Coffee is seen by many as fuel for creativity. This magical bean brews into warm, sippable energy that helps keeps the wheels in our brains turning and our fingers or hands typing or writing. I’ve become more and more of a coffee lover over the years, and recently I’ve discovered a true writer’s brand of brew with Balzac’s Coffee.
Inspired by the Grand Cafes of Paris, Balzac’s brought traditional French coffee culture to Canada in 1993, getting its start as a humble coffee cart at Ontario Place. Being a brand that is anchored in the notion of creativity and the idea of starting something, what namesake could have been better than the prolific French author Honoré de Balzac? A legendary coffee lover himself, it’s rumoured that the author would drink up to 50 cups of coffee a day to fuel his writing.
“He used coffee as his power and his inspiration – which we hope encourages the same with our customers’ shares Christine Cruz-Clarke, CEO, Balzac’s Coffee Ltd. “What distinguished Balzac’s, aside from our unrivalled roasts and passionate people, is that every café is specifically designed to embody the cultural nuances and historical significance of the location it is in. From Stratford and Niagara to Distillery, each café has carved out a unique personality as a central gathering place in the community – and has become a destination for visitors. People come to Balzac’s cafés to converse, debate, to fall in love, and to create, much like Honoré de Balzac who declared the café as “the people’s parliament”.”
Every writer has their own taste and style, and that goes for both their work and their morning drink. Most appropriately, Balzac’s has a type of coffee for every kind of writer and coffee lover. We’ve sampled each of them and have some notes to share.
Atwood Blend
Named for Ms. Margaret Atwood herself, this coffee blend tastes as award winning as its namesake. This brew is perfect for the intellectual writer, who crafts metaphors from words like a sculpture crafting a masterpiece from clay.
Balzac’s Blend
The original writer’s companion in coffee form, this blend is named for the brand’s inspiration, Honoré de Balzac. Like Balzac’s richly detailed work, this coffee brews to showcase well rounded and generous flavor, topped with a subtle sweetness.
The Bard’s Blend
Yes, this blend is named for the Bard you’re thinking of. With notes of berry, licorice, and cocoa powder, thrilling blend entertains with every sip and ends with a dramatic finish that would impress even Shakespeare himself.
Las Rosas
A writer cannot write without inspiration, and that’s what the Las Rosas blend is all about. Sourced from the Las Rosas Women’s Group in La Plata, Colombia, the group’s namesake blend produces a dynamic and flavourful coffee with rich tannins balanced by full-bodied fruitiness and subtle sweetness.
“As a woman-founded and run company, Balzac’s has been dedicated to sustainably, equity, inclusion for decades. The desire to make the sustainable choice has influenced how we source coffee, be it through Fairtrade or direct trade practices that help to ensure fair wages and equity are part of the equation,” said Christine Cruz-Clarke, CEO, Balzac’s Coffee Ltd. Our popular Las Rosas Blend is made using beans cultivated from the Las Rosas Women’s Cooperative located in Hulia Colombia by a community of over 400 women coffee farmers and their family members.
In 2010, an initial group of 50 women in Colombia came together to change the way they were being treated as it was weakening their families and future potential to lead a better and more productive life. The community of women in Las Rosas who harvest beans for Balzac’s popular Las Rosas blend are paid fairly and equitably through stringent organic and Fair-Trade practices. Balzac’s prioritizes gender equality and is proud to contribute to improving the lives of these women and their community.” You can learn more information can be found here.
Balzac’s Anniversary Blend
This blend is like a gripping novel, a work of fiction to curl up with that is sure to keep you engaged with its complex blend of 100% Arabica beans with elements of the past, present, and future. It’s sure to please even the pickiest readers and drinkers.
Espresso Blend
Every writer worth their salt has been fueled by espresso at one time or another. With Balzac’s espresso blend we’re getting a delicious awakening experience filled with notes of Brown Sugar, Bakers Chocolate, and Macadamia. The perfect base to a cappuccino or latte, shot after shot this espresso will help any writer put words to the page or screen.
Coffee and Creativity, they invariably go together as Honore de Balzac and his namesake coffee show. To learn more about these beautiful beans check out their website below.
Nadia Elkharadly
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