Sunday we work on new t-shirt designs for summer, prep Canele batter, and review. Cold brewing is in full swing, where we cold steep coffee in water for 24 hours, to strain through thick slabs of felt, making the coffee silky and smooth. Cold coffee is heads stronger than espresso poured over ice and cold water. There is more texture to it, and it is simply more substancial as a drink. Our refrigerator is very full of cold brew coffee, and we highly recommend that if you take it to go that you choose glass.

Pretty soon there will be some pricing changes at our bar. These will be substantial since we work in dollar amounts. The food scene of Portland has left quarters behind and so have we. It is always an awkward moment for us at a bar to receive two quarters back. Mochas and Hot Chocolates and ten oz Lattes are slated to increase. The dollar refill for a cup of coffee will most certainly go away, but currently these are the only items.

Looking forward to the summer we explore the possibility for a kiosk at 40th and Hawthorne, across the street from New Seasons, running very limited hours.

On the wholesale front PICNIC food cart has reopened at NE 20th and Everette for lunch W-Sun. They are serving our coffee hot. PINE STATE BISCUITS Northeast Portland is serving Courier Coffee alongside Stumptown Coffee, as part of their rotation of local roasters for the next two months.

This week Veloshop moved out (neighbors). Vanessa Renwick brought us nine more Canele forms from Paris, France. And the bar did a major re shuffling of the refrigeration, following the failure of one of our coolers thermostats (which we repaired). Getting ready for the summer we have doubled our mason jar storage, and have posted a menu on our glass window.

May, photography at our bar by New Avenues for Youth. Students were sent into the city with disposable cameras. We invite you over late Thursday (really YOU are invited), and while non of the art is for sale we want our friends to come more familiar with our downtown neighbors. Please check out their website, and of course their photos. Here you are, there are some cameras, take photos and bring them back. We ask you this month to familiarize yourself with your surrounding. There are many kids who are not at home, not at school, and perhaps without obvious options. New Avenues provides constructive resource, check it out.

xxo

we went out Friday to support the Velodrome, and our racing team Sizzle Pie/ Veloforma.
Pictured up top David and Joel, riding to whatever comes after work on the Eastside Saturday.

In a month we increase some of the drink prices at our bar (923 sw Oak). Today is Sunday, and we prep for another week of roasting coffee and bicycle distribution.

New copper forms Brittany and Michael brought us from a store in Paris (above). They are noticeably better, much heavier, and slightly larger. The copper browns/crisps the outside more evenly, and also the Canelé slip right out of the forms without effort. We only picked up nine, and have fallen in love with copper as a material for baking forms. (We bake daily at our bar).

Espresso on bar has switched to El Salvador San Luis Farm Bourbon Varietal from the Menendez family, which cleared the Port of Portland two weeks ago. This coffee is organically grown, and washed removal of cherry from seed. Also we have ice cream in the fridge, so affogattos are totally available.

It has been busier than ever before at Courier. Kourtney, James, David, Tyler and Alex have all been doing a rad work. There is a lot of hustle here, perhaps a little more in how we do things. Thanks for being with us.

Wednesday is Earthday (this week). Bike to the City of Portland building, 1400 sw 4th ave, where Courier Coffee serves Cold Brew Papua New Guinea Kimel estate Coffee. Noon sharp. Poured into short mason jars with our signature large ice cubes, until we run out of glassware.

Sunday we represent Synesso Espresso Machines at the big coffee convention. Sunday noon sharp we make drinks in what we only imagine to be 1990 biodome conditions. We proudly rep Synesso, and as a business that services them across Portland and uses one at our bar, well, we think they are rad.

New Coffees on bar and delivered-
San Carlos farm, Chiapas, Mexico- April arrival Oakland, washed, organic grown
Alhueco peoples, Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia- April arrival Oakland washed, organic grown
Menendez Family, San Luis Farm, El Salvador- April arrival Portland, washed, Bourbon varietal, organic grown
Menendez Family, El Salvador Pacamara varietal (thought it was Las Delicias farm but unsure)- April arrival Portland, organic grown.

this in addition to our Flores island coffee from Ngura (marchcrop arrival), Papua New Guinea Kimel estate (March crop arrival), and Colombia Huila Valencia (March crop arrival), and Decaf Ethiopia Sidamo Morodocafe (org and water decaf- Jan arrival).

Ok- So currently, good friends are in Paris at e.dehillerin. We have been getting pricing on Canelé forms made of copper, which at Sur La Table retail for 20 a piece. It has been exciting for us as we daily check their Tumblr accounts and get email updates on their experiences at different pastry shops. Michael and Brittany return Sunday and (if all goes well) with a bag full of new Canelé forms for us (which are what we make the funny tiny shaped pastries in). Keep your eyes on the backbar for the new copper.

Thursday two new coffees, both lovely, and on bar tomorrow (info to follow). Saturday Rilo visited the bar (picture above–adorable).

Luc Lac serving Courier Coffee made Vietnamese dripper style. Vietnamese coffee is typically french roast, so that is how we did it. We are using the same seeds that are roasted for our bar, however passing the point of caramelization to where the acids and proteins actually break down. So black that when you open the roasted seed and squeeze the liquid oil actually may be forced out. Coffee takes 8- 10 minutes to make this way and will be served with sweetened condensed milk. Luc Lac is pretty cool. They are open for lunch and dinner, and offer a full bar. The Courier Coffee there will be much different than elsewhere, very french of us. Maybe jump there in the evening between spots for some coffee, or food, or a cocktail. The Coffee on bar is currently Colombia Huila Valencia, a pooled lot from thousands of farms, washed removal of cherry arriving in the port of Oakland January.

In a week there will be new coffee on bar, and being biked out to our clients, and retail spots around the city. News on the specifics will occur as the coffee rolls in. Hopefully everyone witnessed the amazing rainbow a few days ago (dont worry, more rainbows this spring we promise). Sunrise is one of the best times to be out and about Portland.

As the first quarter of the year closes we entertain extending our delivery route over the west hills. Last week we rode up to the velodrome, and by this we mean got horribly lost, and are now considering biking this weekly, while perhaps making negative money in the process. Courier is more about having awesome clients and keeping the coffee at its best than convenience. Delivering what we provide by bicycle is constant struggle, but if somehow we can keep our route and timing simple, and ourselves well fed, rested, and refreshed then it becomes mostly fun. This business was never easy, and it is kind of laughable that we can make it work, but at the same time pretty great. With our volume a car would save us time and instead of three people at the roastery we would only need one. But driving all day would make us very sad, and more people means more fun, so Courier totally works. The joy is in pulling things off with minimal force and with the most eloquence, perhaps why the bicycle is so great.
Courier’s bar is doing considerably better over last year. The bar has just gotten super fun to work at. This year we have perhaps overloaded ourselves with tasks to pull off by summer, and it will be the new drinks, and figuring out how to make our customers more welcome that we look forward to. With Ryan moving on to Simple we are left with four staff, which we are content with for the moment. The roastery still is at two or three.

New burrs for the Robur (pictured above), our espresso grinder, await install when our current ones wear too much. Below Cold Brew coffee with our large ice cubes, very much being made daily on bar.

The espresso is now a single lot from Papua New Guinea Kimel. It is a peaberry seed type (or round seed). January crop arrival Oakland. This is now on bar. It is a little chewy in the mouthfeel, lacking crisp definition in the mid notes, yet wide in the cherry notes. There is a little bit of that ferment development too. We like it because of the development of the sugars.

In all the rain and snow our roastery store room has not flooded once! Thanks to the gutters being retacked to the house we no longer need to staple gun tarps around the perimeter. This makes us quiet happy.