The Gevalia Coffee Company

Jun 20th, 2010 Posted in Coffee Gifts, Gourmet Coffee | No Comments »

Gevalia Kaffe is a subsidiary belonging to Kraft Foods and is the biggest coffee roastery in Scandinavia. In the United States, the company offers a coffee club membership that delivers premium coffee and teas directly to customers. Gevalia Coffee offers more than 40 different varieties of premium coffee and tea.

Located in Gavle (which is spelled Gevalia in Latin) in Sweden, Gevalia Kaffe was first brought there in 1920 by the Victor Theodore Engwall trading company. It remained a family owned business until 1971 when they sold it to General Mills. General Foods eventually became Kraft Foods, and that’s the company that owns Gevalia today. Gevalia Coffee is mostly sold in Denmark, Sweden and the Baltic area.

Gevalia is represented as a mainstream brand in Northern Europe, while in the United States, it’s marketed as a premium brand. The Gevalia Kaffe company also offers a coffee service for offices and businesses, with coffee available by the case or as premium singles. You can also get Gevalia coffee for the popular Tassimo Beverage System.

Gevalia began selling in the United States in 1983, offering a mail-order delivery service. Today, they are most well known for their introductory specials, where customers can get a free coffeemaker, and free mugs, carafe’s, coffee, and other coffee-related gifts.

Gevalia specials were first offered through advertisements in magazines, direct mailings, and on television. Now, the lead promotion method is Internet advertising, started in the early 2000s. Gevalia is the most popular coffee club in the world. Gevalia launched a new web site in 2009, along with new marketing campaigns, and better customer service. The result was explosive growth in their popular coffee club program.

Gevalia has available more than 40 varieties of coffee and tea. Most of these coffee varieties are Arabica blends, made from beans that come from Guatamala, Columbia, Costa Rica and Kenya. Gevalia Kaffe, their signature coffee blend, is comprised of six separate varieties of Arabica and Brazilian beans. The result is a complex flavor enjoyed by coffee drinkers.

Gevalia has made it its mission to support small farmers and green growing practices. Gevalia’s Karoma Estate coffee is produced in the Dominican Republic using sound environmental practices. The farmers keep 25% of their land set aside for to conserve local wildlife.

Gevalia has also formed relationships with other coffee growers in the world. In Colombia, Gevalia has worked to upgrade coffee production methods, and improve water quality and living conditions for the local populace. In Peru, Gevalia set up quality standards for Peruvian coffee and helped Peruvian farmers gain market share. In 2002, this partnership resulted in the introduction of Peruvian Organic Coffee. Other Gevalia assistance include education programs and providing food and medicine to those in need.

Gevalia Coffee continues to find, blend, and roast and make available some of the finest coffees available through their Gevalia offers, keeping coffee lovers satisfied, cup after cup.

Discover Costa Rica Coffee

Jun 17th, 2010 Posted in Gourmet Coffee | No Comments »

Can a gourmet coffee be perfect? That’s the complaint leveled at the coffees from Costa Rica – too much flavor, too balanced, too clean, and too smooth. So, is  Costa Rica coffee the best in the world?

Costa Rica, while not the world’s largest coffee producer, has a reputation for fine quality coffee according to the National Coffee Association of USA Inc.

Why?
Costa Rica has more than 210 volcanic formations that date back some 65 million years. . Today 100 or so show signs of volcanic activity and five are classified as active volcanoes.

The majority of Costa Rica volcanoes lie in the central Highlands and in north Costa Rica; these regions are the best growing regions for the production of gourmet coffee.  The volcanoes are a key part of this country’s spectacular natural diversity. This is because they have played an important role in how the lush landscape of this region has come into being. Due to the many volcanic eruptions over the past millennia, the soil in Costa Rica is rich in so many minerals and very fertile.

The exceptional coffee is a result of unique and very high soil fertility. One of the best Costa Rican coffees is produced by Mission Grounds Company.

Mission Grounds uses the finest shade grown top of the volcano coffee, the only pure number one select coffee. The premium coffee is grown in very limited quantities so the price is very high. And all the premium gourmet coffee is bought by Mission Grounds Company.
So if you want the highest grade of Tarrazu gourmet coffee– you have to purchase Mission Grounds Gourmet Coffee. Buying any other gourmet coffee is settling for second best.

History of Coffee in Costa Rica
The first coffee was grown in Costa Rica in 1798. It quickly became a major industry, surpassing coco and tobacco. Costa Rica was the first Central American country to establish coffee growing as an industry.

The economic growth that coffee beans production brought empowered Costa Rica to develop ports, roads and also other facilities essential for continued growth of the industry. Today, coffee is a self-sufficient economic and agricultural product in Costa Rica.

Coffee here in Costa Rica
Costa Rica has adopted the special law which enforcess the mandatory use of coffee Arabica. All other coffee types are prohibited to produce in this country. You will not find any Robusta coffee in Costa Rica. The country really concentrates on quality coffee beans. The rich  and  fertile soil and ideal climate conditions are the pillar for production  of high quality coffee. High altitude of Costa Rica is ideal for the production of gourmet coffee beans. The best coffee beans are grown in Tarrazu, Tres Rios, Heredia, Monteverde and Alajuela. Most coffee beans in Costa Rica come from the caturra coffee varietal and is characterized as a bright and full bodied coffee.

Buying Coffee
Costa Rica’s quality coffee is a very popular souvenir and can be purchased at souvenir shops or local grocery stores. You can get great coffee deals also at some reputable online stores.

Final Words

After some researching, our conclusion is that if you want to drink fine gourmet coffee, than you should consider buying coffee from Costa Rica. If you are still certain what to look in coffee, check out some coffee facts that will help you decide what the qualities of great coffee are.