The Coffee Bean & Tea
Leaf® has been brewing in Southern California since 1963. This
family-run coffee and tea retailer launched its golden anniversary celebration
in January 2013. It’s the oldest and largest family-owned specialty coffee and
tea retailer in the United States.
“As we celebrate this
milestone for our company, we want to take this opportunity to truly celebrate
and thank our dedicated customers and fans who have been so loyal in their
support throughout our 50 year history,” says President Mel Elias. “The 50th
anniversary of The Coffee Bean® celebrates the spirit of our heritage, sharing
our passion with fans—old and new—as we look ahead to continued growth for the
brand and future innovations. Over the next 50 years, we are dedicated to
furthering our one-on-one relationships with growers around the world and are
constantly challenging ourselves to come up with innovative new beverages at
the forefront of coffee and tea culture, as seen by our CBTL® single
serve beverage systems.”
Since its first location in
Brentwood, CA, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf has grown to become an
international icon with close to 900 company-owned and franchised stores across
11 states and spanning 25 countries. The company remains rooted to its heritage
by focusing on the quality of its craft and delivering the world’s most vibrant flavors to its customers by
selecting only the top one percent of Arabica beans and the finest hand-plucked
whole leaf teas. All coffee beans are hand-roasted under the supervision of
Senior Director of Coffee, Roasting, and Manufacturing, Jay Isais, and Master
Roaster, Jesse Martinez, at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Roasting and
Distribution (RAD) facility in Camarillo, CA. The company’s Director of Tea,
David DeCandia, regularly travels to tea regions such as Sri Lanka, China,
Japan, India, and Thailand to meet with tea estate owners to select and
hand-craft only the finest whole leaf tea available to ensure the finest quality
tea. After 50 years of brewing, blending, and roasting, the company remains
committed to its original vision of product quality and customer care.
Dedicated to serving the
community, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf will commemorate its 50th
anniversary with a series of events throughout the year.
In March, CBTL introduced Tea
Cappuccinos Sweet Teas. The Tea Cappuccinos are a combination of freshly brewed
tea (Chai, Scottish Breakfast, or the 50
th Anniversary Blend), whole
milk foam, and vanilla bean sauce. It is a lighter option with a bolder flavor
compared to tea lattes. It’s an interesting concept and hope you’ll try one.
Not exactly “my cup of tea”, no pun intended.
The Sweet Teas are infused
with Dark Agave Nectar or Blood Orange Sauce. If you like fruit-infused teas
with sweetness, you have to try the Blood Orange Sauce with your favorite tea
flavor. It tastes like fresh-picked citrus and is refreshingly cool and crisp.
As we come upon late spring and early summer, these Sweet Teas will become a
must to beat the heat. Thumbs up, way up!
For you caffeine lovers, CBLT
also introduced the Caramel Espresso Con Panna. It is a beautifully layered
drink made with two fresh hand-pulled shots of espresso over a decadent layer
of caramel (you can also choose from rich chocolate or amaretto sauce) and
topped with whipped cream. Once you get over how beautiful it looks, take your
spoon and swirl it all together. Once the flavors have melded together, close
your eyes and take a sip. The caramel is a swirling high note of buttery
richness. The espresso will open your senses with caffeinated adrenaline. The
mix of whipped cream and cools the espresso down a bit and adds lightness. I
would like to try the chocolate one next time. Thumbs up, way up!
The Anniversary Blend Coffee
is a blend of three classic Latin American coffees and medium roasted to a
smooth taste profile. Just like wine, the anniversary blend tastes different
every year with variances in the type of bean, the type of roast, and the ratio
of blended beans together. The Anniversary Blend shows off CBTL’s talents as
great coffee makers. This coffee makes a perfect cup every time whether you’re
in the store or making it at home. At home, I tried it with a French Press and
also in an espresso machine. Both mechanisms made a perfect cup of coffee. If
you have ever been to Italy, this is the coffee you have been missing. Sugar
and cream are not necessary as it is so smooth and flavorful, but if you really
need it, you can put in a lot less than you normally do. The acidity level is
so low that you can’t even sense it. It’s really amazing! Thumbs up, way up!
The Anniversary Blend Tea is
a combination of 4 teas: white, green, oolong and black. These premium teas are
infused with an all-natural acai berry flavoring that creates a delicate,
fruity and balanced tea. I’m not a big tea drinker, but this is a nice blend.
It’s light with nice flavor notes from the variety of teas and slight tanginess
from the acai berry. Thumbs up!
There are also great regular
menu items like the Caramel Ice Blended Drink made with their coffee extract,
French Deluxe™ vanilla powder, milk, caramel sauce, and blended with ice then
topped with whipped cream and a drizzle of caramel sauce. It’s like a caramel
milkshake with a slight coffee flavor. Thumbs up, way up!
Atmosphere: 5 out of 5 stars
Service: 5 out of 5 stars
Décor: 5 out of 5 stars
Food: 5 out of 5 stars
For more information:
The Coffee Bean & Tea
Leaf
Locations in Arizona,
California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii,
Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, and Texas
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