Dave Kellenberger arrived at his café, the Java Hut, in high spirits. He greeted his employees with heartfelt praise, and when he joined me, told me he’d just heard that, according to Prevention Magazine, caffeine is not dehydrating. Good news for a man who supplies locally roasted gourmet coffee to approximately 75 restaurants, cafes and markets. This information came on the heels of a Fox News report that we can drink up to six cups of coffee a day without raising our blood pressure. Bottoms up, I thought as I finished my double latte. Make the next one a triple. Of course Dave heard all of this while waiting in line at the bank, so take it with a ground of coffee.
The Java Hut is located at 8268 North Lake Boulevard, in Kings Beach and is a happy, friendly, funky combination of San Francisco Coffee House meets Venice Beach café on the North Shore of Lake Tahoe. It is painted several bright colors, which he let his employees pick out when it became time to paint over a much loved and well worn jungle-themed mural. Everyone in there is smiling.
Dave and his wife, Jen, bought The Java Hut in 2003. They moved up to the area in 1996 to help Jen’s mother, Robin Dworkin, run the Coffee Connexion in Tahoe City and to keep the families’ coffee roastery (of the same name) in business after Jen’s father, Jeff, passed away. Dave hadn’t planned on becoming a gourmet coffee guy, but it suits him. He is a real people person, warm sincere and jovial. Long-time Java Hut employees, Tammy and Tanya radiate the same good vibes. ‘He’s good to work for,’ said Tanya. He must be. How many baristas do you know who stay at their jobs for over five years? Dave said, ‘It is the happiest spot in my job,’ also emphasizing what he likes so much about local cafes – ‘the camaraderie and good feeling. A lot of suburbia doesn’t get to experience that.’ There is definitely a good feeling in his lakeside café.
Dave took me to see the Coffee Connexion roastery in Lake Forest. When he opened the door I smelled what I imagine Heaven smells like. The warehouse is stocked with flats of coffee beans from all over the world, which he roasts on Mondays and Tuesdays in the Fluid Airbed roaster, according to specific recipes, 51 pounds at a time. The beans are suspended in air so that they are not sitting in their own gasses while they roast. The roaster is equipped with a double after burner to eliminate emitting as much smoke as possible and to be earth and air conscious. They make deliveries Tuesday though Thursday to optimize freshness. The roastery also provides its customers with top of the line equipment to insure ‘the best brew possible,’ Dave said.
Dave took me on a tour of the rolling tubs of roasted beans, which his daughter later pushed into a maze where she could hide and play while we talked. He opened the Italian espresso tub, which was almost empty, and told me it is their most popular roast. He sells more than 400 pounds of it a week. Dave described the subtle differences between the coffees using terms like ‘floral,’ ‘earthy,’ ‘full-bodied,’ and ‘whiney’ to describe their characteristics. Ethiopian beans have a citrus quality. Costa Rican beans are ‘bright.’ I smelled the beans from different regions and agreed with him; Yes, subtle. Very subtle.
Much like a wine tasting, he has ‘cuppings’ for his clients, allowing them to experience the profiles of each country’s product. And, in order to avoid any preconceived ideas about the coffees, he gives blind taste tests.
Visit The Java Hut in Kings Beach or Coffee Connexion in Tahoe City to try their different roasts, or just go to almost any restaurant in the area and you’ll most probably be drinking one of Coffee Connexion’s locally roasted coffees.
Another Java Jabber mission accomplished. I found someone working in a local café doing good things for our community. For me, a day without coffee is like a day without sunshine.
