When John Punch was working for a nonprofit in Budapest, Hungary, he became intrigued by the European coffee culture.
Now, he is starting to integrate his favorite aspects of the culture into his business, Yogurt Fusion & Coffee, by introducing specialty coffees next week.
Punch has partnered with Sightglass Coffee in San Francisco to provide coffee beans to create foamy cappuccinos, steamy lattes and several brew methods for basic drip coffee at Yogurt Fusion.
“I reached out to them, sampled the product, loved it, and wanted to make sure that people in Denton and our growing coffee culture had an opportunity to experience this level of coffee,” Punch said.
The owners of Sightglass have relationships with all of their coffee bean growers, so they have total quality control over the product and know how it’s being produced. This makes for a better cup of coffee, Punch said.
Through the partnership, Yogurt Fusion will serve only Sightglass’ coffees, but the coffee company offers variety. There will be different roasts, and beans from across Latin America, the Pacific and Africa.
“We are trying to widen the brewing palate of coffee lovers, so we’re not just doing espresso,” Punch said. “We want people to also enjoy long drip methods.”
The shop will teach people these other methods, demonstrating them as the coffee is made. Punch will also lead coffee education classes on the first Tuesday of the month, starting this week, by showcasing the different Sightglass coffees.
He also hopes to introduce people to the methods that make the best kinds of coffee.
“It’s not that we’re just getting great coffee, but we’re employing great methods to brew great coffee in tandem with great customer service, and hopefully a cool environment,” Punch said.
Moving forward with the collaboration, the shop will also add a coffee bar on one side of the store, where customers can test out different brew menus and styles.
Punch, who has owned Yogurt Fusion for about a year, said he wanted to get a feel for being on the Square before introducing new concepts. The store, which opened in 2010, has always offered coffee, but it’s time to elevate that part of the menu, he said.
“We’ve had a coffee menu, but we want it to be more interactive so we can begin to explain what different brews are,” Punch said. “It’s always been the desire to grow it like this, but the timing is right now.”
JENNA DUNCAN can be reached at 940-566-6889 and via Twitter at @JennaFDuncan.
