The Tea Gallery now carries exotic
coffees that are the finest and most desirable in the world. They are
also the most expensive ($30-$320 per pound). Island coffees like
Kona, Blue
Mountain and Kopi
Luwak are mild in flavor and have no bitterness typical of most
other coffees. Kopi Luwak often sells for $10-$30 per cup in
specialty coffee shops in the US.
It is estimated
that more than 80% (numerous sources) of the world's population
consumes some form of caffeine. Coffee, Tea, Soft Drinks (sodas,
pops), and Chocolate being the most common sources. Caffeine
is the most widely consumed psychoactive
substance in the world. As a beverage the worldwide consumption
of tea is surpassed only by water.
Our stock of teas continues to expand.
For the Iron Heritage Festival we are featuring the Iron Goddess of
Mercy green tea.
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Citron
Yerba Mate
Traditionally hand harvested in
the rainforest of Paraguay and lightly smoked in small batches,
our yerba mate is brought to fruition. An energizing and
refreshing blend with organic lemongrass, orange peel, and lemon
myrtle. Displaying a refreshing citrus taste with a smooth
chestnut finish, An earthy delight that boasts minerals and
vitamins known to enhance one’s health and wellbeing. Yerba
maté tea-based beverages contained the largest antioxidant
and polyphenol content among tea-based and non-tea-based drink
Water Temperature: 170 F degrees
Caffeine Content: Medium
Steep Time: 3-5 minutes
Origin: Paraguary
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99%
Oxidized Purple Oolong
99% oxidized purple oolong. Full rich brew that delivers a dark
purple infusion with solid notes of cinnamon, musk, and amber. A
rare treat from Sumatra, Indonesia. This tea can be steeped
multiple times.
Water Temperature: 206 degrees
Caffeine
Content: Medium Bold
Steep Time: 3-5 minutes
Ingredients:
Oolong Tea
Origin: Sumatra, Indonesia
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Iron
Goddess of Mercy - Ti Kuan Yin – Green
Grown on China’s high
hilltops amongst fresh streams and cool, crisp air. Tender leaves
are gently basket tossed immediately after harvesting to rupture
the cells for semi-oxidization. Increased steeping time and
temperature will draw distinctive flavor with each brewing.
Enjoy!
Water Temperature: 195 F degrees
Caffeine
Content: Medium
Steep Time: 3-5 minutes
Ingredients: Oolong
Tea
Origin: Anxi, China
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Try
some exotic coffees.
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Kona
This
100% pure Hawaiian Kona Extra
Fancy
is bursting with flavor. Very smooth, balanced cup. Hawaiian
coffees are grown on new (geologically speaking) volcanic soil in
a tropical paradise that is gently cooled by a gentle Kona breeze.
These perfect conditions produce a coffee that is equally perfect
in many aspects.
Hawaiian coffees are the epitome of
balance. Coffee from these lovely islands is clean, mild with a
nice hint of milk chocolate, and just enough fruit and acidity to
round out the cup.
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Jamaican
Blue Mountain
Jamaican
Blue Mountain fits the Island coffee profile (Hawaiian, St.
Helena, Puerto Rico) of balanced, rich, delicate, and mild. We
insure the delicate flavors are preserved by nurturing the roast
to the point of just touching the 2nd crack. JBM should never be
dark roasted.
Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is one of the
most sought after and consistently the highest priced coffee in
the world. With raw prices up to 20 times regular coffee, there is
a very strict certification program to insure that if you buy
Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee you get Jamaican Blue Mountain
coffee. If you want Jamaican Blue Mountain, you won't be getting
any discounts from the Jamaicans and if you're getting discounts,
you're not getting authentic Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee.
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Kopi Luwak
(often
translated as civet coffee) is renowned all around the world for
its incredibly delicious, subtle, lingering flavor and exceptional
smoothness.
Kopi Luwak, or Civet Coffee, is "processed" by the
Indonesian Civet, who populates the coffee-growing areas and comes
out nightly to feast on only the ripest of the coffee cherries.
The beans do not digest and are collected daily by farmers, who
thoroughly sanitize the beans, and then dry them in the sun. Then
the beans are roasted and vacuum packed for shipping.
Genuine Kopi Luwak coffee beans release hidden flavor
compounds from the beans that are never accessed by
regular roasting and brewing. These wonderful, locked-away
flavors are released because of the natural enzymes of
the civet.
Although the coffee is expensive per pound, a cup of
home-brewed civet coffee actually costs less than an average cup
of brewed coffee bought at a café like Starbucks.
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Culi One
(Robusta)
The Vietnamese pioneered and perfected the
Robusta variety over a hundred years ago, from stocks established
by Jesuits in the 1890's. Yet in the late 20th century, much of
the gourmet quality of this heirloom variety was lost due to
improper cultivation and harvesting. The Culi Robusta is Trung
Nguyen's triumphant return to the best gourmet Robusta in the
world. There simply is no other source that we have found that
exemplifies the true potential of gourmet, heirloom Robusta raised
in the perfect climate, picked in multiple sessions, and sun-dried
for up to 100 days to achieve the full ripeness and wonderful
flavor tones that cannot be duplicated in water-washed coffees.
Caffeine: HIGH
Acidity: MEDIUM
Intensity: MEDIUM
Serving Suggestions:
Hot or iced;
well-suited to cream and sugar.
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Liberica Coffee
A
unique and irreplaceable part of our worldwide coffee heritage,
Liberica is the fourth species of coffee (the other three are
Arabica, Robusta, and Excelsa). Liberica is its own rare and
exotic coffee experience. Its almond-shaped beans have an
exceptional aroma, almost floral and fruity, while its flavor is
full and slightly smokey. Have a taste of history, an exotic cup
of an endangered coffee that we guarantee you have never tasted
anything like before. Liberica is a vanishing species of coffee
that is only now being brought back from the brink of extinction.
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Legendee
The
Legendee is a unique enzymatically-treated coffee that releases
flavors bound in the beans and not released under ordinary
processing. The Legendee product is largely regarded as the
world's most successful attempt to produce a coffee with the
balance and flavor of the famous Kopi Luwak, or Civet/Weasel
coffee.
The Legendee family is one of the
world's most famous branded coffees
Legendee Whole Bean. This blend features a higher
percentage of peaberries and Robusta, with correspondingly darker
flavor that ices exceptionally well.
Caffeine: HIGH
Acidity: MEDIUM
Intensity: MEDIUM
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Kona Coffee is known the world
over as one of the richest and most flavorful coffees available. This
bold and exotic taste comes only from the coffee grown on the Kona ,
a small swath of land on the western coast of the Big Island of
Hawaii.
Blue Mountain coffee is grown in
the specially designated area of the Blue Mountains of Jamaica. Japan
buys 80% or more of the beans which are shipped in wooden barrels
instead of the burlap bags commonly used to transport the green
coffee beans. The coffee has blue green color, good acidity, intense
aroma, fairly good body, clean.
Kopi Luwak,
also known as civet coffee, is produced mainly on the islands of
Sumatra, Java,
Bali and Sulawesi
in the Indonesian
Archipelago, and also in the Philippines.
The palm civet, eats the 'best coffee berries' because of the sweet
fleshy covering. The undigested seed (bean), after gathering,
thorough washing, sun drying, light roasting and brewing, yield an
aromatic coffee with much less bitterness and is widely noted as the
most expensive coffee in the world. There are now some processors who
use a chemical process that simulate the enzymes in the civet,
particularly in Vietnam. The Legendee coffee from Vietnam is an
example of this processing.
Arabica
We have many organic and fair trade
Arabica coffees from Sumatra, Mexico, Indonesia, including the Kona
and Blue Mountain coffees. Arabica is the most widely consumed
variety of coffee in America, however, there are three other
varieties that are sold around the world, which we also carry:
Robusta,
Liberica,
and Excelsa.
Robusta
Creative
One Culi Robusta is an extremely full-bodied coffee, partially
Culi or "peaberry mix, that fills the room with superior aroma.
Some can detect a chocolaty flavor, too, that originates from the
long ripening process. It is difficult to describe this coffee to
Americans who have never had access to a gourmet heirloom Robusta,
and who have been told that only Arabica coffee can be exceptional.
This is one of the world's best gourmet "cheap thrills".
Because of the prolific growth of Robusta, this coffee is available
in a price range well below its worth in quality. The Culi Robusta is
a high-caffeine coffee, with about 40% more caffeine than most
Arabicas. It's hard to brew this coffee too strong. as it has few
faults.
Legendee Whole Bean blend
features a higher percentage of peaberries and Robusta, with
correspondingly darker flavor that ices exceptionally well. It is a
mixed-species coffee (Arabica, Robusta, Excelsa, Liberica), that is
chemically treated to mimic the effect of the enzymes of the civet
digestive system.
Liberica
Our
100% Liberica coffee is its own rare and exotic coffee
experience. Its almond-shaped beans have an exceptional aroma, almost
floral and fruity, while its flavor is full and slightly smokey. Have
a taste of history, an exotic cup of an endangered coffee that we
guarantee you have never tasted anything like before. Liberica is a
vanishing species of coffee that is only now being brought back from
the brink of extinction. Our Liberica coffee comes from several
mountains in the Philippines . Mt. Halcon, home to the poetic and
peace-loving indigenous Mangyan tribes, is one of the most
challenging climbs in the Philippines. Liberica in Quezon grows on
Mt. Banahaw, considered to be a sacred mountain, where a yearly
pilgrimage is done by avid mountain climbers.
Caffeine
and Coffee
Caffeine was
developed by plants as a defense against insects, bacteria, and other
organisms including plants (numerous sources). Because of this,
coffee plantations often loose their plants after 25 years.
Caffeine
has numerous health
benefits for men
and women.
Weight loss, long term memory improvement, alertness, slower
progression of Parkinson's disease, headache and pain control, and
for the treatment
and prevention of Alzheimer's disease (numerous studies).
There are also some downsides
to using caffeine.
Disrupted sleep cycle, upset stomach, more severe PMS, slightly
increased Osteoporosis, and dilation of the eyes affect some people.
(numerous studies).
Coffee is a member of the Rubiaceae
botanical family which includes gardenias and plants that yield
quinine. The fruit, when ripe, has a thick, red, slightly bitter
outer skin. The inner flesh is very sweet and is a source of protein
for people and many animals. About 5%-10% of the coffee berries
contain a single seed instead of the normal two, these peaberries'
usually produce a more intense flavor and are more highly prized.
The taste of coffee depends on many
factors. The species of the coffee bush, soil type, climate,
elevation, harvesting and processing all effect the flavor and aroma.
Some coffees are prized for their aroma, lack of bitterness, and
flavor. Kona,
Blue
Mountain, and Kopi
Luwak for example sell for $30, $40, and $320 per pound
respectively.
Although
there are more than 18 known species
and many varieties
of coffee,
most commercially grown
coffee comes from two main species: Coffea arabica (Arabica)
and Coffea canephora (Robusta).
Some are naturally caffeine
free, while others like Robusta have more caffeine than Arabica
(popular in the United States). Robusta is often blended with Arabica
for espresso coffee. Coffea Excelsa
and Coffea Liberica (often
blended with Robusta), are mild flavored but high aroma coffees.
Arabica
coffee has been enjoyed for centuries. Probably originating in the
plateau of Ethiopia. Arabica coffee is complex and aromatic, but
requires careful cultivation and is fussy about soil, climate and
elevation.
Robusta
coffee is, as its name
implies, a strong plant and can be grown under a wider variety of
conditions. Because of the ease in growing, large quantities of
mediocre or poor quality Robusta beans have been hitting the world
commodity market, most of it finding its way into low-priced and
instant coffees.
Excelsa
was first discovered in 1904. This hardy plant is well known for its
disease and drought resistant properties. This mild flavored coffee
is often likened to Coffea Liberica. It's smooth, slightly earthy
flavor, is a good coffee for those who do not drink coffee often or
for those who do not like coffee with a bold, strong, or burnt
flavor.
Liberica
has a very mild, slightly nutty taste, despite the strong coffee
smell produced. The demand for this bean is relatively low because of
the mild taste and accounts for less than 1% of world coffee
production.
Vietnamese
blended coffee
The move in South America and other
coffee-producing regions to single-source, 100% Arabica in the last
decade has narrowed the flavor range and appeal of modern coffee to
only those consumers with palates who prefer hybrid Arabicas. Our own
public taste tests indicate that 70% of consumers respond better to
mixed-species blends of coffee, and tastes run about equal for
preference or Robusta versus Arabica. Vietnamese blended coffee thus
has a wider appeal among the general populace than single-source,
100% Arabicas. Comments among consumers are often along the lines of
"This is how coffee used to taste!" and "I didn't know
coffee could taste like this!".
Secondly, roasting preferences established decades ago favored a
lower-temperature, longer roasting process. The dark "French"
roast that we refer to today probably originated not as a
high-temperature roast, but a slow and long roast that results in
beans that have consistent color through the whole bean, and a dark
color but no bubbling or burning. This distinction is VERY important,
since many Americans today associate French roast with the
all-too-common burning of coffee that takes place at certain coffee
house chains. Burning coffee results in the breakdown of sugars and
oils and fast oxidation and fermenting of coffee once exposed to the
air. These drawbacks do not occur in the Southeast Asian dark roast,
which is more stable.
Thirdly, beans are generally roasted in what is referred to as
"butter oil", which may or may not be actual clarified
butter oil. Occasionally vegetable oils are used, and historically,
traditional "home-grown" coffee roasting style involves
creating almost a caramel-like coating effect with the use of a small
amount of sugar, oil, and generally a touch of vanilla or cocoa. This
coating blackens in the roast and the beans wind up with almost a
thin, hard shell. Why is this done? Robusta beans are uniquely slow
to ripen on the bush, and often pickers pick unripe beans along with
ripe beans. The traditional coating gives all the beans a similar
color. The presence of a few unripe beans does not hurt the overall
taste effect of the blend. However, modern growers pick only ripe
beans despite the extra labor, and do not feature this coating in
their roasting, opting simple for a little oil to keep the beans easy
to turn in the slow roasting process.
