Guide to pairing your meal with coffee brew
By Lori Corbin
Published: Tuesday, June 08, 2010

KABC’s food coach Lori Corbin spotlights the perfect food-coffee pairings — Watch as Michael Gaviña illustrates how to match your favorite foods with a variety of popular brews using Don Francisco’s Family Reserve Coffees.

Mac n’ cheese, fish and chips, peanut butter and jelly – some foods just seem to go together. Did you know the same is true with coffee? Shot on location at the Den of Hollywood located on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, Lori talks with Michael Gaviña and Chef Dan Murray about the importance of pairing your food with the right coffee.

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Q&A: Leonor Gaviña-Valls
By Zain Shauk
Published: January 26, 2010 8:12 PM PST

Leonor Gaviña-Valls has brewed her family’s coffee blends for decades, but in recent years she has grown accustomed to buying them at area stores and restaurants.

The Glendale resident is co-owner of Gaviña & Sons, which produces popular retail brand Don Francisco’s Gourmet Coffee, as well as private-label coffees sold at stores like McDonald’s, 7-Eleven, Costco and Porto’s Bakery. The company, which traces its roots to Cuba, has rapidly expanded in recent years, upgrading its production space from 80,000 square feet to 240,000 square feet in 2002.

Its new plant in Vernon handles about 40 million pounds of imported coffee beans a year, funneling them through a complex system of roasters and packing machines that show a dramatic evolution from the original 2,000-square-foot Gaviña operation of 1967. Although the recession has slowed down business — the company’s revenues still grew by more than 5% in 2009 — Gaviña-Valls discussed the popularity of coffee as a part of Americans’ daily routines, which is something the company doesn’t anticipate will change because of spending habits.

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