Mayorga is proud to announce two new additions to its growing presence in airports throughout the mid-Atlantic. As the company introduces its fine coffees to an ever-widening audience, Mayorga's commitment to quality and sustainability remain the cornerstone of the family-owned business. “We play a unique role among the airports' food and beverage selection,” states founder and President Martin Mayorga. “To each of our stores, we bring lovingly hand-crafted, small-batch roasted Specialty-grade coffees carefully scrutinized for their environmental and social impact from origin to cup.” The company is proud to count Reagan National and Dulles Airports among an airport family that also includes a kiosk at BWI and three locations at Pittsburgh International.

With a rich historical presence in Washington DC, Reagan National Airport (DCA) was transformed in 1997 to the modern showcase of efficiency that nearly 18 million passengers have come to expect. Mayorga will open two locations in this airport, including both Terminal B and Terminal C, These locations are expected to open October, 2006.

Dulles Airport (IAD) is a world-class facility through which more than 27 million travelers pass each year. The Mayorga Coffee store, scheduled to open in March of 2007, will bring fresh new offerings to Concourse A, where 35 commuter gates see the most foot traffic throughout the entire airport.

These full-service coffee bars, serving the spectrum of expertly-prepared coffee and espresso beverages, offer the all-organic line of Honest Teas as well as fresh pastries from local artisan bakers, Uptown Bakers. For the weary traveler, a visit to Mayorga is a welcome oasis and an opportunity to enjoy a truly authentic coffee experience.

You’ve already established that you’re a coffee lover. You have tried a number of different regions, blends, and roasts, and you have begun to identify certain flavor characteristics that are most to your liking. But you wonder: are certain coffees more complementary with certain foods than others? Does food pairing apply to coffee as much as it does to wine? How can you tell?

Coffee tasting is immensely personal.There are no steadfast rules, but, as with wine,there are certain guidelines that might help you get started. Don’t be timid—deviating from the established path is not only acceptable, but absolutely necessary to truly developing your palate. Once you’ve started to think about the nuances of a coffee’s flavor profile, the interesting combinations and experimentations are endless.

Since we often drink our morning coffee with such breakfast foods as toast, muffins, and bagels, you might want to try pairing your breakfast with a bright, mild-to-medium roast from Central and South America. These coffees tend to have medium to high acidity, which means that they will taste bright—almost a certain tingle on the tongue— a perfect sensation to accompany waking up and welcoming the day. These coffees are usually well-balanced, often with a hint of sweetness that is a gentle companion to your morning meal.

African coffees, on the other hand, tend to be spicy and wine-like, with a wild, often citrusey quality; their medium, syrupy body and medium acidity shows off these typically medium-to-dark-roasted coffees to maximum effect when paired with a deep, sweet dessert like milk chocolate or cheesecake. Each flavor is brought out, rather than masked by, the other; you will get the full experience of both your dessert and your coffee, and will be able to taste all of the rich, subtle flavors.

Dark and very-dark blends and espressos are an excellent match for rich desserts such as dark chocolates and even cheeses. Look for a flavor profile that is robust, smooth, powerful, or hearty when choosing a coffee for one of these foods. Sumatras and other Asian and Indonesian coffees will usually fit nicely into this grouping.

Again, be sure and take the above descriptions as reference points only-- there is an endless variety of possible pairings, and it is often the unusual choices that produce the most spectacular and unexpected results.

08/25 - 08/27: Beltsville, MD, Gaithersburg, MD, Newington, VA
09/01 – 09/03: Christiana, DE, Frederick, MD, Leesburg, VA
09/08 – 09/10: King of Prussia, PA, Montgomeryville, PA
09/15 – 09/17: Arundel Mills, MD, Glen Burnie, MD, White Marsh, MD
09/22 – 09/24: Chantilly, VA, Fairfax, VA, Manassas, VA
09/29 – 10/01: Cranberry, PA, Robinson, PA