There's a new brew in town, and it comes with a NU pedigree. Lamont Coffee & Tea Company is now available at select campus locations and is holding a tasting on March 14 from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in the Knight's Café.
Lamont Coffee & Tea Company was established in 1956 by Joe Lamont, grandfather of alumnus Tom Lamont. Joe has passed the company along to his sons and grandsons. What started in a warehouse in Glenolden, Pennsylvania, has grown into a full-service coffee and tea company located in West Chester. Today, the company has over 300 customers, primarily restaurants and small businesses.
"My grandfather was selling Maxwell House and Folgers coffees in Delaware County," Lamont said about the company's beginning.
"We've been able to create a Microline under the Lamont name. We're able to get into more single original coffees like Columbians, Guatemalans, Tanzanians, and Kenyans. We also do a lot of blends, too," he said. "Now we're hitting our stride and trying to get better anyway that we can."
Last June, Lamont and his brothers, Andrew and Mike, opened Turks Head Café on Church Street in West Chester, the company's first storefront operation. Turks Head was what the borough of West Chester was called in the 1800s, and Lamont Coffee patented the name Turks Head Coffee Roasters.
While at Neumann, Lamont played on the 2009 National Championship Roller Hockey Team.
After graduation, Lamont worked for an accounting firm but soon realized he wanted to deal more with people than numbers. So, he went to "coffee school" in Seattle to learn the trade.
Finding his way back to Neumann University and becoming a coffee provider for the university happened by chance on a golf course last year. Tom was playing in a charity tournament for the Malvern Retreat House, one of his customers. He was paired with Fran Walmsley, director of major gifts and planned giving.
Walmsley introduced Lamont to Dr. Domes, and the coffee discussions began. A team from Neumann visited the company's coffee roasting operation and met the Lamont team.
"We gave them a nice overview of what we do and went up to the café and got them drinks, and one thing led to another," Lamont said.
Lamont coffee is now for sale in the kitchen adjacent to the new faculty lounge in the BMB Crystal Room and the Knight's Café. There are plans to put Lamont coffee in the RAB's Twelve eventually. In addition to coffee and tea, the company will sell Smartfruit smoothies, a no-sugar, vegan, gluten-free treat.
"I can see the potential for growth at Neumann," Lamont said of expanding his business with Neumann. "We're old school, and I'll fix equipment. That's the added feature, and that's where we separate ourselves from the competition."