Happy Holidays to All

It's Christmastime again in Frankenmuth, also known as "Christmastown, USA", so you know that the holiday decorations are up, swarms of people have hit Main St. and generally the whole town is abuzz with activity.

If you have never been to Frankenmuth during the holidays I would encourage you to make the trip. It truly is amazing what the city's beautification committee does each year in decorating for the holidays. And having Bronner's, the world's largest Christmas store right here in town doesn't hurt either!

Here at The Harvest Coffeehouse we are in full swing of the Holiday season, hanging Christmas lights, putting up our Christmas trees, holiday shopping, humming Christmas songs, and feeling that warm Yuletide Spirit in our hearts once again.

We have some amazing holiday drink specials this month including our Gingerbread Latte, Candy Cane and North Pole Mochas, Butter Rum Breve, Carrot Cake Latte, Christmas Cordial Mocha, and several holiday-themed flavored coffee offerings such as Creme Brule' and Butter Rum Cream.

For those of you searching for that perfect gift for the coffee-lover in you life The Harvest Coffeehouse offers custom-made holiday gift baskets. You can choose the types and amounts of coffee you want in your basket along with several other options such as tea, coffee mugs, chocolate-covered espresso beans, and more! Or, just tell us how much you want to spend and we will create a basket for you that fits your budget. If you are interested in placing your gift basket order you can contact us at www.harvestcoffeehouse.com/contact, or call 989-652-2203.

I pray you all have a happy and blessed Christmas and a bright and happy new year!

God bless,
Matthew & Tammy Bolt
December 2009

ps. be sure to sign up for our monthly e-newsletter "Harvest Happenings" by going to our website and putting your e-mail in the sign-up box located on the right side panel.

The Harvest Coffeehouse was recently featured in The Saginaw New's Business Section. Here is the article and pictures below:

Coffeehouse a dream come brew for couple in Frankenmuth

by Roberto Acosta The Saginaw NewsSaturday April 18, 2009, 6:23 PM

Frankenmuth residents Matthew and Tammy Bolt, with son Ryan, 8, moved their Harvest Coffee Cafe to a new location, 626 S. Main in Frankenmuth.Frankenmuth residents Matthew and Tammy Bolt realized a dream through their coffee business."My wife and I met at a makeshift coffee house in Clio (in 1992) and started writing songs together," said Matthew Bolt, 38, a Saginaw native.

After the couple married in 1994, they put their musical chops to the test in the Nashville, Tenn., music scene. While they didn't net a record deal during their 4 1/2 years in Music City, they did return with a new focus: coffee. "When we moved down to Nashville, we started hanging out in coffee shops down there, and it was a cool scene," he said. "We wanted to re-create that scene here."

Tammy Bolt, 39, said she's always been drawn to gathering places, and the love grew in Nashville. "The combination of music, art, a community of people and the artistry of the coffee ... we were drawn to all of that," she said.

Turning those concepts into reality was the hard part.
"I never knew how to convey what I wanted," Matthew Bolt said.

The Bolts started replicating the "scene" in September 2005, buying Bay City Coffee and Tea and renaming it Harvest Coffeehouse.

A second Harvest Coffeehouse sprung up in November 2006 at Frankenmuth's River Place, before moving to The Mill in January 2007. Bolt said the latest relocation in mid-March on South Main opens up possibilities.

"It's a better location and better opportunity," Matthew Bolt said. "We are in the heart of downtown and closer to everything."

"We absolutely love the new location," Tammy Bolt said. "It's perfect, it's warm, it's beautiful and inviting. It has the classic coffeehouse feel."

The Bay City business has since been turned over to Matthew's brother, Aaron Bolt, while the couple focuses on the Frankenmuth locale. "We found it difficult to manage the two locations," Matthew Bolt said. The couple also has moved to Little Bavaria.

The cafe offers free wi-fi, live music, poetry readings, seating for about 50 patrons and sells 20 varieties of coffee out of the store and on its Web site,http://www.harvestcoffeehouse.com/.
Whenever the music bug starts to itch, the Bolts can take center stage. "Now that we have our own shop, we can play whenever we want," he said, chuckling. "But we spend 95 percent of our hours behind the (coffee) bar."

Bolt said three part-time workers complete the staff, while Ryan, the couple's 8-year-old son, likes to "hang out."

Aside from capitalizing on Frankenmuth's downtown tourism traffic to help the business, Matthew Bolt hopes to build camaraderie at the location.

"Our focus is on being a community coffeehouse," he said. "Everything we do here is to create a sense of community for Frankenmuth and the surrounding area, a place to spend time with friends and family. "We also want to have an eclectic atmosphere that inspires thought. We have poetry and artwork on the walls," he said. The couple also offers used books.

Tammy Bolt said the business is "slowly building a core group of regulars who hang out for a couple of hours," and the community support "has been amazing."

Reflecting on the journey, Matthew Bolt sees destiny in where the couple is in their lives.
"The fact that we can make a living owning a coffee shop has always been a dream of ours," he said. "It was meant to be."

God bless, hope to see you soon!

Matt

The Harvest Coffeehouse & Beanery

626 Main St.Frankenmuth, MI 48734

989-652-2203

the Harvest Coffeehouse & Beanery is expanding!

Hello and welcome to the Harvest Coffeehouse & Beanery's brand new blog site! We are excited about the many changes happening in our business right now. Our Bay City location is going great and we are gaining new friends and customers all the time. When people come in and experience the warm ambiance, the friendly service, and the quality of our product, many of them have decided to make us a regular part of their day or week. We cannot express how grateful we are to all of the people we have met over the past two years who have helped us to realize our dream of owning a coffeehouse. It has been such a blessing and we hope to continue for many years.

Now we have entered a new phase of growth. In March 2007 we opened the Harvest Coffeehouse & Beanery of Frankenmuth! This new location will offer us so many opportunities to get our unique vision of quality, community, and creativity to the people of Frankenmuth and the surrounding areas. We are located at 701 Mill Street inside of the historic Nickless Hubinger Flour Mill. This beautiful location is so amazingly beautiful that many people literally gasp when they see the flowing river and waterfall that is right behind us. The building itself is magnificent with it's re-created 1890's flour mill and beautiful wood beams and floors throughout the entire building. Just like our Bay City location we will be offering live music on the weekends, poetry nights, free wireless Internet access, beautiful artwork on display, as well as several craftsmen and women who will be selling their wares. This building has almost 9,000 feet of retail space and I hope to utilize all of it for beautiful, one-of-a-kind artwork, crafts, and merchandise.

Please continue to support our Bay City location, and if you get out to the Frankenmuth area please stop in and see our new digs! I think you will fall in love with the place as we have.

God bless,
Matt

the Harvest Coffeehouse & Beanery
810 Saginaw St.
Bay City, MI 48708

701 Mill St.
Frankenmuth, MI 48734