yep, I'm sick.
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yep, I'm sick.
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Don't forget to order enough coffee filters. You may find yourself stealing them from your local library or hospital.
Don't get engaged in a discussion about your wonderful Nicaraguan coffee while filling the tiny bar sink on your counter.
Don't forget to add chocolate to your nice customer's mocha. It's not a mocha anymore.
Despite a couple trip ups(see above), this has been a great 3 days. The response to our little shop has been awesome. People are really amazed when they see what we have done with this little dress shop which has stood empty for 5 years. I am so excited to be bringing something like this to town. My daughter came and worked with me today, so my heart was bursting with pride. Of course when I told her she couldn't sit on the counter or wear her ipod she was a little less enthusiastic, but I think I have a future barista in my family! Catch the Buzz!!
Posted by: Mary Dally-Muenzmaier
There's nothing better in life than garnering praise from your peers for making a positive difference--okay, maybe winning the lottery and/or the love of a good better half (not necessarily in that order) might be better, but only by a slim margin. This being true, we are pleased as punch to inform you that our very own Eric Resch, President and Founder of Stone Creek Coffee, has received a place of commendation in The Milwaukee Business Journal's annual Forty Under 40 Awards!
The awards acknowledge and celebrate forty successful business leaders all under the age of 40 who are making a difference in the business world. As a 2008 winner, Eric joins thirty-nine others who have displayed remarkable business savvy as well as a fine tuned sense of civic and philanthropic responsibility in an effort to better the Greater Milwaukee Area. See the full list of winners here.
Honorees will be recognized at a dinner and awards program Monday, February 25, 2008 from 5:00-8:00PM in the Grand Ballroom at The Pfister Hotel--très posh, no? Tickets are available through The Milwaukee Business Journal.
Congratulations, Eric! May this award spur you on to accomplish even more amazing deeds.
i am going to make a tattoo appointment once i find out for sure if i got my raise. i deserve it.
Posted by: Mary Dally-Muenzmaier
Those of us who have lived all or most of our lives in the land o' Wisco know that each season brings its own rewards and challenges. This winter, for instance, has thus far brought us significant amounts of snow and fair to middlin' temperatures, but this is changing even as we speak for teardrop freezing winds are set to breeze in later this week. Just par for the course, right? You got it.
Some of you in more temperate climes may be wondering how we do it--how we manage to stay so calm and even-keeled when we know arctic gales approacheth. Well, firstly, we are indoctrinated in the it's-coming-and-there's-nothing-for-it-'cause-we-can't-control-the-weather dogma from the moment we breathe in the fresh Wisconsin air, and, secondly, we have Stone Creek's Winter Blend Coffee to help us persevere through it all.
As luck would have it, we're roasting Winter Blend right now and just in time to help us and you face the incoming chill. The perfect brace against the wind and snow, our new Winter Blend coffee blankets the tongue with the warm flavors of almond and caramel and a subtly smoky finish. Sweet java, that sounds good!
Pick up your bag of Winter Blend at any one of Stone Creek's eight retail stores or buy it online. The first sip'll make ya say, "Winter, schminter--with this blend we can't lose."
Our buddy Mike Miller over at Milwaukee Specialty Food and Coffee blog has seen fit to give Stone Creek Coffee's Glendale location some mighty high praise in his Snapshots section.
Calling our wall sized chalkboard "the coolest interactive feature of any coffee joint anywhere," he deftly describes just why it is so übercool. But we don't wanna ruin for ya-- click on over now to find out for yourself.
Thanks, Mike!
COFFEEE!??!?!?!!?!?
I thought this site was about soup?
Well coffee is kinda of like soup (there it is).
Well, it's 34 hours til I officially open my doors for business...for real this time., No more playing coffee shop with my 3 baristas and saying at 1:00 pm,' you guys want to call it a day? ' So I am feeling euphoric and terrified at the same time. I remember feeling like this in college, but it was so much more fun then, and a lot cheaper !
Our coffee is in, the shelves are stocked with our cafe gear, the syrups and sauces are primed, fridges full with baked goods....my baristas are out partying somewhere without a care in the world right now....shouldn't they be in bed resting up?
I have recieved the best advice and encouragement from the folks at this site it's amazing..thanks for all the 'enjoy the day' s...I really appreciate it. I am so humbled and grateful for all the support I have recieved while seeing my dream unfold. Thanks.Now I am off one more time to the kitchen supply place for that one item I don't know I'm missing but when I see it I will think aha...NOW I can open, I have the..........
The visit included a tour of CAMPO's new educational center. Buildings are still under construction, but CAMPO is already using the installations to provide training to coffee farmers from around the state of Oaxaca. Demonstration projects include worm composting and standard composting; organic gardening and greehouse projects; fish, sheep, rabbit and chicken production; and responsible building techniques (Check out our programs page for more information on CAMPO).CAMPO's offices are being constructed using a compacted earth technique, which is similar to adobe with a mix of soil, sand, lime and water optimized for local conditions and compacted into a sturdy wall.
The day after our visit to the center, we traveled two hours down windy roads into the mountains outside of Oaxaca, and then two more hours down a dirt road clinging to the side of said mountains. After four hours of stomach-turning travel, we arrived in Santa Cruz Tepetotutla, a small town clinging to the mountain.
The town is in the middle of a globally important bio-reserve. Jaguars and tepesquintle (similar to a giant spotted rat) maraud the area and lush forests hem the town in. Most families work in coffee and have struggled for years. Thanks to CAMPO's help many have begun working in other areas to supplement their income and provide a better quality of life for their families and improve their community.
The organic coffee plot of Don Raymundo Osorio was a striking example of biodiversity and responsible management. His tall coffee bushes were ready for harvest and vanilla vines crawled up their stems providing two cash crops on the same shady plot. Raymundo showed us the beginnings of a greenhouse which will provide vegetables year round, part of a project the community is doing with CAMPO's support.We returned to the town center to visit with local leaders and learn more about Santa Cruz's history. The town's commitment to protecting their forests, water supply and biodiversity has earned them financial incentives from the government for the maintenance of their resources. Their environmental vision and resources also attract a steady stream of students and researchers to the area and they are constructing a research center for these visitors to create additional income for the community.
Community leaders also told us about their struggle to build a road to their community. Until about four years ago, people from Santa Cruz had to walk hours to reach the nearest road. All supplies were packed in. But with a strong effort and support from CAMPO, determined community leaders navigated endless bureaucratic processes to build a road and connect their town with the outside world.
The following day we followed a steep footpath straight down the mountain to arrive at the neighboring community of San Antonio del Barrio, still inaccessible by road. We arrived sweaty and tired in this tiny town in the valley, where we were welcomed by local officials and a marimba band. We met with a group of women who, with CAMPO's help, have started selling their elaborate, hand-embroidered huipiles (traditional blouses) in Oaxaca City. After the visit, we made the long journey back to Oaxaca City.
The next morning we visited with Coffee Kids partner FomCafe and toured a dry mill, recently purchased by four Oaxacan coffee cooperatives to consolidate and gain control over their production process. We learned about the detailed steps of dry mill processing, but more importantly how the four cooperatives pooled their resources to purchase the mill.
Like so much of what we saw on this trip, it was a reminder of just how enterprising people can be when they are determined to create a better life, and just how much impoverished communities can accomplish with a little bit of help.
- Matt
Since then I have been able to follow a couple of his new ventures, and we friendly bounce ideas off of each other during our commutes to and from work.
His latest effort is a website called Viamigo which is a global portal for people who are interested in either traveling to any city and looking for the REAL experience. You can sign up as, or search for, a tour guide in hundreds of places.
I love how indy this site is, and what it offers to the adventurous traveler who wants to break out of the usual tourist mode. You can create your own Anthony Bourdain style trip to the far ends of the earth, and know someone once you get there.
I also posted about this site in the Travel section of the baristaexchange forum.
Check out the site, sign up to be a guide, or use it the next time you are traveling somewhere and want a true locals perspective on that city.
- Matt
It could happen...James Hoffmann will be at the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast Barista Jam in Easton, PA, home of ex-heavyweight champ Larry Holmes! James will be here to present on espresso extraction, but I could see James vs Laryy in a latte art smackdown, then they step into the ring for 10 rounds, all proceeds got to Bikes to Rwanda! :-)
The following reenactment is 100% true. No names have been changed to protect the innocent.
People often ask us, "Stone Creek, how come you're so dedicated to putting onFree-For-Everyone Events like your biweekly coffee cuppings and refuseto charge the living heck out us for everything?" Our reaction to thisinsightful question is the same in each instance and without exception:we smile at the inquirer with delight, saying clearly and concisely,"Because we can!" Then, after we've settled down some from the exertionof giving such an excited response, we continue thoughtfully, "Because,dear friends, we here at Stone Creek Coffee believe that we shouldshare as much as possible with our community and our customers. Afterall, they have shared their patronage and loyalty with us, have theynot? Good golly, yes they have."It is at this point that we are typically asked to present the details of our next cupping event,which is held every other Friday at the Stone Creek Coffee Factory at 422 N. 5th Street in downtown Milwaukeeat 9:00AM sharp. On most occasions we have an answer at our immediatedisposal, the particulars having been furnished to us by our MasterRoaster Stephen Bybee. However there are times when we must relyinstead on cleverly spun tales in order to get the word out--thisobviously not being one of those of times for, as previously stated,all related here is truth and nothing but.
Theimportant thing that we'd like to relate here is that Stone Creek'sLord of the Roaster has made not a peep regarding the theme oftomorrow's cupping--that's right, he's been deliberately and utterlypeepless, which is so not like him--and we are left with no recoursebut to simply tell you that.
But no matter, fellow Stone Creek Coffee lovers, for the cupping shallgo on as scheduled tomorrow morning at 9:00AM. It is, as always, a FREEevent which will leave you even more intrigued and more in love withthe amazing coffee bean. Be there!
They don't take a lot of pride in what they do, cause they don't take pride in doing anything real special, and that's a shame. I think if they could see what else it out there, it would open up a world of possibilities that would lead to better baristas. Iron sharpening iron. You guys out in WA, MO, or even IL really take alot of things for granted when it comes to the barista scene you're in, and how it pushes you to raise your game and skills.
And that's why I want to really work on this element this year. Will, a former barista that works in the back of the Roastery here in production made a challenge to me today. Said he wanted to have a company barista jam/competition. I took his challenge, cause I know I will spank him, then he shared it with the president, who not only supported it, but wants to participate, and vows to win. He wants everyone involved. And this will not be just a relaxed thing, but the real competition format, with real judges. And this gets all of us excited about coffee again. Like it should be. So, if we host a barista jam in Charlotte, any of you interested in participating?
