Summer Sipper

2012-06-28T15:46:00.003-04:00

The Traverse City Wine & Art Festival is coming up this weekend, & HG has been commissioned by the Powers that Be to come up with a delectable beverage involving coffee & vodka for a certain super-awesome featured band’s VIP party. So today I picked up a fifth of True North vodka from the Grand Traverse Distillery (available at Tastes, Black Star Farms’ tasting room here in the Village) & came back to the HG Coffee Bar to see what I could come up with.

After a bit of research, I decided on a recipe that really couldn’t be any simpler:

¾ c. freshly roasted, coarsely ground coffee (I used our Mayan Magic Espresso Blend)

2 ¼ c. vodka

2 whole vanilla beans, scraped

Combine ingredients in a quart jar, stir, & cover. Infuse for about 12 hours.

So far it’s only been about 3 hours—so I’ll evaluate the results tomorrow morning. (Don’t worry, I’ll only taste… it will be 8 AM after all.) I imagine this cold-brewed-infusion will be fantastic over ice, with a splash of milk or cream: a totally classy & delicious VIP libation. Stay tuned for the outcome!

--Jennifer

Back to the Grind (Redux)

2012-06-11T16:14:00.002-04:00

Lately I’ve been having a lot of conversations about the ups & downs & ins & outs of grinding. No, I’m not talking dance-club style here (get your mind out of the gutter!). I’m talking about coffee grinding, obviously, as you might have guessed, since this is a coffee blog after all.

When you pick up a bag of coffee off the shelf here at Higher Grounds, it’s always whole bean. Many of our customers ask us to grind their beans for them, usually for one of four reasons:

1. They don’t have a grinder at home.

2. They have a grinder, but they like the result of our commercial version better.

3. They’re giving our coffee as a gift & aren’t sure if the recipient has a grinder.

4. They’re going on vacation & won’t have access to a grinder, but they can’t do without their HG fix (we love this reason the best).

Well-educated baristas—including myself—will tell you that grinding just before brewing is always better. As soon as you transform the coffee beans into tiny particles, there’s a lot more surface area exposed to air, which will immediately begin decreasing your coffee’s freshness & aroma.

Good baristas will also stand firmly by the merits of a quality grinder--& that means a burr grinder, not a blade grinder. So what’s the difference?

standard blade grinder,
viewed from the top

The cheapest, most readily available grinders out there are blade grinders. They’re the small canister-shaped guys with the button on top that you hold down to make the blade spin. The longer you hold the button down, the smaller pieces the coffee is chopped into.

coffee chopped by a blade grinder

Notice I said chopped. Similar to chopping an onion on a cutting board (or even in a food processor), what you end up with is an assortment of various-sized pieces. With a blade grinder, it’s nearly impossible to get every single bit of coffee precisely the same size & shape. In order to do so, you basically have to let the blade spin for quite a while, after which you’ll end up with, well… coffee dust. Not exactly ideal for anything except espresso or Turkish coffee.

Burr grinders, on the other hand, actually grind. Two complementary burrs, a precise distance apart, rotate against each other, creating uniformly-sized particles. If you want a coarser grind, there’s a setting for that—& the burrs will move to a defined location, dialing in just the right distance from each other. For a finer grind, the burrs move closer together, resulting in a smaller particle. You can change the setting depending on what brew method you’re using. Most home burr grinders have conical burrs, though flat burrs are just as effective.

Bodum Bistro burr grinder: $130

When it comes to both of these products—as with most products in general, from food items to clothing—you get what you pay for. Blade grinders are cheap (usually $20-30), & while they might continue working for years, those blades will inevitably get dull. Burr grinders range in price from about $80 to $150, depending on the brand (& much higher for commercial versions). But the burrs will last for years before dulling. Another benefit of burr grinders is that you don’t have to grind all the coffee you put in at once: place your whole beans into the hopper on top & just grind as much as you need. The ground coffee will fall into the lower receptacle, which slides in & out easily.

Burr grinders are also much easier to clean. Whereas pretty much the only way to clean a blade grinder is by holding it upside down & risking the wholeness of your fingers by reaching below the blade & wiping it out with a towel or brush, a burr grinder’s bean hopper is removable & easy to wash by hand (though washing with soap will only be necessary every once in a while; wiping off oils with a clean dry cloth every few days does the trick).

So here’s the question I’ve been fielding the most often lately: “Is it better to use my blade grinder at home, grinding just enough coffee before brewing, or should I have you grind the whole bag with your burr grinder, since the result is so much more uniform?”

My answer comes in multiple parts & is not absolute. But I did promise you an answer, so…

1. If your exclusive brew method of choice is espresso, Turkish, or AeroPress, even though it's not ideal, a blade grinder can do the job, since you basically want a pulverized, superfine grind.

2. If your exclusive brew method of choice is French press, a blade grinder can suffice, since the extraction time is longer & more forgiving.

3. If it only takes you about a week to go through a pound of coffee, & you're using a method like auto drip, Chemex, or pour-over (which all require a very precise grind), it’s okay to have us grind it. The benefits of that uniform grind will outweigh any freshness you lose by not grinding it just before brewing. Yes, your coffee will still lose freshness as soon as it's ground. If you can tell the difference (some people do, some don't), consider a burr grinder.

4. If you don’t have a grinder & it takes you longer than a week to go through a pound of coffee, buy less coffee at a time. Most of you live close enough to somewhere that sells whole-bean Higher Grounds coffee (probably our Coffee Bar, or perhaps a Tom’s or other grocery store), so you can just buy in smaller quantities--figure out how much you need for a week, & just buy that much.

5. If you really enjoy buying larger quantities of coffee (& benefiting from the price break that a 5# bag offers, for example), you really should invest in a burr grinder. The $150 you spend will be well worth it.

6. If you have a blade grinder & can’t bear to part with it, relegate it to grinding spices. Save up for that burr grinder, & in the meantime, buy smaller quantities so you’re getting the most out of your freshly-roasted beans.

7. If you have an antique, manual version of the burr grinder (like the one pictured in the cartoon at the top of this page), it most likely still does an excellent job. And it looks awesome displayed on your kitchen counter.

8. If you have more questions, come by & ask our friendly baristas. We’ll show you the burr grinder we offer & would be more than happy to give you a demo.

Hope this helps!

--Jennifer

HG's Video Debut!

2012-05-23T11:11:00.001-04:00

After several weeks of brainstorming, planning, development, & production, Higher Grounds is proud to present two videos, produced by Aaron Dennis of Stone Hut Studios. Learn about our story, values & mission -- & then learn how to make a latte from Jennifer!

Our Newest HG Addition

2012-05-22T11:16:00.000-04:00

Spring is here, love is in the air, & we are in love with our new barista Stacy!

Stacy had been a barista for quite some time before we got lucky enough to nab her. She says her favorite part of being a barista is having the opportunity to make an impact on a person’s day: “A well made drink can change the tone of a person’s day.”

Stacy thinks that the best drink experience here at HG is our latte. “Not only is the coffee roasted a mere 50 feet away, but the milk is also sourced locally," she says. "So in one drink you are able to support us here at HG & local farmers. Not to mention the awesome latte art I get to make when you order one.”

Stacy is anticipating summer as much as any of us. She is ready for swimming in the bay, camping, & gardening, pretty much anything that can be enjoyed outside.

We are excited to introduce our newest member of the HG family, so please stop on by to say hello!

HG on the Radio!

2012-04-26T15:21:00.000-04:00

Last week, HG owner Chris Treter was featured on That Michigan Show, a weekly radio show produced by the Prima Civitas Foundation. The show focuses on current themes in Michigan’s economy & promotes next generation ideas. According to the show’s web site, it’s “a young-professional-driven platform designed to inform, educate, AND entertain listeners as [they] capture the stories, people, & events helping to drive prosperity in Michigan.”

During the first ten minutes of last week's show, entitled "Uncommon Entrepreneurs," Chris talks about translating his passion into making a living. Get the inside scoop & check out the interview here.

Coffee Seasonality: Part 1

2012-04-19T16:58:00.002-04:00

If you garden, or if you’ve ever planted anything in your life, or especially if you live in Northern Michigan like I do, you know that some things just don’t grow year round. Each plant has an ideal growing season & ideal growing conditions, & when that season is over or the conditions change, the plant stops growing. If it’s edible—a carrot, maybe, or a lovely bunch of kale—you pick it & eat it. And when the growing season is over, if you’ve harvested a fair amount of your crop, you store it up in jars or put it in the freezer to enjoy for the coming months.

One of my favorite crops is the tomato. (If you've read some of my other blogs, you've probably picked up on that.) I can never process enough jars of tomatoes. No matter how many quarts I fill & stash for stews & sauces during the winter, I always run out before tomatoes are in season again. And then I’m forced to buy these, which are never as good as my home-canned varieties, & I groan & gripe until July finally hits & I can come home from Saturday market with a couple flats of the ripe, juicy heirlooms I’ve been waiting for since March.

Here’s the truth: sometimes we run out of coffee.

Sometimes, a customer comes in for their weekly pound of a particular variety, & we have to break the news gently. No, we don’t have any Ugandan Peaberry right now. But it’s not because we forgot to order it, or even that there’s a problem with our cooperative. The fact is, coffee is a crop. And like other crops, like those juicy heirloom tomatoes I crave every time I can’t get them, coffee has growing seasons. Depending on the region in which they grow, some varieties have very short growing seasons & limited harvests.

our friend Chelsea picking coffee cherries in Chiapas, Mexico

Part of our mission here at Higher Grounds is to share our knowledge of coffee with our customers. That means providing information about why a certain coffee isn’t currently available, or when we might expect to have more. In my next blog post, I’ll dig in to some more specifics about all the factors that impact the availability of coffee. So the next time you can’t get your favorite bean, remember that there’s a good reason--& we hope you’ll trust your friendly neighborhood barista to recommend something different.

--Jennifer

The Proof is in the Pudding

2012-04-12T16:44:00.002-04:00

A big part of my job here at Higher Grounds is quality assurance. That means I’m constantly on the lookout not only for ways to maintain & improve the quality of the products & service we offer here in the coffee bar, but also for ways to increase the quality of our customers’ interactions with us--whether they be online, on the phone, or in person—and the quality of your coffee at home.

I spend most of my time in the coffee bar – sometimes behind the counter making drinks, & other times using the space as my office, since I do most of my writing & marketing work on my laptop. I like being next to our giant windows, using natural light, & also observing the goings-on of the coffee bar, which is sometimes quiet & other times bustling with activity.

One of my favorite things about my job is the interaction I have with customers, especially when I have the opportunity to help you improve your at-home coffee brewing experience. Sometimes that happens through a simple conversation about how/where you store their coffee beans (don’t put them in the freezer or refrigerator—a cool, dark, dry cabinet in an airtight container is best) or how long it takes you to go through that 5-pound bag (a month or so is just fine for retaining freshness as long as its stored properly). And sure, sometimes it happens when I sell somebody something: a sleek stainless steel insulated French press (nobody likes a cold cup of coffee that’s supposed to be hot), a new way of brewing (the Aeropress produces an impressive little cup), or a schnazzy Bodum burr grinder (absolutely one of the best ways to take your at-home brewing to the next level). But the point here is not that I’m selling products, or that HG is making money. Certainly I am, and we are. But I’ve worked several places where it was my job to sell things (a high-end retail clothing store, for one), & HG is the first place I’ve worked where I’m not selling things for the sole purpose of bringing in profit or getting another star next to my name on the employee success chart. I actually feel good selling the things we sell, because I know that the result is a better at-home coffee experience for our customers.

We roast great coffee here at HG, & we want our customers to have the same excellent experience with a cup at home as they do here in our coffee bar. So when you walk in, nobody’s going to accost you with a sales pitch. We’ll meet your needs & make sure you find the information--& maybe the product—that’s going to give you the highest-quality coffee experience.

Okay, I know, I might be starting to sound like a commercial. But honestly, I feel good about this place. Some jobs are just places you work—I worked at that clothing store; I’ve worked at a gas station. But I work for Higher Grounds. And Higher Grounds works for you. Come on in & let us prove it!

Combating the Trash Stash: What's Your Cup Made Of?

2012-03-29T16:19:00.001-04:00

Each of us throws away about 14.4 times our own body weight in product waste every year (or 4.5 pounds per day). Over the past century, that rate has increased tenfold: from about 92 pounds to over 1200.

Here’s some more perspective for you:

The total volume of solid waste produced in the U.S. each year is equal to the weight of more than 5,600 Nimitz Class air craft carriers; 247,000 space shuttles; or 2.3 million Boeing 747 jumbo jets.

If we put all of the solid waste collected in the U.S. in a line of average garbage trucks, that line of trucks could cross the country, extending from New York City to Los Angeles, more than 100 times.

Currently, in the United States, 33.8 percent is recovered and recycled or composted, 11.9 percent is burned at combustion facilities, and the remaining 54.3 percent is disposed of in landfills.

Anyway, back to the individual average of 1200 pounds per person. Over a thousand pounds of trash! Just from one human being! Sounds crazy, right? But think about it. Think about all the things you’ve tossed in the trash already today, or even just in the past few hours. Napkins, paper towels, the wrapper from that granola bar, the bag those pretzels came in. Paper, plastic, aluminum—sometimes it gets recycled, sure, but much of it gets crumpled & tossed.

40% of all that trash is from packaging, including disposable cups. Many of us use them every day, for coffee & tea to go, water from the cooler at work, smoothies, soda at parties. If we placed all 500 billion of them end to end (that’s how many are manufactured annually), they’d circumnavigate the earth 100 times. Just stop for a second & ponder. That is a LOT of cups. In the U.S. alone, over 58 billion of them are sent to the landfill every year: 158 for every single U.S. citizen.

So you get the point. Disposable cups are ubiquitous & seemingly inescapable. So what’s a conscious consumer to do?

How about recycling? you might ask. Recycling is great, yes, absolutely. Recycling always beats sending something to the landfill. But the truth is, 36% of what we toss in the trash is made of paper, & that includes single-use paper cups. Because of health & contamination concerns, most of those cups are not made with recyclable materials, & many are coated with polyethylene, making them difficult to recycle or compost.

The most effective way to combat the pile-up of disposable-cup waste is to bring your own travel cup & water bottle with you. Keep them in your car, your bike, your purse, your backpack. On Mondays at Higher Grounds, regular coffee is only a dollar when you use your own cup. We don’t actually have any disposable cups here at all; we receive donations of assorted ceramic mugs from our customers, & we give them away as to-go cups instead. And here, like many other coffee shops, we offer a discount to cup-toters. Green Upgrader has a great infographic:

It's all this data that Higher Grounds draws on to back up our no-wasted-cup policy. Occasionally someone might get a little grumpy, shocked that we wouldn’t offer the same “convenience” as most other coffee shops. Every once in a while, we lose a sale. But we’re committed to our mission of sustainability, & the vast majority of the reactions we get are positive. Those who absolutely need a lidded cup that will fit in a vehicle’s cup holder have learned to come prepared with their own, & we do offer a few for sale. But part of our policy is encouraging people to sit & stay awhile, enjoying their beverage slowly instead of rushing off to the next thing. Coffee (or any beverage, really) always tastes better out of a “real” cup anyway.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll wax poetic about other areas of interest to the conscious coffee consumer, from sustainably-produced brewing equipment to the specific stories behind some of the products we carry at HG. Before you know it, you’ll be helping to save the world from mountains of trash, one sip at a time.

Sources:

Andrews, Ryan. “Trash-Free Eating: Cutting Down on Garbage Production.” Precision Nutrition Coaching. 16 Jan 2012. Web. Available:

Hill, Kyle. “Science Fact of the Day.” Science-Based Life. 8 Oct 2011. Web. Available:

“Recycling & Landfill Facts & Statistics Infographic.” Harmony Enterprises, Inc. 2 Feb 2012. Web. Available:

Striepe, Becky. “Reduce the Waste from Your Morning Cup.” Green Upgrader. 27 Oct 2011. Web. Available: http://greenupgrader.com/17378/reduce-the-waste-from-your-morning-cup/

“Sustainability Journey.” KeepCup. 2012. Web. Available:

We're Hiring!

2012-03-20T13:32:00.000-04:00

Job Announcement: Barista/ Roastery team member
Part-time Immediate Opening.

Higher Grounds Trading Co. seeks a person to join our growing Traverse City-based Fair Trade/ Organic Coffee company. We seek individuals who are enthusiastic about our mission and want to be a part of a growing alternative economy. We encourage people of all ethnicities, race, gender, age, and sexual orientation to apply.

About Higher Grounds:

Higher Grounds Trading Co. was founded with the intention of creating and growing markets for fair trade, organic coffee. Our guiding principles are based upon internationally recognized Fair Trade standards and practices. We specialize in linking small-scale organic coffee farmers to domestic consumers who appreciate a high quality cup of coffee. Higher Grounds Trading Co. values involvement in community-enhancing initiatives as well as national and international efforts to improve the fair trade system and the general promotion of economic, social and environmental justice.

Please visit our website at www.highergroundstrading.com to learn more about our company.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Develop, pour, and brew specialty espresso and brewed coffee drinks
• Provide courteous and responsive service to our customers
• Assist in the roastery to meet the requirements of daily production schedule by helping to bag, sticker, grind & prepare orders for shipment/delivery
• Maintain a clean and organized work area
• Complete inventory and process logs accurately and to specifications
• Educate customers about the intricacies in making a quality cup of coffee

Requirements:

• Pleasant disposition with customers and staff
• Self-directed, organized, have a great attention to detail, and adaptable to ever-evolving workplace
• Able to lift up to 60 lbs and 30 pounds repeatedly
• Able to stand, walk, and lift for entire work day
• Maintain a professional appearance

The ideal candidate will have a clean, well-groomed appearance; enjoy a fast-paced, energetic workplace; be an enthusiastic supporter of social justice and environmental sustainability; dedicated to continually improving the quality of their work and the services they provide; and love coffee!

To Apply: Please answer the following questions in the form of a cover
letter and email them (or drop them off at the coffee bar) with your contact information and resume:

• Why do you feel you would be a good fit to work at Higher Grounds?
• Give an anecdote that demonstrates your ability to be resourceful.
• What past experience has most prepared you to work in this capacity?

Position Compensation: competitive hourly rate commensurate with skill level and experience.

You Say Tomato, I Say Fair Farm Bill

2012-03-15T14:33:00.001-04:00

I love tomatoes. Putting together a salad can be a giant pain (wash & tear the greens, slice & dice peppers/carrots/whatever other crunchy veg I happen to have in the fridge, maybe grate some cheese, & darn it I’m out of salad dressing again so now I have to get the whole blender out), but messy chunks of a ripe, juicy tomato in the midst of it all really make the whole effort pay off.

The thing is, though, sometimes it’s November. Or February. And there’s no such thing as a ripe, juicy tomato in my house. Sure, maybe there are some at the grocery store down the street, but even then, they’ve traveled 3000 miles from Chile or Mexico & they won’t even release a drip of liquid when I slice into them. I might as well be cutting a potato dyed red.

Okay, probably not the best metaphor.

You get the idea: anything bred for durability, picked before its prime, ripened off the vine, & stacked 60 crates deep for the long haul north across an entire continent can hardly claim the same name as the supple, ruddy fruit I’ll find at the summer market, beaming up at the farmer who planted it & tended it & finally, at just the right moment, perhaps even that very morning, picked it to place on his table. And I’ll ask him his name, & I’ll thank him for growing such beautiful produce, & when I get home I’ll slice that baby into juicy slabs, spread it on a blue plate with some basil, sprinkle it with some coarse sea salt & dig in. That, my friends, is a tomato.

But here’s the problem. Most people in our country don’t have access to the kind of fresh food I’m talking about. Current U.S. agricultural policy gives special treatment to those producing ginormous quantities of commodity crops like soybeans & corn (ever drive through Iowa?). Because these crops are in such high production, the prices farmers receive for them are low—but our government provides subsidies so the farmers can keep on growing those soybeans & corn for use in processed foods (if you haven’t yet realized that high fructose corn syrup is in pretty much everything that’s sold at your supermarket, sorry, but you’ve been living in a cave). Why? Because processed foods are cheap. They’re convenient. And if there’s ~~one thing~~ two things we Americans love, it’s cheap & convenient. In the meantime, farmers are in debt, their land is overworked (see: effects of monoculture), & a handful of companies (getting richer all the while) dictate the prices they receive for their crops. As Food & Water Watch points out on their web site, the four biggest companies in each industry “slaughter nearly all the beef, process two-thirds of the pork, sell half the groceries & manufacture about half the milk in the U.S.,” meaning that we consumers don’t even get to benefit from those low prices paid to the farmers. (Side note: personally, I’m opposed to drinking milk that’s referred to as “manufactured.” Something about that just doesn’t seem right.)

Essentially, it’s a broken policy. More & more consumers are realizing the benefits of eating local, organic food (delicious!) & supporting local farmers (personal & friendly!). But many of the farmers who live closest to large populations of people are being paid not to grow that food & grow commodities instead. And while I’m happy to pay $3/pound for organic heirloom tomatoes or $4.50/dozen for eggs from the farm half a mile outside of town, I understand that those prices can seem shocking to someone used to picking up a carton of eggs for 99 cents at the supermarket.

Local, organic food is worth a premium price—as with most things, you get what you pay for. But it shouldn’t be out of reach for the average consumer. The Farm Bill is rewritten every five years, & 2012 is one of those years. We have a huge opportunity to change federal farm & food policy. It’s time to speak out against agribusiness & work towards a fair market that ensures the farmers who grow our food can do so affordably & sustainably while earning a decent living for themselves.

To learn more, check out Food & Water Watch’s page, & contact your state’s representatives to make sure your voice is heard. Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow is Chairwoman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry--& she’s in a position to make big changes in the Farm Bill this year. Call her office, send her an email--& sign a petition to Congress here.

We hosted a Fair Food Fest here at HG last night, focused on the fair Farm Bill campaign. I’ve been a “foodie” for most of my life, so any issue related to the food I eat is relevant to me. I enjoy eating good food (ahem—see above), & the most delicious food I can find always comes from close to home: eggs from local, pastured chickens; bacon & pork chops from my brother’s pigs; vibrant, crisp greens I pick up at the summer farmers’ market. And when the juice from that first farm-fresh heirloom tomato of the season dribbles down my cheek, I know it was worth the long winter wait.

Girl Power!

2012-03-08T15:28:00.000-05:00

Today is International Women's Day. One of the things I love most about working for Higher Grounds is being part of a global community, linked to individuals all over the world through our connection to coffee. But the harsh reality is that many of our friends struggle daily to have their basic needs met, & HG is deeply committed to shedding light on those struggles, sharing their stories with the rest of our local & global community. As a part of that community myself, I'm becoming more & more aware of issues affecting our brothers & sisters near & far. Today, I'm here to tell you about some of those sisters.

One of those most basic needs--something that many of us privileged Americans take for granted--is access to public education. And for women, the lack of educational opportunities is starkest in Ethiopia, a country among the world's largest coffee producers.

In the Yirgacheffe region, known for some of the world's most sought-after coffees, only about half of the area's children complete primary school. The adult literacy rate is 36%, & life expectancy is 53 years. Usually, once girls finish primary school, they get married & start having children. Their opportunities for education & advancement essentially evaporate.

Here's an excerpt from HG owner Chris Treter's blog post last year after he participated in On the Ground's Run Across Ethiopia:

Alimazi Bedhaso, a 14 year old girl from a growing community that supplies coffee to over a dozen brands in the U.S. and Europe, approached me while touring a new high school built with fair trade premiums which she will attend next year. When asked about her education thus far she quickly responded, “For girls it is very difficult. If we do not attend school we are forced into arranged marriage at a very young age. If we are in school there are not enough teachers or supplies and we have no time to study. We must walk for hours to return home where we must fetch water and wood, feed the animals, and cook.”

Few Ethiopian girls are as fortunate as Alimazi is to attend school. But this fall, many more will have the opportunity. The Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (OCFCU) helps Ethiopian farmers export their coffee directly, & part of its mission is to improve the social condition of their society. One way they're demonstrating that mission is through the Girls Empowerment Project, establishing scholarships that will make it possible for girls like Alimazi to attend high school, exponentially expanding their horizons. The cost of one scholarship is $60. (I've spent more than that on a pair of jeans or a fancy dinner date.)

So where does this money come from? Much of it will be contributed by On the Ground--& in order to stay afloat, OTG depends on the generosity of individuals like you. Click here to donate, & earmark your donation for "Girls Empowerment Project" in the memo field.

Here's a note for ladies in particular: another way for you to support the work of On the Ground is by attending The People and the Olive Women's Progressive. For $20, you'll enjoy lunch, dessert, & a concert by local musician Angela Josephine--& all proceeds support the production of The People and the Olive's documentary about last month's Run Across Palestine. I'm planning to attend myself--it should be a delicious day! Hope to see you there.

Peace,

Jennifer

Bridging the Global Gap: Learning from our Connections with Other Cultures

2012-02-22T15:33:00.000-05:00

Emma Smith, HG coffee bar manager, recently traveled to Guatemala with a local church group, along with Ruth Elliott, HG’s bike delivery girl. Higher Grounds’ Guatemalan coffee comes from a couple different cooperatives there, including the Rio Azul cooperative in Jacaltenango (city), Huehuetenango (department), which is about 150 miles north of the region Emma visited. Here are some words from Emma about her adventure:

Many months ago, I was given the opportunity to volunteer at the San Lucas Mission in Guatemala with a group from Advent Church in Lake Ann, Michigan. Two weeks ago I finally made the journey to that beautiful country. We left from Detroit early one morning to catch the first of the two planes that would bring us to our destination, San Lucas Toliman. San Lucas is nestled between mountains and Volcán Tolimán. It sits on the southeastern shore of Lake Atitlan. The majority of people who live there are Highland Mayans.

During our first few days, we had no volunteering responsibilities, so we had the opportunity to explore the area. The Lake Atitlan shoreline is strung with villages. We were able to visit three of the many. The best way to travel between villages is by boat. The boat rides were one of the highlights from my trip. The lake is so alive with fishermen and women cleaning their clothes on shore. The most memorable town was Santa Catarina; they are known specifically for their beautiful textiles. Everyone we encountered in Santa Catarina was so generous; they had nothing but smiles and patience with our broken Spanish. This town was truly beautiful, its scenery and its people; there are few places that I’ve traveled that stand out in my mind as much as Santa Catarina.

On another day we rode in the back of a truck for about twenty minutes to get to San Antonio Palapo, where we met Elvis, a member of the Campesino Committee of the Highland, or CCDA, a grassroots association working for social justice and equality for the Mayan people. This group was founded in 1982 but was forced to work underground until 1988. The government perceived them as another armed guerrilla group, but in 1990 they became an established organization. A few of the key points the CCDA focuses on are rural development, land distribution, achieving fair labor rights, and producing and exporting goods such as coffee, honey and textiles. They are making progress with some of these issues.

For example, in 1998 one hundred pounds of coffee were shipped out of the country, and last year 2,300 pounds were exported. Meeting Elvis and listening to his story and the story of the CCDA is very inspiring. Hearing about their struggles as people and as an organization is one thing, but to know that they keep working to bring a better life to their town and the Mayan people is encouraging.

My favorite part of the trip was walking around San Lucas in the mornings. Throughout our walks, more and more people would be out on the streets starting their mornings. The market, which runs for many blocks, would just be setting up. Within an hour the town would come to life. I already miss the feel of this town. The people who live in San Lucas have such big hearts; every person you pass says good morning with a smile on their face. The people of this town have lived through a war and so much adversity. By our standards, most of the people are underprivileged and do without so much, but they seem to live with so much life and beauty.

***

Emma’s experience in Guatemala is a perfect example of what we can learn from people living across the world from us, who have lived through more trials & turmoil than most of us privileged Americans can begin to wrap our heads around. As she points out, many times those who have endured the greatest struggles are the ones who exhibit the greatest joy & acceptance. The coffee farmers in Guatemala have long struggled to earn a living wage for their product, & Higher Grounds is committed to helping them achieve a better quality of life through a guaranteed fair trade price. But fair trade practices are only the beginning. Money alone will not solve the problems of cultural marginalization & social unrest between native peoples & their too-often power-hungry governments. Through cultural exchange-focused travels like Emma’s, our eyes can be opened wider to a better understanding of global justice issues.

Back to the Ol' Grind

2012-02-13T16:12:00.002-05:00

Did you miss me?

(Don’t answer that.)

At any rate, the blog is back in action this week with a quick word about grinding your coffee just right for the best cup. After all, since it’s Valentine’s week, you’ll certainly be bringing your sweetheart (or your mom, dad, sister, roomie...) breakfast in bed…which absolutely should include a steamy cup of delicious HG coffee.

If you came here straight from this week's coffee bar newsletter, welcome! Thanks for stopping by.

Every brewing method has a particular extraction time, which means how long the coffee & the water hang out together. A French press relies on a long extraction (3-4 minutes), so it's good to use coarsely ground coffee. The shorter the extraction time, the finer the grind—as you might expect, espresso has a short extraction (about 25 seconds), so a very fine grind is used.

During any brewing, most of the flavors you want from coffee are extracted first, along with caffeine. But when the time that the coffee & water are in contact is extended too long for the particle size, other things get extracted as well--sometimes bitter compounds we don't want, resulting in a less-than-ideal cup. And if your coffee is ground too coarsely, only a small amount of the desirable compounds will make their way into the result, leaving the good flavors back with the spent grounds & leaving you with an under-extracted cup of coffee. Be not led astray, friends: under-extracted isn’t the same thing as weak.

So why do I end up with a weak cup? you might ask. You’re probably not using enough coffee. Remember, you should use two tablespoons of grounds per 6-8 ounces of water, which amounts to just over a cup of grounds for an 8-cup coffee pot. (Also, your personal “cup” of coffee might be larger than an actual eight-ounce cup – keep that in mind when using brewpots without measure markers.) So if you know you’re using good, fresh beans (hopefully you got them recently from Higher Grounds!), & you know you’re grinding to the appropriate particle size, simply adjust your proportion. If your result seems bitter, adjust your grind to be a little coarser.

Finally, you’re always welcome to stop by HG & ask us in person. We’d love to help you achieve delicious, perfectly-extracted coffee at home.

Next week, we'll hear from Emma (HG barista) about her recent trip to Guatemala.

--Jennifer