Our Bakers

Enjoy Biscotti Company - Arvada, CO
Enjoy Biscotti Company, based in Arvada, Colorado, takes pride in presenting customers with quality products at reasonable prices. Currently offering an assortment of 6 biscotti flavors, each made with a different liqueur such as Amaretto, Frangelico or Limoncello. Organic Oats fresh from the farmers in the Midwest go into the premium Oatmeal and Granola products.

Owner, Mary Sherman and her husband, Dave, have 3 children. When their family relocated around the country 4 times in 5 years, she was able to make new friends with her reputation of baking. A chance to compete in the Southern Living Magazine Cook-Off officially put her on the map and launched her into business when folks started requesting her to bake for them. Enjoy Biscotti Company was officially formed in 2008, now serving 20 coffee and specialty shops along the front range, Nebraska and South Dakota as well as online customers, gift basket companies and fulfilling specialty corporate gifts.

Ask Mary and she’ll tell you, “It’s great to do what I love to do, baking. The most fun is being in contact with the customers. I know it is a business, but it is so rewarding to hear folks tell me they really do love the products.” Most common comments are, “I was never a fan of biscotti, but I love yours.” And, “That is the best granola I’ve ever tasted.”

Mary says she appreciates the wonderful quality in her customer base, “I love all of my customers, it feels like I am still baking for friends.”

Also rewarding is the ability to channel the business towards ‘Doing Good,’ presenting the opportunity to support such events like NoBarriersUSA.org and Soldiers to the Summit expedition; and other events to benefit The Anchor Center for Blind Children.

Granola product testimonial by Erik Weihenmayer, visit:
http://www.enjoybiscotti.com/bragging_rights.html

Helliemae's Salted Caramels - Denver, CO

Ellen Daehnick, Aka Helliemae. My Background Doesn't Scream Food Business - I Haven't Been To The Cia, My Only Experience Working In A Restaurant Was As A Teen, And I Didn't Really Learn To Cook Until I Was Well Into My Adult Years. I Was A Political Science Major, Then A Demographer, Then An Mba, Then A Consultant, And Some Other Things Along The Way. Turns Out I Love Making Food, Especially Sea Salt Caramels, For My Friends And Family. So, When My Husband Said To Me, "You Know, You Ought To Sell Those Caramels," Something Clicked. Within Four Weeks, I Was Up And Running And Had Launched At A Local Food Festival. Why Helliemae's? Growing Up In Houston In The 1970s And 80s, It Seemed Like Every Uhf Channel Was Filled With Repeats Of The Beverly Hillbillies (Well, At Least When They Weren't Showing Re-Runs Of The Jeffersons). That Level Of Saturation Means I Got Called Ellie Mae More Often Than I Liked. I Didn't Think Too Much About It Back Then, But Years Later, When I Was Wondering What To Call These Caramels, Helliemae Just Seemed Right: A Handcrafted Sensibility With A Touch Of Post-Punk Diy. Yep, That's What My Salt Caramels Are All About, And It Feels Like Me. NOTE: Ellen's salted caramels was listed in Westword. Read below!

Denver Westword - In honor of Colorado's 135th birthday, our ten favorite Colorado food and drink products...Hellimae's Salted Caramels was voted "Ten Favorite" - click to read: http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/2011/08/_ten_favorite_colorado_food_and_drink_products.php

The Gluten Free Gal - Denver, CO

Chelsea Willis, born and raised in Colorado. I suffered from pretty severe health problems my entire life. I was raised on goat milk because I could not tolerate cows milk. I had severe eczema my entire childhood, to the point of staying up every night crying because it hurt so bad. I was also anemic and hypoglycemic, but nothing compared to the stomach issues I suffered my entire life. By highschool my digestive issues were so bad that I missed more than half of my junior year.

The doctors that I did see wrote it off to stress of being a teenager and told me I had IBS. The diagnosis was great and all, but I still had severe digestive problems, so I started trying alternative things. I started going to a chiropractor, acupuncturist and homeopathic doctor. These things worked better, but I was still suffering.

After highschool graduation I pulled myself together and got ready to go to college. I was pretty excited but also apprehensive. My first year of college ended up being a complete nightmare. I was sicker than I had ever been, and the fact that I got mono did not help matters. By the end of my first year at college my worst symptom set in, the anxiety and panic attacks. It got so bad that I had no other choice than to drop out of college and move back in with my parents.. I all of a sudden was housebound and could not understand why. I was feeling things I had never experienced. I could not breath, I couldn’t go anywhere, it was horrible.

After going to therapy for about 6 months I got to the point where I could move out of my parents house into my own apartment.I felt like maybe moving into my own place would help get my life back on track. It did help with certain things but I still had these lingering health issues that some how seemed to be a trigger for my anxiety. I then finally found the one person who helped turn everything around. After 4 failed attempts at therapists, I found one who I clicked with. I went through my entire history with her and she told me that there was nothing in my history that she could tell would be causing the amount of anxiety I had, so she mentioned that she had a great naturopath that she wanted me to see.

I set up an appointment with him. He ran a few tests and at my first appointment told me to stop eating gluten and refined sugar, and to come back in two weeks. I did and I could not believe the change. Yes the detox was no fun, but miraculously I felt a million times better than I ever had, and the anxiety was slowly going away.

It has been almost 3 years now since I have been completely off gluten. I could not be happier. I truly consider my diagnosis a blessing. Now that I know first hand what the process is like I am so excited to be able to help families learn how to live gluten free and thrive.

SPERO WINERY - Denver, CO

THE VINEYARD
In 1996 Clyde’s wife, June, Inherited some land on North Washington Street. Clyde decided to plant grapevines in this plot of land, and, of course, once you have planted grapes, you then need a winery. The Spero Vineyard is just north of another vineyard at the corner of 66th and Washington. It is just next to J & J Storage. Although it is much smaller than the vineyards on the Western slope, it is at least convenient for Denverites to visit and get a feel for the viticultural process. The first harvest for the vineyard was the fall of the millennium (i.e. 2000), an auspicious date indeed, for the beginning of a new venture.

SPERO WINERY
Clyde Spero, has been making wine his entire life. He learned the art from his father, Gaetano Spero. Clyde’s father came to America at the tender age of 13; his traveling companions were two friends from his hometown of Potenza, Italy, who were also in their early teens. The three friends traveled half way around the world with no parents or adults and not knowing a word of the new language they would encounter in America. Gaetano had the equivalent of about $5 in his pocket when he arrived in New York and headed West to join some relatives in Colorado. He found work in the coal mines in Southern Colorado. As Gaetano made his way in the new world, he took advantage of the opportunities that his newly adopted country had to offer, and he bought land as soon as he could, so that he could continue the time-honored profession in his family of being a farmer. He did not, however, forget his roots in his homeland, and he carried on many of the traditions of his family in the “old country.” One tradition was the making of wine every fall for the family to drink throughout the year. Gaetano’s son, Clyde continued this tradition all his adult life, using the techniques that he had learned from his father. When Clyde planted a vineyard, the next logical step was to begin a winery to use the grapes harvested from the small urban vineyard. Thus, in 1999, Clyde began to make wine in the tradition of his father, but for people other than his family to enjoy. Because the vineyard is quite small, it does not provide enough grapes for the full production for Spero Winery. As a result, Spero winery does purchase grapes from the Western slope (Palisade and Grand Junction), and from Lodi, California, where one of June’s cousins has a vineyard.

ALL IN THE FAMILY
Clyde and June Spero have tried to keep the family traditions alive. As already mentioned, a cousin is a source for the California grapes, and one of June’s cousins, Francis Balistreri, also designed the attractive Vino è Buono label on the bottle. The man on the label , who is lifting his glass in a salutè, is Clyde’s father, Gaetano. The name for the wine was inspired by Clyde’s Uncle Ventuda (Buonoventuda) Spero. When Clyde first met his 88 year old uncle in Potenza, Italy in 1993, Zio (Uncle) Ventuda would raise his glass of wine and salutè, and then after downing the wine in one long drink, he would smack his lips and proclaim, “Vino è Buono,” which means – “wine is good”! (As a footnote, Zio died at the age of 98 in August 2003.)

Paris Bakery - Frederick, CO

Rinaldo Suel, Born In The Village Of Avon Les Roches In 1959, Near The Town Of Orleans. I Started Hotel-Schools At 15 Years Of Age And Learn How To Serve Wines And Specialty Cheese As A Apprentice For Two Years. At The Age Of 17 With My Mom And Brother, We Moved To Denver And I Took The Apprenticeship Of Baking For Years To Follow. It Was The Best Schooling Hands-On I Could Of Got, Because I Worked And Learned From Professional French Bakers That Were A Lot Older Than Me With Much More Experience Than I. It Was Later On, In 1983,That I Opened "Paris-Bakery" For The Following 18 Years, Doing And Creating My Own Product. The Cinnamon And Sticky-Buns Were Developed From A Non-Traditional Recipe That I Created. It Is A Richer Dough With Its Unique Bite To It. It Has Been My Best Seller And Helped Me Stay In Business With Pride

Our Wine

More Updates on our site as we add new local products....keep checking back with us. Below are a few stories of our wonderful providers...

il dolce far niente

Our Local Providers Stories

Our Coffee

Elevation Coffee Roasters - Englewood, CO
They roast Elevation Coffee every day in the Rocky Mountain climate of Denver, Colorado. At a mile high, Elevation Coffee Traders has perfected the art of high altitude roasting by using low temperatures for a slow and even roast profile. We offer a full line of coffee products that include single origins, signature blends, Fair Trade and Decaf. All of our coffees are small-batch roasted to their optimal roast profile, never burnt, smokey or over-roasted. At Elevation Coffee Traders, roasting is still a refined art form using the traditional European roasting process.Open-air roasting system.

Elevation Coffee is roasted in our open-air system which creates an extremely smooth and easy-drinking coffee. During the roasting process we pull the smoke off the beans so the coffee is always roasted in "fresh" air. This signature roasting style allows the beans’ flavors and complexities to come through. The way specialty coffee is meant to taste.

We support sustainability and fair trade practices. Elevation is actively participating in programs designed to support the social and economic challenges bringing awareness and positive change to the coffee farms throughout the world.

http://www.elevationcoffee.com/Home/WelcometoElevation/tabid/132/Default.aspx