Fair Grounds - Peace Coffee

Celebrating the Birthplace of Coffee
Sailing the Fair Trade Winds Derek De La Paz, Peace Coffee Production Roaster
New Faces: Josh Lavelle
What Do You Think About Fair Trade?
Roaster's Corner: Coffee Processing by Keith Tomlinson, Head Peace Coffee Roaster
Show Your Peace Coffee Pride and WIN!
Quote of the Month
Past Issues of Fair Grounds

In this issue of Fair Grounds, we focus on Ethiopia, the coffee growing region that has generated a lot of buzz lately, due in large part to the Black Gold film that has been screened in the Twin Cities, around the world and on PBS. We begin with the first part of Derek's lively account of his recent Ethiopian adventure. Then Keith talks about processing Ethiopian and other origin coffees in his Roaster's Corner. Also this month, we introduce Josh Lavelle, a new member of the Peace Coffee crew, who will be sharing photos from his bike delivery travels. And we finish up a tasty issue with Peace Pride poetry and a recipe for cappuccino biscotti (perfect with a steaming cup of Ethiopian coffee!). Settle back and read on...

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by Derek De La Paz, Peace Coffee Production Roaster

It’s February 2007 and I am on a flight from Washington, DC, to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. I am a roaster of coffee at Peace Coffee. I still can’t believe that in 16 hours I’ll be standing in the country that gave the world the coffee plant. The birthplace of coffee -- Ethiopia. What could it possibly be like?

I will be traveling from Addis Ababa to Yirgacheffe in southern Ethiopia to visit the areas that produce some of our coffee. Then I will spend a few days in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. In all, a dream trip for any roaster. Since I have a few hours of flying ahead, I think I’m going to sleep.

Oh man, it’s hot! The intense sun blinds and burns my sensitive eyes. It also bakes the earth and creates an enormous cloud of dust. The insects seem to thrive in this inhospitable environment. Feasting on the weakness of other creatures. The ride is becoming very bumpy..."Please fasten your safety belts and prepare for landing." Finally I’ve landed in Addis Ababa. It’s 9:00 PM local time. After a brief trip through customs, I meet our friend and guide. His name is Tilhuan, and he is an employee of the Oromia Cooperative Union, the cooperative from which Peace Coffee purchases 100% of the Ethiopian coffee it roasts. He is a man of gentle stature, very polite, with a warm smile and a smooth accented English voice. I walk out of the airport to the embrace of cool crisp clean air (its 55 degrees with 35 percent humidity). There’s also the sweet and spicy smell of fire. It instantly refreshes my mind and body. In the light of the city I can see the outline of great mountains. What a lovely place, and I’ve only walked out of the airport into the night of Ethiopia. What will the day and upcoming trip bring? I awake the next day to the mosque’s call to worship. What a beautiful sound, paired with the sight of the jagged green mountains shrouded in fog. The soft morning breeze gently stirs the fog and smoke making a gray blue watercolor sky.

The birds of prey circle on hot air currents as the sun begins to climb the horizon. The whole scene is beautiful beyond words. My first day in Ethiopia will be a day I will never forget.

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Josh Lavelle started full time at Peace Coffee two months ago.

Here's what he has to say about himself:

"I'm a jack of all trades and a master of none. Before I started getting paid to ride my bike all day for Peace Coffee, I was a bike mechanic. I still enjoy working on bikes a lot, especially on my own terms. When I'm not at work, I'm usually riding my bike or at one of the local watering holes (namely Triple Rock). I am originally from a small town about an hour south of Madison, but have lived in Minneapolis for about five years. Keep your uptown out of my nordeast! I drank Peace Coffee before I started working here. Now I just drink a crap load more and don't have to pay for it. A few other things: I like to read (mostly non-fiction), I enjoy investigative journalism a lot (Amy Goodman knows the truth, check her out), I like to cook and I eat a lot. I'm not a fan of computers and enjoy simplicity. I can't spell and did not enjoy going to school. Did I mention I get paid to ride my bike all day?"

Every month in the newsletter, we will be featuring Josh's photos of things that catch his eye as his carries out his bike deliveries.

Here are the first few photos from Josh’s viewfinder!

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Interest in the Fair Trade movement has grown over the last few years, but the movement hasn't received enough attention from the research community. Below is a link to a dynamic survey about ethical consumerism, which is part of a study looking at Fair Trade consumers. Why do some people integrate fairness into what they buy, while others do not?

This study is being conducted by Caroline Doran, a Ph.D. candidate at Capella University. Peace Coffee invites you to participate because it will offer an inside view and help organizations like ours understand how to further the movement. You are 100% anonymous as your personal details have not been disclosed, nor will they be collected during the survey. Your responses are 100% confidential.

Take the survey.

Thanks for your time!

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We received two great entries this month and couldn't choose between the two, so they're both winners!

The first is a haiku from Shawn Morrison of Cashmere, Washington:

Dawn’s light beckons now,
Ebony ambrosia’s call,
Awake, awake, peace.

The second is a hot, heavy (and juicy) poem from Robert Bowman of Warrenton, Virginia:

How I'd love to be the steaming coffee of your craving sipped through your lucious lips...
into your mouth...lightly...
cautiously -- so hot...
down into your body
stimulating...satisfying...
ending up as you
satisfied by me.

Congratulations, Shawn and Robert! You both win a pound of your favorite Peace Coffee.

If you're passionate about Peace Coffee, show it! Send us:

— a photo showing your "Peace Coffee Pride”
— a short written testimonial about how much you love us
— an original coffee poem or haiku (three lines, 5 syllables in the first, 7 in the second, 5 in the last)

Each month, we’ll choose one entry to appear in the following Fair Grounds newsletter. If we choose yours, you’ll win a pound of your favorite Peace Coffee coffee. Please send your entry to mel@peacecoffee.com.

Contest ends: May 14th

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"Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible for evil to triumph."

~ Haile Selassie (Ethiopian Statesman and Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974)

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Fair Grounds is produced by:
Peace Coffee

Contact Information:

Orders and General Information
Phone - 612.870.3440 or 1.888.324.7872
Fax - 612-677-3989
E-Mail - info@peacecoffee.com
Web - http://www.peacecoffee.com

Peace Coffee Crew*:
Anna Canning
Derek De La Paz
Tom Hudson
Andy Lambert
Josh Lavelle
Melanee Meegan
Joe Moskowitz
Natalie Ryno
Ryan Seibold
Nate Stevens
Keith Tomlinson
Lee Wallace

*We work together to get the coffee out to our customers. Although we have specific job titles, we all take turns switching roles and putting in time where it's needed most.

Fair Grounds is designed by:

Starstruck Design
335 West Gill Road
Gill, MA 01354

Contact Information:
Don Kruger
Lynn Nichols
Phone - 413.863.7752
Fax - 413-863-7752
Web - http://www.starstruckdesign.com

You are receiving your Fair Grounds e-newsletter because you told us you wanted to get it, or a good friend of yours suggested to us that you would like to get it. If you like it, let us know. If you want to suggest ways that we can make it better, let us know. Our e-mail is info@peacecoffee.com

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simply send an e-mail to: newsletter-off@peacecoffee.com and put your e-mail address in the subject line.

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