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BIO OF YOUR UNIQUE LIFE Name  MATTHEW CAMPBELL   How you got into coffee I was first introduced to specialty coffee when a co-worker brought me a cup of freshly roasted Costa Rican from a newly opened shop near our job.  It was kind of an “aha” moment for me, realizing that coffee could be…

Coffee is everywhere.  It is ingrained in our culture, and our daily lives.  From fast-food drive-through to your kitchen, chances are that you aren’t far from it. As part of Coffee Props, our main focus is on that small percentage of coffee that is considered “Specialty Coffee.” Specialty coffee is defined as the best of…

Branch Street Coffee Roasters Water Specs: Calcium: 80ppm Magnesium 25ppm Carbonate (KH) 55ppm This falls into the “Ideal” brew zone according to the “Water For Coffee” book. Making these changes to our water allowed us to dial in our roasts to the ideal water chemistry and make our offerings more approachable to our target market…

For the most part, as humans, we like to have structure and organization in our lives.  We categorize ourselves, each other and just about everything around us.  From periodic tables and flow charts, to filing cabinets and libraries, we keep it tidy.  Why would our coffee be any different? Third wave coffee.  We’ve all heard…

Working in coffee as a barista has a certain romance to it.  Crafting drinks, getting to know regulars and hanging out in a cool, hip environment certainly has its draw.  As a barista, you are the center of attention, you orchestrate the experience of the guest, and you (hopefully) do it all in a cool…

One of the most frequent requests that we get involve recommendations for home auto-brewer machines. There are several things that go into a question like this, and many of them involve budget, desired features, size, and style. Many of our other blog posts deal with the components of making a great cup of coffee (grind,…

*Since we wrote this article, a new product has come on the market. Third Wave Water is a complete water solution in a convenient packet. The instructions are simple; just buy a gallon of DISTILLED water, and add one packet to that gallon. Mix until dissolved and use as your brew water. Check it out:…

Cascara: A new take on an old drink. This weekend we released a new product; something that we have been working on for several weeks.  As far as we know only a few cafes in the nation are offering cascara on their menu, and of those that have it only a fraction of them are…

If you’re a frequent consumer of specialty coffee, chances are you have come across several certifications and registration programs. Some may include Fair Trade, Organic, Bird Friendly, Shade Grown, Rainforest Certified, and others. What exactly do these mean, and how concerned should you be about the presence or lack of certification? Certifications are great, and…

It’s a corny title, I know, but it covers two things that are intricately related. Weight and Time. As with any prepared food product, a recipe is an important part of preparation, and a requisite for repeatability and consistency of flavor.  Variations from this recipe will result in different results, and coffee is no exception…