APTOS, CA— While guests at the Seascape Resort here weren’t necessarily demanding an organic blend of coffee in their guestrooms, they certainly seem to be appreciating it. The 275-room hotel here switched from the more traditional blends of coffee it offered to its current offering, and the reaction from guests has been overwhelmingly positive, according to Paul Geronimos, food & beverage manager, Seascape Resort. The hotel has now used Boyd Coffee Company’s Café Rojas certified organic coffee for regular as well as French Decaffeinated since 1993. Given the property’s northern California location and the fact that much of its business is driven by conferences, having organic coffee seemed to be an important criteria for its guests. “It has become more and more of a concern over the years through public awareness. The conference business seems to be more vocal than leisure. If a company is looking at our property for a conference and is associated with the organic industry or is taking the politically correct position, it can be a factor with their decision,” he said. Geronimos, who added the hotel’s guests are about 60% business and 40% leisure, estimated the usage rate for in-room coffee to be about 75% at the property. The hotel also offers packaged tea as well, but Geronimos said guests seems to prefer coffee with about 85% to 90% of guests who use in-room beverages opting for coffee. When asked if the consumer demand has increased for organic coffee, Geronimos said he has seen a shift, albeit a slight one. “It’s becoming more credible, people are going to ask for those options [in the future],” he said, adding that the organic blend of coffee does cost the hotel about 10% more than traditional blends. The hotel, which garners rates ranging from $175 to $450, has it own proprietary 10-cup pourover coffeemakers. According to Boyd, which has had a relationship with the hotel since 1997, the quality of the coffee flavor and colorful packaging are particularly appealing to hotel guests. There are actually as many as four to five different coffee concepts throughout the property, including an employee cafeteria and the hotel restaurant. The restaurant also utilizes Boyd Beverage Leader Board, an educational informational board that offers information and teaches the staff about products and preparation. It also includes printed fact and description cards that are designed to improve wait staff selling at the table. Geronimos reiterated the importance for the hotel to offer its guests this kind of amenity. “[The demand has increased] very much, public awareness on the environmental, social and economic issues are daily media topics. Oil, coffee, and wheat seems to be the order,” he said.