Suggest a Special!

We've got our April Featured Flavors picked out, but we're looking ahead to May and trying to decide what to serve. So, we're opening it up to you! Leave a comment below with a flavor combination and drink name, and if we choose your suggestion, you'll get one on the house!

A few guidelines:

1. When making suggestions, please use existing ingredients (see our menu for a list of syrup flavors). We are much less likely to use a suggestion that requires an ingredient we have to go shopping for.

2. Make sure you comment using an e-mail address that we can get back to you at. We don't sell or rent your info, but we do need to send you a coupon for the free drink.

3. Feel free to submit as many different ideas as you want, but don't submit the same idea over and over. However, if we don't use your idea this time, we will run contests like this in the future, feel free to resubmit then.

4. Of course, if two people have suggested the same flavor combination, the winner will be the person who commented first.

5. Remember, people like their coffee. Suggestions using tea, chai or other non-coffee beverages will be considered, but it's been our experience that drinks that are specifically non-coffee don't sell as well.

6. We like the names of our Featured Flavors to invoke the month, or time of year. Please keep this in mind when coming up with a name (and May-Day Mocha is already taken...).

We will announce the winner in late April and send out the winner's free drink coupon by May 1.

A brief ordering guide

Ordering coffee can be intimidating. There are a lot of options, and sometimes it feels like a completely different language - which it almost is, there's certainly a lot of Italian in the world of espresso drinks! Rest assured that the baristas at YellowLeaf are willing and able to help you work out the drink that's right for your tastes.

There are five simple steps to ordering a drink, and most of the time, you really only need to know the first three!

1. Size of cup - We try to keep things simple and have Small (12 oz.), Regular (16 oz.) and Large (hot 20 oz., iced 24 oz.). If you order a "Tall" or "Grande" we will probably ask again what size you want. While some coffee shops use those terms, not everyone uses them the same. A tall at one shop might be a small or it might be a large.

2. Hot or cold - Knowing the size and type of cup to use, your barista can write out the rest of your order on the cup itself, ensuring an accurate and quality beverage.

3. Name of drink - Do you want a latte, mocha, americano or something else? If you want a flavored latte or mocha, now's the time to tell your barista what flavor you want.

4. Add-ins - Now it's time to ask for extra shots of espresso, additional flavors, sweetener, soy milk, or any other personalization options.

5. Additional instructions - Do you want the drink extra hot, or cooler than normal? Do you want whipped cream? Cinnamon sprinkled on top? Do you want your freeze extra thick? These finishing touches are what make the drink YOUR drink!

For example, an order might sound like this: "I'd like a small, hot mocha with two shots, non-fat milk at 180 degrees. No whipped cream."

Feel free to ask us questions if you're not sure of something. We want you to enjoy your YellowLeaf experience. We want to help you get the order right, so that no matter which of our baristas serve you, we can provide a consistent, quality experience.

For further information on drinks and personalization options, take a look at our online menu.

Featured Flavors Archive

Most of our past Featured Flavors can be made any time of year! Explore past specials and remember your favorites! (Any seasonal only Featured Flavor will be marked with *** to indicate it is not currently available)

January 2010

Nutty New Year - English Toffee and Hazelnut syrup

New Leaf Latte - Caramel and Almond syrup

Resolution Latte - Sugar Free, Non-Fat Mocha (or any of our Sugar Free flavors)

February 2010

French Kiss Latte - Creamy Caramel, Hazelnut and Vanilla

Heartbreaker - White Chocolate and Raspberry with a dash of cinnamon sprinkled on top

Cherry Kiss - White Chocolate and Cherry

March 2010

Click here for March's Featured Flavors

April 2010

Click here for April's Featured Flavors

May 2010

Click here for May's Featured Flavors

June 2010

Click here for June's Featured Flavors

July 2010

Click here for July's Featured Flavors

August 2010

Click here for August's Featured Flavors

Featured Flavors, March 2010

In celebration of St. Patrick's Day, we have three Irish themed Featured Flavors!

The Lucky Charm Latte - White Chocolate and Irish Cream

The Pot o' Gold - Creamy Caramel and Irish Cream

The Leaping Leprechaun - Irish Cream, Hazelnut and a splash of Almond

Check back in early April for our new monthly Featured Flavors

Menu

The following drinks are available either hot or over ice. Our small size is 12 oz., regular is 16 oz. and large is 20 oz. hot, or 24 oz. on ice. A small drink has 1 shot of espresso, a regular has 2 and a large has 3. We prepare our drinks with whole milk or non-fat. Half and Half or Soy are available at an extra cost (see below). Prices shown here do not include tax.

Cafe Latte: Small - $2.65, Regular - $3.20, Large - $3.50

(espresso and milk)

Flavored Latte: Small - $2.90, Regular - $3.45, Large - $3.75

(a Cafe Latte with any syrup flavor)

Cafe Mocha: Small - $2.95, Regular - $3.50, Large - $3.80

(a Cafe Latte with chocolate - Also available in Sugar Free)

Flavored Mocha: Small - $3.35, Regular - $3.90, Large - $4.35

(a Cafe Mocha with added syrup flavor - a Raspberry Mocha, for example)

Mocha Bianca: Small - $3.35, Regular - $3.90, Large - $4.35

(a Cafe Latte with white chocolate)

Cappuccino: Small - $2.65, Regular - $3.20, Large - $3.50

(Espresso shots with frothy steamed milk)

Creamy Caramel Latte: Small - $2.95, Regular - $3.50, Large - $3.80

(a Cafe Latte with caramel - Also available in Sugar Free)

Cafe Americano: Small - $1.65, Regular - $1.95, Large - $2.30

(espresso and water)

Brewed Coffee: Small - $1.55, Regular - $1.75, Large - $1.85

Chai Tea: Small - $3.35, Regular - $3.90, Large - $4.35

(Black spiced tea with milk)

Hot or Iced Tea: Small - $1.35, Regular - $1.65, Large - $1.75

(assorted flavors)

Hot Chocolate or Chocolate Milk: Small - $2.25, Regular - $2.50, Large - $2.95

(or any of our flavors)

Cremosa: Small - $3.15, Regular - $3.30, Large - $3.55

(iced drink with syrup, cream and soda water)

Espresso shots: Single: $1.50, Double: $1.80

Kid's Drinks: $1.05

(8 oz. flavored milk, Cremosa or juice box)

The following drinks are blended iced drinks. Blended drinks are only available in our Regular (16 oz.) and Large (24 oz.) sizes.

Yellow Leaf Freeze: Regular - $3.85, Large - $4.30

(Freezes come with 2 shots of espresso in a regular and 3 in a large. Our traditional flavors are Vanilla, Caramel and Mocha, but we are able to make a freeze with any of our syrup flavors)

Fruit Smoothies: Regular - $3.60, Large - $4.05

(Available in Extreme Peach, Strawberry Banana, and Wildberry Blast)

Personalize Your Beverage

Extra Espresso Shot: Add $.50

Extra Flavor: Add $.30

Half and Half or Soy (Instead of milk in any Latte style drink): Add $.50

Syrup Flavors ((SF), indicated on the first four flavors means these are available in Sugar Free)

Vanilla (SF), Caramel (SF), Raspberry (SF), Hazelnut (SF), Irish Cream, English Toffee, Almond, Coconut, Cherry, Strawberry, Orange, Blackberry, Peppermint, Cinnamon.

Keep an eye out for additional seasonal flavor choices as well!

Welcome!

Thank you for taking the time to check out YellowLeaf Coffee's blog. We want to give you, the customer, a view into the world of YellowLeaf, get to know your baristas, get access to website-only specials, and learn more about coffee in general.

For our first blog entry, we thought we might start with some frequently asked questions. As time goes by, more questions might be added to this F.A.Q., and if you'd like to know something that isn't covered here, feel free to leave a question in the comments!

What does YellowLeaf mean? The business name comes from a formerly nomadic tribe in Thailand called the Yellow Leaf people. In recent years, they have settled down and become a more agrarian people, cultivating many crops, including coffee.

So, do you sell the Yellow Leaf tribe's coffee? No. While the tribe's coffee is quite good, it is not produced in sufficient volume at this time.

What is espresso? Espresso is produced by forcing hot water through finely ground coffee. The method used concentrates the flavors and produces a thicker liquid than other methods (such as drip coffee brewing). Because of the strongly concentrated flavor, espresso makes an excellent base for drinks such as lattes, cappuccinos, mochas and such.

OK, what's the difference between a latte, a mocha and all the rest? A cafe latte is our basic drink, the core of much of what we serve. It is simply espresso and steamed milk. To this, we add syrup flavors to make our flavored lattes, such as vanilla, caramel or Irish cream. When we add chocolate syrup, we use the Italian word "mocha" and "mocha bianca" means white chocolate in Italian. Of course, all of these drinks can be made over ice as well.

What's a cappuccino, then? A cappuccino is very similar to a latte, but with a simple distinction. Cappuccinos are traditionally one third espresso, one third steamed milk and one third froth. The terms "wet" and "dry" refer to how foamy you want your milk. Wet cappuccinos have less froth while dry cappuccinos have more. A very dry cappuccino is so light, you might think there is nothing in the cup! Properly frothed milk gives the drink a sweet flavor. We do not serve an iced cappuccino, as the key ingredient is steamed, foamy milk.

And an Americano? Imagine you're travelling through the Italian countryside. You see a little cafe and decide to stop in for a plain cup of coffee. Simple, right? Well, this little cafe doesn't brew coffee, in fact they only have an espresso machine. How then are they to make your cup of plain coffee? Easy, actually. A Cafe Americano is "American" style coffee made with shots of espresso and hot water. Since espresso is such a strong flavor by itself, watering it down just makes it taste more like brewed coffee. One of the benefits over brewed coffee is that an Americano is made to order. We make the espresso when you order it, so it is as fresh as it can be.

What is a barista? A barista is a coffee shop employee who prepares espresso-based beverages, which is to say, all the employees at YellowLeaf.

Tell me about Chai Tea, please. Chai is a sweet, spiced black tea. There are many varieties available, and we serve Oregon Chai, a concentrate that is mixed 50/50 with a milk base. If you want to know what Chai tastes like, think of all the spices that go into a pumpkin pie, just without the pumpkin. It has nutmeg, cinnamon, honey and many other flavors making it a sweet and complex flavor. We are happy to make it with whole, non-fat or soy milk.

What do you have that's cold? We do most of our espresso drinks and Chai over ice. We also serve iced tea, but for a real treat, try one of our YellowLeaf Freezes. The Freeze is a blended drink that is sweet and gives a kick of coffee, too. Our advertised flavors are mocha, vanilla and caramel, but we'd be happy to use any of our syrup flavors to create a personalized drink just for you.

What do you have that's sugar-free? We serve vanilla, chocolate, caramel, hazelnut and raspberry in sugar-free varieties. For the most part, we agree that the sugar-free chocolate is pretty great. We also offer sugar alternatives in the form of Sweet-n-Low, Equal and Splenda. Sorry, we do not have a sugar-free Chai.

I don't know what I want, what do you recommend? The answer to this question will differ from barista to barista, but most of us will suggest our basic drinks - mocha, mocha bianca or creamy caramel. If you want something different, you are welcome to tell us to surprise you. It's a fun way to try flavor combinations that you might not have thought of before.

Why is your coffee so good? The beans used for all of our drinks are roasted for us weekly, so they are never left to sit around and go bad. They are roasted to medium dark, a roast that allows for great flavor, without burning out the caffeine, so your drink is not only great tasting, but it does it's job of picking you up! We take great care to brew each shot of espresso for the best flavor and consistency.

Do you take credit or debit cards? We take Visa, Master Card and Discover. We do not take American Express, sorry.