Door County Coffee & Tea

Brewing up a pretty good cup of coffee … & company

Donna Marie Pocius

When Vicki & Doug Wilson put the words “Door County” on their coffee brand, they were thinking about being the best and not so much about being the biggest.

Door County Coffee & Tea, established in 1993 in a rustic space in Forestville, today makes more than 100 varieties of coffee in a modern facility at 5773 Hwy. 42, Carlsville. Also there is the Door County Coffee Café and store.

The Door County brand coffee is sold beyond the Peninsula in shops nationwide, and it’s poured at many fine restaurants, B&Bs and hotels, too. Sales are also conducted online at doorcountycoffee.com. And it’s all good.

“The quality of the coffee has to match the quality of people’s impressions of Door County,” said Vicki Wilson, co-owner of Door County Coffee & Tea.

“We know we will never be the biggest. We can’t — nor do we want to be. But we know we can be the best,” she continued.

And Door County Magazine readers agree. They voted Door County Coffee as brewing the best cup of coffee in its annual readers’ poll.

The coffee sells in 12-ounce bags and 1.5-ounce pillow packs. Door County Coffee & Tea presents popular straight and blended coffees (without artificial flavoring). Included are the line’s Breakfast Blend and Country Morning, which also happen to be the company’s “gold cup standards,” according to LouAnn Deprez, roast master and production manager.

Some of the flavored gourmet coffees are so hot that they are available year-round. They include popular choices like Hazelnut, Highlander Grogg and Vanilla Crème Brulee.

Other flavored coffees come around seasonally. After all, it seems right to sip the company’s Blueberry Cobbler, Coconut Crush and Orange Crème coffees in the spring and summer. Some of the many autumn flavors available include Apple Cobbler, Door County Maple and Pumpkin Spice. And coffees with names and flavors like Egg Nog, Gingerbread, and Door County Christmas (the house favorite by far) and more, help people ring in holidays.

“Some people like flavors. Some like the nutty flavors. Some people only like something similar to a Starbucks light. For us, it’s not about having only five choices, and you have to like this or this. It isn’t that way,” said Sally Stenzel, restaurant and retail manager.

Still, it’s only natural for coffee drinkers to be a little anxious when they don’t see their favorite on the shelf all the time. The seasonality of some Door County Coffees is part of the appeal, Wilson explained.

“It creates more of a desire for the coffee, because it is only available for a certain time. It wouldn’t be so special if Door County Christmas was available 365 days a year,” Wilson said.

So what makes the coffee special, really?

It begins with the beans, Wilson is quick to say. She and her husband Doug Wilson, co-owner, only purchase specialty class one Arabica coffee beans — which are among the top two percent of beans grown worldwide.

“That’s what I mean when I say, ‘All our coffee is good,’” Vicki Wilson said.

“But we ask, ‘How can we make it better?’”

They creatively blend beans, taking distinctive qualities — such as mildness or acidity —until they come up with a complementary taste.

“We usually mix our coffees to get the best out of several different areas, different tastes,” Deprez said.

Wilson said she is also committed to purchasing high quality flavorings — caramel, chocolate, cream and many other ingredients — that go into the coffee recipes.

“We buy the industry’s best — the best components,” Wilson said.

The company aims to keep coffee fresh, carefully planning its inventory in harmony with nationwide sales and distribution. The beans are roasted in small batches. About 2,000 to 3,000 pounds of coffee beans are roasted in Carlsville daily.

“We do everything here but grow the beans, and we are very proud of that. A lot of people are totally amazed by that,” Deprez said.

“Roasting, flavoring, grinding, packaging, labeling, shipping. There’s a lot to it,” Wilson said.

People may see for themselves by peaking into the window near the bakery case in the Door County Coffee Cafe. It offers a view into the 17,000 square foot production space. Here, three roasters of various sizes spill out the hot beans. Nearby is a grinder, which grinds 900 pounds of beans an hour.

Also available is a machine to seal the ground coffee in bags, print the name of the flavor on the bag, weigh, count and insert products in a carton. Cartons are stored in a warehouse, and a dock is nearby to send the coffee on its way.

As to plans for Door County Coffee & Tea, Wilson anticipates introducing in 2010 new packaging for the company’s line of organic coffees.

Earlier this year, Door County Coffee & Tea launched bags picturing daises for its flavored coffees sold during the spring and summer. Wilson said the new look resulted in 30 percent of company business during that time period.

“I think it popped. The daisy package made the coffee look special on the shelves,” Stenzel said.

Also new is the Faith coffee series. It was suggested by a Christian bookstore that wanted to carry the product. Packages in this series show inspiring verses.

“It’s a nice gift for someone not feeling well or going through something,” Stenzel said. “Just put that in a mug, and you have a nice gift.”

Wilson added, “We are in constant innovation. That is the way it is. Our customers are always looking for something new.”