I’ve had the opportunity to drive by coffee farms in Kenya and watch the plants grow out of good earth and roll over green hills. I was thankful for that. This morning I ground some fresh coffee beans from Guatemala and brewed them to my liking while sunlight filtered through the green leaves that surround my house. I was thankful for that too. We recently got to visit Stumptown Coffee Roasters in Brooklyn, NY, and see firsthand how the link between production and consumption can bless the earth as much as her fruits bless us. Somehow, a knowledge of that link makes the coffee taste better. And that’s something to be thankful for too. Take a look at some pictures of our visit, and please consider this your invitation to try a little Stumptown and find one more thing to be thankful for.

- Jonathan Allston, We Took to the Woods

 

Photography by Aaron Greene

It’s been said that people must be loved before they can be lovely. And, come to think of it, the same is true of chocolate. So, let me tell you a story. Two brothers bought a sail boat and started having adventures. They sailed to Madagascar, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, and Ecuador. They bought exotic cacao from family farms and journeyed back to New York Harbor. They made chocolate with their friends in Brooklyn. They loved and nurtured every bean, turned the beans into chocolate bars, and hand-wrapped the bars in golden foil and ornamental paper. Then they sent their chocolate to We Took to the Woods, and you came in and ate some of it, and you knew once and for all and for good and forever that loved things become lovely—even chocolate. Mast Bros. Chocolate is available now at We Took to the Woods. This is a good story to be a part of.

A few photos of our recent visit to Mast Brothers:

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 Check out this great video:   The Mast Brothers

We can’t wait for their new cookbook, due out in October!

Photos by  J. Aaron Greene