On June 14, 2010, Case Study Coffee was born. But the story actually begins before that. In 1999, Christine and Wes were pursuing their own work fields when specialty coffee as we know it was starting in Portland. Christine was pursuing her culinary passion of all things food and drink and Wes was involved various tech-related endeavors. They lived close to the original Stumptown at the time and quickly became regulars. Wes began experimenting with making coffee at home, tinkering with customizing machines and perfecting the art of making espresso at home. They knew they wanted to start a business together and thought that coffee would be the perfect mashup of their interests and skills. Christine could pursue her interest...
"Coffee is a blend of the work the barista does, the roasting, and the work in the field," says Oscar Mancilla. "Everything has to be well aligned to get a great cup, and you can have the best coffee in hand but it often comes down to what you get in the bar." A dedicated specialty coffee drinker who first dove into the multi-faceted world of craft beverages in his home country of Mexico, under the expert hands of Alberto Song Trujillo and his team at Caffe Sospeso in Tijuana, Oscar is a regular at Case Study Coffee. Oscar and his wife moved to Portland to work in the engineering industry; Oscar is an electromechanical engineer, while his wife works with the supply chain...
Every Saturday, Dave & Jess Ratliff walk a few blocks to our Sandy store, grab their drinks (Dave: milk, sugar, coffee, in that order. Jess: Cafe au lait), and sit facing the street while they decompress from the busy work week and enjoy each others' presence. It's a weekly ritual they've been holding since a couple months after the store opened and they consider our staff family. "Dave and I aren't really coffee drinkers," says Jess with a laugh. "This is the only place we drink coffee." When the couple first visited the shop, they were recommended by their granite installer to check out the countertops at Case Study, and while it may have been stone that drew them, it was the...
A majestic woman who trails flair and exudes congeniality, Jenn Wilson is hands-down one of our favorite customers here at Case Study Coffee. She’s a daily—sometimes twice-daily—visitor to the Sandy store, which is not far from her Montavilla home, and you have only to watch our faces light up when she walks in to know how much we love her. “I first met Wes and Chris back in 2007, I think, when I hired the espresso cart to cater an event at Providence Medical Groups, where I worked in oncology management," says Jenn. "I just clicked with them immediately, and when they said they were opening a coffeeshop I was thrilled because their coffee is so good! I always appreciated...
