What does "Organic" Coffee Honestly Mean?

We see organic slapped on everything these days; one popular place to see it, besides food, is on coffee. The question is, though, what does organic coffee truly mean?

Let's talk about what it means to earn the "organic" label. According to USDA, in order to become organic certified coffee, a coffee farm must meet these requirements:

• The farm cannot use any synthetic pesticides or any substances that have been prohibited within the past three years. 
• The farm must exhibit great & sustainable crop rotation to avoid soil erosion and nutrient loss. (This is a result of the Dust Bowl in the United States during the Great Depression). 
• Any plan to do pest prevention must be accomplished naturally and not synthetically. 
• The coffee has to pass an analysis and inspection prior to being labeled as organic and being sold in the United States as such. 

In addition to seeing the organic label on coffee packaging, you might also see "Bird-friendly labels". When a coffee farmer has been allowed to label coffee as organic & is certified as an organic grower, they can apply for the label if they use shade (natural) for growing coffee. This means that the beans are shaded from the sun by trees and other plants instead of screen or buildings. 

Purchase organic K-Cups from Coffeevines and feel great about your coffee! 

Debunked Coffee Myths: 5 of Them

Coffee is one of the world's most consumed beverages, along with tea and water. Due to its popularity, there are going to by myths about it because people form their own theories about it. We have a list of 5 debunked coffee myths so you can live your life knowing the correct coffee information.

Whether it is K-Cup coffee, espresso, drip coffee, or other kinds, we myths for them.

1. Espresso has more caffeine than K-Cups. Espresso is a potent form of coffee when you consider the caffeine; however, that is because espresso is packing lots of caffeine into a little bit of liquid. So by volume, espresso wins. However, when you look at the numbers, both espresso and single cup coffee are actually comparable in terms of caffeine. The USDA states that 2 ounces of espresso has 120 mg's of caffeine while a 10 ounce cup of coffee has about the same amount. 
2. Arabica coffee is king of the [coffee] crop. Arabica beans are very popular, often more popular than robusta. Robusta beans are less popular due to their rubbery and acrid flavor that has caused many to consider the beans to be inferior. Approximately three-quarters of the coffee drinking world consumes arabica over rubusta. However, when you look at the market shares, robusta is miles in front of specialty grade and other certified coffees. 
3. The only coffee Italians drink is Espresso coffee. While they do love the stuff, about two-thirds of Italian coffee drinkers consume their coffee at home. Do they own countertop espresso machines? Most of them do not; many of them use a "moka pot" which is like an espresso machine but it does not make anything as strong as true espresso. They are very popular machines. 
4. Decaf is for the weak! This is not a fair assumption; many people avoid the caffeinated version for a multitude of reasons. Such as those who are pregnant: those with heart conditions, allergies, those who are easily affected by caffeine, people who drink it late in the day, etc. The bottom line is that just because you drink decaf coffee, doesn't mean you are not strong enough for real coffee. 
5. The gourmet coffee is too pricey. The old saying goes, "You pay for quality". And it is very, very true. You also pay for coffee that is worth more work, such as fair trade certified coffee and organic coffee. When coffee requires more work to harvest, roast, and brew, then yeah, it will be more costly. It is like buying a high-end car, it wouldn't be fair to the manufacturer to charge the same price as a less quality car. 

The Differences Between Dark Roast Coffee & Light Roast Coffee

When it comes to K-Cup coffee, or any coffee for that matter, roast matters. Not all coffee roast are the same since they all feature different flavors, caffeine levels, roasting time, etc. Dark roast, medium roast, and light roast coffee are the three main ones but there are roast levels within those.

The roast is one of the aspects about coffee that completely changes the drink depending on which one you go for. If you are into roasting your own coffee beans, then depending on which bean you have, it requires a different roast. So how are the roasts different and why should you care? Let's find out.

• Light roast: This coffee is light in color, as figured by the name. When you want a mild coffee, then you will want to order a light roast because the typical coffee flavor is not as potent; however, the amount of caffeine is greatest. The beans do not have oil on the surface. 

• Common names for light roast include: light city, half city, cinnamon, and New England. 
• Medium roast: The beans are a medium brown in color and have a bolder flavor than mild roast. Still, there is no oil on the surface of the beans. This is the roast that Americans tend to enjoy the most. 
• Common names for this roast include: City, American, and Breakfast. 
• Dark Roast: The coffee is really dark brown, much richer and bolder than the other coffee roasts. There is some oil on the surface to a lot of oil on the surface. There is much more bitterness with dark roast. This roast has the least amount of acid and caffeine in the coffee. 
• Common names for dark roast include: high, continental, New Orleans, European, Espresso, Viennese, Italian, and French. 

If you want to try a roast that you are not used to having, then an easy place to purchase coffee is www.coffeevines.com! We have these roasts with plenty of brands to choose from. 

10 Things You Need to Know About Coffee

We love coffee, especially our single cup coffee, and while we sit and drink it everyday in the United States, there is so much to be known about it! We have 10 rather interesting facts to know about the wonderful beverage that is coffee.

1. When coffee manufacturers decaffeinate coffee, they then sell the caffeine to soda manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies. These companies use caffeine in their products and need a great resource to get it from; no caffeine is wasted here! 
2. We spend a lot of money on coffee; the average American (who enjoys coffee) spends $1,092 on the stuff per year! That's a lot of coffee. 
3. Have you ever wondered where the name "Starbucks" came from? The founders of the coffee chain named the place after Captain Ahab's first mate. It was actually debated if they should name it after his ship instead, Pequod. 
4. The coffee shops, "Chock full o' Nuts" is named after the founder's nut stores that he switched over to coffee places. So no, there are no nuts in the coffee. 
5. The writer, Honore de Balzac, reportedly consumed up to fifty cups of java a day to keep his writing going. This is all according to legend, who knows if he actually did. That's a heck of a lot of coffee. 
6. For their passage to the 1932 Olympics, the Brazilian olympians piled bags of coffee on the ship and sold it along the way to pay for their way there. In case you didn't know, those Olympics were in Los Angeles. 
7. Did you know British women once wanted to ban coffee? In 1674, British women wanted to ban it because they believed it turned men into useless individuals. So, they wanted the beverage banned for anyone under the age of 60. Crazy, huh?
8. Coffee was actually banned in the city of Mecca back in 1511. Why? It was believed to fuel inappropriate things like radical thinking and "hanging out". 
9. Researchers at Cambridge utilized the first webcam to monitor a coffee pot. Yeah, they wanted to keep an eye on how much coffee was left (and who was taking it) without leaving their desks. 
10. Back in 2008, a Starbucks barista gave her kidney to a customer to save her life. 

Those are some mind-blowing facts, huh? My head is tired from all that knowledge; I think it's time for an organic coffee K-Cup. Maybe something bold, like dark roast coffee. 

8 Reasons You Should Try Organic Coffee

Coffee gives off an exciting and therapeutic aroma and then completes it with a lovely flavor. These things are part of what make coffee just so darn necessary to everyday life, also , it helps wake us up very nicely. Now, imagine having that plus having the knowledge that the K-cup coffee is organic coffee as well. Coffee already gives us numerous health benefits but now imagine that PLUS the organic health benefits.

Why organic?

1. Organic coffee does not have any additives in it. What you get is pure ground coffee beans with nothing else added into it. 
2. It is full of nutrients and vitamins as well. You have even more antioxidant benefits than you get with non-organic. Antioxidants that help fight disease and even aging. 
3. You get caffeine in its greatest and purest way, this makes its energizing effect even better. 
4. It has even greater flavor- both in quality and quantity.
5. The soil that the beans were grown in used organic fertilizer and that helps put the nutrients back into the soil. 
6. Organic fertilizer helps make a healthier, fuller crop that produces a much more quality product. 
7. The soil that the plants grow in is much more resistant to disease and ward off soil erosion. 
8. You help coffee farmers earn a better standard of living. 

So next time you purchase K-Cups, go ahead and buy some organic single cup coffee and see the difference for yourself! If you like traditional coffee, that is still incredibly delicious and has tremendous health benefits.