Aldo Coffee Company

Home Brewing Clinic Postponed Until Jan 10

We hope this doesn't create an inconvenience for those of you planning on attending.

Rich had to leave for Connecticut to deal with a family health issue and won't return until next week.  That, coupled with other staff scheduling conflicts means we're not able to put the resources together on Saturday to do the clinic the way we'd planned. 

So instead of doing the clinic before you buy a coffeemaker for Christmas, we'll do it after the holidays so you can figure out how to best use whatever brewer you received.  Besides, other folks we respect do theirs after the holiday.

More details to come, but we think what we'll do is have you bring in whatever it is you received for Christmas and we'll make coffee with it.

"Holiday" Coffee

Each holiday season we see an increase in people coming in looking for a "special" coffee for their holiday meal.

We're happy to help, with the understanding that we consider every coffee we sell as "special" for one reason or another.  Just about every bag of coffee we sell is either Direct Trade, Fair Trade Certified, Organic, shade-grown or some combination of the above.  And they all taste wonderful when brewed correctly.

The obvious place to start for a "holiday" coffee is the recently released Celebration Blend, which is roasted specifically to exude winter spice aromatics from the Nicaraguan and Ethiopian coffees selected for the blend: sugar plum, molasses, clove and cinnamon among other flavor notes.

Aeropress Demo This Saturday at 3pm

Rich will be doing a demo of the Aerobie Aeropress this Saturday at 3pm. 

The compact size and durability (it's been virtually indestructible for us) of the Aeropress make it an excellent gift choice for coffee lover in your circle, especially coffee lovers who travel (more on that below).

The Aeropress is also a great choice for someone who loves espresso but can't justify $1,200 for a decent home espresso machine. The Aeropress brew is concentrated at about the same levels of espresso - 10.5 grams per ounce of water - and it even creates a coffee puck and with practice, a little bit of crema. 

All of the above also makes the Aeropress a thoughtful gift for the college kids in your family.

Home (Brewing) for the Holidays

If you've ever wondered about the differences between the most common brewing methods but haven't been up to a long Google session to do the research, we've created a nifty little tri-fold flier that should answer most of your questions.

View the full version (jpeg):  outside  inside

While our "10 Tips" brochure is not detailed to the point of über-geeky (as you'd expect from a single sheet of paper) we think it's as good a "Cliff Notes" version as you'll find anywhere.  We're inserting a section in our barista training manual that goes into much more detail so our knowledegeable staff should be able to answer the more detailed questions.

And if after talking with them, you still have questions, there's always the Sweet Maria's home brewing page.  Or Google.

Free Public Tasting Class This Saturday, 2pm

We'll be hosting a public coffee tasting class this Saturday, November 10 at 2:00pm. 

The tasting is FREE, however, we ask that you pre-register with us* as class size is limited. 
We will be serving Los Delirios Direct Trade from Nicaragua and the Chema auction lot from Kenya.  Both are wonderful examples of what's possible from each growing region.  You will be asked to take notes on the aromas and flavors you experience from serving until the coffee cools**.

We expect to also have a third coffee to compare these two against.  Bring a clean palate and enjoy the experience.

If you are interested in other types of coffee education, let us know - we have classes happening regularly for professionals, home baristas and coffee lovers.

*Please include a phone # we can contact you at on Friday/Saturday.  We will confirm your participation prior to the tasting.  Please do not register unless you know you will be able to attend.  Thank you.

**Just in case... we remind everyone that the coffee is served black and only black.