October's Shipment

Last Friday, October 14th, the box of October was shipped! In the box were coffees from the roastery Rocket Bean from Riga, Latvia. Our first collaboration with a roastery from the Baltics! For this month we selected three coffees from Africa. We hope you’ll like them!

Rocket Bean packing the coffee for our subscribers

Rocket Bean roasting this month's box

BURTUKAANA LOT #3

Origin: Ethiopia, Sidama
Producer: Smallholders
Process: Natural
Harvest: Dec 2015 - Jan 2016
Altitude: 1900 - 2000 masl
Varieties: Ethiopian Heirloom
Tasting notes: Dried Apricot, Melon, Toffee, Red Bilberry

Included in the 250g coffee box

Rocket Bean's words about the coffee:

"650 to 750 smallholder farmers delivering cherry to the wet mill. This washing station is located near by the river Hamile in the Southern region of Ethiopia. The local village or Kebele is called Balo. The total production from this washing station this year (2016) is 5 container of green coffee." 

KAINAMUI #141

Origin: Kenya, Kirinyaga
Producer: Kainamui factory
Process: Washed
Harvest: Jan 2016
Altitude: 1750 masl
Varieties: SL28 & SL34
Tasting notes: Sweet Cherry, Red Currant Jam, Blackcurrant and the sweetness of the Muscovado Sugar

Included in the 2x250g coffee box

Rocket Bean's words about the coffee:

"Coffee is fully washed at Kainamui wet mill. After cherries were de-pulped, they went trough fermentation for 16-20 hours in shade.Dried on African beds for 15 days." 

HEZA GITWE

Origin: Burundi, Kayanza
Producer: Heza Washing Station
Process: Washed
Harvest: Jul - Sept 2015
Altitude: 1960 masl
Varieties: Bourbon
Tasting notes: Raspberries, Gooseberries, Honey, Dried Plums, Red Currant

Only included in the 3x100g tasting box

Rocket Bean's words about the coffee:

"Heza Washing station was built by Long Miles Coffee Project, initiated by two Americans; Ben & Kristy Carlson. Heza means “beautiful place” in Kirundi. Growers – 1876 different farmers deliver to the mill, which supplies 5 different hills, or “colline”, Gitwe is one of them."

Don't miss out on our next shipment with Copenhagen Coffee Lab in November, subscribe now!

COPENHAGEN COFFEE LAB

We are happy to introduce you to our November’s roaster. For November we have hooked up with the Danish roastery Copenhagen Coffee Lab, from Copenhagen.

Allan Nielsen’s, owner of Copenhagen Coffee Lab, interest for coffee came when he together with his friend started a café. He couldn’t let go of the thought of creating his own coffee brand, and after a few years he chose to start his own roastery.

Allan’s interest for coffee wasn’t just a good cup. The whole process of the coffee, from farming to roasting was what made Allan start the roastery. In 2013 the roastery opened in an old factory in Amager (Copenhagen) together with one café in central Copenhagen and another in Lisbon, Portugal.

Copenhagen Coffee Lab's café in central Copenhagen

Two partners, Peter and Christian, joined the team, and at the start of 2014 the roastery was too big for the old location that they had to move to a larger one where they still are located, at Lindgreens Allé in Amager.

Copenhagen Coffee Lab roasts coffee from all over the world, but only the best beans. When roasting they aim to enhance the coffee’s unique characteristics and the natural flavours of the bean, which varies from coffee to coffee. All their coffee is roasted on a Giesen.

Copenhagen Coffee Lab roasting on a Giesen

If in Copenhagen or Lisbon, be sure to visit their café.

We shipped Copenhagen Coffee Lab in November's box, mid-November.

Don't miss out on our next coffee box. It will be a secret roaster. We're shipping mid-January. Get yours now! Subscribe here: http://beanportal.com/subscribe

September's Shipment

For the month of September we shipped coffees from the German roaster JB Kaffee! We hope you will enjoy them just as much as we did. These are the coffees we sent.

LA LUCHA
Origin: Colombia , Antioquia (Jardin)
Producer: Los Andes Coop
Process: fermented for 36 hrs, washed and sun dried
Harvest: 2016
Soil:
Altitude: 1800m
Varieties:  Caturra & Colombia
Tasting notes: grapefruit, lemon, thick

Included in the 250g coffee box

LAS LAJAS PERLA NEGRA
Origin: Costa Rica, Los Angeles, Sabanillas de Alajuela
Producer: Chacón Solano Family
Process: natural
Harvest: 2016
Soil:
Altitude: 1300 – 1500m
Varieties: Caturra
Tasting notes: dried tropical fruit, sweet, smooth

Included in the 2x250g coffee box

NYERI NDAROINI AA
Origin: Kenya, Nyeri County, Central Kenya
Producer: Gikanda Farmers Cooperative Society
Process: Fully washed & dried on African beds
Harvest: 2015/16
Soil:
Altitude: 1600 - 1700m
Varieties: SL28 & SL34
Tasting notes: stonefruit, apple, gooseberry

Only included in the 3x100g tasting box

August's Shipment

August’s box was sent last Thursday! Great coffee from Koppi is now on its way to you people! We hope you will enjoy what we selected for this month. These are the coffees for August:

BIFTU GUDINA

Included in the 250g and 2x250g box.

Origin: Ethiopia, Goma Woreda, Agaro
Producer: Smallholders
Process: Washed
Harvest: 2016
Soil:
Altitude: 1900 - 2000 masl
Varieties: Mixed Heirloom
Tasting notes: Floral, Tropical fruits, Black Tea

Koppi’s words about the coffee:

"The small co-operative Biftu Gudina is one of Technoserves projects that are set up to improve the work structure at the processing stations, the quality of the coffee and the lives of the farmers. Biftu Gudina is a new co-op that was established in 2012 and thanks to a strong management the co-op produced fantastic coffee already the first year. Most of the coffee has grown at an altitude around 2000 meters, which let the cherries ripen slowly and build up a high sugar, content.

The coffee cherries are hand picked and then hand sorted for unripes and overripes before they are being processed. After sorting, the cherries are mechanically pulped and the mucilage is removed with a Penagos Eco-pulper. The coffee is left to soak in water overnight before it is washed and dried on African beds for 10 days. The wastewater is naturally filtered through Vetiver grass before it is lead back into the ground.

Shade nets cover the coffee during the warmest time of the day and over night. This is to avoid that the coffee is drying too fast.

Biftu Gudina has a very unique flavour profile with a beautiful floral aroma and a taste of tropical fruits and black tea."
 

DON OSCAR

Included in the 2x250g box.

Origin: Costa Rica, Tarrazu, San Marcos
Producer: Oscar Solis
Process: White Honey
Harvest: 2016
Soil:
Altitude: 1600-1800 masl
Varieties: Mainly Catuai & Caturra
Tasting notes: Tropical, Milk Chocolate, Almond

Koppi’s words about the coffee:

"The micro-mill Don Oscar is run by the brothers Horacio and Alejandro Solis. It is situated in Bajo Canet in San Marcos, Tarrazu. They mainly grow Catuai and Caturra on their farms. The coffees cherries are hand picked and hand sorted before they are being processed as white honey. Through the white honey process 95% of the mucilage is being removed mechanically before the coffee is moved to dry on raised beds for around 15 days.     

The last couple of years the young brothers have put a lot of hard work into making the production more efficient but also to produce better tasting coffees. They have been changing their growing practises resulting in coffees that are cupping several points higher than previous years. We are very excited to start working with the Solis brothers this year and are looking forward to many more."

 

KARIMIKUI AA

Only included in the tasting box.

Origin: Kenya, Kirinyaga
Producer: Smallholders
Process: Washed
Harvest: 2016
Soil:
Altitude: 1600-1800 masl
Varieties: SL28 & SL34
Tasting notes: Black Currants, Red Berries, Grapefruit

Koppi’s words about the coffee:

"The Karimikui Coffee Factory was established in 1966 and rests on a 6 acres piece of land serving the villages of Githureia, Gituba and Kiamugumo. Currently it is affiliated to Rungeto Farmers Cooperative Society (FCS), in an area where most smallholder farmers are growing tea, not coffee. The farmers here are mainly growing SL28 and SL34, accounting for 99% of the total coffee production, while we see some occasional Ruiru 11 plants.

All coffees are pulped, dry fermented, washed, soaked and then sundried. Cherries are hand sorted for unripes and overripes by the farmers before they go in to production. A disc pulper removes the skin and pulp. The coffees are graded by density in to 3 grades. Grade 1 and 2 go separately to fermentation, grade 3 is considered low grade and processed separatly. The coffee is fermented for 16-24 hours under closed shade. After fermentation the coffee is washed and again graded by density in washing channels. The last step before drying is letting the coffee soak under clean water for 16-20 hours. The coffee is left to dry on raised beds between 14-16 days.

The long-term goal is to increase coffee production through farmer training, input access and Good Agricultural Practice seminars that are conducted year round. The wish is to establish a transparent, trust based relationship with the smallholder farmer, helping to support a sustained industry growth in Kenya, whilst bringing premium quality to our customers, and premium prices to the farmers."

Never miss out on our monthly roaster! Join our subscription at http://www.beanportal.com/subscribe

THE BARN COFFEE ROASTERS

For the first time ever, we’re shipping coffee from Germany! Let us introduce you to July’s roaster, The Barn Coffee Roasters from Berlin, Germany. We are thrilled to have them onboard! We have spoken to Ralf, founder of The Barn.

It all started when Ralf moved back to his home country, Germany, to Berlin after living in London for 10 years, working in both finance and acting. Ralf was still looking to combine his work and passion. Whatever he did before he enjoyed, but not in a passionate way. When he moved to Berlin he discovered his love for hospitality. He worked in a “fresh food place”, just to try something different from what he had been working with before. Ralf really enjoyed preparing food and serving people, but also to see their instant reaction to what they tasted.

He worked there for 1,5 years until he felt he was ready to do something on his own. The year was 2010 and Ralf noticed that there were now specialty coffee roasters in Berlin as well. There were no beans of high quality, the coffee was not traceable and there was no light roast. There were blends, but no single origin coffees.

Photo: Thnattaporn

Ralf was inspired by the quality and freshness of the food at Borough market in London, close to where he used to live. The concept of The Barn was to make everything by hand with fresh and regionally sourced bread from local artisan bakeries together with homemade cakes. They also wanted to serve the best coffee they could find. At this time  Square Miles and Tim Wendelboe supplied beans.

“That’s how The Barn was invented, putting everything I liked into one concept.”

Only a year later, in 2011, Ralf started thinking about roasting coffee on his own. He wanted to be involved in more levels of the value chain. Not just brewing and serving the coffees, but also sourcing and roasting them. For Ralf there were no second thoughts about not having the best quality that they could deliver.

“I’m really obsessed with quality and attention to detail.”

Photo: Marta Greber

The Barn is always looking at improving their product. Whether it might be the roast or the brew or the drink. Ralf explains that he never really looked at the market or at what people wanted.

“I think that if you really believe in something and you focus on it, and try to make it better and better there will be a lot of people that understand you, you don’t have to think about what they may want. If I had done that in 2010 then I would probably serve really dark roasted coffee because that’s what everybody wanted.”

The Barn does not blend any coffee. They want the coffee from the farms they work with to speak for themselves. That is also why all of their coffees are named after the farm they come from. The baristas are fully integrated in the roast work, they write down feedback of what they taste and what recipes they are using every day so that they can track every coffee that they roast. This gives them a lot more control of their quality. They not only roast and cup the coffees, they also see how well their coffees deliver in their cafés.  

Photo: Marta Greber

Today The Barn has got two cafés in Berlin. Looking ahead they will continue making great coffees, and keep improving their product.

In July we’re shipping coffee from The Barn Coffee Roasters. Get your box of coffee - join our subscription. We can’t wait for July.

WHITE LABEL COFFEE

In June we will ship coffee from our first non-nordic roaster. We've hooked up with White Label Coffee from Amsterdam, Netherlands!

The story of White Label Coffee starts back in 2014. Elmer and Francesco both worked at the same café, Espressofabreik, when they decided to start something on their own. It was not a question whether or not they were going to roast their coffee themselves: of course they were! Elmer had some roasting experience from Espressofabreik, and Francesco did a lot of roasting there. White Label Coffee was born.

For Elmer and Francesco roasting is all about developing the unique characteristics and aromas of the coffee. They aim for full development of the coffee's aromas, without roasting it too dark. A coffee where you can feel the flavour of the origin, without any bitterness.

Elmer explains that “White Label refers to a blank piece of paper, still open to anything”. The core of their philosophy is openness: from the way they approach their guests, to their wholesale partners and the coffee farmers. When we ask Elmer about the future of White Label he tells us it’s about developing their product. They want to reach out to more people to show them what coffee can be about. They want to develop their knowledge and experiments in cooperation with both traders and farmers, and do more research themselves. In five years time they want to open a second (or even third) café.

We ship coffee from White Label Coffee in mid-June. Join us on or before 8th June to get your box of coffee! For the first time we also offer 250g-bags next to our tasting box. Subscribe now!

April's Shipment

April's tasting box is off! We sent three excellent coffees from Turun Kahvipaahtimo. The Kenyan coffee, Kamwangi Coop, was used by one of the contestants in the Finnish Brewers Cup. We hope you will enjoy these coffees just us much as we've had, we've selected them with care. Mahembe was Samuli's, at Turun Kahvipaahtimo, personal favourite. We love them all.

KAMWANGI COOP

Origin: Kenya, Kirinyaga
Producer: New Ngariama Cooperative Society (996 small producers) 
Washing station: Kamwangi Factory
Process: Washed
Harvest: Hand picked 11-12/2014
Drying: 12-20 days on African drying beds
Soil: Volcanic
Altitude: 1600-1800masl
Varieties: SL28 & SL34 (some K7 and Ruiru 11)
Tasting notes: Juicy, black currants, grapefruit

MAHEMBE

Origin: Rwanda, Nyagatare
Washing station: Mahembe Coffee Washing Station
Producer: Justin Musabyiama
Lot: #3600
Process: Washed
Harvest: Hand picked 05-07/2015
Drying: Sun dried up to 21 days on African drying beds.
Soil: 
Altitude: 1700-1900masl
Varieties: Bourbon
Tasting notes: Juicy, sweet, red apple and red berries.

HERNANDO GOMEZ

Origin: Colombia, Tolima, Planadas
Producer: Hernando Gomez
Farm: Bellavista
Process: Washed
Harvest: Hand picked 06-07/2015
Drying: Drying is done in a well ventilated parabolic dryer. 
Soil: 
Altitude: 1950-2050masl
Varieties: Castillo
Tasting notes: Complex tropical fruits. Ripe, fresh acidity

LANGØRA KAFFEBRENNERI

We are very happy to announce our roaster for the month of May: Langøra Kaffebrenneri!

Our most northern roaster so far is located in a 150 year old storage building on Hjelseng Farm in Stjørdal, Norway. Even though they haven't been running the roastery for long, they have pretty fast taken their place as one of Norway’s top roasters. We’ve had a talk with Kristian, one of the founders of Langøra, about how it all started.

Kristian and Renate, with their backgrounds in photography and glassblowing, founded Langøra Kaffebrenneri as they moved back to their hometown Stjørdal 2014. Kristian had in the past seven years worked as a photographer for Norway’s leading newspaper in Oslo. Renate made a career as a glassblower, she started in southern Sweden and later worked in Tromsø. As Kristian tells us himself, in Oslo he was “spoilt with some of the world’s best coffee”. This made him team up with Renate to start their own coffee roastery back in their hometown.

Early 2015 Langøra ordered their brand new Diedrich coffee roaster. Langøra had their eyes on the tiny old storage building at Hjelseng Farm, this was where they wanted to roast their coffee. Due to a strike in New York’s harbour, the roaster didn’t arrive until May. It was now time to move in in the old building at Hjelseng Farm. Together with a beer brewery and a restaurant, Hjelseng Farm now also had a coffee roastery. In December Langøra got their third team member. Idar who had 14 years of experience working with coffee and was also a barista champion, joined the team. He is now head of green coffee buying and roasting at Langøra.

Langøra only roasts coffee of highest possible quality. They roast carefully to enhance the different aromas that different coffees hold. They choose to buy green coffee from producers they find interesting. In August 2015, they visited the award winning farm La Palma & El Tucan in Colombia. Since then they have roasted several of their coffees, with more to come.

A small roastery in a tiny building now sells coffee all around the world. We are very proud that Langøra Kaffebrenneri takes place in the coffee box of May, and we can’t wait to see where they will be within the next few years.

If you want to get a taste of Langøra Kaffebrenneri, join our coffee subscription before the 8th May. In mid-May we ship three of their coffees!

March's Shipment

Hi all!

March’s box is now off! Three great coffees from Jacu Coffee Roastery are now on their way to you people! We hope you will enjoy these coffees as much as we’ve done.

CHELBA

Origin: Ethiopia, Yirgacheffe, Chelba
Producer: 700 smallholders
Process: Semi Washed
Harvest: Dec 2015 - Feb 2016
Soil: Red Ground Soil
Altitude: 1800 - 2000 masl
Varieties: Mixed Heirloom
Tasting notes: Green apple & White sugar

Jacu’s words about the coffee:                    

“Around 700 smallholder farmers that live in the Gedeo zone bring their coffee to the Chelba station. Besides growing coffee, they also grow additional subsistence crops. Acacia, Podocarpes and Cordial Africana trees are grown to provide shade for the coffee plants. All the picked cherries are processed at the Chelba station with about 145 raised beds. Fruit flavors like apple and sweet citrus are found in the washed version, whereas the natural Yirgacheffe is often dominated by sweet strawberries tones. “            

MUTHEKA

Origin: Kenya, Nyeri
Producer: 200 smallholders
Process: Washed
Harvest: Nov 2015 - Jan 2016
Soil: Red Volcanic
Altitude: 1700 -1800 masl
Varieties: SL28 & SL34
Tasting notes: Earl grey with bergamot complexities

Jacu’s words about the coffee:

“The Muthuaini Factory is one wet mill in the Mutheka Farmers’ Cooperative Society in Nyeri Central Kenya. Nyeri is located on the slopes of Mount Kenya. Together with the neighboring region Kirinyaga, it is known world wide for coffee of the most intense, complex and flavor dense cup profiles. Nyeri has a mix of small holders and block holders with small to medium farms. The ones who don’t have their own processing equipment deliver cherries to their local Cooperative. Most of these coffees are grown under shade from Gravelia and Muringa Alloevella trees.“

NEFAS

Origin: Ethiopia, Oromia, Sidamo
Producer: Various smallholders
Process: Natural
Harvest: Nov 2015 - Jan 2016
Soil: Loamy Soil
Altitude: 1600 - 1700 masl
Varieties: Mixed Heirloom
Tasting notes: Flowery, Sweet nectar & Honey

Jacu’s words about the coffee:    

“The Nefas farm is located in the Sidama region, about 514 km from Ethiopia’s capital city Addis Ababa. The farm area is covered by a dense forest. All coffee is 100% shade grown. The farm employs between 150-200 seasonal workers and about 50 permanent workers. Accommodation, free food and medical care are all provided to the workers. The farm won 1st place in the 2011 African Fine Coffee awards.”

TURUN KAHVIPAAHTIMO

Hi there!

We are very excited to announce our very first collaboration with a Finnish roastery! For the month of April we have the pleasure to ship coffee from Turun Kahvipaahtimo, one of the leading specialty coffee roasters in Finland. We’ve had a chat with Juhani and Samuli.

It all started back in 2004 when the family owned café CafeArt opened up in Turku, Finland. A short time after, the two brothers of the family, Juhani and Mikko started working there. They learned quickly, and in 2006 Juhani won the National Barista Championships. Juhani started attending international coffee events and was introduced to specialty coffee.

Two years later it was his brother’s turn. Mikko won the National Barista Championships in 2008. When he was to compete in the World Barista Championships, the brothers roasted all of his competition coffee in 250 gram batches on a Hottop (an advanced home roaster). They roasted a total of 5 kg coffee, a crazy amount for such small batches.

Late 2008 they got themselves a brand new 5 kg Probat and started roasting in their parents garage. Juhani and Mikko drove all the way from Turku to Copenhagen. There they bought their very first two bags of green coffee from the Danish roastery The Coffee Collective. Turun Kahvipaahtimo was born.

In 2010 CafeArt had a third National Barista Championships winner on their team. Joona Suominen won the competition with coffee roasted by Turun Kahvipaahtimo. Two years later he did it again, also this time with coffee from Turun Kahvipaahtimo. In 2014 Helka Ikonen, also a barista from CafeArt, won the Nationals. Who roasted the coffee? Turun Kahvipaahtimo.

Today, Turun Kahvipaahtimo roasts their coffee on a 25kg Probat. Their roast is light and delicate and they only roast single origin coffee. They always try to stay away from roasty flavours, but at the same time properly develop the flavours of the bean. They believe in staying humble, to always learn and always get better. And according to themselves, they have just begun.

Do you want to get a taste of Turun Kahvipaahtimo? In April we ship three of their coffees. Join our subcription at Beanportal.com/subscribe.

February's shipment

Dear friends,

February’s box was sent out yesterday with coffees from Slöinge Kafferosteri. We have selected these coffees together with Daniel, the person behind the roastery. We hope you will enjoy them as much as we have!

EL ANGEL

Origin: El Salvador, Santa Ana Volcano
Producer: Patricia Molina Batlle / Finca El Angel
Processing: Honey
Harvest: October 2014 - March 2015
Soil: Sandy Loam
Altitude: 1550-1600 masl
Varieties: Red Bourbon

In this honey processed coffee from El Salvador you will find notes of milk chocolate and tropical fruits. The coffee is grown at the family-owned farm Finca El Angel, and is processed at the process station Rio Zarco, owned by the same family: Batlle.

YANDARO

Origin: Burundi, Kayanza
Producer: Various small holders / Yandaro washing station
Processing: Washed
Harvest: February - May 2014
Soil: Hygro-Xéro-Ferrasols with Ferralic
Altitude: 1774 masl
Varieties: Red Bourbon

The cooperative of Yandaro is located in the north of Burundi, just by the border to Rwanda. The vulcanic soil and good climate makes it perfect for coffee farming. The name comes from the river Yandaro, which makes its way through the valley, below where the coffee is grown. Expect notes of chocolate, brown sugar and red fruits.

ABYSSINIAN MOCCA

Origin: Special Selection/Western Highlands
Producer: Various smallholders/Heleanna Georgalis, Moplaco
Processing: Washed
Harvest: Nov 2014 - Feb 2015
Soil: Red brown soil
Altitude: 1800-2000 masl
Varieties: Ethiopian heirloom

This Ethiopian coffee is a Grade 1, which means minimal defects. It gives a clean and complex cup with notes of dark chocolate, sweet citrus and stone fruit. Abyssinian Mocca is a registered brand, and because of this the exact origin of the coffee is kept private. This coffee is brought forward by the very talented Heleanna Georgalis.

JACU COFFEE ROASTERY

Dear friends,

For the month of March we turn west. We have the pleasure to announce Jacu Coffee Roastery as our next roastery. The roastery is located on the west coast of Norway, in the town of Ålesund. We couldn’t be more excited.

Established in 2011, the name of Jacu Coffee Roastery comes from the jacu bird. The bird is known for eating only the best coffee beans, similarly Jacu Coffee Roastery only picks and roast the best coffees. Anne Birte, Gunnar and Oliver who started the coffee roastery together, spend a lot of time searching for farmers to work with. Gunnar, who roasts together with Oliver, just returned from Costa Rica. He brought some delicious coffee beans with him, that they now roast.

The roastery is located in an old transformer station, and with their background in art and design they also use the roastery as an art gallery. At the moment they are planning an exhibition of the Norwegian artist Bjarne Melgaard.

Opening hours in the roastery is 10:00 - 13:00 every Friday. At these hours, they themselves brew the coffee. Usually at the same time as they roast their coffee on their roaster from the Dutch company Giesen. With their different roasting profiles, they try to make the most out of each bean.

We look forward to the coffee box of March. Make sure you do too! Sign up to our coffee subscription at Beanportal.com/subscribe

January's shipment

Dear friends,

We are this month shipping coffee from La Cabra Coffee Roasters from Aarhus, Danmark. La Cabra have in a short period of time become one of Danmark's most loved coffee roastery, and we are really glad to collaborate with them this month.

We've chosen three wonderful coffees from Costa Rica, which is the coffee country that La Cabra knows best.

ALTOS

Costa Rica, Tarrazu
Producer: Altos del Abejonal
Processing: Natural
Harvest: March 2015
Soil: Volcanic
Altitude: 1800 m
Varietal: Catuai

Tasting notes: Blueberry, Cream and Chocolate

MONTE BRISAS

Costa Rica, West Valley
Producer: Maria Elena Castro
Processing: Black Honey
Harvest: March 2015
Soil: Volcanic
Altitude: 1700 m
Varietal: Villalobos

Tasting notes: Cherry, Caramel and Brown Sugar

Honey Nery

Costa Rica, Tarrazu
Producer: Omar Calderon and his family
Processing: Red Honey
Harvest: March 2015
Soil: Volcanic
Altitude: 1800 masl
Varietal: Catuai

Tasting notes: Brown sugar and Apple acidity. Clean, elegant and with hazelnut in the after taste.

SLÖINGE KAFFEROSTERI

We are excited to present to you February’s roaster! We are back in Sweden, in a town with about 1000 inhabitants where Slöinge Kafferosteri is located. This is where Daniel Eråker roasts his amazing coffees.

In the small town Slöinge in the county of Halland we find Daniel, who is the founder of Slöinge Kafferosteri. A town that doesn’t even has its own banking office, has a coffee roastery that roasts some of the most delicious coffees. Daniel had thoughts on starting his own roastery for a long time, but as he was working as an engineering consultant, the step felt too big.  A few years ago Daniel was introduced to specialty coffee and his interest for coffee grew. He finally quit his job and started to roast small batches on Love Coffee’s roast under his own brand. The year was 2013 and this was the start of Slöinge Kafferosteri.

After a short time, he started to look for his own roaster. Daniel and his wife live in the old hotel of Slöinge, in which they started a bed & breakfast in 2010, Slöinge Pensionat. This made the perfect place to keep the coffee roaster. He got his own roaster, a Diedrich IR-12, and a café nearby showed interest in the great coffee coming from Slöinge Kafferosteri. Daniel’s passion for coffee made him compete in the Swedish Coffee Roasting Championship and have brought him to constantly learn more about coffee.

Slöinge Pensionat might be unique in having a coffee roastery located in the same building as a B&B. Just imagine having a delicious cup of morning coffee roasted from the room on the other side of the wall. We are proud to feature Slöinge Kafferosteri for the month of February.

Do you want to get a taste of Slöinge Kafferosteri? Yes, you do! Join our coffee subscription!

Last date to order: 8th February
We ship: 12th February

LA CABRA COFFEE ROASTERS

We are proud to announce our monthly featured coffee roastery for January’s coffee box. In January, we will ship the first coffee box from a non-Swedish roaster: January’s coffee box will be roasted by La Cabra Coffee Roasters from Aarhus, Denmark! We are thrilled to work with such a talented team.

In the center of Denmark’s second largest city Aarhus, you will find the café and roastery of La Cabra Coffee Roasters. Esben started the café in 2012, 1.5 years later he, together with the current head roaster Mikkel, started roasting coffee in the basement of the café. With their talented baristas, they make it one of the best coffee spots in Denmark.

The story started 8 years ago when Esben had his first really (really really) good espresso at JJ Bean in Vancouver, Canada. At this time, he had no idea that he some years later would be running one of Scandinavia's top roasteries. Today their coffee is sold in more than 12 countries. During the last three years La Cabra has won 5 national barista championships.

Esben tells us he speaks about the coffee and the work behind it, rather than about brewing methods. La Cabra puts a lot of focus on the roasting process, to get the most out of the high quality beans. La Cabra is today roasting their coffee during a long shift every Monday. Starting 2016 they will be roasting two days a week, Esben and Mikkel one day each.

La Cabra is working hard to develop their communication skills to help people explore coffee as the fruit it is. They will keep introducing light roasted coffee in Denmark, to help the specialty coffee scene move forward. In the future they will source more of their coffees themselves, visit more coffee producing countries and keep exploring the specialty coffee market.

If you want to get a taste of La Cabra Coffee Roasters, be sure to join the club now!

Last date to order: 8th January
We ship: 18th January

December's Shipment

Dear friends,

December’s coffee box featuring Kafferostare Per Nordby is off! We are proud to be shipping from Sweden’s at the moment best coffee roaster. From Per Nordby we have selected three coffees from Honduras, Ethiopia and Colombia.

CRECENCIO

Origin: Honduras
Region: Santa Barbara, El Cedral
Producer: Crecencio Izaguirre
Processing: Washed
Harvest: March 2015
Soil: Clay
Altitude: 1600 masl
Varietal: Pacas

Crecencio Izaguirre's farm Santa Maria is only 0.7 hectares and so does not produce any large quantities of coffee. But what it lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality. The farm is named after Crecencio’s mother Maria and the whole family is involved in the farming process. This is the fourth season Per roasts coffee from Crecencio’s farm, which makes it his longest collaboration.

Tasting notes: Fruity aroma, plum, grape acidity, balanced body

HELEANNA

Origin: Ethiopia
Region: Yirgacheffe, Kochere
Producer: Heleanna Georgalis
Processing: Natural
Harvest: February 2015
Soil: Volcanic
Altitude: 1800 masl
Varietal: Ethiopian Heirloom

Per Nordby met Heleanna on his first trip to Ethiopia and he says she makes one of the best natural coffees he has ever tasted. Heleanna runs a dry mill in Kochere, buys ripe coffee cherries from producers in the area and is meticulous in the drying and sorting of the beans.

Tasting notes: Tropical fruit, plum, floral acidity, long finish

CARLOS ORTEGA

Origin: Colombia
Region: Nariño
Producer: Carlos and Ángela Ortega
Processing: Washed
Harvest: June 2015
Soil: Volcanic
Altitude: 2000 masl
Varietal: Caturra

Carlos and Ángela Ortega have a small farm of approximately 2 hectares where they grow 100% caturra coffee. The farm is located in Nariño in the south of Colombia. They run the farm with help from their two sons, Richard and Carlos. The farm is located 2000 masl which gives the coffee a well developed sweetness and a complex acidity.

Tasting notes: Sweet, raisins, complex acidity, juicy mouthfeel

November's Shipment

Hi all! Hope you enjoyed October month’s coffee box.

This month we are shipping coffee from The Broker Coffee Roastery from Uppsala, Sweden. We are really excited to send you this coffee for several reasons: The Broker is one of the more recently started roasters in Sweden which makes this a unique chance to get a taste of his coffee. We’ve tried all of the coffees that Johan, the founder, had available right now, and found all of them absolutely splendid. But we had to choose three.

Githiga

The first coffee is a Kenyan one from the district Murang’a, and it gets its name from the wet mill Githiga. It has been The Broker’s most popular coffee and we can definitely see why.The first time we tried this coffee it was 6 months off roast, but still, we were thrilled. We were able to get our hands on the last kilos Johan had left of this coffee. It’s a juicy coffee, tasteful but well balanced between the sweetness and acidity.

Tweega

The second coffee is called Tweega and it’s also an African coffee but this time from Tanzania. We are very glad to have the possibility to send this beautiful coffee from a country that’s not very well known for its coffee. This is a rich coffee with notes of ripe  fruits with a sweet taste.

Kiunyu

The third and final coffee is also from Kenya and is called Kiunyu. This is a new coffee and is later meant to “replace” Githiga. We absolutely loved both of them and are glad that we have the possibility to send you both. Kiunyu is a very well balanced kenyan coffee. Here you’ll find notes of pineapple and stonefruit.

Kafferostare Per Nordby

Dear friends,

Today we proudly announce December month’s featured roaster. Since December is the month of all things festive, we wanted to give you a little something. In December we’re shipping coffee roasted by Sweden’s best coffee roaster, Per Nordby.

Per Nordby has been in the coffee business for 15 years. In 2000 he moved from his hometown Karlstad, and started working at a café in Oslo. A few years later he moved back to Sweden, to Gothenburg. In 2003 he started working part-time at Caffé Espresso (later known as da Matteo). July 2007 da Matteo bought their first roaster, and Per started roasting coffee for the first time.

After roasting coffee for a few year at da Matteo, Per went on leave. He travelled to India and South America, visiting coffee farms from contacts he had gathered during his years in the coffee business. When the farmers noticed Per’s interest in coffee, they gladly showed him how everything worked, from farming to processing.

During his travels, Per knew he couldn’t go back to “just” roasting at da Matteo. He wanted to do more. Late December 2012 Per roasted his first batch under his own brand. This was the start of Kafferostare Per Nordby.

In spring 2015, the Swedish Roasting Championship was held. Per didn’t make it to the podium. This meant that he didn’t get to represent Sweden at the World Roasting Championship, which this year was held in his own city, Gothenburg. After a closer look at the score boards from the Swedish championship, SCAE Swedish Chapter realised that something was wrong. Late September SCAE announced that Per Nordby did in fact make it to the podium. Not only did he make it to the podium, he actually won the Swedish championship.

We hope you will enjoy December month’s coffee box with coffee roasted by Sweden’s best coffee roaster, Kafferostare Per Nordby.

Last date to order: 8th Dec
We ship: 11th Dec

October's Shipment

Dear blog readers,

We’ve now shipped October month’s coffee box to our subscribers! From Drop Coffee Roasters, we have carefully selected coffees from Kenya, Ethiopia and Honduras.

Mugaya AA

Origin: Kenya
Region: Kirinyaga
Producer: Mutira Cooperative Society
Process: Washed
Variety: SL28 & SL34
Altitude: 1800 masl
Harvest: Dec 2014 - Jan 2015
Soil: Nitisol (red volcanic soil)
Notes: Blackcurrant & gooseberries
Roast date: 12 Oct 2015

This Kenyan coffee is from the region Kirinyaga and is processed in the Mugaya Factory, known for it’s high quality processing as well as for having great soil and a perfect altitude. It is the local farmers that deliver their coffee cherries to the wet mill. There the coffee gets graded and processed.

This coffee makes a very sweet and juicy cup, with notes of blackcurrant and gooseberries. A splendid coffee with a long and sweet aftertaste.

Aricha

Origin: Ethiopia, Yirgacheffe
Zone: Gedeo
Producer: Abye Family Business PLC
Process: Washed
Variety: Ethiopian heirloom
Altitude: 1800 - 2000 masl
Harvest: Nov - Dec 2014
Soil: Volcanic deposits
Notes: Sweet citrus & jasmin
Roast date: 12 Oct 2015

In the area of Gedeo, Yirgacheffe you find the washing station Aricha, which is also the name of the local community where it’s located. This is where 700 individual family-owned farmers deliver their coffee cherries. In these areas you find some of the most complex and intense coffees of the Yirgacheffe region.

In this juicy coffee you find notes of sweetie, jasmin and wild strawberries. If filter brewed there will pop out notes of sweet citrus.

Manuel Vallecillo

Origin: Honduras
Region: Santa Barbara
Producer: Manuel Vallecillo
Process: Washed
Variety: Pacas
Altitude: 1500 - 1600 masl
Harvest: May 2015
Notes: Peach & tonic
Roast date: 12 Oct 2015

This limited Honduran coffee is from a smaller lot than Drop Coffee usually buys from. Manuel Vallecillo is the farmer and plantation owner where this coffee is grown. His plantation is located close to the jungle in the Santa Barbara region. Coffees from this region are known for their complex and fruity notes.

Notes of peach and tonic is to be found in this coffee. It’s got a very juicy, clean and bright character. When filter brewed you might also find notes of sweet citrus and grapefruit.

The Broker Coffee Roastery

Dear friends, hope you had a great international coffee day!

The first months we’ve had two roasters well known in both Sweden and in the rest of the world. Hope you liked it! This month we have the pleasure to welcome The Broker Coffee Roastery.

Johan, the man behind The Broker Coffee Roastery, has not had a straight career path. He lived in the US for many years, where he studied economics and business and later worked as a corporate banker and a licensed broker, which is partly the reason he picked the name of the roastery.

The interest for coffee grew on Johan, and after a few years back in Sweden as a banker, he felt the time had come  for a change. He decided to quit his banking job, and instead focus on quality coffee. Inspired by the passion throughout the specialty coffee industry, Johan started his own coffee roastery.

Johan thinks it’s much more personal to work with coffee than as a banker and he loves that there’s so much to explore about coffee.

Today Johan is roasting coffee of absolutely top quality from all around the world and he is also a judge for SCAE in Sweden. The next thing he wants to do is to start a cafe, where he can sell his own coffee and share his passion.

Most of his coffee is sold locally in Uppsala, which makes November month’s coffee box an exclusive chance for you to get a hold of this coffee. If you’re not already a subscriber, be sure to join the club now!

Last date to order: 8th November
We ship: 16th November