Local roasters spill the (coffee) beans

Coffee is a daily pleasure for me, in fact anticipation of that first cup is what gets me out of bed on many a cold winter morning! Much as I enjoy drinking it, I’m a novice when it comes to beans, blends and brewing methods, so I spoke with three local experts at Forty Weight in Freeville, Copper Horse in Brooktondale and Oak & Crow in Newfield. I asked for their thoughts on ethical sourcing, the best brewing methods to use at home, and what makes their coffee taste so good!

Forty Weight Coffee Roasters

Caleb Schonfeld is the newest partner in Forty Weight Coffee Roasters, although he’s worked alongside company founders Andrew Ballard and Matt Marks for several years. You may have enjoyed an espresso or latté from Forty Weight’s booth at the Ithaca Farmers Market. These days, you’ll find Schonfeld managing the new coffee café within GreenStar’s downtown store.

How do you source your coffee beans?

We have direct relationships with a few different farmers, but mostly it’s through long-term relationships with importers. They know the type of high quality coffees we’re looking for. We typically pay 3-4 times the Fair Trade price for our beans. Fair Trade is actually the bare minimum that farmers need to break even.

What makes a high quality bean? 

The terroir or growing environment of the coffee plant impacts what is going to happen on the brewing end. The farmer, the roaster and then the brewer all have a hand on the scale of what the final product will taste like. One coffee that we have now is a grade one natural-processed coffee from Ethiopia. We order it year in and year out because we appreciate it’s unique qualities. It’s a milk chocolate/blueberry scenario.

You’re working with Zero Waste Ithaca to encourage the use of reusable cups at the GreenStar café. Can you tell me about that?

One of the biggest benefits of being located within GreenStar is access to a commercial dishwasher. We purchased enough mugs and espresso wares to get through a day. Our model is we reduce the price if you use a ‘for here’ vessel rather than a ‘to go’ cup. There’s nothing green about the coffee industry, except the beans before they are roasted. We are just trying to do our little part to offset that.

Why should I choose Forty Weight or another local roaster over one of the, let’s face it, less expensive bags on the shelf?

We’re a small local business. We’re paying farmers more. But also because our coffee tastes better. We control the freshness of the bean. Like any vegetable, coffee beans are best when they’re fresh. Our recommendation is to consume coffee within two weeks to a month of roasting. With commercial companies, your coffee likely sits in a warehouse that long before it even gets to the shelf.

Look for Forty Weight Coffee beans online at fortyweightcoffee.com and at local retailers or by the cup at Press Bay Cafe, Hound and Mare, Allechant, Gola Osteria, Northstar House and at their new café within GreenStar.

Copper Horse Coffee

James Harriott, along with partners Kristian Woodall and Caleb Scott, have been roasting Copper Horse Coffee at the former Livery building on Slaterville Road for almost ten years. You may have noticed their popular Sleigh Bell holiday blend with the cute red jingle bells on the bag. He says both the name and the bells were his daughter’s idea, although he does take credit for the flavor profile—fruity and nutty with a hint of chocolate.

How and why do you create a blend instead of just roasting and bagging a single-origin coffee?

We’re aiming for a combination of ingredients that round each other out with sweetness, acidity and bitterness, like a chef would balance a dish. Sometimes a single origin coffee will be more heavily weighted in one of those angles, so we blend to get a nice tasting stew. That’s our goal, but we don’t always attain it. It’s kind of a scientific method where you test your hypothesis, cup it and find out whether it worked. That is part of the skill of the trade.

What’s in your cup in the morning?

My wife and partner loves our Costa Rica Yellow Honey coffee. It’s got a nice sweetness to it. I make that one a lot at home. We also have a Cup of Excellence coffee, which is an international competition where the highest ranking coffees are auctioned off by lots. Ours is from #8 Ethiopian Lot. Look for the copper label on our website. Those are two of my current favorites.

Is your roastery open to the public?

We tell people we’re here every day of the week and they’re welcome to stop by. Also, we’ve been hosting some Sip and Shop pop-ups over the holidays with free coffee tastings. There’s Copper Horse merchandise available along with crafts and gifts from our friends at Terra Rosa, Cooper Hill Maple and Soap Mama Lamb. The last one will be Dec. 22 and 23 from 10 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. I’m just really thankful that a lot of people in the community have supported us through some very unsure times. We lost a lot of our wholesale business during the pandemic and we wouldn’t be here without our neighbors. So we like to help them out whenever we can.

Copper Horse Coffee is available online at copperhorsecoffee.com and by the bag or snap-chilled can at local retail outlets.

Oak & Crow Coffee Company

Jacob Landreau launched Oak & Crow Coffee Company in 2017. I first interviewed Landreau regarding the coffee counter he ran within Angelhearts Diner. Unfortunately Angelhearts was forced to temporarily close for construction. These days, you’ll find Landreau at the Collegetown GreenStar when he’s not at his roastery in the hills of Newfield.

What’s new with Oak & Crow?

I just released my espresso blend. Any place that serves our espresso uses this blend, but it was never available in retail bags until last week. I named it Awen, which is the Welsh word for inspiration.

Sounds great, but I don’t have an espresso machine. Can I still make good coffee at home?

Absolutely! Every morning I use a Chemex carafe. It’s pour-over that looks like a glass vase. You put a filter in and it’s one of the cleanest ways you can brew a cup of coffee. Simple and inexpensive too. Usually I’m drinking the Road Crew blend, an easy-drinking but very sweet and balanced coffee. For something a little more interesting, I use the Red Dragon blend. It still has the low-end sweetness of the Nicaraguan coffee but the Rwandan beans add a nice dark berry acidity. It’s really good for espresso as well.

Oak & Crow beans are available at oakandcrow.com and local retailers or by the cup at GreenStar’s Collegetown location, Alley Cat Café, Ithaca Beer, DeWitt Café and Gorgers.