Prelock Blueberry Farm
Frequently
Asked Questions About Our Coffee
Why
Prelock Blueberry Farm Freshly Roasted Coffees?
Freshness makes all the
difference in the world. Our
customers know that our blueberries are superior because you pick them fresh and
at the peak of their flavor. Our
coffee is superior for the same reason -- you drink it while it is freshly
roasted and the flavor is at its peak. Most
coffee purchased at the grocery story or coffee shop was roasted several weeks
and even months previously. We roast single origin coffees each to their own
individual peak of flavor but never to the point of tasting charred or scorched.
Our coffees are always smooth and never bitter.
Although you can feel free to create blends to your own taste, we do not
blend them so you can appreciate the unique characteristics of each coffee.
Do
you carry blends?
No, at this time we do
not. Coffee from different countries
and even from different farms within the same country has unique flavor
characteristics. Blends blur the
flavors and “blend” them together, often flattening them and removing the
nuances that make each one special. We
prefer to drink single origin coffees because we like the distinct flavor of
each. Like wine pairings, often
coffee from a certain origin “fits” better with certain occasions or meals
(for example, enjoying a cup of Kenya coffee with a heavy chocolate dessert
because the Kenya is lighter and doesn’t stay on the tongue the way a
Guatemalan coffee would).
Why
whole bean?
Once coffee has been
ground, it quickly begins to deteriorate. The
way to experience the best flavor from each coffee is to grind it right before
brewing.
How
did you get into roasting coffee?
The Wall Street Journal on Thursday, January 15, 2009 had this to say about premium, home brewed coffee: "Did you know that cutting just one of those typical 'tall' lattes a day and replacing it with a delicious premium organic coffee you brew at home can save more than $1,200 a year?" quoting New Jersey coffee roaster Good Earth Coffee.
One pound of whole beans will
make 50 - 60 cups of brewed coffee. At
$12 per pound, our coffee costs only around 22 cents a cup!
What other premium specialty beverage tastes as great and costs so
little!?!
Coffee grows primarily in
warm climates in a belt close to the equator between the Tropic of Cancer and
the Tropic of Capricorn. It grows
best in mountainous regions with elevations between 5000-6000 feet, with steady
temperatures around 70 degrees F. and with moderate sunshine and rain.
Obviously, that is NOT
So -- We don’t grow the
coffee. We buy green coffee beans
through an importer. Matt discusses
the varieties and characteristics he is looking for with our importer, the
importer sends us several samples, Matt roasts and cups them and chooses what he
believes to be the best. Once we
have purchased the green coffee beans, Matt then experiments with the different
varieties to develop the perfect roast profile for each variety.
It’s a long process that involves drinking a lot of coffee but Matt is
willing to endure that hardship to insure that each variety is roasted to its
sweet spot and that you get the best coffee for your money.