The New Day New Grounds Coffee Festival (aka CoffeeFest) took place this Saturday at Calhoun Square in Uptown. $10 bought visitors attendance and a sampling mug; the nearly 40 vendors in attendance were happy to ply guests with coffee, tea, Liege waffles, cheesecake, and myriad other samples.
Coffee wunderkind Andrew Kopplin (of Kopplin’s Coffee) demonstrated the creation of latte art on the second floor.
Vendors in attendance included Northeast Minneapolis roasters Flamenco Organic Coffee and Peace Coffee (which recently opened a cafe at 33rd St. and Minnehaha Ave. in Minneapolis). Dogwood Coffee Co. (a breakaway company from Bull Run, now serving Clover-brewed coffee in Calhoun Square) wasn’t part of the festival, but its proximity to the action and quality of product made it hard to miss.
Peet’s Coffee, a national chain that’s now available at Lunds, Byerly’s, and Kowalski’s stores, was in full effect, sampling brews and handing out free packets of coffee. Also pictured: The Cake Diva, Coffee Queen Coffee, Coffee & Tea Ltd., Muddy Paws, and Flamenco Organic’s clever sticker-based viral marketing solution.