Introducing Cold Brewed Iced Teas
Did you notice? Our Iced Teas are even smoother now, thanks to our new Cold Brew Method.
Is there any better way to cool off than with a large glass of iced tea? It seems doubtful after a glass of one of these new brews. Cold Brewing is a method for making tea without using any heat at all. Using cold water we let the tea steep for up to 12 hours before serving (like sun tea, just without the sun). The result is tea that's always delicious, smooth, and full of subtle flavors. Heat sensitive green teas are particularly delicious when brewed this way.
So what's the secret of Cold Brewing? Cold brewing makes smoother tea because there is no heat involved. Heat is what brings out the catechins and tannins in tea. Catechins are what makes tea bitter and tannins give tea its astringency. When using cold water a large portion of these chemicals are not extracted and remain in the tea leaves. You can try it at home! Just use about 40 grams of your favorite loose leaf tea for every gallon of water. Allow to steep for around 8 hours, strain and enjoy!
Another great aspect of tea is that, unlike coffee, tea hydrates the body so it's perfect for the long days in sun. So swing by your favorite Phoenix locations and try our new tea, I personally love our loose leaf Ceylon which is like being in the shade of an apricot tree.
Weekly Cuppings at the Coventry Cafe
Every Monday at 7:00 pm at our Coventry Cafe, Mike Danner, Lead Barista, hosts a coffee cupping that is open to the public. A coffee cupping is a standardized, methodical way that professional coffee tasters use to systematically evaluate coffee characteristics. These weekly cuppings are a great palate development opportunity and a fun way to see what coffees are new at Phoenix. Come join us!
Compostable Cups Are Here!
The new Phoenix Coffee compostable cups are just starting to arrive at our cafes. These cups are the culmination of almost a year's worth of thought and effort. They were painstakingly designed by our in-house designer, Sean Higgins. As the new cups begin to arrive at each cafe, we will now offer you a choice when you purchase a beverage to go: either bring your own mug or buy one of our new compostable cups for $0.10 each. This nominal ten cent "green fee" is our way of encouraging everyone to adopt sustainable habits, such as bringing your own mug and minimizing the use of disposables whenever possible. In Ireland, the country reduced the use of disposable shopping bags by 96% by introducing a similar "green fee". We hope to reduce our use of disposables by more than 100,000 cups this year, and to compost just as many, thereby reducing our ecological footprint. Thanks for helping with our efforts! You can read our press release here.
About the Coventry Cafe
Our Coventry Café features huge windows with light streaming in around the fireplace, plants, many a Case Western Reserve student studying diligently, and Jessica Rabbit, the store beta fish. This café became a Phoenix Coffee in August 2007, a month after the previous tenant, Caribou Coffee, closed. This Phoenix is known for the neighborhood hipster regulars, as well as our local eccentric underground socialists and even one of Cleveland’s most successful artists, George Fitzpatrick, who lives nearby. The Coventry café has high energy and a lot of foot traffic, and it’s also famous for being where “Black Stacy” got named. “Black Stacy” is what we call our regular house blend black iced tea, it was named after Sarah Dallas’s cat (Sarah Dallas is a longtime favorite Phoenix barista). Coventry Village is one of Cleveland’s strongest independent merchant districts, featuring stores like Big Fun toy store, Mac’s Backs used books, Passport to Peru, City Buddha, Next Urban Wear, and Brigade clothing store. While sipping your coffee, you can also enjoy the artwork scotch taped on the walls from our loyal kid-fans and sketches from some talented local artists. Or, sit at one of our sidewalk two-tops for some great people watching.
