Search for A Perfect Coffee Gift Bag - Part 5 (Sweet Marias Gold Valv Coffee Bag)

This coffee bag from Sweet Maria's which is quite similar to the clear one but has gold on the back which is quite stylish. Their quality is pretty much identical to the clear one which I reviewed earlier.



There are two sizes available for gold back coffee gift bag:

Foil coffee bag - 1 lb value bag Gold - 0.95c

• Using Nesco CR-1010-PRR Coffee Bean Roaster, 800-watt, the bag is big enough to contain 4 roasts each bag and a pot for myself to try.  

• Link: https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/gold-foil-1-lb-valve-bag

Foil coffee bag - 8 oz value bag Gold - 0.75c

• Using Nesco CR-1010-PRR Coffee Bean Roaster, 800-watt, the bag is big enough to contain 2 roasts each bag and a pot for myself to try.  

• Linke: https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/gold-foil-8oz-valve-bag

and here are pictures of them:  

 

If you like this, you might also want to check the clear one which I reviewed earlier. You can see my previous post about clear bag, click here.

Blue House Cafe, Vernonia, OR - Little Known Great Greek Coffee in A Little Kown City Near Portland

Greek Coffee at Blue House Cafe, Vernonia, OR

I love how Greek people drink coffee.  I just happened to have an opportunity to try a very good Greek coffee at Blue House Cafe in Vernonia, OR (919 Bridge St Vernonia, Oregon 97064  link)  Blue House Cafe is a Greek Restaurant and Cafe at Vernonia, they roast their own coffee, and their Greek coffee is a must stop.  Only an hour away from Portland, there is a hidden treasure for coffee lovers, especially if you love Greek Coffee!

Vernonia, OR - Little Known City

Vernonia is 1 hour Northwest of Portland, "rustic city" is how I want to describe it; very cute little town

Vernonia  (population 2000) is a very little town in beautiful mountain about an hour Northwest from Portland. (Vernonia, OR - Wikipedia) The town is well-known for biker's community as Banks-Vernonia State Trail is one of the most beautiful biking trails close to Portland. It is a great one day get-away; you can just have a walk in nature or rent a bike for just a day.
 

Banks-Vernonia State Trail is beautiful 21 miles bike and walking trail

Blue House Cafe - Little Known Greek Cafe

Above entrance of Blue House Cafe, using cork as decoration - such a nice idea!

In the middle of your get-away day in nature, you can stop by at Blue House Cafe for a great cup of Greek Coffee.
Blue House Cafe is located in Vernonia "Downtown."  Since the whole city of Vernonia is just few blocks wide, you do not miss the cafe if you visit the city. 

Here is quote from their menu about their coffee:

"We use 100 % Arabica peaberry shade grown coffee beans from the Karnataka region of India which are milder, have less caffeine and more beneficial enzymes. The coffee beans are roasted in house.  We only use organic milk and brown sugar for our beverages."

Based on this article about Greek Coffee (very good article) Greek Coffee should be roasted at specific temperature, and the bean itself has to be very specific as well.  Blue House follow the tradition all the way from the coffee bean to roasting to serving.

Greek Coffee at Blue House Cafe
The Greek Coffee at Blue House Cafe is served with traditional briki and the aroma and the whole sensation is just to die for. It is served with date; the combination of aroma created by date and coffee just perfectly matches.

Greek Coffee at Blue House Cafe, Vernonia, OR

Traditional briki is used to serve coffee at Blue House Cafe

If you are looking for a one day get-away trip, I strongly suggest to have a hike or bike in great nature at and around Vernonia, and try serious Greek coffee that you don't find anywhere else.

And... by the way, when you visit Blue House Cafe, make sure to use their bathroom; it is one of the most unique bathroom I have ever seen!

View from Stub Stewart State Park (15 minutes drive from Vernonia, OR)

Thermos Vacuum Insulated Travel Mug (16 Oz) - Enjoy hot coffee all day long

Thermos Vacuum Insulated Travel Mug is my most favorite travel mug cups of all the time. I have been using this mug for more than 5 years now.  The original one was from Bed Bath and Beyond which was given to me as a gift; I fell in love with it and have been using it for a very long time.  The old was is amazingly still in good condition after 5 years of every day use, but I decided to purchase a new one online, so here is un-boxing of this amazing travel mug.

Thermos Vacuum Insulated Travel Mug (16 Oz) - comes with Black or White Lid

Heat Insulation is the Key

What I like about this mug is how long it keeps the heat inside.  Their vacuum insulation technology is the best in the industry, and you know it when you use it.  When  you touch the bottle, you do not notice that there is hot beverage inside because the heat is insulated so well that you do not feel any heat outside. The hot coffee I make in the morning, I sip all morning long, and is still burning hot at lunch time!

Durability

This mug does not break period.  I have dropped this mug for so many times in the past on a hard concrete, it just gives a little dent; the reason this mug lasted for 5 years and still standing is the durability.

Dishwasher Safe

One of the parts I may not like the most is cleaning the mug by hand.  The sophisticated insulation comes with cost of having a bit of complex lid which comes apart in 4 pieces.  It is easy to take a part and put together, but washing those little piece isn't the greatest when you wash it by hand.  Good thing is, this mug is dishwasher safe.  Even the four small pieces get washed very easily with dishwashers.

Popular Among Coffee Lovers

Mercedes Benz puts their logo on the mug to give to their customers.

When you go to specialty coffee equipment shops, you will almost likely to see this mug on the shelves. As you know the Northwest especially Seattle and Portland are known for coffee culture where you find coffee shops all over the town, and there are quite few shops which sell equipments and specialty items for Batista and coffee lovers.  When I go to those shops, almost always I find this mug cup on their shelves.  This mug was also used by Mercedes Benz as a thank you gift for customers who purchased their cars.  They printed Mercedes Benz logo on this very mug cup to give out to their customers.



Un-Boxing!

And here are pictures of un-boxing.  I got this from Amazon (here is a link).

Comes in a regular Amazon box

Nice packing with air bubble

OK.  Warning....

There it is!

Beautiful.

For the tea lovers, there is a little built-in tea hook on the side.

Taking the stickers off.

Taking the stickers off.

This is how the inside look

This is the tea hook

This is the tea hook so that a teabag can be hooked easily.

I truly recommend this Thermos Vacuum Insulated Travel Mug (16 Oz) for the coffee lovers who want to keep their coffee hot for long time during a day. (Here is a link to purchase from Amazon).

If you are looking for a nice travel coffee mug, you might also want to see my earlier reviewed Double Shot French Press Travel Mug (14 Oz) as well.

Coava Coffee Roasters, Portland Oregon - Modern Style Perfection

Clean and modern, that is the impression I get when I walk into Coava Coffee Roaster on Hawthorne Blvd; one of their two locations; they call this one "Espresso Bar". Coava Coffee Roaster, Portland OR (2631 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland, OR 97214 Link) is one of popular Portland Roasters that are also featured in my favorite book Left Coast Roast: A Guide to the Best Coffee and Roasters from San Francisco to Seattle. They have been roasting since 2009, and they roasts about 1000 - 5000 lbs per week volume providing wholesale to variety of shops and restaurants.

Their "Espresso Bar" is located at the end of busy Hawthorne Blvd off little bit from the commercial areas where many restaurants and pedestrians walk.  If you do not know that this coffee shop exists, you would more likely pass by the shop without knowing it.

Coava Coffee is on Hawthorne Blvd

On the west side of the shop is a local produce market which I enjoy getting some fresh vegetables and fruits whenever I shop by Coava Coffee. It is walking distance from Coava, so I usually carry a cup of coffee to walk to the market.

Local produce walking distance from Coava Coffee

Right across from their coffee shop is nice Safway complex where there is Starbucks coffee inside.  I like Starbucks, but not when they locate themselves right in front of local coffee shops. In the past, I have seen my favorite coffee shops going down because Starbucks being built right across from them which is just sad.

Outside Coava Coffee Roaster

By trying out their coffee and the shop, I am very positive that Coava will be in good stand against the competition of such, and once you step inside the shop you notice the "perfection".

Inside Coava Coffee Roaster Espresso Bar

 I just love the atmosphere inside Coava Coffee. It is upscale, and very well designed little shop which is very pleasant to sit down and have a cup of coffee.

Inside Coava Coffee Roaster Espresso Bar

When I visited the shop, it was quite early of the day, so there weren't too many people around; however, it is a nice spot to spend hours with nice coffees with a laptop without being overwhelmed by the cloud that you find in many coffee shops around Portland.

 I really like how they used a wooden table with holes to be nicely finished to be part of the style of the shop, it gives the "homy" feeling yet provide clean and modern style.

Their coffee is just amazing as well.  The one I tried from Columbia has very smooth earthly taste but with enough coffee aroma to cover up the earthiness. 

When you are feeling "local" today, I suggest getting a local coffee and some local produce to appreciate what we have around in town by visiting Coava Coffee Roaster, Portland Oregon.