Coffee Prices

A cup of coffee is pushing $2 most places, and those fancy, flavored espresso drinks are running $4 or $5. So, on the surface it seems like the coffee market is booming.

Well, not if you're a coffee grower. Commodity prices of coffee beans are hitting new record lows year after year.

This has been going on for a while, due to combinations of factors. The commodity market for coffee is unregulated, dominated by few big buyers and many growers, and many source countries for coffee have unstable currencies.

It's really not clear what effect this might have on the future, there's a human cost going on which could have unpredictable political effects.

The BBC has a recent podcast on the coffee market.

The Boston Fed did a report on the international coffee market about 5 years ago which is still somewhat relevant today.

Even the Mennonites got into the act a few years ago.

Coffee Politics is a blog that keeps up with this stuff from the farmers perspective.

It's really all kind of a mess.

I first read about it when Bayesian Heresy pointed me to the BBC podcast.

Tax grabs

I guess tax grabs are good things if it helps the environment.

Most java junkies polled are in agreement with a recent proposal by a Toronto city councillor to levy a 30 cents tax on every non-recycled coffee cup and food container.

Glenn De Baeremaeker said the works department proposal will be voted on by city council this fall and if passed would impose a tax on companies using non-recyclable or Styrofoam containers and other in-store packaging after a certain date.

"Millions and millions of coffee cups go in the garbage every year," he said yesterday. "I would be glad if we didn't have to tax anyone."

Sitting on a King St. E. Starbucks patio last night, Mark Nguyen said he was all for the idea as long as it isn't just a "tax grab."

"If it is a tax grab I'm against it. But if it is to help the environment, I'm all for it," said Nguyen.

Thirty cents a cup tax on coffee? Wow. Those Canadians don't fool around.

The old Huey Long story is that he says to you, "We're not going to tax me. We're not going to tax you. We're going to tax that guy over there sitting under that tree".

The way they heard the story in Canada is "We're just going to tax all you dumb sonsofbitches".

Here's a blog that has some good coverage of the Barista competition I mentioned the other day. He says,

We were disappointed with the coverage during the 3-day event from both the traditional media as well as the blogs and forums and agree with suggestions from the coffee community that event organizers should consider contracting coverage to a PR firm that has experience organizing media coverage for a large, championship caliber event.

At least the Long Beach newspaper had some good coverage.

Even though she's only 24, Heather Perry is ready to retire.

The San Dimas resident can add "nation's best barista" to her resume after winning the United States Barista Championship on Monday.

She doesn't work for Cowgirl Espresso, but she has the looks for it.

Sex and Cowgirl Espresso

Some of y'all may have seen this on TV a few weeks ago -- young, attractive women dressed in lingerie, bathing suits, or catholic school girl fantasy outfits, serving espresso from parking lot stands.

One recent afternoon, there was a long line of cars at the tiny, black-and-white, cow-painted Cowgirls stand in front of a Tukwila casino.


Candice Law, leaning provocatively out the drive-through window in a black bra that didn’t quite cover her shiny purple pasties, and Toni Morgan, wearing a skimpy halter top, see-through red lace panties and chaps, seemed to know every customer.

Sexy espresso stands seem to be popping up all over the Seattle area.

"If I'm going to pay $4 for a cup of coffee" said one male customer, "I'm not going to get served by a guy."

That attitude has been a boon to Cowgirls. Bowden, a former vending-machine-company owner, has acquired seven drive-through stands, with a total of 26 employees, all of them women.

Though most of the stands in the area pay minimum wage, Law said she makes more in tips than she ever did as a waitress at Hooters. One recent morning, she served 400 customers between about 6 a.m. and noon.

"Your customers freakin' adore you. Everybody's excited to see you," Law said. "You spend a few minutes with them and they leave."

Franchises are available.

Starbucks -- earnings rise, share price drop

Starbucks recently announced a rise in earnings, but share prices dropped on the news. I guess they are doing well but not as well as investors expect from them.

Despite flat traffic in U.S. stores, Starbucks' aggressive global expansion helped second-quarter profit jump 18.5 percent, executives said.

In a separate announcement before the quarterly results were released Thursday, Starbucks and the Ethiopian government said they expect to complete a licensing, distribution and marketing deal with Ethiopia this month that would settle a dispute over trademarks for three coffees produced in the African nation.

Starbucks shares slipped 46 cents, or 1.45 percent, to $31.16 in early trading on Friday.

A coffee roast off

One of the neat things about the internet it that it's easy to frequently scan just a whole bunch of newspapers from all over the country (all over the world for that matter). Here's a story from the Long Beach Press Telegram on a competition preaparing espresso specialty drinks

Crimson Sage did it for her in 2005, and Phuong Tran hopes Summer Eclipse will put her back on top this year.

Steve Fritzen is banking on his Adado Temple.

You wouldn't guess by the names, but Tran and Fritzen are among the dozens of coffee slingers who have come to Long Beach to claim the title of the nation's top barista.

The Specialty Coffee Association of America's 19th Annual Conference & Exhibition kicked off in the Long Beach Convention Center Friday with the United States Barista Championship. Forty-eight competitors from all over the United States will compete, with the winner being sent to Japan this summer to vie for the title of world's best.

Not all of the espresso drinks made during the competition sound so passive. There were several appropriately caffeinated names - like the Godzilla.

Competitor Alex McCracken hustled on Friday to finish his signature drink, made with honey, thyme and hot water mixed with espresso.

"I don't really have a fancy name for it," the St. Louis resident said.

Fancy names or no, many drinks made at the competition can't be found in your typical coffeehouse. Many are too labor-intensive, and can't be affordably made in mass quantities.

However, several baristas this year promised to make efforts to bring their fancy drinks to local coffeehouses.

See the article for more details.

I Love Coffee

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