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Valentine to Chicago Cup 1925

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Valentine to Chicago Cup 1925

Carrie Masek

For our last Coffee Valentine, we thought we'd do something a little different and write a valentine for one of our favorite blends, the locally inspired Chicago Cup 1925.

Chicago Cup is a big coffee, medium-bodied, with lively citrus and floral topnotes balanced by toffee sweetness and chocolate richness. It's a coffee with big shoulders, perfect for the Windy City.

Thinking of a valentine for Chicago Cup, reminded us of another Valentine's Day in Chicago, February 14, 1929. In a warehouse at 2122 N. Clark St., seven men were gunned down by assailants posing as police officers. The St. Valentine's Day Massacre was the worst example of gang violence Chicago had ever seen, and while no one was charged with the murders, police were convinced that Al Capone, the Italian crime boss who ran most of the bootlegging operations in Chicago, ordered the attack to break Bugs Moran's gang. The Irish gangster had been horning in on Capone's territory and stealing whiskey that Capone had smuggled into Chicago.

The St. Valentine's Day Massacre broke the Moran gang, but the outrage it caused led to the Federal investigations that eventually put Capone in prison for tax evasion.

Chicago had a wild reputation throughout the Prohibition era, but then as now, most people in the city were law abiding citizens who did their best to avoid gangsters of all stripes. Most folks did not frequent speakeasies or buy bootlegged whiskey. Most drank coffee, coffee very like our Chicago Cup 1925. Here's our valentine to to that coffee:

I'm feeling pretty gangster on this eve of Valentine's,

I sip Chicago Cup, the scent and flavor intertwines

And takes me back in history to the Roaring 20's days

Where Al Capone ran bootleg for Untouchables to raze.

The rich and complex flavors claim dominion in my mouth.

And create a smooth elixir for the North Side and the South.

My cup of Windy City Joe beats bootlegged alcohol.

No whiskey spike is needed, straight-up brew is best of all.

Thanks for reading today's Valentine. Join the conversation and send a valentine to your favorite Coffee by the Roast coffee by leaving a response in the Facebook thread or a comment on this blog. Or, if you'd like to send your valentines to the wider world of coffee lovers, leave us a coffee review on Google or on your favorite review site. Not only do we value your opinions, but reviews help more people find us. Help us connect coffee lovers to fresh, quality coffee and spread the love of coffee this February!

~ Carrie, Paul and all of us at Coffee by the Roast

Check out these links for more information on Al Capone and the St. Valentine's Day Massacre. https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/al-capone

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/chi-chicagodays-valentinesmassacre-story-story.html

https://www.prairieghosts.com/valentine.html