Upper Midwest Gourmet

UMG is always trying to improve on all levels.

By adding alternative payment methods beyond cash, credit card, and check we hope to make it easier and more convienient for our customers.

We now accept PayPal as an option for all UMG orders. 

 If this is something you are interested in, please call us at 612-728-7208 to get set-up and get the information you need.

We will also have other alternative payment methods coming soon!

Upper Midwest Gourmet now sells Mozo Shoes!

What is a “mozo”?

What is a “mozo”? In the time of pack trains and cattle roundups, a mozo was hired to help out with heavy work around the ranch, and was always on his feet. The spirit of the mozo inspired a footwear craftsman and entrepreneur to start MOZO®  in 1996. Today, MOZO makes revolutionary footwear for creative, passionate and talented professionals, shoes for culinary professionals who are artists, athletes and creators—not just cooks or servers. Any shoe that bears the MOZO name must be a shoe that we are personally willing to stand in and wear for 10 to 12 hours a day. Since making that promise, MOZO has set new standards for comfort, safety and durability for culinary footwear. MOZO is an approved footwear vendor for several leading industry partners. It is the combination of safety, comfort, and quality, which has advanced the brand rapidly since Deckers’ acquisition. 

(For pricing or additional product information, please Contact Us. Thank you.)

We are very happy to have our relationship with Papa Gelato at the Minnesota State Fair. He started at the Fair many years ago with his amazing pizza at The Pizza Palace and decided to stay in the authentic Italian theme when he introduced gelato to the State Fair and most of Minnesota, for the matter, back in 2005. He has been producing gelato/Italian ice cream at the MN State Fair for seven years now and it continues to get better and more creative every year. This year he has introduced new flavors like the super popular “Sea Salt Caramel Gelato” and the savory “Bacon Gelato!” Yes, BACON GELATO!

 You have to make sure to stop and get some gelato or sorbetto on your next visit to the MN State Fair and tell them that the Beanheads at UMG sent ya! Remember, you can always ask for a sample of a flavor to try first if you just can’t decide which flavor you want.

(For pricing or additional product information, please Contact Us. Thank you.)

You’ve been asking for them and we have listened. Upper Midwest Gourmet now is stocking 12, 16 and 20 ounce Blue Stripe RPET Recycled content Cold Cups and RPET flat lids. We can ship these all year long so you can lower your inventory and not worry about running short on a hot week when we can’t ship; you can pour HOT espresso into the cup without it turning into a balloon; they are easier to recycle than PLA cold cups and go into your common plastic recyling bin; THEY ARE MADE WITH A MINIMUM OF 50% RECYCLED CONTENT!!! Using recycled PET saves resources, keeps waste out of landfills, and lets you make a smart choice without compromising performance. Did I mention they are a little less expensive too (just a little, but hey, every dollar counts). The lids and cups are the same diameter as your current Eco Products PLA so don’t worry about having to waste any of your current inventory. If you have a few extra sleeves of cups or lids they are compatible with the new cup. Our plan is to eventually discontinue the PLA cup and move every into the RPET cup for all the reasons above. It’s our belief that this is the better cup for holding your beverages and a better choice in our mission to be more environmentally conscious.

(For pricing or additional product information, please Contact Us. Thank you.)

For the past year I have not had a week go by without being informed of a price increase of some sort from one or more of our vendors. Coffee, sugar, cocoa, paper, plastic, petroleum are all being traded at historic high levels and the manufacturers are raising prices across the board. Paper and plastic companies on an almost weekly basis. As our business volume has increased we’ve tried to make up a lot of those increases on volume vs passing the increase along. Sometimes it’s simply impossible but most of the time we’re splitting the difference and only raising 25-50% of the increase passed on to us. On the positive side, we’re seeing a steady rise in same store purchases showing an increase in volume on the retailers side as well. Hopefully we can all weather this storm and as commidities recover, we see some manufacturers begin to pass that saving back towards the retailer. We’re commited to keeping prices as competitive as possible while still being able to provide you with the great service we are so well known for.  

A number of customers have asked why we don’t call them when there are price increases?  It would be impossible for us to notify you all without hiring a full-time employee for just that job alone, which would again lead to more price increases.  However, we try and update the brochure as the increases occur and UMG customers have 24-hour access to the latest version 365 days a year.  Just go to the Upper Midwest Gourmet home page and click on the Information and Training materials link on the right hand side.  The very first item is our most current catalog.  This is for UMG wholesale customers only so make sure to get the current password from your UMG sales representative.   Of course, you can always call or email if you’d like a hard color copy mailed to you.  Hang in there everyone and remember, raise your prices, too, so you can still provide the best product and service that your customers expect.

Spring is finally here! Here comes the sunshine and outdoor fun for all.

Please check out our newest Brewsletter – Volume 43 – Spring 2011

Also, please go to the Brewsletters Page on our website to download and read previous Brewsletters. They contain lots of useful information!

Enjoy and thanks again from all of us at UMG!

Don’t forget, we still have scone mix. One packet, a little milk and butter (or shortening), 30 minutes and you’ve got a half a dozen fresh scones ready to sell. They only take a few minutes to prep and cook in 15! I found that they are easier to mix and shape when using shortening, but you can use whichever you prefer. The cost per scone is approximately 32 cents, even after adding high quality inclusions, such as chocolate chips, fruit flavoring or nuts, your cost should still be under 50 cents per scone. Today, I made blueberry white chocolate chip scones in about 30 minutes from start to finish. For the blueberry, I added about a tablespoon of Fabbri blueberry delipaste to a double batch.

We would really like to thank everyone that visited our booth at the Wisconsin Restaurant Expo this year in Milwaukee. We were very happy to be a part of this expo for our 16th or 17th year. Who can keep track anymore…

This, again, was a success and we owe it all to our customers, new and old. Here are some of the products we showcased and received most feedback on:

• Flamenco Organic Coffees and Espresso- per usual our wide array of micro-roasted Organic, Fair Trade, and Direct Trade coffees were very popular. The Nicaraguan Rio Coco and the Minnesota Mudd Blend were both talked about a bunch, but the Papua New Guinea, the Ethiopian Dara, and the Kona coffee (especially out of the Bunn Trifecta) were holding their own as well. The Matador Espresso Blend was also being pulled from the Casadio 2-group Espresso Machine and tasting just as sweet and smooth as ever!

• Amoretti Martini Mixes- yes, we are now carrying a martini mix line, and yes, it is awesome! David was making martini’s all show and everyone loved them. We will be bringing in the Apple, Blueberry, Cosmopolitan, Lemon Drop, Mango, Mojito, Passion Fruit, Pomegranate, and Raspberry flavors, with more coming soon. They are super easy to make, made with the finest ingredients, and very reasonably priced.

• Umpqua Oats Oatmeal- this product never ceases to amaze us! We knew we liked this oatmeal when we first tried it, but never imagined how fast our customers would agree. It is one of the quickest products to take off for us and works perfectly for cafes to get that extra sale with your morning rush customer. These oatmeals are nutritious, delicious, and fast to make and with eight flavors including the “Not Guilty” which is salt and sugar free, who can go wrong?

• Cappuccine Red Velvet Frappe Mix- not only did this product win 2010 “best new beverage” at Seattle Coffee Fest, it continues to emerge as the next “must have” flavor at every cafe. We see a lot of new flavor ideas for blended beverages in our industry, but none have had the steam that the Red Velvet Cupcake frappe is making. It only helps the cause that Cappuccine has their own EXCLUSIVE Whipped Cream Cheese topping recipe on their website that completes this delightfully different cupcake in a cup.

• Fabbri 1905 Pastry Ingredients from Italy- delipastes aren’t just for gelato anymore. Tom Trieschmann from Fabbri has been helping us learn about all the amazing pastry applications for many of the products we carry and have only used for ice cream and gelato in the past. Tom personally sampled out the famous “Amarena” cherry of Italy that Fabbri is known for and started the company over 100 years ago. These Fabbri Amarena cherries are sour and intense and are like nothing you have ever tried before!

• David Rio Chai- this is a brand new product for us that we just had to bring in after sampling. We have known for years that David Rio Chai’s had a great reputation, but it wasn’t until we made some ourselves that we really understood just how good it really is. There are eight amazing flavors including Tiger Spice Chai, Elephant Vanilla, and Tortoise Green Tea. This chai is easy to prepare hot, iced, or blended, it is Kosher Certified, Gluten Free, and has No Hydrogenated Oils or Trans Fats.

• International Paper Hold & Go “Flamenco” Design, Insulated Hot Cups- these cups are the ultimate hot cup in the industry. It was hard not to spot a Flamenco hot cup in someone’s hand when walking the show. With so many people trying our coffees and espressos you wouldn’t have to look far to see the beautiful dancer silhouette. Even many of the presenters and speakers at the show could be seen sipping from our snazzy cups during their presentations! These cups are part of the “Sustainable Forestry Initiative” which promotes sustainable forest management and is something we feel is very important. Not only are they double-walled which means no sleeve is needed, but the lids are universal meaning the same lid fits the 12oz, 16oz, and 20oz cups!

(For pricing or additional product information, please Contact Us. Thank you.)

Upper Midwest Gourmet and Flamenco Organic Coffee Company will be in booth 748 for the 2011 WI Restaurant Show.

Where: Frontier Airlines Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Booth 748)

When: March 21st-23rd (11am-5pm Monday, 10am-5pm Tuesday, 10am-3pm Wednesday)

Here is a link to the show for more information: WI RESTAURANT EXPO

See you there!

Upper Midwest Gourmet now has a Facebook Page!

Yeah right. I hear it many times a week from coffee shop owners who wonder why their sales are going down and their shop isn’t going to survive. They continue to offer non FTO coffee because it costs less money and kid themselves into believing that they have the only consumers in America that don’t care about FTO products.  I argue that they are not saving money but driving customers away from their store.   Sales of Fair Trade Certified Coffee in grocery stores alone rose 30% this year to $140 million dollars! Fair Trade is growing despite the bad economy. Why? Fair Trade is 100% consumer driven, that is why. If you think your customers don’t care you are flat out wrong and don’t understand Americans philosophy on Fair Trade. Three fourths of respondents in a 2009 BBMG conscious consumer report stated that they believe they can make a difference by buying products from socially and environmentally responsible companies. Two thirds said buying products with social and environmental benefits is important in tough economic times and MORE THAN HALF SAID THEY WOULD PAY MORE!!!!! If grocery stores are adding more Fair Trade it’s only because consumers are demanding it. Nobody wants to sell products that cost more. They do it because customers are leaving their stores and going somewhere else to buy what they believe is as good a product if not better and they are making the world a better place at the same time. Stop kidding yourself, your customers care and you should too. The specialty coffee customer is the number 1 buyer for FTO products. If you own a Specialty Coffee Store and don’t sell Fair Trade Organic coffee what are you waiting for?

Yes, it is finally that time of year again to evaluate coffees from all of Minnesota’s roasteries and vote for your favorite. Please come out to Calhoun Coffee Festival at Calhoun Square in Uptown Minneapolis on November 20th, 2010 from 10am to 3pm to help support Second Harvest Heartland and vote for the best coffee in the Twin Cities! Flamenco Organic is proud to be a part of this great event every year and can’t wait to see all of our fans out in full force. Feel free to contact us for more information, thanks for your support.

Next time you are making your way from the Twin Cities down to Rochester or if you are just enjoying Southern Minnesota make sure to stop in Pine Island at the Better Brew Coffeehouse! They are preparing the best coffee drinks in their area and are always happy to meet someone new.

If it is high quality ingredients prepared perfectly that makes you happy, then this cafe is sure to put a huge smile on your face.

The owner, Marie, along with her other awesome ladies on her staff, know what they are doing and take pride in every drink, baked good, or meal that they create. They care about being organic, fair-trade, and eco-concious which is right up UMG’s alley. If you want a great experience with some yummy treats then you need to go to Better Brew Coffeehouse today!

Better Brew Coffeehouse
Owner/Manager: Marie Hlava
301 North Main St.
Pine Island, MN 55936

507-356-2100

We are always open to bringing in new products that our customers request, especially when those products are right in line with our social and ecological values. These are some of the newest items that we are now stocking because you asked for it.

PureVia (Stevia) “100% Natural, Zero Calories” Sweetener

CE Organics “Fair Trade / Organic” Chocolate Sauce

(For pricing or additional product information, please Contact Us. Thank you.)

We had a blast at Coffee Fest Minneapolis this year and want to say “Thank You” to everyone that stopped by our booth and chatted with us.

Our Flamenco coffees were very well-received by all and we are glad that we waited until to this show to unveil our newest dark blend, Minnesota Mudd! The Rancilio Lever machine pulled some amazing Matador espresso shots to anyone that needed that extra caffeine.

The Barista Fria Smoothies and Frappes (with the awesome ice shaving machine) definitely caught a lot of people’s attention. Per usual, we were the only ones with Italian Gelato and Sorbetto that we made fresh for the show! Also starring in our booth were the new flavors from Cappuccine being blended on a Vita-Mix blender (Cafe Mocha Chip & Mint Chip Cookies and Creme) and the new flavor from Big Train being blended on a BlendTec blender (No Sugar Added Vanilla Smoothie).

It is customers like all of you that took part in the show that make our jobs as great as they are. We will continue to work as hard as possible to serve you as a leader in the cafe industry. At Upper Midwest Gourmet we pride ourselves on being more than just a  distributor and a roastery, but a business that makes sure your busines is successful.

Here are some pictures from the festival:

If you have interest in these products or working with us, please Contact Us. Thanks again,