After being approached to taste the flavorful blends, a new opportunity came’a’brewing. Yours truly had the pleasure of interviewing Frank Matz, current CEO of MAISON CAMUS Coffee just for you guys!
The MAISON CAMUS company wasn’t always into specialty coffees, in fact, they were solely into making cognac…yes, the sweet brown goodness, cognac or brandy…whatever floats your fancy!
A company known for its’ luxury brandy, I quickly became intrigued and wondered if CEO Frank Matz would enlighten me and us to the process of running a specialty coffee brand.
Thankfully, he obliged and I was able to get the details about MAISON CAMUS, CAMUS Coffee, and does a CEO have a favorite flavor from his own brand. Via an afternoon telephone call, Frank Matz (and his great Parisian accent) opened up while we both shared laughs and a quick Q+A. I didn’t want to be known as the American blogger who kept the CEO on the phone ya know!
Here’s what transpired…..
Me (Rena): CAMUS was originally a cognac company, how did the switch to coffee come about?
Frank Matz: Yes, CAMUS is the oldest privately owned cognac house in Paris and is now 150 years old. [We, CAMUS] was always considered to be more than just a cognac house, more of a lifestyle brand. As the fifth generation took over, we looked into extending the product line under CAMUS in order to become the lifestyle brand. After looking into many things, coffee seemed to be the best option.
Me: How long has CAMUS Coffee been around?
FM: We started two years ago with the coffee which was totally independent and wanted to demonstrate that we’re more than cognac. We wanted to give it [coffee] time to grow on its’ own and now its’ becoming very successful in Japan, China, Russia where CAMUS is really known.
Me: I received a recipe for “CAMUCCINO” that includes both of your specialty drinks. As a cognac house and coffee brand, is this an example of the two becoming one?
FM: After we began to get the name out there and started being taken seriously, we started experimenting with this cocktail “CAMUCCINO” and it has become quite popular with customers.
Me: Will there be more blended drinks in the future?
FM: We’re still a boutique brand in the coffee area and coffee is such strong market so we want to wait until CAMUS is of significant size to really branch out and will take more time to break into [mixed drinks] but yes, let’s see how the CAMUCCINO goes but there will be more to come with adding more cocktails.
Me: What has been your favorite blend/brew of CAMUS?
FM: The signature blend is my favorite but it’s purely personal preference. It’s a medium roast and it’s perfect, I even have it at home and bring it with me when I travel! It’s a best seller here in New York. I love my coffee black without creams or sugars and I think I’m alone when it comes to that choice. Our French Roast is very good too, it’s a darker roast but again, it’s total personal taste choice.
Me: How do you pick which coffee beans to include in CAMUS Coffee?
FM: We apply the same philosophy to our coffee bean as we do with our crates for our cognac. We are really really selective. They [coffee beans] have to come out of sustainable areas that grow coffee without pesticides or any other harmful chemicals. We make sure the farmers are getting paid fair wages and that they are able to do this for years to come. Guatemala, Colombia, and Costa Rica are the three countries we source our coffee from. {}
After talking with the CEO of a 150 year old specialty brand that produces luxury cognacs and now coffee, I’ve gotta say…Frank Matz is definitely one very down to earth CEO! Even though I was able to try CAMUS Coffee through my blog, I’m officially hooked and inspired.
Huge thank you to CAMUS Coffee and Frank Matz also thanks to Madeline at Deussen Global Communications for reaching out and giving me this opportunity.
Find Camus Coffee on Facebook: CAMUS-Coffee
Tweet Camus Coffee: @CamusCoffee
Read more about Camus Coffee.
Disclosure: I (Rena/Curves And Coffee) was contacted and provided samples to taste and was not in any way paid or obligated to do a review and/or blog post on Curves And Coffee for Camus Coffee. It was purely my choice to comment. I am not affiliated with Camus, Maison Camus, or Deussen Global.
