On his 25th anniversary of serving lattes, mochas and basic drip coffee to locals and visitors in Twisp, Michael Marchiney shared a morning brew this week with a diehard who’s started almost every day with a vanilla latte from Michael’s Espresso.
Despite the milestone — running the espresso stand in Twisp for a quarter of a century, seven days a week, more than 9,000 days in all — Marchiney was characteristically low-key, with no banners or balloons. He doesn’t count the cups of coffee he brews. Instead, Marchiney was focused on his customers, getting their drinks underway as soon as he spotted their car.
Since he built his small booth on the highway in Twisp, two coffee roasters have sprung up in the valley. “It increases the awareness of coffee and helps everyone,” said Marchiney
He keeps up with new trends in the business (flavored Red Bull is the latest rage for kids) and with new names for drinks, like a Zebra — a mocha with white and dark chocolate. He still tops his drinks with a chocolate-coated coffee bean, in case the original drink is not caffeinated enough.
Although he starts at 6:30 in the morning, Marchiney is busy all day long, making as many smoothies and milkshakes in the afternoon as coffees in the morning.
