Peregrine Coffee is absolutely thrilled to offer our first Farm Direct bean. After a few conversations with Roger Rittenhouse at Moki’s Farm in Hawaii, we will be bringing in small lots of this superb micro-lot coffee, direct from the farm.
The first word that jumps to mind is wood. The aromas are the first clue, starting with a distinct cedary smell combined with fruit, and meaty organics tones. This coffee is very dry, with a contrasting creamy finish. There is a tiny tinge of tartness which suggests some acidity, but it is very slight and quickly fades to the background against a cocoa-wood combination – think dark chocolate covered walnut, if such a thing were to exist. There is a smooth, watery mouthfeel with a mild, very long, dry finish that is dusty and powdery. Another excellent Indonesian.
PHILADELPHIA, PA February 2, 2009 – All of a sudden, people are talking coffee. Superb small-batch roasters are spreading out across the country. Coffee “cupping” is the new wine tasting. Food and coffee pairings are the current curiosity on boutique menus. In Philadelphia, Peregrine Coffee (http://www.peregrinecoffee.com) is adding something new to the brew with its full bespoke coffee service.
“Bespoke coffee means coffee sourced, stored, and roasted to order to suit your particular palate,” explains Peregrine Owner/Roaster Kevin Lawrence. “If people care enough to grind and brew their own coffee at home, they should be drinking something they really love, something chosen and roasted just for them and supplied whenever they want it – that’s what we do here at Peregrine. Just think of me as a coffee sommelier.”
Lawrence began roasting coffee six years ago when his coffee maker broke and he started to research what it would take to brew a better cup. He soon discovered that the magic of great coffee lay in the fresh roasted beans, and began to experiment at home, moving to progressively more sophisticated roasters as his skill grew. By June 2008, he was ready to launch Peregrine Coffee.
When Lawrence started roasting his own beans he was amazed by what really fresh coffee tastes like. “There is no bitterness, no sourness, and the range of flavors in beans from different parts of the world is astounding – who knew coffee could taste like blueberries? I wanted to share my discoveries with everyone who loves coffee as much as I do.”
Peregrine Coffee is the way he does that, by showcasing a carefully chosen selection of single-origin and single-estate coffees, roasted to order through the online store, and by providing his unique bespoke service.
This is how the bespoke service works: The first step is a tasting, which can be booked through the free “bespoke coffee for the curious palate” option in Peregrine online store. In the Philadelphia area, customers can come to Lawrence’s roast shop in Northeast Philadelphia, or he will bring coffee samples to homes or workplaces. In addition to tasting coffee, Lawrence discusses other sorts of flavor preferences with prospective clients – when ordering dessert, do you always go for chocolate or lean toward the berry option? Do you prefer white wine or red? Do you drink coffee first thing in the morning, with meals or only after dinner?
The client’s responses help build their personal coffee flavor profile, which Lawrence uses to source the perfect beans for that particular customer’s palate. After the tasting, Lawrence prepares a proposal outlining several different selections he thinks the customer will enjoy. He then purchases the green beans, stores them for the customer’s use alone, and roasts them to their specifications on demand. Bespoke orders are priced according to the individual coffees chosen and the amount desired (once-a-week for six months, a year’s worth, etc.) with minimum purchases beginning at $45.
Customers outside of the Philly area can purchase a Peregrine Pack ($9.25), which provides whole bean samples of three distinct Peregrine coffees. From there Lawrence follows up by phone or email to discuss the flavors sampled and hone in more precisely on the customer’s taste preferences. Peregrine Coffee can be shipped anywhere in the U.S. and abroad. The company also custom-roasts coffee to complement the specific flavors of a wedding cake, or to go with any specialized menu.
“People are staying home more, cooking at home more,” points out Lawrence. “You may not be able to afford the vintage Bordeaux this year, but you can treat yourself and your guests to your own custom coffee for a fraction of that price. It’s an affordable luxury for coffee drinkers who want to explore just how good their own coffee can be.”
# # #
CONTACT: Luise Z. Moskowitz
luise@peregrinecoffee.com
(215) 240-4474
We awoke to find a man taking over our kitchen. We thought, Should we beat him with this baseball bat?
But he offered us great coffee, and we decided he’d go unharmed.
The man was Kevin Lawrence, owner of Peregrine Coffee. He came over to let us try his bespoke coffee service (we had no intention of ever beating him).
He brought five beans (Colombian, Kenyan, Indian, Guatemalan, and Panamanian) that he ground and brewed while asking which flavors we wanted first thing in the morning. We sipped and sampled, then ordered our favorite batch. Which he will now deliver, fresh roasted, every week, month, or as we need it.
The coffee was good. Real good.
And Lawrence escaped, although we considered holding him hostage.
Available online at peregrinecoffee.com.
