Ken

You liked it when we introduced the limited Café EXPRESS discount in February.

You really liked it when we extended it to May.

And now we hope you’ll really, really like it when we make the savings of $2.50 off every K-Cup® portion pack permanent.

Yes: Permanent.

All Café EXPRESS members will now save $2.50 per K-Cup box instead of our old $2 discount.  That means the typical 4-box order will now save $10 plus receive FREE shipping.  And Platinum members will now always save $3 per K-Cup box.

That’s savings ($2.50-off per box; $1-off per bag), variety (over 50 varieties of your favorite brands), and convenience (change your order, adjust the delivery schedule, and check your current order status - all online!) in one club.  Plus, it’s the freshest direct-from-the-roaster taste you’ll find, delivered right to your door – now, that’s a coffee club worth joining.

So, let us know: Do you really, really like it?

We're very proud of the hard working folks in our Call Centers.  They really, really, really want to help.

So we were particularly pleased when TheSpyMom.com decided to write about a great experience she had with us.  Customer Service Rep Lisa Saunders received the call from TheSpyMom's author, who also happens to be a Cafe EXPRESS member.  Apparently, the author was extremely happy with Lisa, stating:

"the woman who I was connected with was absolutely wonderful"

Thank you, TheSpyMom.com -- we too think Lisa is pretty wonderful.  They also wrote that we're a "Customer Service Gem" and "Green Mountain Coffee values their customers and takes pride in the qualify of their products." Click here to read TheSpyMom's full blog post.

If anyone is ever having any Customer Service issues or if we can help in any way, please call us at 888-879-4627.

Have you had a good experience with our service reps?  If so, please leave us a comment (see below) to tell us about it.  Thanks!

UPDATE 3/23/2010: Great news!  We have extended the improved Cafe EXPRESS discount through to May 1st!!!  Enjoy your savings, Cafe EXPRESS members.  Not a member?  Click here to learn more.

ORIGINAL STORY from 2/4/2010: For now through April 1st, all Cafe EXPRESS members will save $2.50 per box of K-Cups instead of our usual $2 discount.  That means the typical the 4 box order will save $10 plus receive FREE Shipping.  This is our best offer yet, so act now.

If you are not a member of Cafe EXPRESS, now is the perfect time to join.  If you are a member, sit back and enjoy the extra savings.  If you are a member and your next order is scheduled to ship in April, change your next order to February or March.  And if you are a Platinum member, you'll save $3 a box.  What's Cafe EXPRESS Platinum?  Click here to learn.

We hope these extra savings make Cafe EXPRESS that much more of an enjoyable experience.  We think it's the most convenient way for Keurig brewer owners to buy K-Cups.    Cafe EXPRESS is free to join, offers better prices, greater variety and the freshest direct-from-the-roaster taste.  Click here to read how current members love Cafe EXPRESS.

And over the next few months, we'll have even more innovative K-Cups to choose from.  Stay tuned!

3/4/2010 Update:  GMC Hot Cocoa and all the Cafe Escapes cocoa items are now available!  Please use the links below.  Thanks.

3/2/2010 Update:  Well, we've got some good news and some bad news.  The good news is that Green Mountain Coffee Hot Cocoa will be available very soon.  We expect to have this available Thursday evening, March 4th.  And we will have a steady supply so that you can feel good about adding this product to your recurring Cafe EXPRESS orders.

As for Cafe Escapes, we will have a limited quantity of all four items available for sale this Thursday evening, March 4th.  Due to the limited quantities, we can NOT let folks add these products to recurring Cafe EXPRESS club orders.  We believe we have only 3 weeks worth of product for all four Cafe Escapes products.  We are VERY sorry about this.  If you enjoy our Cafe Escapes products, please get them now!

2/4/2010 Update:  I am told by our Production folks that we can expect Hot Cocoa products to be available by March 1st.  Wahoo!  A big THANK YOU to all our Hot Cocoa k-cup loyalists who have waited so patiently for these products.

1/20/2010:  It pains me to type this, but I'm afraid all of our Hot Cocoa K-Cup products are out of stock.  Due to incredible demand, we're told we will not have any Hot Cocoa K-Cups to sell from our web site until mid-February (at best).

Let me assure everyone that we are NOT discontinuing these products.  We love these products - and clearly you do, too!

On a personal level, my two kids ask me everyday when I'll be able to bring home some new Hot Cocoa.  Hopefully, in a few weeks, I'll have good news for them and you!

These are the Hot Cocoa K-Cups that are out of stock:

• Café Escapes® Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa


• Café Escapes® Cafe Mocha


• Café Escapes® Dark Chocolate Hot Cocoa


• Green Mountain Coffee Hot Cocoa

-Ken

Fair Trade Month Quiz:

Question 22: What is Max Havelaar?

Answer: The name of the first Fair Trade certification initiative and a fictional Dutch character who opposed the exploitation of coffee pickers in Dutch colonies.

Haven’t answered our Fair Trade Quiz question of the day, yet? Well, why not? The answer’s right there! If that isn’t enough for you, the first 100 participants* get a sample of Green Mountain Coffee’s Fair Trade Certified™ Organic House Blend and all answers get entered to the grand prize drawing of 12-months of Green Mountain Coffee Fair Trade Certified™ Coffees. Go here to enter: http://www.eatdrinkandbefair.com/quiz.php.

*Sorry, employees and their immediate family members of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. are not eligible. But keep an eye out for our internal Fair Trade quiz.

---

While there’s no way to really know, we’d like to think that Max Havelaar would approve of our Fair Trade efforts at Green Mountain Coffee. Or, at least that he’d enjoy one of our most popular seasonal Fair Trade coffees, Pumpkin Spice.

Pumpkin Mocha Supreme

People tell us they can’t wait for fall…and then they stock up on Pumpkin Spice like little squirrels. The cinnamon and nutmeg flavors are even better when you add a touch of hot chocolate.  Try this yummy Fair Trade recipe:

Pumpkin Mocha Supreme

• Brew a pot of Fair Trade Certified™ Pumpkin Spice or get a K-Cup of Pumpkin Spice


• Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg in the bottom of the coffee cup


• Fill the cup halfway with hot coffee (either from your pot or your Keurig machine)


• Fill the remainder of the cup with hot chocolate.  (We carry Fair Trade Organic Hot Cocoa from Lake Champlain Chocolates in our catalog and on our web site.)


• Top with whipped cream and garnish with cinnamon and/or shaved chocolate

Enjoy!

-Ken

A big thank you to BizRate, our web site satisfaction partner, for awarding us our second Circle of Excellence award!  Actually, we have you, our loyal consumers to thank.  The award is given to web sites with the highest consumer scores for:

• Overall Satisfaction


• Product Selection


• Ease of Finding Products


• Likelihood to Shop Again


• Product Met Expectations


• On-time Delivery


• Customer Support

How does BizRate collect this info?  Rankings are based on survey responses from the pop-up window request after purchases on our retail site and all the other sites in the BizRate network.  Over 5,000 retail web sites participate in BizRate's survey system, but only the Top 3% of rated sites receive this award.

Thank you for all the positive and negative feedback you've provided through the BizRate survey.  Your feedback helps us improve our web site.

And while it's nice to receive this award, we do realize the transition to our new web platform has been rocky.  We deaply apologize for any problems you may have experienced.  If we can help out in any way, please call us at 888-879-4627.  Thank you.

We get a lot of questions and suggestions about the best way to store K Cups, aesthetically speaking. We think we've got three pretty good solutions, though we're always searching for more.

Our most popular storage device is our chrome K-Cup Carousel. It holds 27 K-Cups, looks great in any modern kitchen, and spins for easy use.  To learn more, click here.

 

For those seeking something more rustic and casual, we recommend our K-Cup Storage Baskets.  The baskets hold a total of 2 boxes of K-Cups (48+).  Click here for more details.

 

But maybe you'd like something more streamlined?  Try our K-Cup Tower.  It holds 30 K-Cups and rotates, lazy-Susan-like.

Still can't find what you want?  Come back in September -- we're adding four more storage options with the distribution of our new fall catalog.

Click here to see our full line of Keurig Accessories.

Have any k-cup storage ideas of your own?  We'd love to hear 'em -- please reply with comments or even e-mail us a digital picture at CustomerCare@gmcr.com .

Wondering how to brew a refreshing iced tea using your Keurig brewer and our new Perfect Iced Tea K-Cups?  If so, check out the video demonstration below.  Hopefully Jessica's demo answers all your questions.  If not, give us a call at 888-879-4627.

We've also created a fancy Flash demo of these Perfect Iced Tea K-Cups, because there is no such thing as too much media, right?  I'm drinking the Unsweetened Black Tea as I type this, and it's delicious.  Give 'em a try!

That's right, you read that correctly:  ICED TEA K-CUPS. 

Our New Product wizards have worked with Celestial Seasoning's Blendmasters to come up with four delicous, ready-to-individually-brew iced teas.  Forget those weak powders.  Stop hogging the fridge with that big ol' pitcher.  Use your Keurig brewer, these Perfect Iced Tea k-cups, and the right cup filled with ice for the ultimate summer treat.

Refreshment is as easy as choose, brew and enjoy.  Click here for a fun demonstration of how they work.  Click here to see all four K-Cups.  Try them all:

• Sweet Raspberry Black Iced Tea


• Sweet Peach Black Iced Tea


• Sweet Lemon Black Iced Tea


• Unsweetened Black Iced Tea

All three sweetened teas use only naturally milled cain sugar with no artificial sweeteners.  Enjoy!

If you ever get the chance, volunteer for your local chapter of Habitat For Humantity.

One great aspect of working here at GMCR is our commitment to community service:  each employee gets up to 52 hours of paid leave to volunteer for their community.  Recently, some members of the Marketing department spent a day with Chittendon County, VT chapter of Habitat For Humanity.  We worked side-by-side with the soon-to-be new home owner and other HFH volunteers, helping to add insulation, a roof and other basics to a new home.

Habitat For Humanity's goal is simple:  to build simple, decent, affordable houses with those who lack adequate shelter.  To donate or learn more, click here.

Since we announced Cafe EXPRESS Platinum back in April, we received many kind words of thanks from our wonderful Cafe EXPRESS members.  Here are some of our favorites:

This is a very nice benefit, and a good incentive! Thank you. -- R

Thank you for increasing my plan status to platinum.  The extra 2.50 savings is most welcome.  My husband, son and I enjoy your coffee several times daily.  I also have a keruig at work so I don' miss my coffee.  In fact, I've converted several  D***** D***** drinkers to the Green Mt. brand.    We have become coffee snobs.  It's difficult to find coffees out in restaurants that have any where near the full flavor of green mountain coffees. -- Nancy M.

That's cool, it will be even cheaper now WOOP WOOP! -- Ali G. (really)

Just a quick thank you for the Platinum status. In these economic troubles, we realize the sacrifices you are making to your customers by offering such a generous discount. Also know though, this means a great deal to my family and we very much appreciate the thought. Have a nice day! -- Patti W H

I don't think I've ever had that happen to us!  Thank you, what a gift! -- Ann S.

YAY! Thanks!! -- Jennifer D.

Thank you for the extra discount, we love your coffee and the coffee dispenser - MN264

We appreciate the discount on our Green Mt. Express bag orders! THANKS!! -- Liv and Jim S. (Who lived in Vermont 44 years, and love your coffee!)

Thanks to all for the nice feedback.  If you'd like to learn how to save money on your K-Cup or wholebean/ground coffee, please check out our Cafe EXPRESS program.  Plus, you can't beat the program's convenience.  Before you know it, you'll qualify for Cafe EXPRESS Platinum.

the machine emits “a weird blue light, like from ET,” Caraccio said. “I stared at it a lot during the all-nighters.”

For all-nighters, I recommend our Extra Bold Dark Magic, for obvious reasons.

Join people from around the world and celebrate World Fair Trade Day on May 9th.  www.worldfairtradeday09.org.  Make sure you check out the messages from Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox and others.

Learn more about our Fair Trade efforts at www.GreenMountainCoffee.com/FT

 

Caribou K-Cups are now available on our web site and Cafe EXPRESS!  We have eight new Caribou K-Cups to choose from, including five which are Rainforest Alliance certified and two that are naturally decaffeinated.  My favorite is the Mahogany.  You'll also see these listed in our upcoming Spring catalog.

Did you know that Caribou has over 450+ coffee shops in the Midwest, Southeast and the Rockies?  Create that coffeehouse feeling in your own home by giving these K-Cups a try.  Please let us know how you like them.

UPDATE: We've receive a few questions about what exactly are the Tree Nuts called out on Cafe Escapes K-Cups label.   The tree nut referred to in the ingredient listing is highly refined Coconut Oil. It is so refined that the FDA does not require that it be listed in the nutritional information, but we do, as a precaution.  All of our Café Escapes and Hot Cocoa contain tree nuts in the form of Coconut Oil.  Each of the Hot Cocoa and Café Escapes items we offer have specific nutritional information on our website under “Tasting Notes” on their product page.  The Nutritional label can also be viewed in the product images (under "More Photos"), as well as on the actual box.

UPDATE 3/23/11: The wait is over: Cafe Escapes Chai Latte is back!

We are very proud to announce a new brand to our K-Cup line-up:  Café Escapes.  Café Escapes are an anytime indulgence.  Launching today are Cafe Escapes Dark Chocolate Hot Cocoa and Cafe Escapes Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa.  Coming soon will be Café Mocha, Chai Latte.

The new hot cocoa k-cups will be available for a limited time only at GreenMountainCoffee.com and Keurig.com.  Also, for now through April 16th, we're offering them at a special low introductory price.

Please give them a try and let us know how you like them, by either replying to this blog post or "write a review" on our site.  Thanks!

Good news flavor fanatics:  our Winter Seasonal French Toast coffee is back in both K-Cup and traditional Ground packaging.  Enjoy it's wonderful buttery smell as it brews.

In addition, our dark-roasted Wicked Winter coffee is back too, in K-Cup and Ground. 

Better get 'em before they run out 'cause they'll be gone by spring!

A hearty "thank you" to Wired magazine for their extremely favorable review of our Keurig B30 Mini Brewer.  They actually call the cute little brewer a "lifesaver".  Our favorite quote from the review is this:

For busy professionals, the Keurig Mini single-cup brewer can be a lifesaver. Operation is simple enough for sleepwalkers: Pour water into the tank, pop a fresh K-Cup cartridge of grounds into the holder, and push a button. In three minutes, you've got a steaming cup of joe.

Click here to see the full review.

Have you spotted our new Keurig television ad on FoodTV, The Today Show or one of your other favorite shows?  Our new ad just started hitting the airwaves this week.  Kudos to the Keurig team down in Reading, MA for doing such a nice job with this ad.  Take a look:

We'd like to thank US News & World Report for the wonderful Green Mountain Coffee article that was published this week.  Click here to read it.  Here's my favorite quote from the article:

 The company's roots are in specialty coffee sales, but its crown jewel—the Keurig machine—is the market leader among single-cup brewers, accounting for more than half of all machines sold.

We have just reached a wonderful milestone:  100,000 active Cafe EXPRESS members!  Hooray!  At roughly 11am EST on Monday, November 3rd we received a phone call from Miriam Crump of San Angelo, Texas.  Miriam, who absolutely loves her Keurig brewer, decided to get her K-Cups through Cafe EXPRESS.  And with this decision, our Cafe EXPRESS active membership totalled 100,000 for the very first time.  And it continues to grow.

I called and emailed Miriam to ask her why she signed up for Cafe EXPRESS.  She said its because of how much she likes her brewer.  Here's her email reply:

I would like to tell you the story of how I fell in love with the Keurig coffee maker and how I got one of my own.  While on vacation in New York I stayed with a friend who had the Keurig coffee maker.  My husband, daughter and myself were there and we all were very impressed.  It is nice because we all like different hot drinks.  My husband likes regular coffee, I like flavored coffees and my daughter likes flavored teas and hot chocolate.  With the Keurig you make one cup/mug at a time.  It is always hot with great flavor.  There is no coffee grinds or mess involved with the Keurig.  There are a great many choices of regular coffees, flavored coffees as well as all different kinds of teas.  When we came home my daughter asked what I wanted for Christmas.  I told her a Keurig coffee maker.  So I got one for Christmas and we have all been enjoying it ever since.  Thanks for reading my story.  Hope you enjoy!!    Miriam R. Crump
 

Rock on, Miriam!  And welcome to Cafe EXPRESS -- we hope you and your fellow 100,207  members (as of 5:38pm Nov 4th) stay with us for a long time!