Lovejoy Coffee Company

I was pretty pumped to discover Lovejoy coffee, especially since Chris delivers to our neighborhood! I emailed him for some recommendations (my husband and I have been struggling to find a coffee that we both enjoy, given our different preferences). He got back to me quickly and I trusted his opinion. He roasted the beans on Monday and delivered them to my doorstep on Tuesday! The prices are great AND best of all, his recommendation was spot on! We will definitely be ordering on a regular basis!

I was a big fan of Peet’s coffee when I lived in the Bay Area, but Peet’s went all corporate, and I was overjoyed to discover — through our local dog park, no less! — the existence of Lovejoy Coffee. Chris is a master roaster who seeks out flavorful, high quality, sustainable beans throughout the coffee-​growing areas of the world. He roasts to your specs — light, medium, dark, or anywhere along the continuum, and –assuming you live within the Golden Triangle of Sellwood-​Westmoreland-​Eastmoreland — will deliver to your doorstep, usually within a day or two of your placing your order. I’ve been a steady client for going on three years, and have never been disappointed. Plus, he and Vicki are among the sweetest people on the planet.

Been lazy and picking up a can of coffee at TJ’s. Then I thought, what? Chris delivers and the coffee is beyond amazing! Thanks Chris; sorry I strayed.

Absolutely divine coffee!!!
We experienced Lovejoy Coffee at the Woodstock farmer’s market where the roaster and owner, Chris (I believe his name is) was sharing free cups — as much as we wanted. Not wanting to abuse his generosity, we partook (is that a word?) of just two small cups of the Ethiopian and the Sumatra. Both were absolutely divine! We hadn’t been drinking coffee for months and chose — because the coffee was so incredible — to buy the Sumatra. It’s strong but layered in flavor. I love that the owner/​roaster was willing to share his small roasted batch with strangers; that’s so Portland! And, I love that he roasts each batch with love — it’s clear. He said that he can roast coffee to the degree that people like it.
And, he delivers it to you!!!
Lovejoy Coffee truly is a love and a joy!

Coffee roasting is fun, frugal, and rewarding. You can pay Starbucks $ 10+ per lb for C-​grade coffee, or you can buy green coffee and roast your own for $ 5 – 8 and have A-​grade coffee. Coffee you will think about all day at work and get excited about around bed time, because you know you’ll get to have more then.
The owner, Chris, is a great guy. A former professional roaster, he has a lot of experience and is currently offering four coffees:
* Guatemalan Huehuetenango — This coffee is incredible. Smooth but assertive, complex, and captivating. I have a bias towards Guatemalans, and coffees like this are the reason.
* Sumatra Mandheling DP Harimau Tiger — This is a very pleasurable, but delicate coffee. Watch your cream/​sugar or you might lose it. Let it also be known that Sumatras are harder to roast. They have a spotty appearance while roasting, it’s harder to judge the stage of roast by color.
* Ethiopian Harrar — It tastes like fuckin’ BLUEBERRIES! I was skeptical when he gave me the sample and told me that, but it’s really true. It’s a tad pricier than the other coffees, but completely worth it. I wish I had bought some actual quantity of it; I’ll be going back to pick up 5 lbs of it.
* Panama Hortigal — This was the only one I didn’t like. This coffee has an aggressive taste of wood bark. It yields a bit as the coffee cools and shows some vanilla, but there’s still a lot of wood. My roommate likes it though, so maybe you will too. Call me juvenile, but I like a sweeter-​toned, more easygoing coffee.

This is DIY coffee. Chris at Lovejoy Coffee takes you into his studio and shows you how you can easily and simply buy green coffee beans and roast it yourself with a popcorn popper. I, myself, was a skeptic, until I saw it happen right before mine very eyes! We roasted Harrar (Ethiopian) and Guatemalan.
No burn, roasted evenly through the whole bean. The only «mess» came from chaff being roasted and blown off the bean, but a quick swipe with a vacuum or dust brush and that «mess» was solved. He’ll show you how to rapidly cool the beans with your vacuum, too.
Very simple, quick, and the best part, CHEAP!!! You can buy 1 lb. of quality green coffee for $ 6/​$ 7 (depending on the bean), and roast it yourself and you have the same thing that the coffee houses and roasting companies are charging $ 12-​$ 15/​lb for! And best of all, you roast it only when you need it, thus ensuring that every sip of coffee you have in the mornings is FRESH!
And Chris knows his coffee, too. He was a professional roaster for a while before coming to PDX. Now h’es trying to help other folks by showing them how to DIY. He’ll give you a demonstration and show you how to do it (and what he roasts in the demonstration he’ll give to you as a sample).
Even if you don’t want to DIY coffee roasting, it’s a lot of fun just to go there and watch him do it. I went from skeptic, to convert. I bought a lb. from Chris and now I’m looking for a popcorn popper… (they sell new at WalMart for $ 21.95)