Gevalia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gevalia is the largest coffee roastery in Scandinavia. It is located in Gävle (Gevalia in Latin).
Gevalia was introduced in 1853 in Sweden by Victor Theodore Engwall & Co. After 120 years as a family company it was sold in 1971 to Kraft Foods.
Gevalia produces 40,000 metric tons of coffee every year. Most of it is sold in Sweden, Denmark and in the Baltic area, but some is exported to America.
Gevalia began North American sales, via mail-order delivery service, in 1983. Gevalia is perhaps most well known for its introductory offer of the incentive of a free coffeemaker and other coffee related incentives of relatively higher value brand name coffeemakers for the cost of shipping for trying their coffees. These offers were seen in magazine advertisements, direct mailings, and television commercials until their intense internet presence of online advertisements in banner and email form. Some of these Gevalia.com advertisements were the basis of the 2005 Hypertouch based lawsuit.
A mainstream supermarket brand in Europe, Gevalia is marketed in the United States as an expensive, ultra-premium brand. Gevalia holds the Royal Warrant for coffee roasters from the H.M. the King of Sweden. Gevalia also maintains an Office Coffee Service, offering premium mail-order coffee by the case, as well as premium coffee singles.
Gevalia is the primary coffee brand for the Tassimo coffee maker in the United States, but notice that this machine is developed by Kraft Foods.
Contents |
[edit] Coffees and Teas
As of February 2007, Gevalia offers over 40 coffees and teas, according to Gevalia.com. The majority of these coffees are Arabica blends, using premium quality beans from Kenya, Guatemala, Colombia, and Costa Rica. Gevalia Kaffe is composed of up to 6 different varieties of these hard-to-grow Arabica beans as well as high-quality Brazilian beans, which creates a balanced acidity for a more complex and poignant flavor.
Gevalia offers these blends via its mail order subscription program, best known for offering a free coffeemaker in exchange for joining the program. Although their portfolio is constantly being updated and improved, their current product offering (as of February 2007) is as such:
Premium Roasts & Blends
- Traditional Roast
- Light Roast
- Dark Roast
- Espresso Roast
- French Roast
- Signature Blend
- Breakfast Blend
Select Varietals
- Antigua
- Colombia
- Costa Rica Peaberry
- Jamaica Blue Mountain
- Kenya
- Kona
- Mocca Java
- Peruvian Organic
European Coffeehouse Collection
- Antico Caffé Greco (c): Inspired by the coffeehouses of Rome
- Café De Oriente (c): Inspired by the coffeehouses of Madrid
- Café Le Procope (c): Inspired by the coffeehouses of Paris
- Café Sperl (c): Inspired by the coffehouses of Vienna
Flavored Blends
- Amaretto
- Chocolate Raspberry
- Cinnamon
- French Vanilla
- Hazelnut
- Irish Creme (non-alcoholic)
- Mocha
- Vanilla Nut
Traditional Teas
- English Breakfast
- Earl Grey
- Afternoon Revival (R)
- Decaffeinated Classic Black Tea
Flavored Teas
- Ceylon Cinnamon Orange
- Blackberry Spice
Herbal Teas
- Honey Ginseng Mint
- Chamomile Dream (R)
- Lemon Berry Breeze (R)
Green Teas
- China Mountain Green (R)
- Ancient Cherry (R)
- Citrus Green
- Jasmine Gardens (R)
[edit] News
In 2005, Kraft was sued by Hypertouch, an ISP, for spamming its Gevalia coffee brand. Kraft was accused of sending multiple waves of junk advertisement to the ISP's customers, the action brought under the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 act. The parties resolved their dispute by mutual agreement and the litigation has been dismissed.[citation needed]
[edit] Trivia
Gevalia coffee appeared to be blatantly advertised by Rob Corddry on a 2003 episode of the satirical The Daily Show when a photo showing a crate of Gevalia left outside Qusay Hussein's home in the hot Iraqi sun was offered as definitive proof that Qusay Hussein was really dead - since no-one would leave such "fantastically aromatic coffee beans out in the sun like that".
