Coffee drinkers likely won’t mistake a cup of the local Mt. Hood Roasters brew
with that of the national chain Starbucks. But hundreds of visitors dropped by
the Rhododendron roasters on Saturday, Dec. 28 for some Starbuck – without
the ‘s.’

Katee Sackhoff, Oregon native and star of television and film with credits
including “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,”
“Riddick,” “Don’t Knock Twice” and especially for her performance as
Lieutenant Kara “Starbuck” Thrace in “Battlestar Galactica,” dropped in to
learn the skills of a barista.

Sackhoff, who spent many summers in her youth at her parent’s cabin in
Rhododendron, loves coffee and noted that because her Battlestar Galactica
character’s name is so close to the coffee chain’s name, her fans sometimes
associate the two.

“They always will, which is a beautiful thing and I love it,” she told The
Mountain Times.

Sackhoff’s adventure at Mt. Hood Roasters will be the subject of an episode on
her YouTube Channel, with its second season starting at the end of March.
When discussing potential topics with her producing partner, Robin Gadsby,
coffee seemed like a natural choice, especially since Sackhoff didn’t know how
to make a latte despite drinking a half dozen each week.

“We wanted to learn about the process: where coffee comes from, roasting
the beans, making a good cup of coffee,” she said. “And we wanted to do it in
a place that was cold. There’s nothing better than a warm cup of coffee on a
cold day.”

Gadsby found out about Mt. Hood Roasters, and the choice seemed to cement
itself when they walked through Portland International Airport and saw bags
of Roasters coffee for sale.

Sackhoff, who remembered building pools as a child in the Zigzag River with
her brother to play in and learned to ski when she was just two years old,
arrived on Friday, Dec. 27 for training.

The biggest lesson she learned had to do with everything needed to pour a
shot of espresso.

“It has everything to do with the packing of beans, the quality of beans and
the pace of water that goes through it,” said Sackhoff, who didn’t start
enjoying coffee until she became an actor and needed it to stay up. “It’s not
about muscle, it’s about technique.”

The next day, people started showing up early to get some java from
“Starbuck.” One order particularly stood out for the budding barista, which
included seven shots of espresso and 15 pumps of syrup over ice.
“The only thought that went through my head was that this person must also
drink Mountain Dew,” Sackhoff said. “Nobody can handle that much caffeine
and sugar.”

The number of fans who came out left a big impression on Sackhoff, who can
also be seen this month in a Valentine’s Day episode of “The Flash” on CW
and later this year in “Another Life” on Netflix.

“It never ceases to amaze me that not only am I blessed to be able to do
what I love for a career, but that people are so supportive and so welcoming
to me in their lives,” she said. “Mt. Hood Roasters was truly a very special
experience for me. The staff was top notch and every single person I met was
fantastic.”

And the good buzz doesn’t stop there, as Mt. Hood Roasters owner Rick
Applegate noted that Sackhoff roasted a batch of coffee that will be featured
in special packages as “Katee’s Galactic Blend.” Sackhoff signed all 32 bags of
the coffee, which will be donated to various nonprofits to be used as a
fundraiser, including at schools in the Oregon Trail School District.

Applegate added that he, his staff and his wife, Jiyeon, truly enjoyed their two
days with Sackhoff.

“It was totally cool,” he said. “It was like Jiyeon and I were working with our
sister. It was insanely chill. She was just incredibly kind and down to earth.”
Sackhoff added that in addition to enjoying her experience back on the
Mountain, she learned another valuable lesson.

“The coffee I was drinking (before) is not good coffee, even if I thought it
was,” she said.

Episodes from her first season can also be found at YouTube.com.

Mark your calendars for custom label auctions

Upcoming fundraisers that will include the custom label coffee, “Katee’s
Galactic Blend,” signed by Katee Sackhoff include:
– March 14 at the Welches Elementary School Carnival Silent Auction.
– April 3 at the Tucker Maxon School for the Deaf Annual Fundraiser.
– April 11 at the Oregon Trail Academy Annual Fundraiser.
– April 17 at the Kelso Elementary School Annual Fundraiser.
– May 1 at the Firwood Elementary School Carnival and Auction.
– May 14 at the Friends of the Childrien annual “Friendraiser.”