business
hot companies
Houston’s other
Perri Gallatin works the roaster–
producing approximately 900 pounds
of coffee daily–all by hand.
BlackGold
For Lola Savannah Coffee Company,
the future is bright with a mild acidity.
by sandra cook
12
summer 2009
downtown
The energy industry may keep the world’s
warehouse in 1925 at
machines in motion, but coffee fuels many
the corner of Commerce
of us mere mortals. While the coffee industry
and Jackson. This espehas been brewing in Houston for more than
cially sturdy structure
60 years, the city’s coffee-profile got a huge
was designed to support
kick in 2003, when the Port of Houston
a mountain of paper,
became one of only four coffee exchange
so it’s well-suited for
ports in the nation. This means green coffee
stacking the standard
(unroasted beans), which is bought and sold
132- to 152-pound bags
on the New York Board of Trade, can be
of coffee beans Lola
Duke Furrh (left) and Michael Spencer take the business of
stored and distributed in Houston. WorldSavannah imports.
coffee very seriously but keep their humorous attitudes.
wide, coffee beans are the top export for
Being centrally located
dozens of countries. And, among natural
within the city is advantageous for routing their deliveries all over the
commodities, the monetary value of coffee
Houston area and the eastern half of Texas. Why is that so important?
beans is surpassed only by oil.
Houstonian Duke Furrh got
into the coffee business
because of his undeniably
robust love of coffee. Spend a
few minutes talking beans
with him and you’ll see he’s
not just a fan of the beverage;
he’s something of a coffee
ambassador. As a scout for his company, Lola
Coffee roasted locally yields the best-quality cup you can get, because
Savannah Coffee Company, Furrh pursues
freshness and flavor begin to diminish immediately after roasting. Coffee
and procures high-quality coffee beans from
shipped from elsewhere has been bagged for days, weeks or longer. Local
the most sought-after coffee-producing
coffee is a greener choice as well, since it is only transported a few miles
regions of the world. Furrh frequently
rather than a few time zones.
surveys and samples coffee crops across the
The company, which specializes in custom small-batch roasting and
bean belt – the swath
coffee imports, began in 1995. Furrh got involved with
of the globe between
Lola Savannah in 1997 and eventually purchased the
the Tropics of Cancer
company, while Spencer came on board in 2002. Back
brew your best
and Capricorn.
then, the company’s client base was mostly made up of
start with locally
If you’ve never
restaurants, so the determined duo set about building the
roasted beans.
heard of Lola
wholesale side of the business. After selling their coffees
Don’t freeze or refrigerate
Savannah it’s
to clients such as Bering’s Hardware, major grocery
coffee: Moisture and airflow
because Furrh and
stores became part of the Lola family.
will rob your beans of flavor.
his partner Michael
Furrh’s passion is seeking out the best beans from
store in air-tight container:
Spencer spend more
almost every coffee-producing region of the world – no
You live in Houston; see above.
time focusing on
continent or island is beyond his scope. Business partner
Use up your coffee beans
within 3 to 4 weeks for best
roasting than boastMichael Spencer focuses on customer service. “I like
flavor and aroma.
ing. You’ll find the
selling coffee, because people usually know they want
grind your beans
two dressed in their
to buy it,” Spencer laughs. “It’s not like selling life insurimmediately before brewing.
company shirts and
ance or investment services,” Furrh adds with a grin.
use filtered water:
cargo shorts drinking
The two take pride in the products they offer and the
Coffee is 98 percent water,
and/or tasting their
service they provide to their clients. And they must be
so the cleaner the better.
Brew in proper proportions:
coffees most weekdoing something right, because Lola Savannah has
2 tablespoons of ground coffee
days with their
experienced steady growth in recent years, picking up
to ¾ cup water.
clients or at their
new customers almost completely by word of mouth.
downtown roasting
Today, H-E-B and Central Market make up Lola
facility, where small
Savannah’s biggest client. The Texas grocer and gourmet
batches of coffee beans – just 30 pounds at a
foods retailer regularly offers about 15 varieties of Lola Savannah coffees.
time – are roasted by hand daily.
The company also distributes their coffees to select Houston-area Kroger
The unpretentious pair is soft-spoken, but
and Fiesta stores and Fresh Plus stores in the Austin area. Numerous
sentimental, about their world headquarters
varieties, such as Nicaraguan Matagalpa and Tanzanian Peaberry, are
on the north side of downtown Houston.
available at those select store locations . You may have tried Lola Savannah
“It’s a great old brick and mortar building,”
coffees at Houston restaurants, such as Vic & Anthony’s, Brenner’s
says Furrh. The rock-solid, red brick buildSteakhouse on the Bayou, Star Pizza, Irma's, Out to Lunch, Dharma Cafe,
ing was built by Jesse Jones as a stationary
Ziggy's Healthy Grill and Epicure Bakery.
Furrh’s passion is seeking out the best
beans from almost every coffee-producing
region of the world.
X
Where to buy Lola Savannah coffees Downtown: Purchase same-day-roasted beans by the pound at their headquarters: 1701 Commerce at Jackson
Open 8-4 Mon–Thu, Fri 9-2 ' 713.222.9800 or 888.663.9166 ' In stores: Central Market; select H-E-B, Kroger and Fiesta stores ' lolasavannah.com
houstondowntown.com
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