gaining a few wholesale customers. Agren always has three different roasts plus a decaf and an espresso blend on hand at Ground. “I usually have one coffee from Africa, one from Indonesia, and one from the Americas,” she says. She tends to create mostly medium roasts. “I don’t do anything super dark,” she says. “People are going for lighter roasts.” Lighter roasts have more caffeine, she notes, and better highlight the bean’s characteristics. Agren would like to get a larger roaster so she could roast for more wholesale customers. With the two-pound roaster, she can sometimes barely keep up with what she needs for the shop. “Most customers don’t know we roast our own,” she says. When they find out, some want to know if they can purchase Ground’s beans. A few tourists from outside the area have even called her after they return home asking if they can order beans for shipment. She calls buying her own roaster the best thing she's done for her business. “I’ve learned so much,” she says. “And it’s really fun.”
Coffee Trivia: Espresso has just one-third of the caffeine content of a cup of regular coffee. Little Grace Espresso 630 E. Simcoe Drive (509) 773-1987
30 the gorge magazine // winter 2014
Goldendale Grind 714 E. Simcoe Drive (509) 261-1515
Trout Lake Heavenly Grounds Espresso 2374 Highway 141 (509) 395-2211 Find us on Facebook
camas Café Piccolo Paradiso
309 NE Birch Street (360) 834-7044 Find us on Facebook
Starbucks
9215 SE 34th Street (360) 253-8317 starbucks.com