An eco-friendly coffee steeped in flavor

California has long been touted as the most progressive state, but arguably it is also the greenest. It is therefore not surprising that a startup from Santa Cruz has developed a solution to all that coffee-making waste.

Steeped Coffee is aptly named. According to the company release, "Brewed similar to tea, Steeped Coffee’s nitro sealed Steeped Bags, along with their guilt-free packaging made using renewable and compostable materials, achieve the unthinkable: freshly ground specialty coffee in a single-serving."

When I lived in London, I had a kettle in my room to make my own coffee. It was common there to make single-serve coffee. When I saw these little bags, it reminded me of that. Then when I tore open the first bag, called "DRIFTWOOD", I was hooked. The intoxicating aroma rivals any other including fresh beans in the grinder.

I DO think one needs to steep the maximum amount of time if he wants a stronger brew. I am used to two or three cups of piping hot, put-hairs-on-the-chest joe each morning. I cannot say this coffee is quite at that level, but it is delicious and definitely eco-friendly. Some of its plaudits: it is ethically-sourced from microclimates known for their coffee; beans are 100% freshly hand roasted; and its compostable sachets made of non-GMO food grade renewable and biogradable material replace the obnoxious coffee pods (I'm talking to you, Keurig) that end up in landfills. Steeped Coffee cites as many as 10 billion (with a B) said pods.

An entrepreneur and coffee lover named Josh Wilbur started the brand. He jokes that one "shouldn't have to do chemistry" when he makes a cuppa. But principally, Wilbur was driven by a strong desire to help the planet.

A super simple process, he touts, is to: "Simply steep each Steeped Bag in hot water for about five minutes to allow the coffee to develop its distinctive body and flavor. There is no machine, no noise, no cleanup, no destructive waste."

The freshman coffee brand won the “Best New Product” award for their colorful,eye-catching packaging at the 2019 Specialty Coffee Expo in, appropriately, Beantown (Boston).

The coffee can be purchased online and prices vary. A Starter Kit with 30 bags and two mugs is on sale now for $45. For more information visit https://steepedcoffee.com/

Photos used with permission, courtesy of Steeped Coffee.