| Wall art in the Roastery |
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The Roastery has had a fresh coat of paint and the walls are now covered in pictures of our visits to coffee farms. The frames for these posters are made from pallets used to transport our sacks of coffee! |
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| £3,000 raised for Ulster Cancer Foundation |
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The final total is in and we have managed to raise a massive £3,000 for the Ulster Cancer Foundation. Many thanks to all involved and to everyone for their generous donations. |
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| Co-branded uniforms |
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Staff at Faith Mission Bookshop, Portadown proudly showing off their new co-branded uniforms. All part of the Ristretto service! |
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| Gregg completes the Mourne Wall Walk |
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Gregg completed the 22 mile Mourne Wall walk yesterday in 10 hrs 30 mins for the Ulster Cancer Foundation. He says his legs are a little tender today! |
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| Mountain Walk for Ulster Cancer Foundation |
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To complete the fundraising campaign for Ulster Cancer Foundation Gregg from Ristretto is going to walk the Mourne wall on bank holiday Monday, 29th August. This 22 mile walk spanning 15 peaks in the Mourne mountains will take approximately eight hours. Best of luck to Gregg for his walk and you can play your part by calling into one of the participating cafes on Monday and buying a coffee in support of the Ulster Cancer Foundation. |
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| Bank Holiday weekend with Ulster Cancer Foundation |
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A selection of customers have teamed up with us to support the Ulster Cancer Foundation over the August bank holiday weekend. From Friday 26th to Monday 29th August 2011, Ristretto will donate 10p for every cup of coffee sold in participating cafes throughout the province. |
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| Ristretto and Pimento at Megalife Music Festival |
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For the second year running we had a lot of fun working with Pimento coffee shop, supporting the Megalife music festival in Moira Demesne. Pimento ran the cafe within a large marquee and with the assistance of our trained baristas, hundreds of visitors enjoyed our speciality coffee. |
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| Speciality coffee exposition in Houston, Texas |
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Mark and Gregg recently flew out to Houston, Texas to join many of America's most influential people in the coffee industry.
Houston hosted the 23rd Annual Speciality coffee exposition which brought together professionals from all aspects of the coffee supply chain. With over 8000 attendees, 700 plus booths and coffee delegates from nearly every producing country in the world the SCAA event was nothing short of spectacular.
"Many of the coffee growers we buy from were there so it was a great opportunity to meet with our friends again and to establish relationships with other farmers we don't yet buy from." says Gregg.
The four day event showcased the most recent technology and the latest trends in the US coffee industry. During the three day event there were a variety of seminars on current topics such as the impact of global warming on the coffee industry and the recent record high coffee prices.
"We were also excited to have received an invite to a gathering of the Roasters Guild, whose members are among the most well respected coffee roasters in America. They say everything is bigger in Texas and the party they threw didn't disappoint!" chuckles Mark.
"Speciality coffee prices continue to rise, particularly on the back of an increasing demand for high quality coffee from producing countries such as Brazil. For this reason it is important that we build upon the established relationships we have with our growers to maintain a constant supply of the finest grade coffee" concludes Gregg. |
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| Pudsey joins the Ristretto team! |
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Pudsey paid a visit to Ristretto on Thursday 11th and Friday 12th November 2010 to lend a hand and learn a little about the art of roasting coffee.
"It's a privilege to join with our customers in helping to raise funds for Children in Need and in doing so have a little fun", says Michelle from Ristretto.
After loading a batch of the finest Guatemalan coffee into Ristretto's large roaster, Pudsey watched carefully as the beans changed colour from green to yellow, to cinnamon to a deep mahogany. Finally, as the coffee reached an intense 450 degrees Fahrenheit, Pudsey pulled open the metal door of the machine and the coffee came tumbling into the cooling tray. A blanket of aromatic smoke lingered for a few seconds as a crescendo of crackling beans marked the grand finale.
Later Pudsey helped staff from Ristretto deliver coffee to some of their customers at the Outlet, Banbridge and Rushmere shopping centre, Craigavon where he was given a warm welcome and great support.
Pudsey's second day with us began by delivering coffee to Studio Cafe in Bangor where received a warm welcome and plenty of donations from those sipping their morning coffee.
A visit to Oscars Champagne Cafe, Snax in the City then Deanes Deli in Belfast gave city folk the opportunity to show their generosity towards Children in Need.
"People are drawn towards this soft cuddly bear and despite the current economic difficulties, everyone dug deep to support Children in Need"”, says Michelle.
"It has been a lot of fun having Pudsey at Ristretto over the past two days and we hope the money raised will help some of those Children who are in Need" concludes Michelle. |
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| Ristretto receive more Great Taste Awards |
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Ristretto recently received Great Taste Awards and were officially recognised at a lunch in Belfast hosted by Arlene Foster, Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment.
Coffee flavours can vary dramatically from country to country. Even within a country, different soils, altitudes and weather patterns can influence the flavours in the cup. With this in mind we decided to enter the Great Taste Awards with filter coffee from the finest farms from various regions within the same country.
We had a wonderful time roasting and developing coffees from different regions and were pleased to get recognition for the two countries we focused on, Guatemala and Malawi. We decided to focus on Guatemala after visiting there in February 2010 and for the same reason we chose Malawi where we visited several years ago.
Last year we were awarded two Gold Stars for our Espresso, so having received awards for filter coffee this year who knows what we will try next year! |
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| Ristretto support NICFC hug in a mug campaign |
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This autumn we have continued to support the Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children by helping with their annual Hug in a Mug campaign.
Every week in Northern Ireland three more families are told the devastating news that their child has cancer. Family life changes dramatically. Along with frequent hospital visits and gruelling treatment, there are also the everyday practical concerns that come with a childhood cancer diagnosis like financial issues as one parent generally has to give up work to care for the child.
Hug in a Mug is aimed at encouraging friends, work colleagues and organisations to hold a coffee morning to raise much needed funds for the NICFC. Inside each of the 2500 Hug in a Mug promotional packs distributed throughout Northern Ireland Ristretto provided a bag of freshly roasted speciality coffee for each recipient to enjoy. We hope this makes their fund raising efforts more enjoyable as they raise money for this very worthy cause.
The Northern Ireland Cancer Fund For Children supports each family member through the cancer journey, so that they in turn can support each other. Vital services include qualified youth and family support, residential and social weekends at Narnia, the charity's log cabin, grants to ease the financial burden of looking after a sick child, as well as the provision of family respite care at Shimna Valley House nestled at the foot of the Mourne Mountains, Newcastle.
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| Abid Clever Coffee Drippers Now In Stock |
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This revolutionary coffee brewer is now in stock and so simple to use:
Add coffee grounds to a filter paper in the Clever Coffee Dripper. Add hot water and allow to infuse. After a few minutes place the dripper on the top of your cup to allow the fresh aromatic coffee to flow out, ready to enjoy.
Available now for £15.95
Click for link to webshop
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| Abid Clever Coffee Dripper |
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We are pleased to announce that week commencing 3rd May 2010 we will be stocking the Abid Clever Coffee Dripper. This clever device is similar to a filter cone but has a shut-off valve in the base. This enables the user to control the steep time, then when ready to dispense you simply place the dripper on top of your cup to open the valve and dispense the coffee.
More details to follow... |
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| Guatemala San Francisco Tecuamburro |
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We have just received an email from Sergio Barillas who owns Finca Guatemala San Francisco Tecuamburro. Sergio is excited to see that his 2011 crop has come into full flower. As you can see from the attached picture the flowers have formed very well and he is hoping for a bumper crop next year. His current 2010 crop is about to hit the seas and should be with us next month.
This has been one of our long term favourite coffees and we look forward to the arrival of the new crop. |
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| Fundraising for NICFC |
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The Riverfront Coffee House and Ristretto raise cash for Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children
The Riverfront Coffee House, Omagh and Ristretto Coffee Roasters, Banbridge recently teamed up to raise cash for the Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children. The week long fundraising campaign involved Ristretto contributing £1 for every cup of coffee sold alongside activities and giveaways run by The Riverfront Coffee House such as raffles. The atmosphere at The Riverfront Coffee House is always very warm and inviting but there was an added air of excitement during the week as customers gave so generously for this very worthy cause.
“We were overwhelmed by the generosity and support from our customers particularly in the current climate,” says Joan, who owns The Riverfront Coffee House.
The Riverfront Coffee House have a great reputation for their freshly prepared food and their home baking is awsome! Using Ristretto’s award winning espresso blend The Riverfront Coffee House attracts coffee enthusiasts from far and wide.
Ristretto Coffee Roasters who are based in Banbridge have partnered with the Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children to help raise funds for children and young people who are living with cancer and their families.
"I have been blessed with three healthy children and I count it a privilege if in some small way I can help bring joy to the lives of other children and their parents”, says Gregg Radcliffe, who owns Ristretto along with Mark Anderson.
Ristretto freshly roast and supply speciality coffee and espresso machine equipment to the finest establishments such as The Riverfront Coffee House with a great emphasis on customer support!
“I spent a few hours at The Riverfront Coffee House during the event helping the staff make coffee. It was so encouraging to see everyone willing to support this charity and at the same time really enjoying themselves”, continues Gregg.
In total The Riverfront Coffee House and Ristretto raised £1000 for the Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children. Joan and Gregg would like to thank everyone who was involved in making this event so successful. |
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| Ristretto head off on coffee sourcing mission |
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Ristretto are taking their relentless pursuit for quality back to the coffee growing origins of Central America as they trek to some of the most remote Fincas (farms) in Guatemala. Situated between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, Guatemala is a mountainous country of rolling hills, deep river valleys and active volcanoes.
Guatemala is right in the middle of this years coffee harvest which involves hand picking coffee cherries from trees which are often high in the mountains and very hard to reach.
You can follow all the events as they unfold throughout our twelve day tour of Guatemala at www.twitter.com/ristrettocoffee
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| Rancilio launch Silvia Limited Edition 2010 |
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The Rancilio Home Line now offers an exclusive new product: The Silvia Limited Edition 2010 in elegant Bordeaux. The machine's linear design evokes the famous Rancilio professional coffee machines that have inspired Silvia and always guaranteed the very finest quality espresso. The Limited Edition 2010 features an exclusive ''Animal Safe'' leatherfinish in Bordeaux. This special material is exclusively synthetic and ecological, and certified in compliance with the strictest environmental protection standards. Influenced by modern design, Silvia is perfect for any type of décor and offers totally professional levels of performance and reliability. Thanks to the Silvia Limited Edition, you no longer have to choose between style and functionality or design and performance.
Experience the pleasure of a perfect professional espresso, with a touch of your very own exclusive style.
Pricing details and launch date coming soon. |
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| Ristretto Scoop National Award |
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Ristretto have just been awarded a total of 3 gold stars in this years Great Taste Awards organised by the Guild of Fine Foods.
The Great Taste Awards are the acknowledged benchmark for speciality food and drink. Almost 5000 entries from all over the UK were blind tasted by teams of experts comprising leading chefs, food writers and buyers. Out of the many submissions in the Espresso class, Ristretto were 1 of only 6 coffee roasters in the UK and Ireland to receive 2 Gold Stars for their Espresso Blend. We were also awarded 1 Gold Star for Filter Coffee (Costa Rica Reserva San Bosco).
Ristretto were the only coffee roaster from Northern Ireland to receive awards for both Filter and Espresso. |
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