Product and Pricing Update

We have some great new products. Some are on the site now, others will be posted shortly.

Highlands Traditional Blend - This is one of Highlands 5 blends, and the only one we did not buy from the start of our distributorship. Highlands has 4 espressos and 5 ground coffees, and we thought that was too may options to spring on people in a new product line. However, when we sampled the Traditional Blend recently at our open houses, everybody was very enthusiastic, so we have just gotten in a new shipment that includes the Traditional Blend. This is a Robusta-based blend that is roasted in the style of small cafés and roasters as you might find in the countryside in Vietnam, a product tradition extending back almost 100 years. Very nice!

G7 Passiona Instant - Yes, it's true, Trung Nguyen has finally created a sugarfree and lower caffeine instant coffee with the same fabulous taste as traditional G7. They envisioned this coffee as the perfect "alternative" coffee with a health-promoting twist. The ingredients are famous G7-dry-process naturally low caffeine coffee, non-dairy creamer (vegetarian), "dietary sugar" (sugar alcohol, most likely Erythritol or Xylitol - we are waiting for the exact translation), and a small percentage of artichoke and chrysanthemum, included for their mild health benefits and relaxing properties. Why drink this coffee? The taste is simply amazing. Dark and deep, yet substantially guilt-free (if sugar or caffeine makes you feel at all guilty!), it's a fabulous taste experience you can get from just an instant packet that you can take anywhere and enjoy with just hot water and a cup. We will be including a free sachet in our G7 sampler pack, but really, spring for the cost of buying a box if you have any interest at all in this type of product. You will NOT be disappointed. And if you ARE trying to cut your caffeine or sugar, so much the better.

G7 newest shipment - we are buying G7 "domestically" from our agent in Vietnam because we can place smaller orders more frequently, and get some variations of the product that we can't get through the export channel. One example is the new 24-sachet bag of G7 3-in-1. The bag is the favorite package among our customers, for reasons we don't quite understand... probably a slight preference for sachets over café sticks, and the flexibility of the packet for carrying in purses or storing at work. But in 2008 Trung Nguyen dropped the 24 sachets to 22 sachets in the bag. Now, we are able to get the original 24 sachets again on the domestic market. People who love the bag will rejoice! Watch for the return of the 24-sachet bag.

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Prices! Everybody expects coffee prices to skyrocket. We heard reports of local diners here paying 50% increases for their coffee service. Well, they should be buying from us, or other contract grower representatives, because this is case when contract growing can actually save the consumer money. We buy 90% from companies using contract growing agreements with their producers, and we never use middlemen or commodity brokers, so in fact, the recent increases in coffee prices have not affected us. Our producers pay their growers the price they ask for, and the coffee is not placed on the open commodities market, so it is not subject to speculation due to shortages in countries that are not relevant.

We do not expect increases in our ground coffees for several months. We have had to pay increases in whole bean Trung Nguyen coffees because we buy those on the domestic market, and transportation (yes, the price of oil) has caused a 15% increase. Also, the devaluation of the dollar versus the dong has caused another 12% increase. So, you will see whole bean prices going up, but less than what is being experienced on the average international level.

Note that many branded retailers will simply buy lesser grades of coffee and pass them off as their usual blends, which results in poorer taste and quality. This is the standard response to sudden spikes. We do not do this. Because we do not buy coffees traded on the commodities markets, we are fairly immune from speculators and artificial pricing hikes. So, aside from an increase in whole bean due to transportation cost increases and the dollar situation, we will be holding the line for the immediate future.

Try a new Gourmet Instant Coffee!

We are always looking for new products in the Instant Coffee class. Instant coffee in Asia is nothing like what we grew up with here in the States (move over, freeze-dried Sanka!). It is actually possible to create a gourmet instant coffee that is not brewed and dried and doesn't get bitter and flat-tasting.

G7 was the brand created by Trung Nguyen years ago, using a totally dry roasting process similar to the way Macha Tea is made. The green, unroasted coffee beans are powdered and roasted in the same operation, meaning the coffee does not go through the depleting process of brewing before being made into powder.

The process is now being imitated by makers like Starbucks in products like Via, but of course, they are charging 6 times or more what the original costs. Many people feel that G7 is still the landmark and best gourmet instant coffee in the world.

However, some people do prefer the taste of 100% Arabica in their instant. G7 is primarily Vietnamese gourmet Robusta, which for decades has been considered to be the best base for instant. Arabica tends to get tangy and bitter when you try to convert it into instant. However, new dry processing methods have greatly improved results with Arabica coffee.

Q Cafe is a brand produced by one of the largest coffee companies in Vietnam, Nhan Minh. We enjoy dealing with the people at this company, they are super. Q Cafe is a second-generation gourmet instant that really has nailed the process of eliminating the bitters in Arabica instant.

It's very hard to describe the differences between G7 and Q Cafe or any gourmet instant in words. You really have to just taste it. To make that possible we have purchased a starter quantity of Q Cafe 3-in-1 (coffee, sugar, non-dairy creamer), brought in by air cargo, for our customers to try. It's available in small trial packets of 4 sachets of 20 grams each for just $1 . Each sachet makes one 7-ounce cup of coffee just by adding hot water.

There are two blends. "Good Morning" is milder, sweeter and creamier. "Strong Taste" is bolder.

Try some today!

Coffee prices going up?

Most of us who follow such things know that coffee futures have hit record highs and that price increases are expected across the board. Starbucks and other coffee service companies have raised their prices substantially.

We have seen the costs go up steadily over the last year also but we have managed to talk our suppliers into not hitting us with any significant increases yet. It's likely that we can continue the current pricing for several months. Beyond that, we can't say.

We have had to inch up a few prices on single bags/boxes of coffee, such as the Gourmet Blend. But these tend to be coffees that we have artificially maintained a low price on for some time. We try to keep the Gourmet Blend as reasonable as possible because so many coffee shops and homes drink this coffee exclusively. It is the lowest margin coffee for us, though.

In most cases if we raise the price a little on a single bag or box, we also create a 3-pack or 4-pack in which the price per bag has actually gone down. This allows people who have a favorite coffee to buy a little more at a time and get an "efficiency" price benefit. When we pack and ship multiples, it's cheaper for us and we can improve the price for you.

We are going to be watching things carefully over the next few months and there are not going to be any substantial price increases.

We love the Regional Rate boxes!

There is also a wonderful development on the shipping front. The Post Office has created new Regional Flat Rate Boxes. As a result we have been able to lower shipping prices to more than 30 states by an average of 12%. So in fact, an average purchase on our website costs less today than a year ago. We take pricing seriously during this recession and we want you to know that we are always looking for ways to reduce our costs and keep your prices as low as possible. Enjoy!

Holiday Season

We have been working to come up with some incredible Black Friday specials. If you want to see our best deals, be sure to be on our email newsletter, which mails only once a month. We respect your email and never share the info with anybody else, nor do we mail you more than once a month, with our special savings that are not viewable by the general public.

Just a preview:

We are launching the Kopi Luwak Stocking Stuffer, a 2-ounce package of Bantai Civet Coffee in an organza bag package that is great as an economical way to send somebody a few servings of the world's best and rarest coffee.

We have sourced some mini-milks, the La Lecherita sweetened condensed milk in the 3.5 ounce can, making it possible to bring back a perennial favorite gift: The Vietnamese Coffee Mini-Kit!

We just got in the new harvest shipment of Philippine Liberica. This was a good season and this endangered coffee is in good supply. We will be running some nice specials on Liberica shortly.

We have been testing an heirloom coffee from Costa Rica. It's a little outside the usual for us, since it is not a Southeast Asian coffee, but it has an impressive history and meticulous cultivation, plus the owner/grower/producer of this small farm uses his business to provide charitable funds for a number of causes. One item we snapped up: Chocolate-covered coffee beans! We couldn't resist these beans, made from peaberry Arabica Catuai instead of the usual espresso. We expect these in around Thanksgiving.

We are also initiating a "Stocking Stuffer" page. Yes, it's politically incorrect, so just call this the "cute products page". We will have a number of items selected for unique and fun appeal and all priced at or under $3.00 (except for Bantai Civet Coffee!).

It's the season for silly bar drinks

I love summer. It's a time of magic and solace, celebration and nature, and a time to be laid back simply because we need the break and this is the time to do it. It was the time to hide away under the trees somewhere and read a really good book that took you to India or Africa on an adventure.

For me, as a child , it was a time to get on my bike and explore places that couldn't be reached any other way. I wound up in more obscure paths in the woods, parks I never knew existed, cliff walks by the sea, and I think I even managed to find my way to another planet or two and back. In summer, with that balmy breeze blowing even at nightfall, anything was possible.

I have invented a drink for those special moments. Mix it up in secret and find a place where nobody can find you and let the summer breezes blow by while you brood and sip on the Heart of Darkness. "The horror, the horror!" You might want to mix up enough for two or three of them and hide a little longer. It's a black martini, of course...

Heart of Darkness

Ingredients:

• 1.5 oz RTD Black
• 3/4 oz Jose Cuervo Black Tequila
• 1 oz Vodka
• Dash of Cherry Brandy
• Maraschino Cherry

Equipment: Shaker and ice

Directions:

Use 1 cup ice to chill the mixture quickly (coffee should
be cold to start). Add ingredients, shake furiously and pour
through strainer. Pour into chilled glass. Add Maraschino
cherry (the heart). Optional: Garnish with orange slice.

Ready To Drink Vietnamese Coffee

When we first were told that this product was in development our response was, loosely summarized, "that's not going to work." Highlands told us that their goal was to actually brew Vietnamese-style coffee into cans and somehow approximate the process of brewing through the small Phin filter like a traditional sit-down Vietnamese Coffee in a coffee café.

They had spoken with a lot of experts who no doubt told them that it couldn't be done and they would be better off doing what the other coffee companies had done, buy a commercial coffee extract and some commercial creamer and sugar and mix it into a bottle like a Yahoo milk drink. But they persisted with their goal of capturing fresh-brewed coffee in a can, in high production volume. The end result was worth two years of R&D. It led to the almost universally liked RTD (Ready To Drink) Highlands Vietnamese Coffee which is now, since its intro in December 2009, been snapped up in 21 countries as a "blockbuster product" (to quote the Australian RTD distributor who also distributes Red Bull).

Why is the RTD Vietnamese Iced Coffee such a likable product? Several reasons.

Taste. It's just not like any other coffee drink you have ever tasted. It's better and fresher by far.

Convenience. How could anything be more convenient than popping the top of a can for a fresh glass of iced coffee?

Portability. Unlike most coffee sources, RTD cans go almost anywhere. And even though they are "Iced Coffee", they can be enjoyed at any temperature. They require no other equipment to brew, mix or enjoy.

Versatility. We didn't appreciate this until we finally had the full shipment (didn't want to waste our precious advance samples on tests), but the RTD cans are not only a perfectly balanced coffee drink as they are, but they are a perfect base for smoothies, shakes, bar drinks and many things we probably haven't even tried yet.

We expected the RTD Iced Coffee to be a product we would sell to the commercial and wholesale market, but consumer reaction was so strong we put it on the web as a retail product and the response has been overwhelming. Then we thought people would buy single cans, but the first question always is, "How much is a case?". So we created a case price (24 cans) and a reduced shipping price compared to the singles.

We could go on and on about the RTD coffee, but after all, it would just be us enthusing about a product we tried ourselves. That never does much for anybody over the web. So first we made free samples available to the emailing list (preferred and repeat customers) and now we will offer it as one of our free samples to new customers, as soon as we can get the item programmed into the website.

We worked hard to obtain an exclusive distribution of this great new product in the USA. Give it a try and tell us what you think.

Here is a bar drink recipe from the new drink selection we have been working feverishly to perfect for that segment of the market (creating and sampling bar drinks is a rough job, but somebody has to do it! Volunteers are welcome, give us a call!) We intend to have a full recipe gallery for the RTD coffee as soon as we can manage it - bar drinks, non-alcoholic drinks, cooking recipes and more. Send us your own recipe, and if we use it we will pay you $50 and give you a gift certificate you can use on the website.

HappyMouth

This drink needs a better, sexier name, but was given this moniker because drinking it gives you a serious case of HappyMouth and a smile that survives the worst afternoon or evening (even Mondays).

Ingredients: Highlands Iced Coffee, Bailey’s Irish Cream, Creme de Cacao, Kahlua Mocha
4 oz Highlands Black
1 oz Bailey’s Irish Creme
3/4 oz Creme de Cacao
1/2 oz Kahlua Mocha
(shake through ice and pour)

The secret to a good drink recipe is finding that perfect balance that allows the flavors to all be perceived without anything being overwhelming. This drink has the kind of magic that leaves you wondering what the dominant flavors are, but not really caring because the balance is so pleasing to the nose and palate.

If you don't have the ingredients above and don't want to rush out to the liquor store, and you have some Kahlua (coffee brandy) and Vodka (optional), try a Sombrero using a little Vodka and Kahlua with your RTD Coffee (Milk) over ice... 4 ounces Highlands RTD Milk, 2 ounces Kahlua, 1/2 ounce Vodka over ice. It's not the classic recipe of a "Kahlua & Cream", but its a lighter and more refreshing drink for upcoming summer weather.

For a non-alcoholic smoothie/shake, use the RTD Coffee (Milk version) as the base for your next protein shake. We suspect it also a good base for righteous coffee ice cream, but we haven't gotten there yet.

Enjoy!

Battle of the instant(s)

A few years ago, Starbucks attempted to displace a number of indigenous coffee shops and brands in Vietnam and other regions of Southeast Asia. Due to a number of economic and societal factors, they were mostly unsuccessful. Not to be outdone, they decided to copy the success of the indigenous coffee companies and try to beat them at their own game. One result: Starbucks Via, the new instant that "tastes just like our brewed coffee". As to whether that is a good or bad thing, we will leave it up to Starbucks fans.

We purchased some Via to see what it was all about... reviews are really not enlightening because people don't usually understand the process technology or have much frame of reference for instant coffees.

Basically, the process uses roasted beans, and they simply powder them to make them soluble. That is why they really can claim that the instant tastes like their brewed coffee, to some extent, it's pretty much the same beans, just powdered.

They have an Italian Roast, which is totally mislabeled. It claims to be "Extra Bold" but it's actually much milder than the Columbian, which claims to be "Medium". In short, the Italian Roast is quite good, to my tastes, but the Columbian had all the worst that Starbucks has to offer -- it tasted like charcoal, and even a few sips produced indigestion in our tasters, due to the acids and indigestible burnt elements. They need to go back to the drawing board on the Columbian, at least, in the samples we tried. Who knows if the formula changes from batch to batch (another Starbucks specialty!)

Why is G7 Instant different from Via? It uses a proprietary technology to create powder from green coffee beans, roasting them in the process. When you capture the powder at the same point as roasting, apparently you eliminate loss of flavor and aroma and create an instant free of the typical bitterness and acidity of instants made from brewed coffee, as most are.

In our taste tests here at open coffee hours, people preferred the G7 to Via by a sizable margin. Many found the Italian Roast Via to be a good cup, but found it weak or too light a roast for their tastes.

Considering that the cost of a serving of G7 Black is about 1/6th that of Via, well.... what can we say. Pick your best value.

We also have brought out a new entré in the 3-in-1 genre, a brand called MaqRoma. We did this because we have learned through all our testing that some people really do have a palate taste preference for Arabica freeze-dried, as long as it is not bitter. There is a "tang" to it that is not in the G7, which could be better described as rich and mellow.

The MaqRoma is a very high quality coffee mix produced by Reviva, one of Southeast Asia's leading manufacturers of coffee for dispensing machines. In these countries, dispensers deliver truly gourmet quality. Some of the machines actually grind and brew a cup of coffee from whole beans while you wait! And the instant machines do not get a following unless people really like the cup they get. MaqRoma has been very successful, so we tested it here and liked it, and now offer it as the best Arabica freeze-dried instant we can find (out of over 40 brands).

Here's a fun thing to do: Mix a packet of G7 with a packet of MaqRoma and get a Robusta/Arabica mug-size brew that has the best of both worlds. Many people in our testing declared this truly the best instant cup of all.

Watch for a whole plethora of new instant coffees as the world discovers the potential of truly gourmet instant coffee!