Episode 183: Dark Roast? Chicory? A Louisiana Coffee's Second Century

Here is a dash of chicory for your daily podcast listening. The Louisiana-based Community Coffee company is now in its 105th year. Headquartered in Baton Rouge with facilities in New Orleans, Community is the largest family-owned and operated retail coffee brand in the country and a top selling brand not only in Louisiana but throughout the South. Matt Saurage, the fourth generation owner and Chairman of Community, joins Louisiana Life Executive Editor Errol Laborde, along with producer Kelly Massicot, to tell the story of the company’s 1919 origin in founder Cap Saurage’s Baton Rouge grocery store. Cap was so fascinated with mixing coffee blends he decided to enter the business, which now imports beans from Central America and Africa. Matt also talks about the company’s signature dark roast brand and he offers a defense for chicory, which is more than an extender but offers its own flavors and which he always drinks straight up. In addition to coffee roasting, Community lives up to its name by having a history of making community contributions. It is a conversation that is full bodied and never decaffeinated.