Fonte Coffee
Fonté Coffee is an American based coffee brand, based in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. It was founded in Seattle, Washington by Paul Odom in 1992. The company provides a variety of different products, including Espresso pods, decaffeinated coffee, teas and a variety of blends of coffee.
History
The company was founded in 1992 by Paul Odom. Odom started his career in the food and beverage industry, working for Coca-Cola and also Frito-lay. After meeting roaster Steve Smith in 1991, he decided to develop the startup Fonte Coffee a year later. From the outset the Smith and Odom wanted to create a special coffee and aimed to do so with a Probat Roaster, which is known for its quality within the industry. After developing numerous variations during the first 10 years, the company served over 200 different outlets in the United States, Canada and Japan. In 2004, the company began roasting a unique Ethiopian blend of coffee. The Ethiopian Harrar is a major part of coffee bean production in Ethiopia. After Smith was impressed by the Ethiopian Harrar, Fonte created a special production coffee, which was available at various upmarket coffee chains.
The following year, the coffee company launched Bahama Bama, which was an iced tea brand created by the company. During the same period they also introduced a Chinese black tea and their coffee blends were also reviewed in the Chicago Tribune. 2005 also saw their roast-to-order service reach record sales.
In 2006, Steve Smith was one of 32 master roasters to judge at the Cup of Excellence in Brazil. Smith was responsible for grading 550 entries and judging the best coffee crop in Brazil. In the same year, Odom discussed how he had founded the company and focused heavily on producing quality coffee products. During the interview with CAFE, he said he focused on selling his products initially to chefs, restaurateurs and hoteliers. In April 2006, the company announced that it would be releasing a new line of iced teas. The range was branded the Select Series and consisted of hand-crafted teas. They included a black tea and a blend of several Asian teas.
Smith featured in FOX News discussing different coffee beans and blends in 2009. Fonté opened their first coffee bar in Seattle in 2009 and it went onto win a number of awards. A 20th Anniversary limited edition coffee blend was created in 2012 by Smith and Odom.
Roasting
Steve Smith is seen as the company's master roaster and has discussed his roasting techniques and schedules in the media. In 2005, he featured in The Morning Cup where he discussed his plans over a 7 day period. In 2007, Smith featured in Roast Magazine to discuss how to put together a roasting schedule. The company specialises in roasting to order, which Smith discussed at length. He also stated that making to decision to roast to order is one of the biggest decisions a roaster has to make.
Coffee Bars
In August 2009, the company opened its first wine and coffee bar in downtown Seattle. The coffee supplied at the establishment is usually small, one off roasts of the rarest beans from different global locations. In 2010, the coffee bar was ranked as the 4th place to get coffee by Seattle Weekly in the city of Seattle.
History
The company was founded in 1992 by Paul Odom. Odom started his career in the food and beverage industry, working for Coca-Cola and also Frito-lay. After meeting roaster Steve Smith in 1991, he decided to develop the startup Fonte Coffee a year later. From the outset the Smith and Odom wanted to create a special coffee and aimed to do so with a Probat Roaster, which is known for its quality within the industry. After developing numerous variations during the first 10 years, the company served over 200 different outlets in the United States, Canada and Japan. In 2004, the company began roasting a unique Ethiopian blend of coffee. The Ethiopian Harrar is a major part of coffee bean production in Ethiopia. After Smith was impressed by the Ethiopian Harrar, Fonte created a special production coffee, which was available at various upmarket coffee chains.
The following year, the coffee company launched Bahama Bama, which was an iced tea brand created by the company. During the same period they also introduced a Chinese black tea and their coffee blends were also reviewed in the Chicago Tribune. 2005 also saw their roast-to-order service reach record sales.
In 2006, Steve Smith was one of 32 master roasters to judge at the Cup of Excellence in Brazil. Smith was responsible for grading 550 entries and judging the best coffee crop in Brazil. In the same year, Odom discussed how he had founded the company and focused heavily on producing quality coffee products. During the interview with CAFE, he said he focused on selling his products initially to chefs, restaurateurs and hoteliers. In April 2006, the company announced that it would be releasing a new line of iced teas. The range was branded the Select Series and consisted of hand-crafted teas. They included a black tea and a blend of several Asian teas.
Smith featured in FOX News discussing different coffee beans and blends in 2009. Fonté opened their first coffee bar in Seattle in 2009 and it went onto win a number of awards. A 20th Anniversary limited edition coffee blend was created in 2012 by Smith and Odom.
Roasting
Steve Smith is seen as the company's master roaster and has discussed his roasting techniques and schedules in the media. In 2005, he featured in The Morning Cup where he discussed his plans over a 7 day period. In 2007, Smith featured in Roast Magazine to discuss how to put together a roasting schedule. The company specialises in roasting to order, which Smith discussed at length. He also stated that making to decision to roast to order is one of the biggest decisions a roaster has to make.
Coffee Bars
In August 2009, the company opened its first wine and coffee bar in downtown Seattle. The coffee supplied at the establishment is usually small, one off roasts of the rarest beans from different global locations. In 2010, the coffee bar was ranked as the 4th place to get coffee by Seattle Weekly in the city of Seattle.
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