( cup it up: reading coffee roasters keeps on lifting )

by marian wolbers

– coffee is personal –

for 23 years, albert van maanen has been pouring worldly coffee beans into his huge roasters. a connoisseur of the delightful drink that drives the masses, and a master of temperature control, van maanen divulges a key to his company’s success: “the art is knowing when to stop the roaster.”

     

as the beans dry and shrink, he gauges their roastedness. then, at a magical moment, he calls it ready: “let ‘er drop !”

     

says the holland-born maestro, “when you become a roaster, that’s when you get into the really good tastes.” unlike other roasters, who tend to over-roast, van maanen prides himself on knowing the preparation needs of each varietal (the coffees distinctive to each coffee-growing environment—from guatemala to rwanda) and each background coffee (the base coffee beans used straight or for blending into flavored sorts, like vanilla or hazelnut).

     

“we have the best coffee—we are the top of the top. there is no better,” van maanen asserts. coffee reviewers agree: this company has quietly evolved into a long, elegant river of top-quality, yet very affordable brew-taste.

     

reading coffee roasters’ newest marketing incursion is office coffee service, fueling local businesses—including reading hospital—with freshly-roasted drinks. (what better of a palate-rich perk ?) restaurants and other vendors offer it as well. at reading china & glass, says van maanen, “we’re the top-selling coffee.”

( to some, coffee is nothing short of love

all photos by marian wolbers ) 

( at reading coffee roasters, browned beans so alluring 

to the senses that they might as well be magic—

make a home in stretches of rich aroma, starting 

at the hands of albert van maanen & lisa  inmon) 

     

lisa inmon, who manages inside sales, adds that their coffees can be custom-packaged for fundraisers. example: the delaware valley golden retriever rescue sells coffee year-round, adorned with their own puppy-mission label.

taste-traveling

on a recent day, burundi was the brew on tap, imparting its supple, satisfyingly round and slightly fruity essence, with a linger-effect that’s both sweet and bittersweet. visitors are invited to sample a cup, making it doubly enticing to buy direct. ask where the beans are from, and you’ll get the national geographic version: burundi comes from central africa, and earned its hearty start as a super-coffee when belgian colonists planted arabica beans along the green, mountainous slopes.

     

jamaican blue mountain, the caribbean queen of piping hot dinner drinks, is also available, and so is kona at special times—“we buy directly from hawaii, from a farm,” says van maanen. “certain coffees are standards here, like ethiopian and kenyan, for example—but sometimes even they become unavailable.” when that happens, the roaster steers people to similar flavors, aromas, and body. the “tanzaniaaaan” can stand in for kenyan, for example.

     

brazilian, peruvian, costa rican, french roast—the list is alluringly long. lately, van maanen and his wife rosemary have been starting their day with a half-panamanian, half sumatra decaf.

     

coffee is personal—so the staff prepares whatever works best for each person: high test, half-caf, decaf—and all sorts of flavored blends, from very vanilla to their high-kicking highlander.

here’s how to ride this coffee river:

• call lisa inmon for office delivery details, at 610.582.224
• see www.readingcoffee.com
• visit 316 west main street, birdsboro, weekdays, 9-4.30 or saturdays, 10-2