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Tuppence A Bag

© Katherine Austinson

As I write this piece to share a wonderful coffee with you, I'm reminded of the scene in the Walt Disney movie Mary Poppins where the children meet the Bird Lady and hear her song, "...feed the birds, tuppence a bag." Café Canopy is a coffee company that is "feeding the birds." They are a coffee company to be celebrated!

Café Canopy has a wonderful supply of green and roasted coffee from 8 countries including Peru, Guatemala, Mexico, El Salvador, Colombia, Papua New Guinea, Costa Rica and East Timor. They give their customers access to excellent organic coffee and support "equitable partnerships between consumers, farmers and the environment; while maintaining a profitable company."

Organic coffee is healthy for our planet's environment, the coffee grower, and the coffee drinker. The full flavor of the bean comes through and no chemicals are used to grow it or to process it.

This specialty gourmet coffee is a blend of shade grown organic coffees. The traditional shade tree growing method is accomplished at high altitudes with tropical temperatures in very fertile soil. It provides a natural habitat for a huge range of migratory birds. Because of this, the Smithsonian Institute supports the work of Café Canopy. But what goes around comes around and so, to show their appreciation, for every pound of Café Canopy beans that you purchase, Café Canopy contributes twenty five cents to the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. They also make sure that a percentage of the profits are returned to the coffee growing community.

"Café Canopy works directly with small farmer cooperatives to help them receive a fair price for their harvest and maintain their economic independence. Café Canopy promotes shade grown, sustainable farming methods that protect the land and improve the living conditions."

Now that we've established what wonderful work this company is about, let's discuss their product. There is the Original Blend, the French Roast, the Espresso, the Understory Blend, the Canopy Blend, the Italian Roast and the Vanilla. The Original Blend can be described as a mix of coffees "cultivated in harmony with nature and chosen for their liveliness, combined with a liberal amount of Italian Roast to produce a full well balanced cup of coffee with a sweet, nutty flavor and complex aroma."

My favorite is the rich, bold, almost chocolate flavor of the Understory Blend, but you might also enjoy the French Roast: "Heavy bodied Indonesian gives this deep dark chocolate roast a syrupy body that goes down smooth. The addition of an aroma cycle at the end of the roast imparts a heady, bittersweet aroma with just a touch of smokiness."