Door County Coffee & Tea Co. (5773 Highway 42, Sturgeon Bay)
During a visit to Door County, Vicki Wilson, founder and CEO of Door County Coffee & Tea Co., 5773 Highway 42, Sturgeon Bay, and husband, Douglas, were immediately drawn to the trendy yet quaint, relaxing feel of the area. She worked as a buyer for Shopko at the time, and at age 40, she was itching for something else to do. After reading an article about a coffee roaster in Madison, a light bulb went on.
“I love coffee and I love Door County, so I conducted a year’s worth of research and realized there was an opportunity to create a premium brand coffee to match everything else great that Door County has to offer,” she explains. Wilson gave up her full-time job and went full speed ahead into the venture in 1993.
Door County Coffee’s 40,000 square foot roasting facility, café and retail store has a Cape Cod feel that fits the coastal ambiance of the area. They have unflavored and flavored coffees. Spring brings flavors like Raspberry Almond or Blueberry. Wilson notes that those flavors work particularly well with the cold brew method, in which the coffee grounds are steeped in cold water for about 15 to 18 hours, resulting in a smooth, rich coffee with less acidity.
Autumn brings Pumpkin or Wisconsin Harvest Blend, a medium roast with hints of roasted chestnuts and sweet, nutty pralines. Around the holidays, there’s vanilla flavored White Christmas or Jingle Bell Java, with flavors of toasted pecans, caramel and vanilla.
Standard flavors include Highlander Grogg, an Irish cream with caramel, or Turtles in a Cup, a chocolaty blend flavored similar to caramel Turtles candy. Those preferring non-flavored coffee can find Breakfast Blend, a medium roast of Columbian and Costa Rica-grown coffee. One of their darker coffees, Death’s Door, is named after the popular Lake Michigan diving area that’s full of shipwrecks.
Other nods to Door County include Lighthouse Blend, a dark roast of Guatemalan and Sumatran beans, and Cherry Crème. Wilson says they started the company with popular flavors like vanillas and nutty varieties, and they added more flavors to meet customer demand. “We introduce new flavors, see what floats to the top, and then drop off the slower selling ones.”
Door County Coffee works with a coffee importer that formed the same year they had launched. They source Specialty Class One Arabica beans, while working in a socially responsible way with coffee farmers. A tea importer also blends specialty tea for the café and for purchase.
All varieties of Door County Coffee are available at their retail store, along with many local gourmet foods and gift items. The café offers a full breakfast and lunch menu with scratch-made bakery, strada, quiche, scratch-made soups and an assortment of sandwiches and salads. The café has a full espresso bar. Signature coffee drinks include nitro mocha, nitrogen infused foamy coffee with a texture similar to Guinness beer.
“People stop in on their way up to Door County destinations, and they stop in on the way home,” Wilson says. “I’m proud of our staff, as there are people here today and those who have retired that really put their stamp on Door County Coffee.” The Wilson’s two sons, Conrad and Douglas Jr., also work for the business.
Door County Coffee is available in Milwaukee at several small cafés, as well as Woodman’s, Sentry, Sendik’s, Pick ’n Save and Piggly Wiggly.
For more information, visit doorcountycoffee.com.
