10% off on all t-shirts and hoodies!!!
Greetings Everyone!This weekend only! 10% off on all t-shirts & hoodies. New supply of t-shirts just arrived!
- Check out our selection of coffees on Amazon.com. Seven varieties are available through Amazon Prime so enjoy the convenience of Free Shipping! https://www.amazon.com/s?marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&me=ALRNOUYXMHYBP&merchant=ALRNOUYXMHYBP&redirect=true
Would I really tell someone NOT to drink coffee???
The concept of me telling someone not to drink coffee seems foreign. However, this past week, I received an e-mail from someone asking if our coffee was "gluten-free"? My initial reaction was ... I won't mention what I said.
After considering the question, I decided I should do some research to see if there was anything definitive before responding to the e-mail. Here's what I found.
Apparently, those who are gluten intolerant, may experience gluten-like side effects when drinking coffee due to similarities in the proteins present in coffee being similar to proteins in gluten.
Another culprit is when coffee is processed in the same facility as products containing gluten, there can be cross-contamination that takes place. And while I don't believe any of the coffees I purchase have been processed in this manner, I cannot guarantee it.
So the long and short of it is that for folks who find themselves gluten intolerant, you may want to find another option to coffee. I can't believe I just said that!
This Monday, we will be closed for the Fourth of July. If you are on schedule for home delivery on Wednesday, there will be not any interruption to your normal delivery.
The big news on the jazz scene is that on August 8th and 9th at 7:30 pm, Alan Broadbent will be returning to Classic Pianos for two shows. For those of you who are familiar with Alan's music... you'll know what his performances are like. Electric, profound, intimate and humble are just a few adjectives that come to mind.
He's performed at Classic Pianos multiple times and I've attended each of his performances. I have yet to be disappointed. If you would like to experience one of his shows, please call Peggie at Classic Pianos and reserve your tickets. They're guaranteed to sell out quickly. Peggie can be reached at 503.546.5622.
Be sure to check out our selection of coffees on Amazon. You may find them here - www.amazon.com/shops/stjohnscoffee.
Thanks for your continued support!
Mount & Crew
Be ready for Memorial Day!!!
Memorial Day is generally the kick-off to a season of bbq'ing so I thought I'd share a recipe for dry rub for any type of meat you choose. Oh and of course, one of the ingredients is coffee. Duh!
BBQ COFFEE RUB
- 1/4 cup finely fround coffee
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1/2 tablespoon cayenne
Many of you probably remember the amazing Brazil Grota Sao Pedro we had last year but sold out. Well, I have g
ood news. It will be returning to our line-up in the very near future. Last time we described it as being like drinking Cremè Brulee and I have a feeling this year's crop will be comparable. Perhaps more like Tiramisu. :)
If the Memorial Day weather proves too hot to serve your guests hot coffee, consider brewing some cold-brew coffee. We have a large selection of Toddy Brewers and accessories and ar
e happy to teach you the process. It's quite simple. Or, if you decide you'd like to serve something with a little "kick" to it, consider a coffee martini. We can show you how to make those as well! They're delicious!!!
Meanwhile, have a great weekend and keep the coffee flowing.
Mount & Crew
And we're off like a herd of turtles!!!
I don't know about everyone else but I'm ready for some warmer, drier weather. I guess I shouldn't complain too much after what the folks in the Midwest have been going through.
After the frenzy of the holidays, things seem to have slowed down just a bit although the shop has continued to be busy. A lot of people have been coming back for items they'd had the
ir eyes on before Christmas but which, for some reason, didn't make it into their gift bags.
The Travel Presses and Espro Presses along with the logo travel mugs and ceramic logo mugs have been top on that list of coveted items. 
We also did something this week which we've never done before but which I believe will become a new tradition. When I was taking an inventory of the bags of coffee we had on the shelves, discovered there were a few bags which had been there over one week.
So we created a 1/2 price bin so people could take advantage of that opportunity and, it's been a huge success. There's absolutely nothing wrong with the coffee whatsoever. It's just that we like to keep the roast dates on the shelf to be within a week.
We are currently sold out of these bags but when the opportunity presents itself again, we'll put a notice on Facebook. And, I would encourage you to stop by the shop when convenient to see if there's anything available.
Another new development this week was FINALLY finding an organic, fair trade coffee from Rwanda. I tasted some Rwandan coffee several years ago which was stellar and I've never forgotten it. However, the only coffee ever available was not organic so I never purchased any.
However, that has changed. We're expecting our first delivery of it today. Not in time for this weekend but certainly in time for next Wednesday's home deliveries. It's described as having notes of orange, vanilla, floral and is very sweet. I can't wait!
When coffee cherries are dried at the source, they're spread out on patios which are slabs of concrete. Oftentimes, we find pieces of concrete, stones, etc. amongst the beans after we roast them. We've always tried to be scrupulous in searching for these because well, they don't do anything to enhance the flavor of the coffee. :)
As our volume has increased, it has become more difficult to find each and every stone. To mitigate that, we purchased a new piece of equipment called a "de-stoner". Pretty tricky eh? Anyway, it has been earning its place in our shop, doing a stellar job of removing those unwanted items.
I think that's about it for this week. Several of us are doing double-duty due to being a couple people shy of our normal crew. Which means, I'm getting ready to head out and do deliveries.
Until next week, take good care and many thanks for your continued support.
Mount & Crew
Mexican Pottery has arrived!
This past Monday we received our shipment of pottery from JMB Talavera in Delores Hidalgo, Mexico. And is usually the case, it exceeded our expectations. It's beautiful. New colors and patterns in demitasse and cappuccino cups as well as two sizes of serving platters. I long for the day when I can return to Delores Hidalgo and visit the potter in person.
With last week's Greenpeace protest now history, I expected this week to be a bit calmer. However, that wasn't the case. As a result, there were a few times when we just couldn't keep up with coffee brewing. Tomorrow I'll be ordering a larger capacity brewer to avoid situations like that in the future. Another one of those "growing pains".
Another recent growing pain has been trying to figure out the best mix of prepared foods from Molly's. We found we were running out of some things and had an abundance of others. Beginning this week, you can expect a larger selection of breakfast items as well as salads, wraps and a couple sandwiches.
I've mentioned the fact that the Guatemala Finca Bourbon has returned to our inventory of coffees. We did another cupping of it this past Monday morning and DANG! It is SOOO good! Obviously, we're not the only ones who feel that way. We've consistently been selling out of it from each batch that's roasted. I encourage you to come in the shop and let us do a pour-over of it for you.
It's hard to believe that just a week ago it was almost 100ºF! I'm grateful it has cooled off so pleasantly. It has made for great weather to enjoy sitting outside the shop, sipping on a coffee and eating a pastry or bagel. Not to mention better sleeping and better motorcycling weather!
My staff has been encouraging me to take a few days off so I'm in the process of trying to figure out how to make that happen and where exactly I'd go. I think I could squeeze about four days away from the shop.
I'm considering the northeast corner of Oregon, around the Joseph area, the southeast corner around the Steens Mountains, the Olympic Peninsula or northern California. If any of you have suggestions for good motorcycling routes to any of these areas or others, I'd welcome suggestions.
On that note, I'm going to begin looking at some maps.
Many thanks for your continued support. We appreciate your business very much. Don't forget to mark your calendars for Saturday, September 19th for our grand opening/first-year anniversary celebration.
Artist's Reception Next Friday Evening!
We've been hearing from a lot of customers lately how much they appreciate the fact that we offer decaf cold-brew coffee. Apparently, we're one of the few places in Portland that offer it. It seems like a no-brainer to me since it makes such a delicious afternoon beverage when one doesn't necessarily want the caffeine component.
We'll have plenty of it ready for the weekend when it appears the temperatures will be climbing once again. Like many, I have really been enjoying the cooler temps we've been having this week but hey, it's summer so I guess we shouldn't complain.
I received an e-mail from my supplier of Mexican pottery this week indicating my order has been completed and was being prepared to ship so look for a new assortment of espresso cups, cappuccino cups and platters in the near future. I would guess it will probably arrive around the first of August.
And keep your fingers crossed... the mugs with our logo which had to be remade are scheduled to arrive this coming week. If the quality is what is expected, they'll be available for purchase next weekend.
Don't forget to mark your calendars for next Friday evening's artist reception. Jeanne Levasseur's beautiful oil paintings have been on display at the shop for the past couple weeks but next Friday, you'll have the opportunity to meet Jeanne and talk with her about her inspirations and paintings. Snacks and beverages will be provided and kids are always welcome.
Some of you may also have noticed that our outdoor furniture is, transitioning. :) We discovered a problem with our original set of furniture and are replacing them with something which we believe will work better. However, we're working on the combination of sizes so we still have plenty of sidewalk clearance. So thank you in advance for your patience while we get this resolved.
And finally, we've received requests in the past for a multi-grain option for bagels. We've just begun bringing in some multi-grain, Everything bagels to meet this demand and, they are very very good. Give them a try next time you're in.
Meanwhile, I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend. Stop by for one of the largest selections of coffee available anywhere. Whether it's espresso, drip, pour-over, cold-brew coffee, hot or iced teas. Accompanied by great original boiled bagles, French pastries, salads, wraps or sandwiches. Can you tell I'm hungry? :)
Many thanks for your on-going support.
Mount & Crew
We have bike racks!
Greetings Everyone,
Only a week ago, an engineer from the Portland Department of Transportation visited our shop to assess the location of our proposed bike racks. When asked how long a process it would be once the location was approved, he replied with, "between 6-8 weeks but, there was an off chance it could happen more quickly."
More quickly it was. They were installed this past Wednesday!
For those of you who have visited the shop this past week, you may have noticed the new refrigerator stocked with Molly's Grown to Eat products. People are LOVING the items. Everything from delicious salads, breakfast sandwiches 
with bacon (a personal favorite), wraps to more traditional sandwiches. It's nice because one can come in the shop in the morning, get a coffee, bagel or French pastry and then pick up a lunch item to take to the office with them.
We're busy preparing for this weekend's heatwave by brewing inordinate quantities of cold-brewed coffee and teas. Personally, I've never stopped enjoying hot coffee during hot spells. I operate with the notion that drinking hot coffee keeps the inside of my body warmer making the outside feel cooler. (?) I came up with that philosophy when I lived in the South. :)
Within the next couple weeks, we should be receiving a new order of the Mexican pottery we've become known for. We'll have a large selection of espresso cups, cappuccino cups as well as serving trays. We still have a limited inventory of these items but will be adding to that. Each time we receive an order, there are different colors and patterns that continually amaze.
This past Wednesday I had the pleasure of being interviewed for an upcoming series of articles called, Defining Extraordinary, a project created by Sentiero Photography. Andrea and Angelina asked all sorts of questions and took numerous photos in and around the shop. I'm excited to read the final article and see what they come up with. It should be completed within the next couple weeks so I will share it once it has been posted. Check out their site here - https://sentierophotography.wordpress.com/about/about/.
Starting next week, we'll have some new art hanging in the shop. Customer and friend Jeanne Levasseur will be hanging her beautiful paintings. Check out her work here - http://www.theskylinestudio.com/ Fri
day night, July 24th, we'll be hosting a reception for Jeanne so everyone can meet her and talk to her about her work. More details will follow but please make plans to attend. And yes, there will be wine. :)
For some reason, numerous things around the shop have been breaking this week. Cups, plates, espresso grinder, et al. I don't know if it's the moon or something else but it gives me a new appreciation for times when things work flawlessly.
That said, a deep cleaning was done on the roaster this past Tuesday so lots and lots of coffee was roasted on Wednesday and Thursday. Hopefully it will be enough to get us through the weekend. I really don't want to have to fire up the roaster when it's 102 degrees tomorrow. :)
That's about it for this week. Please keep the coffee flowing and many many thanks for your continued support! We LOVE our work!
Mount & Crew
