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Monthly Archives: August 2023

Somehow, Bloomsburg!

I warned you this might happen. I took a side trip to Bloomsburg, PA, for a Bluegrass concert this past weekend in place of my planned travels west. Call it a case of, once again, striking while the iron was hot. Recently, I’ve concluded what many wiser men already have: I can’t take any of these days for granted. I can’t even plan for the future without first regarding the possibilities of today. Tomorrow is not guaranteed. Suffice it to say that this past year has brought that message into focus for me. I like surety and guarantees. I like plans and mapping the future. Sometimes, the future takes issue.

Let’s not dwell on strife. Instead, let’s focus on what happens when a plan comes together without a plan. This concert exemplified that. It wasn’t on my itinerary. The surplus money I kept locked away for adventures contained nothing for BBQ & Brew at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds. That was an oversight on my part. I’m glad I overcame the stasis because the entire event was phenomenal, including the bluegrass music playing from the surprisingly massive stage. To think, I was planning for autumn because I was growing tired of this summer without ever really giving it a chance. I’m glad I woke up and stepped out the door.

The Bloomsburg Fairgrounds are getting more use than anyone ever thought they would decades ago when the Bloomsburg Fair itself was the annual treat in these parts. What a difference the years have made! The Susquehanna valleys are growing in importance, if not in population. There are so many new events here that keeping track is difficult. The same is true of the local coffee culture.

If readers remember, I’ve reviewed a few coffee shops in this area before. The main difference is that of trend. You’ll find more overtly trendy establishments here. Between Bloomsburg University, Bucknell, and Susquehanna University, this region is rife with college life. With that comes a confident expectation in regard to coffee culture. Hip young folk proffer big-city sensibilities to exiles from urban centers and also to rural students, for whom the coffeehouse might be their first entrepot into a more cosmopolitan culture than their own. The collegiate life also fuels venues for cultural events, which is what we’re seeing here in Bloomsburg.

That brings us to the two places I reviewed today. They’re not actually coffee shops. Instead, they represent how coffee culture is making its way into the festival scene. Coffee culture is planting itself at the heart of the peripatetic festival world with food trucks and kiosks. Here are a few examples:

Number one was a kiosk in the middle of the farmer’s market that came before the festival. Apparently, it’s a regular thing here and one to which I must return. The seller was called 2 Sisters Coffee. In reality, they don’t just sell coffee. There was a selection of boutique garlic as well. I decided to go bold and get the dark roast this time. It was a Peruvian, which I haven’t had in ages. The label on the table promised strong chocolate hints and a robust flavor. The chocolate was actually not as prominent as I thought it would be, but the density and power shone through when I ground the beans at home in my machine. A very savory selection.

Number two was “Buckin’ Bean Coffee Co.” which came packed in a classic food truck. Their coffee is locally sourced, in this case from Danville. They gave me a Sumatran/South American blend. I drank it cold-brewed because, by now, the temperature had soared into the 80s, with a thick blanket of humidity in the air. In a strange twist of fate, this coffee had the strong chocolate notes that the previous offering from 2 Sisters lacked. That might have been from the oat milk I used, but the flavor was really prominent. It was also a more airy and light blend. Again, the folks at the helm must have been acutely aware of the needs of their wilting customers!

One note: Buckin’ Bean was founded this past February, making it an example of a coffee outfit that’s sprung up in the wake of 2020’s troubles. They’re a rural operation, but in this case, they’re specifically catering to the massive increase in outdoor festivals and traveling events. The food truck revolution is taking the coffee world by storm.

Unfortunately, the chaotic nature of this month and the next doesn’t seem to be abating anytime soon. There are commitments and hurdles ahead. Even so, I hope to get on the road again soon, this time into the heart of Huntingdon County’s Amish world. Maybe a storm of craziness will provide the impetus to do just that. Until next time, stay caffeinated!

the beans…

the bus…

the band…uncle jake and the 18 wheel gang

Venturous Coffee Roasters

19 Aug

Well, that didn’t take long. Getting back out on the road, I mean. I didn’t expect to make it back into the mountains for weeks, but on August 3rd, the morning dawned crisp and clear, filling me with an overwhelming need to drive. I have to remember that feeling. I have to remember how driving off into the hills makes me feel. The truth is this: My life seems intent on lurching from one little crisis to the next without a stretch of peace. As the old adage says, the best defense is a good offense. As such, If life won’t leave me alone, I won’t leave it alone. I’m not trapped in here with it. It’s trapped in here with me. Time to stretch my legs and wander.

That particular bright-ish August day (there was still, if I remember, a bit of wildfire haze lingering in the air), I decided to head out to McVeytown to visit a coffeehouse I’d only seen as a name on a map app. If you’ve heard the name, it’s for a good reason. McVeytown is one of those mountain burgs which, when conservatives talk about leaving Harrisburg for good, has its name bandied about as a prime place to flee. When I pulled into town after a long drive, I could see why. McVeytown is past a certain distance from Harrisburg, within which everything is becoming hipsterized and gentrified. Even Newport in Perry County is rapidly becoming a Mecca for the arts community, and it has a boom-town feel. McVeytown is neither of those things, still very recognizable as a farming town nestled in a random valley between random ridges. There’s a profound peace to that.

It turned out that getting to Venturous was an adventure in and of itself. Blame Google Maps. The dot on the map that was supposed to correspond to the coffeehouse instead sent me to an empty brick building. After walking around the place a few times like a confused vagrant (which I pretty much am), I finally gave in and called them. A kindly girl answered the phone and guided me through the backstreets of McVeytown by centering me on the one landmark with which everyone in town is familiar: the gas station. I’m sure it’s where everyone hangs out because the main street of McVeytown didn’t have much infrastructure. What it did have were several historical buildings that I would have loved to stop and explore. For now, though, the coffee was my only goal.

What I discovered at the end of my roundabout journey was a flawless example of the theme of the past few posts: a melding of urbane and backcountry sensibilities centered around coffee culture. The women at the counter were dressed in the modest ways of Amish or Mennonite folk, though I didn’t press for specifics. The Kishacoquillas Valley to the north of here is home to several prominent Amish groups, including the Nebraska Amish. Barista Mary skillfully filled my cup with brew and my mind with facts about the shop.

Everything is roasted on-site, for one thing. I snuck a gander at the roaster, and it’s a gorgeous machine. They are their own company entirely. Here’s another interesting tidbit: They opened in May of 2021. Did you notice how many of these local, homegrown coffee shops up in the mountains opened in the shadow of the plague? This is a trend, not an anomaly. It is, I surmise, a case of necessity breeding either invention or resistance. I imagine there’s a bit of both. They’re also responsible: A half pound of the blend I got goes to the natives (of wherever it’s farmed, apparently) for every pound-size bag you buy.

Here’s something else: The written predictions of what I’d be tasting were spot on. My usual order of the house blend offering really paid dividends this time. It was called The Old Faithful blend. There were supposed to be hints of chocolate, dried fruit, and citrus, and there were all of these to some degree. I couldn’t really taste the citrus that well; this seemed far more like a Guatemalan or similar. The chocolate and dried fruit were there at the beginning and end of the swig, respectively. The acidity was well-balanced. Dark roasts usually flatten acidity, but this was still crisp, though the body verged on heavy. Everything just seemed to hit a bullseye here, matching robustness with ease of drinking.

This cafe would not have been out of place in the Harrisburg area. At least not visually. Everything from the Edison lights to the polished hardwood interior said urban sophistication and luxury. On the other hand, the values of the people running Venturous are country to the core. That doesn’t just fascinate me; it attracts me. Let’s just say I agree with Voltaire. People believing in something good is preferable to believing in nothing. I know a great many people who have a deep and abiding faith in nothing. I prefer the opposite. I contend that values do drive quality to a great degree and that this simple postulate does much to explain the amazing growth we’re seeing in the rural coffee scene.

My next trip should be to a town straight down the road from McVeytown: Mount Union. It appeared on the maps to be nestled snugly up against a few mountains, which should make for an awesome view when I get there and take me deep into forested Huntingdon County. Although I must say that if a beer festival takes me to a different mountain (say, the ones surrounding Bloomsburg, PA) you shouldn’t be too surprised. The hills are alive with the sound of percolation. The next update should be in a few weeks. Until then, stay caffeinated.