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Home / Cafe Culture / Cafe BrittThis site review is from April 2001. Name: Café Britt The mere mention of Costa Rica is enough to cause a brown-blooded coffee gourmet to perk up and pay attention. The country has long been known as an exporter of some of the world's finest coffees -- the key word being exporter. According to statistics from CoffeeResearch.org, Costa Rica harvested 2,467,000 60-Kg bags' worth of coffee in 1999, 2,196,000 of which were exported -- a rate that is matched by only a few countries in the world. Cafe Britt is a Costa Rican company that has emerged over the past 15 years aiming in part to keep some of Costa Rica's world-class coffee "in-house" so it may be enjoyed in its home country, even as it makes itself available to coffee lovers around the world. Cafe Britt's website is a comprehensive description of this interesting company, and any coffee lover will quickly see that the commercial content is complemented with information and entertainment that will make this site a worthwhile visit for the casual web surfer as well as the customer. In the words of company president and founder Steven Aronson: This web site is a natural extension of Café Britt’s dedication to providing the highest quality coffee products, service and education. Here, in the company section, you will find information on our history, our philosophy, our plans for the future, our environmental efforts, and our latest news.
Enjoying the Fruits of Their Own LaborIn describing the company's origins, Cafe Britt describes a paradoxical situation in which a country grew some of the world's best coffee, yet it was difficult to find a top-notch cup of coffee anywhere in nation. Rather than focusing its efforts on exportation, Cafe Britt's originated as a roaster, preparing coffee that could be enjoyed within Costa Rica's borders. Café Britt was founded in 1985 as the first gourmet coffee roaster in Costa Rica. Before Café Britt, it was virtually impossible to find a memorable cup of coffee in our country. Even the most superb restaurants could not advertise a coffee that would justify ending a gourmet meal. It seemed all the truly exquisite Costa Rican coffee was being hidden away. This, of course, was not true. The simple fact was all the best coffee was being exported. From start to finish, the company has taken matters into its own hands, to ensure that Costa Rican coffee lovers have the opportunity to enjoy some of their nation's world-class coffee. These days, there is considerably more to Cafe Britt than a cafe. The company consists of a plantation where coffee is grown, a roaster, three cafes, and a mail-order service. The cafes have prime locations in Heredia, San Jose, and Poas Volcano National Park. Café Britt is one of the only coffee companies in the world with the ability to monitor and account for every step in the coffee producing process. This, coupled with the cost advantages associated with being in the country of origin, place Café Britt in an unbeatable position as a world distributor of gourmet coffee. The products sold online include of three types of caffeinated coffee (light roast, dark roast, and espresso) and two types of decaf. The home roaster is taken care of here as well -- Cafe Britt also offers unroasted Costa Rican coffee beans. CoffeeTourPart of the site is devoted to "CoffeeTour", a series of guided tour packages available through Cafe Britt, dedicated to educating visitors about the coffee growing, harvesting, and roasting process. A wide array of packages are described on the site, with options including guided tours of Cafe Britt's finca, tram rides above a nearby rainforest, a trip to a butterfly farm, and coffeecentric culinary lessons. Although this section is primarily meant to be a preview for the company's "real-world" CoffeeTour packages, it includes an interesting description of the history of coffee in Costa Rica. There are also biographies of the characters guiding CoffeeTour, as well as the Scandinavian origins of Cafe Britt's name.
Lively LibraryFor Cafe Britt's virtual visitors, the primary attraction to the website is most likely going to be the Library. Particulalrly interesting and informative are descriptions of Cafe Britt's "Cupper" and Master Roaster. Costa Rica has a fascinating coffee culture and history, and this is a good place to learn the essential facts of the country's coffee industry, past and present. The country's government has shaped a unique approach to the coffee economy -- tax breaks have historically been offered to those who grew coffee on their property, but with some restrictions -- the growing of Robusta Coffee is illegal under Costa Rican law! There is also an elaborate description of how to homeroast your own coffee beans. ConclusionWhile Café Britt is willing and able to ship its coffee products, it also extends an open invitation to its finca in Costa Rica and the many other attractions the surrounding area has to offer. It is successful, too -- visiting the site is very likely to pique your interest in incorporating Costa Rica into your travel plans. Fortunately, for those of us unable to travel to Costa Rica in the near future, the website accommodates us in many other ways. Ordering coffee from this unique plantation/roaster/café is made easy here, and there is plenty of general coffee information to supplement a visit to the site. Even if you are limited to appreciating Costa Rican coffee from afar, a visit to Cafe Britt's website is worth your while. INeedCoffee is proud to award the April 2001 Site of The Month award to Cafe Britt. |
