Arizona Coffee

Some fascinating coffee spending statistics worth taking a look at.

Do people from Phoenix really spend more money on coffee than San Francisco residents?

Brian Clemens posted some interesting thoughts on syrups. The main question he asks is whether coffee bars should offer syrup flavors. Brian stops short of providing his own opinion on the matter, though.

Coming from the “strange but true” department is Weasel Coffee. Available for purchase from ThinkGeek, of all places (currently sold out).

Hat tip: Steve Kraus

Giant Coffee is now open… the coffee shop many people predicted would never open (rumors were it was supposed to open last fall some time — when it was nearly completely furnished). It is located downtown, near the art museum.

Photos: Giant Coffee

According to Matt Pool, the owner, they are using Four Barrel Coffee and they “brew only single origin for drip & pour over,” and they service “Straus organic milk.” The shop is equipped with a La Marzocco & other Fetco equipment.

Hours: Tuesday – Sunday from 7 am to 3 pm and beginning on June 15 daily from 7 am to 7 pm (7 days a week).

Congratulations to them on opening! You can follow them on Twitter at @giantcoffeeAZ.

Giant Coffee
1437 N 1st St.
Phoenix, AZ 85004
Twitter: @giantcoffeeAZ

If you have been in the coffee industry in Arizona for any period of time you’ll immediately recognize Ron Cortez. He is one of the most respected and well known roasters in the valley and one of his strengths is his willingness to share what he knows.

I interviewed Ron Cortez of Cafe Cortez recently about part of his coffee operation and you can watch that video below.

You can follow Ron on Twitter or read his blog. Awhile back Ron was on LaFusion television and you can watch that video here.

Cafe Cortez has been in business since 1996 and roasts and consults with a large number of coffee bars. Ron Cortez also founded More Than Fair, which I’ve written about before.

Cortez Coffee Company
1030 East Vista del Cerro
Tempe, AZ 85281
Phone: (480) 968-8333
Twitter: @ronaldcortez

I received several interesting emails today, which I thought I’d share below (this was the first day I had received emails of this sort, so I’m curious to see if it continues).

John S. wrote:
If you start selling coffee on the Internet, I will buy it to support Arizona!
John

Mike wrote:
Go Arizona. I support the new law.

Kathy wrote:
Hi, I was wondering if you sell your coffee by the pound and if so, how would I go about ordering? I’m from the Chicago area and wanted to send some business to AZ…so why not with my favorite drink?! Thanks!

Rebecca C. wrote:
How can I buy AZ coffee. Seattle is boycotting AZ because of the ILLEGAL
IMMIGRATION BILL. Has no one read it? STARBUCKS is in SEATTLE. If they want to play this game, then I think those of us who stand with AZ should join their game…and play to win!

Marvin H. wrote:
Love your site. Didn’t know there were local brewers. However, it would be
nice if you had an East Valley section, and if you listed the approximate
location (major crossroads) next to each link. Going to each website to then
have to navigate and find their address is very cumbersome. Thanks and keep up the great work.

And in case anybody new is reading this that is interested in supporting Arizona coffee roasters, you can find my list here.

According to BusinessWeek’s article about iced coffee women make up 64 percent of iced coffee drinkers. Interesting. Keep in mind this article includes data from major brands… so we’re not necessarily talking about coffee bars.

Steve Kraus over at Press Coffee sent me a link to an article about a New York coffee chain that is charging that much.

From this video, it looks like they’re roasting and creating a special Ethiopian blend and doing a media stunt to see what happens. I guess it’s working.

What’s the most you would pay for a cup of coffee?

Krystofer wrote to let me know about a new coffee shop in Mesa, a city sorely lacking in coffee destinations. The place is called East Main Street Cafe and it is inside POOL in Mesa.

East Main Street Cafe inside POOL
1240 E Main St.
Mesa, AZ 85203