Meet the
Village Blend Staff
§
Scroll all the way down to meet
my newest addition:
"Joy Allegro"
§
Meet Clare Cosi...
Name: Clare Cosi
Job: Village Blend Manager & Head Barista
Internet handle: "Barista Babe"
Gender: Female
Age: 39
Residence: Greenwich Village, New York
Originally from: Western Pennsylvania
About Me: When I’m not making espresssos or supervising our barista staff, I’m creating and roasting new blends from the beans brought in by our coffee buyer. I’m divorced with one grown daughter (Joy), who is now in culinary school. Oh, and that coffee buyer I mentioned? He also happens to be Matteo Allegro, my ex-husband. So far, Matt and I are working together without too much drama, but all the issues that originally broke us up do occasionally rear their ugly, hydra-like heads. And then there’s my little habit of getting mixed up in murder. Don’t ask. It would take too long to explain, and Matt thinks I’m just seeking the thrills I missed while he was off cliff-diving in Hawaii, and I was home alone, raising our daughter. Anyway, bottom line: love me, love the bean. Decaf drinkers, move along. These aren't the droids you're looking for. Mm'kay?
What My Avatar Says About Me: Coffee is love. There's not much a good cuppa Joe can't make a little bit better.
Meet Matt Allegro...
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Name: Matteo “Matt” Allegro
Job: Village Blend Coffee Buyer, International Coffee Broker
Internet handle: "Coffee Hunter"
Gender: Male
Age: 42
Residence: Changes weekly
Originally from: Greenwich Village, NYC
About me: Okay, I admit it. I’m an adventure junkie. When I was younger, my addictive personality was channeled into extreme sports. Now I travel the world in search of the best beans on the planet. There’s nowhere I won’t go--from the Costa Rican mountains to the Brazilian rainforests; from the islands of Indonesia to the muddy tracks of Uganda’s Mount Elgon (used by the Bagisu tribesman who’ve become experts at coffee farming). I’ve seen it and done it all; and although my ex-wife Clare believes I’ve also “done” every woman in every country I’ve visited, my extra-curricular activities have been nowhere near that egregious. Actually, despite my straying during our ten year marriage, she and I have managed to remain on pretty good terms. My elderly mother owns the Village Blend Coffeehouse, but she’s turned its operation over to me and Clare. I think we still make a good team, even if it’s no longer as man and wife. Bottom line: I’ve always been a thrill seeker, but at this age, I’m beginning to consider limiting my extreme sports to the bedroom.
What my Avatar says about me: Happiness is...trekking the globe, hunting for the world’s choicest cherries (coffee cherries, I mean).
Meet Madame...
Name: Madame Dreyfus Allegro Dubois
Job: Village Blend Owner
Internet handle: "Coffee Queen"
Gender: Female
Age: 79 (and counting)
Residence: Greenwich Village, New York
Originally from: Paris, France
About Me: Hello! My granddaughter, Joy, claims this virtual world is the way of the future, so she's typing this up for me. Well, what can I tell you about myself? I've been through so much in this long life. I was born in Paris, and came to New York during World War II. At eighteen, I met my first husband, Antonio Allegro, and fell madly in love. He was so virile, so handsome, so passionate; and after he inherited the Village Blend from his father, he and I ran it together for years. We also traveled the world and had wonderful adventures!
From a very young age, our son Matt was steeped in coffee; and after Antonio passed, Matt took over purchasing coffee for the Blend and began brokering coffee for international clients. The Village Blend has always been a family business—and I'm determined to keep it that way. That's why it broke my heart when Matt and his adorable wife, Clare, divorced.
Clare is the best barista I've ever met, and I've always considered her the daughter I never had—the divorce didn't change that. (What's a silly piece of legal paper against a lifetime of caring?) That's why I was thrilled when she finally agreed to come back to my Blend and run it for me. It will be half hers one day, too. My will makes it official. And now I know that when I die, my beloved Blend will be in the very best hands.
As for me, I've got a lot of life yet to live, and I'm always up for adventure—just ask Clare! New York is quite a bubbling cauldron. Passions run high in my city and every so often, it seems my former daughter-in-law finds herself embroiled in the most interesting cases of murder. That's when I offer my services. While I may no longer be a spring guinea hen, I'm nobody's fool. And Clares knows better than to turn down the wisdom of a woman who's been around more than a few blocks!
What My Avatar Says About Me: Welcome to my coffeehouse! It is my hope you'll think of it as a second living room—where (of course) freshly roasted coffee is always brewing!
Meet Joy Allegro...
Name: Joy Allegro
Job: Culinary Student (and part-time barista)
Internet handle: "One Hot Cookie!"
Gender: Female
Age: 19
Residence: Greenwich Village, New York
Raised in: (mostly) suburbs of New Jersey
About Me: I'm currently studying to become a professional chef. My goal (eventually) is to have my own restaurant, but until then I'm totally determined to apprentice under a top chef. I love cooking food, hanging with my friends, and my family. My grandmother is the coolest, and even though my parents are divorced, they're working pretty well together. Mom and Dad have been big boosters for me, and I seriously appreciate that--even though Mom's way too snoopy. I don't mean she asks too many questions. I'm talking Def Con 4 Snoop Level here. It's a real pain. A girl needs her privacy, you know? So, okay, I have this thing for older men that freaks Mom out a little. But I can’t help it if guys keep hitting on me. And the drug thing was no biggee. My partying is totally under control--the coke was just recreational! Anyway, I'm really a nice girl who works hard and is totally mature enough to run her own life. Totally.
What My Avatar Says About Me: Cooking Like Crazy rules! And so does The Frying Pan, which seriously beats falling into the fire!
Come back again
to meet more staff members...
VB's most loyal customer: Detective Mike Quinn
Village Blend Barista: Esther Best
Village Blend Barista: Tucker Burton
Village Blend Barista: Gardner Evans
Village Blend Barista: Dante Silva
NEW READING
GUIDE FOR
Coffeehouse #5
NOW POSTED!!!
Coffeehouse Mystery Reading Guides
Download for free!
» Books 1 & 2, click here (pdf)
» Books 3 & 4, click here (pdf)
» NEW!! Book 5, click here (pdf)
» Books 6 & 7 coming Aug.
To get free Adobe (pdf) reader software, click here
ANNOUNCING
Cleo's Next Book:
NOVEMBER '09
HOLIDAY
GRIND
To pre-order this very special holiday entry in Cleo's mystery series, click on the link below:
Holiday Grind
(A Coffeehouse Mystery)
*
For a book description, click here or on the coffee cup in the left column labeled About the Coffeehouse Mystery Books...
Java Master Gives
Tips on Making
the Perfect Cup
Italian-born Gennaro Pelliccia is responsible for the taste of the 108 million cups of Costa coffee sold in Britain each year. His policy with Lloyd's of London insures his tongue for 10million pounds! Mr. P has some great tips on making the perfect cuppa bean juice:
Click here to read more...
CLEO WILL
ANNOUNCE HER
JULY
COFFEE PICK
RIGHT HERE ON
FRIDAY
JULY 3rd
You can see Cleo's past COFFEE PICKS by scrolling all the way down this column...
Cleo's
MAY -JUNE
COFFEE PICK IS
Bishops
Blend
Buy a bag.
Change a life.
To learn more about this delicious coffee:
SCROLL DOWN
to Cleo's post
in center column
< < < <
or click here!
FREE
EXCERPT!
for Cleo Coyle's
2nd series...
Haunted Bookshop
Mysteries
THE GHOST
AND THE
HAUNTED
MANSION
* National Mystery
Bestseller!
Independent Mystery
Booksellers Association
* A Fresh Fiction
Fresh Pick!
"The plot is marvelous,
the writing is top-notch..."
-Cozy Library
Click here to read
reviews of every
book in the
Haunted Bookshop
series @
CozyLibrary.com
Click here to get
Cleo's Free Excerpt
(PDF format)
Click here
to buy
the book!
*
MIKE'S BEAT
CRIME FILE
» NYPD: Official Website for New York's Finest
BONUS RECIPE
from
Coffeehouse Mystery:
THROUGH THE GRINDER
Did you know COFFEE can help you grill or broil a great steak, even with an inexpensive
cut of meat?...
Click here to get my
recipe for
Coffee-Marinated Steak
(recipe in pdf format)
Want to Grow
Your Own
Coffee Plant?
Thanks to CM reader Linda for posting info about where to buy coffee plants and seeds. Click here to go to the coffee seed catalog page and scroll down. Look for the "coffea" plants listed in ITALIC alphabetically.
Coffea arabica $3.84 -12 seeds
Coffea catura $3.29 -12 seeds
Coffea kona $3.95 -12 seeds
Linda also says: "Gurney's Plant and Seed catalog has small coffee plants for $8.95 each. Click here and look for item # 11295 for coffee plants."
WAKE UP AND SMELL...
THE CANVAS!
"I started painting with coffee because I wanted a cheaper medium that was accessible to me," says Filipino artist Sunshine Plata. A tube of oil paint costs at least 500 pesos ($11), while a jar of instant coffee is only around 150 pesos ($3). Click here to read more about Sunshine and her coffee art.
FREE
EXCERPT!
Cleo introduces
this EXCLUSIVE
EXCERPT from
her latest
Coffeehouse Mystery
Espresso
Shot
to read or print in PDF format
**STARRED REVIEW**
Library Journal!
National Mystery Bestseller
(Barnes & Noble + Borders)
*
Click below
to order
Espresso Shot
(Coffeehouse
Mystery 7)
COFFEE AND BABY FORMULA?!
I laughed out loud at this blog from Sarah Bates of Zanesville, Ohio. Click here to read how a baby changed everything for this coffee connoisseur.
—Cleo
Caffeine
Myths
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A recent story by the amazing Jane Brody in The New York Times examines coffee and health, click here to read more. (I learned a lot about the myths of caffeine!)
Click here to read about a Harvard study that shows coffee's link to preventing heart disease.
Click here to read how a cup of coffee a day may offset Alzheimer's disease.
Book Lovers
Find Love!
My publisher (Penguin USA) is launching a dating website for readers. Learn more from theBookseller.com by clicking here.
Coffee Peeps
& Peter Pans
(Real Matteo Allegros?)
Shout-out to New York's Hampton Coffee Company!
Remember Murder Most Frothy? My 4th Coffeehouse Mystery gave Clare Cosi a summer job as a "coffee steward" at a posh new eatery in the Hamptons, the fabled seaside escape for New York's rich and famous. Well, click here to visit some real coffee peeps who work hard to give the Hamptons folks a great cuppa joe.
Click here to read about:
"Overstaying the Hamptons Party!"
A fascinating news story about "house shares" in the Hamptons and men who try to keep the postcollege "boys of summer" party going decades after their undergrad days. Shades of my character Matteo Allegro? You tell me!
In Memoriam
Sheena
2.21.2009
SAVE MOON
DOGGIE COFFEE!
CM reader Laundrygoddess tells me she loves the Moon Doggie Coffee cafe in Northern New Jersey and it's in trouble!
The folks at Moon Doggie micro-roast their own coffees (just like Clare Cosi) AND they rescue basset hounds, too. How cool is that? Let's keep them in business!
Click here or on the photo above to visit Moon Doggie Coffee's online shop. They have a great list of coffees, including DECAF coffees and flavored varieties. If you're in NJ, stop by their shop and say hi to Nicole, their barista manager. Shop's locatiion: 108 W. Pleasant Ave. Maywood, NJ
Woof! —Cleo Coyle
BONUS RECIPES
FROM
Coffeehouse Mystery:
FRENCH PRESSED
EASY TARTE TATIN
(Upside-Down
Caramel-Apple Tart)
+
CREME CHANTILLY
(Fresh Whipped Cream)
+
PATE SUCREE
(Sweet Pastry Dough-
Can be used for any dessert tart crust)
To download all 3 of Cleo Coyle's FREE recipes
in PDF format, CLICK HERE.
Nuke Therapy
Feeling disgusted with increased pink slips while failed CEOs get golden parachutes? Well, click here and you'll feel MUCH better! The site is the brain child of a tres clever industrial designer who himself lives in the Hamptons, Miles Jaffe, author of The Hamptons Dictionary, a hilarious handbook of class warfare: click here
THANKS, MARY T.!
Thanks to Coffeehouse Mystery reader Mary T. of Appleton, Wisconsin for the little missive below...
Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony!
Yes, like the Japanese with their tea traditions, the Ethiopians have a very special way of enjoying coffee. Click here to learn more!
COFFEE COMPOST!
Did you know that old coffee grounds = good compost for your garden? Click here to read more. (Who knew coffee repelled slugs? Now there's a hilarious metaphor for a CM book.)
Coffee Health News!
Coffee May Help Prevent Ovarian Cancer
A Harvard study found women who drank 3 or more cups of coffee or tea a day were 25% less likely to develop Ovarian Cancer than those who drank none. Click here to read more.
Coffee May Boost Memory
in Older Women
USA Today reports...
Women older than 65 who drank more than three cups of coffee a day — or the caffeine equivalent in tea — showed better memory retention than men, a French researcher reports. Click here to read the short USA Today report. Or click here to read a longer Scientific American article.
GOOD NEWS FOR FAIR TRADE!
Fair Trade Coffee prices went up in June 2008, which means coffee farmers will be getting more money for their Arabica beans. Because so many coffee farms are located in the poorest corners of the world, this is great news.
What is Fair Trade coffee?
Click here to learn more.
(For new Fair Trade pricing Click here.)
Coffee is Culinary!
Click here to read about a master chef Marcus Samuelsson's work with a master coffee blender to pair coffee with food. Coffee as a culinary experience: Clare would approve!
Coffee Recipes!
Acclaimed chef Marcus Sameulsson created a yummy Chocolate Cinnamon Bread recipe for Starbucks. If you'd like the recipe, click here!
MORE RECIPES...
The National Coffee Association has some great coffee recipes. Click here to get them.
For even more coffee recipes, click here
DOOR COUNTY COFFEE...
And for coffee recipes from DOOR COUNTY COFFEE, a family-run coffeehouse in Wisconsin, click here.
A shout-out of thanks to Mary T., a Coffeehouse Mystery fan, for mentioning her fave coffeehouse on my Coffee Talk Message Board (the green chalkboard at the top of this column).
STRANGER THAN FICTION
"Maid Cafes" of Japan
Click here to read about cafes where women dress as maids and their"geek" clientele are fighting crime by packing weapons...
Japan's Romance with Kona Coffee
Click here to read about the growing interest of Kona Coffee-drinking in Japan.
Coffee Lover Invents
"The Barista Game"
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Did you know there's a new board game in which you win by making the perfect cup of coffee? Click here to read about the game designer who invented it.
BIG COFFEE NEWS!
Ethiopia announces commercial culitvation of low-caffeine coffee plants! Ric Gostwick's "dream" coffee from Decaffeinated Corpse is no longer fiction! To read about this amazing breakthrough, Click here
#1 Bestselling Paperback
When the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association published its list of top selling mystery novels for July 2007, Decaffeinated Corpse made the #1 spot on the paperback list. Thank you, Coffeehouse Mystery readers. You helped to make Decaffeinated Corpse a national bestseller.
AND NOW
FOR SOME
OF CLEO'S
PAST
COFFEE PICKS...
---------------------------
SEPTEMBER '07
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
MAGNOLIA GRILL BLEND
With the tip of a chef's hat to the married couple who run Magnolia Grill, Cleo's coffee pick for SEPTEMBER 2007 was Magnolia Grill Blend sold by Counter Culture Coffee roasters. To read more about this coffee or purchase it for yourself, CLICK HERE.
OCTOBER '07
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
GOMBE RESERVE
Cleo's pick for OCTOBER 2007 was Gombe Reserve sold by Green Mountain Coffee Co. and endorsed by Dr. Jane Goodall. To read more about this coffee or purchase it for youself, CLICK HERE.
NOVEMBER '07
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
MAJOR DICKASON'S BLEND
In tribute to the late, great Alfred Peet, Cleo's pick for NOVEMBER 2007 was Major Dickason's Blend sold by Peet's Coffee and Tea. To read more about this coffee or purchase it for yourself, CLICK HERE.
DECEMBER '07
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
100% KONA PEABERRY
Behold the Kona
happy dance!
For DECEMBER 2007 Cleo's pick was 100% Kona Peaberry sold by Bad Ass Coffee Company of Hawaii. To read more about this coffee or purchase it for yourself, CLICK HERE.
JANUARY '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
"YIRG" - ETHIOPIAN YIRGACHEFFE
Cleo's pick for JANUARY 08 was Ethiopian Yirgacheffe sold by Counter Culture Coffee Company. This coffee was also featured in Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse Mystery: FRENCH PRESSED. To read more about this coffee or purchase it for yourself, CLICK HERE.
FEBRUARY '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
RWANDAN VILLAGE BLEND
Cleo's FEBRUARY '08 pick was Rwandan Village Blend sold by Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee Co. To purchase this excellent coffee for yourself, CLICK HERE. To read Cleo's archived article on this coffee, CLICK HERE.
MARCH '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
KENYA
Cleo's MARCH '08 pick was Kenya, sold by Counter Culture Coffee, Co. and Peet's Coffee. This coffee was also featured in Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse Mystery: FRENCH PRESSED. To read more about this coffee or purchase it for yourself, CLICK HERE.
APRIL '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
PURPLE PRINCESS
Cleo's April '08 pick was the amazing "Finca El Puente" from a coffee in Honduras nicknamed "Purple Princess" by the coffee director of Counter Culture Coffee of Durham, NC. This coffee was also featured in Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse Mystery: FRENCH PRESSED. To read more about this coffee or purchase it for yourself, CLICK HERE.
MAY - JUNE '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Cleo's June '08 pick was the "Jamaica Blue Mountain" of the South Pacific. An award-winning coffee grown on the exotic island of Papua New Guinea (north of Australia). To read more about this coffee or purchase it for yourself, CLICK HERE.
JULY - AUGUST '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
SOLAR ROAST COFFEE
Cleo's July - August '08 pick was Solar Roast Coffee of Pueblo, Colorado, the only company in the world that roasts its coffee using solar energy! Meet Dave and Mike, the two brothers who invented this one-of-a-kind solar roaster, and learn how you can purchase their delicious coffees for yourself by CLICKING HERE and reading Cleo's archived article.
SEPT. - OCTOBER '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick:
JOE'S VIENNA ROAST
from the NYC coffeehouse:
Joe, The Art of Coffee
The September-October '08 pick was Joe's Vienna Roast, sold by Joe, The Art of Coffee café in Greenwich Village, New York, recently named one of the best coffee bars in the country by Food and Wine magazine (and one of Cleo Coyle's inspirations for her fictional Village Blend!). CLICK HERE to visit Joe's online store and order the Vienna Roast for yourself. (Check the center of the Home Page for Cleo's posted article about this delightful coffee and the amazing cafe where it's sold.)
NOV. - DECEMBER '08
Cleo's Coffee Pick
BOUCHON BLEND
This smooth, delicious coffee is the House Blend served at Bouchon Bakeries, which are owned and run by award-winning chef Thomas Keller. This coffee was featured in Cleo Coyle's 7th Coffeehouse Mystery: ESPRESSO SHOT. It is blended and roasted by Equator Estate Coffee and Teas, a women-owned company based in northern California. Click here to learn more about the coffee or order it for yourself.
JANUARY 2009
Cleo's Coffee Pick
NOT KOPI LUWAK!
One of the rarest coffees on the planet, Kopi Luwak is also one of the most expensive. Kopi Luwak was also a featured coffee in Cleo's 7th and most recently released Coffeehouse Mystery: ESPRESSO SHOT. To read Cleo's brief archived article on Kopi Luwak and learn how it got its hilarious nickname: "cat poop coffee," click here.
SPRING 2009
Cleo's Coffee Pick
ROOSTER BROTHER's
LA MINITA ESTATE
(Costa Rica)
This outstanding single-origin bean is treated with love by the coffee team at Rooster Brother, a store for cooks housed in a historic Victorian building in Ellsworth, Maine. Master Roaster Gene (pictured) does a masterful job of bringing out the very best in this smooth, bright, delightful coffee with the kind of hints of citrus and berry usually found in high-quality African beans. Click here to visit George and Pamela Elias's Rooster Brother store online and order some of this superb coffee for yourself! (Thanks to Coffeehouse Mystery reader Bud Knickbocker of Bangor, Maine, for suggesting it!)
MAY - JUNE '09
Cleo's Coffee Pick
BISHOPS BLEND
Creating blends is a culinary art, and I'm happy to report that the roasters for Bishops Blend have done a masterful job at creating theirs. The beans are roasted medium dark and the package came to me (via UPS) freshly roasted, beautifully oily, and smelling of chocolate. The coffee is perfectly balanced; and as it cools, the notes include a slight vanilla flavor and a touch of cinnamon. Even better, when you purchase a bag, a percentage of the money goes toward ERD, a charity that provides disaster relief around the world as well as enabling people in the poorest communities on our planet to climb out of poverty. Buy a bag. Change a life. To learn more or purchase for yourself, click here.
CLEO'S NEXT
COFFEE PICK
Will be announced
July 3, 2009
FOR THE LOVE
OF OUR
WWII VETS
HONOR FLIGHT was created by a VA doctor when he discovered that his elderly patients (veterans of WW II) could not afford to make the trip to Wash. D.C. to actually SEE the WWII war memorial dedicated to them!
Now a national organization, Honor Flight raises money to help WWII vets make the trip to actually see the memorial that would not exist without their bravery and sacrifice. Our vets are dying every week. Time is running out to honor them. Cleo has happily donated. To learn more or donate yourself, click here.
McDONALD'S TO OPEN McCAFE
Click here to read the Wall Street Journal's Page One story about McDonald's plan to take on Starbucks to the tune of $1 Billion. Written by Janet Adamy.
"...McDonald's added a position to its crew: barista."
"Franchisees say that many of their customers don't know what a latte is."
Cleo suggests they read
LATTE TROUBLE!
