Nordbeans

This summer we had the fortune to ship from our first ever Czech roaster. Very welcome Nordbeans! We couldn't be more excited.

Nordbeans gives us their story:

We're based in Liberec, just in the north of the country – hence the name of the company. We pride ourselves in working closely with growers, millers, cafés and other wonderful people who are working hard to grow, source, develop and serve unique coffees to customers in Czechia and Europe.

Though we have worked in coffee since 2007, we started roasting coffee only in 2015. The origins of the company are bound with brothers Martin Kozel and Karel Kozel, we maintain family-like spirit despite growing a little bit in last 2 years.

We’re very happy to do go the “extra mile” with our partners in coffeeshops – when travelling Czechia, you can find our customers proudly serving espresso we’ve custom-tailored with their baristas and perhaps provide on exclusive basis to them.

Two out of three coffees showcased through Bean Portal come from growers we’ve visited personally and where we aim for long term relationships. Though we work closely with growers in several countries, our main origin involvement remains in Colombia.

This month's box included the Rwandan Nyungwe Pb #35, Kiumu Estate AB from Kenya and last but not least, for our Tasting Box customers only - Cocondo Organico, a very limited natural processed coffee from Colombia.

Nordbeans was featured in our July's box - sent out 28th July.

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Man Vs Machine

The month of June was quite a remarkable one. We featured Man Vs Machine from Munich, Germany!

For the month of June we sent coffee from the different origins. Maria Suyapa La Flor from Honduras, Yobani Ramos from Colombia and exclusively for our Tasting Box customers - the beautiful Jaguara PB from Brazil. This was the very first time we shipped a Brazilian coffee!

JAGUARA PB
Origin: Brazil, Minas Gerais
Farm: Jaguara
Varietal: Yellow Catuai
Processing: Natural
Altitude: 1.040 m
Cupping Notes: Toffee, Sweet, Creamy 

YOBANI RAMOS
Origin: Colombia, Huila
Farm: Finca La Fuente
Varietal: Caturra
Processing: Washed
Altitude: 1.800 m
Cupping Notes: Nectarine, Lemon, Delicate

MARIA SUYAPA LA FLOR
Origin: Honduras, Poso Negro
Farm: La Flor
Varietal: Catuai
Processing: Washed
Altitude: 1852 m
Cupping Notes: Fruity, Juicy, Lime 

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LIPPE

For the month of May we visit our neighbour in the west, Norway. This month's roastery is Lippe. We had a chat with founder Alexander.

What’s the story behind Lippe and where does the name Lippe come from?

It is the family name of the founders of the company  (Alexander and Pia Von der Lippe)

You’ve been in the coffee business for quite some time, how has the Oslo coffee scene changed since you started?

Our company was initially established in 1998 and we have been roasting and marketing coffee under the Lippe brand name since 2007 so we have of course seen a lot of changes and have proudly worked with many great local and international personalities over the years.

During that time we have grown steadily and have seen Oslo’s coffee scene go from strength to strength so much so that many now, throughout the world, look to the Norwegian/Scandinavian light-roast style as a benchmark in specialty coffee roasting. Besides this we have seen cafes right across Oslo and Norway embracing specialty coffee. It’s great to see specialty coffee now reach such a larger audience.

What is your best coffee experience? Do you have a favourite cup of coffee that you can’t forget about? 

One coffee that stands out in Pia and Alexander’s minds are those produced by Brazil’s Heimen Coffee. Harvested at around 2000masl.

What is the best part about working with coffee?

Not wanting to sound cliché but offering a product that we are passionate about, working with this product in an industry that is constantly evolving, improving and progressing is always exciting.

What is the vision for Lippe, where will you be in 5/10 years?

5-10 years is a lot of time in specialty coffee but, we plan to be here at the forefront of the specialty roasting scene in Scandinavia. We will be roasting some of our favourite coffees, offering them to an even larger international audience. In the short-term we have many exciting things coming up, including a pop-up cafe with our friends Mobil Kaffebar in a hidden inner-city garden which will have table tennis, boules, badminton, lots of fun and great hot and cold coffee. We are also preparing to launch our own bottled cold brew coffee for the summer, we have a new webshop in the works and we are looking forward to celebrating our 20th anniversary next year. 

Have you got a favourite brewing recipe?

Right now we are most enjoying cold brewed Gathaiti and Fabian Zarama! 

Many of our members will try your coffee for the very first time. What can they expect?

The Fabian Zarama microlot from Colombia, the Gathaiti AA and the Mbrizi from Burundi are all outstanding coffees we really hope that your subscribers will like the coffees! They will be experiencing the true Norwegian taste of lightly roasted coffee which think lets the coffee taste its best. It allows the complex and fruity flavours of these truly special coffees to stand out. We would recommend brewing at around 65-70g per liter.

Do you want to explore Europe's coffee scene? Join our coffee club!

Kafferostare Per Nordby

For the month of April it feels good to be back in Göteborg, Sweden’s second largest city. We are happy to introduce Kafferostare Per Nordby as our April’s roaster.

From Per Nordby we shipped three very diverse coffees from three different continents: South America, Africa and Asia.

NINGA HILL

Origin: Burundi
Producer: Ninga Hill farmers
Altitude: 1900 masl
Varietal: Bourbon
Process: Washed
Flavour: Sweet aromatics, peach, red grapefruit & orange blossom

On one of the thousand green hills in the province of Kayanza, Burundi, is the small society Ninga located. This coffee comes from a quality focused micro lot program started by Long Mile Bukeye washing station together with the farmers of Ninga Hill. This sweet coffee has notes of peach, red grapefruit and orange blossom. 

LA PICONA

Origin: Nicaragua
Producer: Olga Marina
Altitude: 1300 - 1500 masl
Varietal: Maracaturra
Process: Washed
Flavour: Juicy, hibiscus, almond & black tea

Included in the 2x250 and 3x100 Tasting box.

Finca La Picona is located in the middle of a nature reserve in Dipilto, Las Manos, Nicaragua. The area has a unique micro climate. Doña Olga runs the farm together with her husband. Their son Samuel runs a plot of the farm on his own. This is a juicy coffee with notes of hibiscus, almond and black tea. 

JAVASUNDA

Origin: Indonesia
Producer: Klaski Bean Coop
Altitude: 1200 - 1500 masl
Varietal: Tipica & Catimor
Process: Semi-washed
Flavour: Raisins, dired fruit & fresh tobacco

Only included in the 3x100 Tasting box.

Indonesia’s island Java is the world’s most populated island and is famous for its coffee. This is, however, the first time we tried specialty graded coffee from Indonesia. We are stoked to see what they will bring us in the future. This is a taste of Indonesia’s specialty movement.

Don't miss out on our next coffee box. You deserve better coffee!

Good Life Coffee

This month we’re in the capital of Finland, Helsinki, at the roastery Good Life Coffee. With the motto "Avoid Bad Life" they do everything to make your life better serving some of the best coffee you can get in Finland.

We had a talk with Samuli, the owner of Good Life Coffee.

How did Good Life Coffee start?

Good Life Coffee is the brainchild of Lauri Pipinen (3 times Finnish champion, barista, brewers and latte art). He had just won the barista championship and at the time was working at Kaffa Roastery and looking for opening his own place. The cafe opening day was five years ago 18.4.2012. 

In the early days the cafe was a fairly typical multi-roaster cafe but Lauri had the idea of an own Good Life Coffee roastery and asked if I was interested. After some time of planning what we would want to do the roastery was established in early 2014 and the first coffees were out in October. 

What drove you to the coffee business?

Coffee is very interesting and multifaceted. At first it's mostly about the effect than about the taste which evolves to social responsibility. Personally I felt that Finland was lacking a top notch roastery with a focus on delivering the best quality coffees possible while doing it responsibly. 

There are many great specialty coffee bars in Helsinki. How was the Helsinki coffee scene when Good Life Coffee started compared to now?

When the cafe opened there were very few good cafes in Helsinki and therefore a quite small scene. Customers were also surprised about the price of the filter coffee which was 3€ and made with Aeropress. 

Nowadays there are more good cafes and more customers that understand better quality coffee and are willing to pay for it. 

How has Good Life Coffee changed if you compare today, with the day you started the roastery?

We understand coffee more thoroughly and deeply. From the origin and trade to roasting and brewing. We also understand better that there is a lot to learn. More than we know at the moment. 

How do you think Good Life Coffee will evolve in the future? Have you got any specific goals?

From the roastery perspective we'll begin to move towards relationships with coffee producers in comparison to shopping around the best coffees of the season. 

A lot has happened in specialty coffee the last few years. What are you most excited about regarding the growth and development of specialty coffee? Will there be a ”fourth wave”?

I'm very happy that more people are interested in coffee as a drink itself and not just as fuel for functioning. I believe it will keep on growing to become the more expected norm but without the extra show and hassle. 

In Sweden, we like to drink our coffee with a piece of cake or a cinnamon bun. What is the best way of enjoying a cup of Good Life Coffee?

The best way of enjoying our coffees is whatever is the favorite way of enjoying coffee for you. Personally I like black filter coffee that has cooled down. There are many ways of drinking coffee and sometimes it's fun and interesting to try something different. Maybe you will discover your new favorite style. 

What are you looking for in a coffee when you taste it for the first time?

If I'm cupping coffee samples for buying I'm looking for clean flavor without defects. I also search different flavor profiles so that our range will be versatile and customers can try different things or stay at their comfort level. The coffees have always had to be interesting and something we enjoy also. 

If I'm tasting production coffee, be it my own or somebody else,  I look for balance (acidity, sweetness, mouthfeel, aftertaste), clarity and if there is roast defects or coffee defects. Flavors usually come last. 

Do you have any favorite coffee origins?

At the moment Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania are my favorites. Last harvests from all those origins have been really good! They are also really interesting mix with similarities to Kenyan or Ethiopian coffees but with a twist. Many of them are really satisfying coffees that you enjoy drinking a lot. 

Many of our members are trying Good Life Coffee for the first time. What can they expect?

Clean, balanced and interesting coffee. 

Do you want to explore Europe's coffee scene? Join our coffee club!

Neues Schwarz

Let us introduce our February’s roaster Neues Schwarz from Dortmund, Germany. We have had an interview with co-founder Benedikt!

What’s the story behind Neues Schwarz?

I found my interest and passion in specialty coffee in Nürnberg almost 7 years ago. I was still working as an urban planner and lived next to a specialty roastery. After a while I made friend with the owner and started working for him as a barista and roaster. I learned a lot about the business, the roasting and expertise of specialty coffee. As my wife and I always planned to go back to our hometown we decided to build up our own business. My brother joined the adventure as head of finance and as a team of three we started elaborating our business plan. In March 2014, after 3 month of rebuilding a former furniture store, we opened our Specialty Roastery & Café in Dortmund.

Two years later we’re blessed with a great team of 10, very open-minded and cherishing clients, while still living our dream :-)

What are your thoughts and philosophies when roasting?

In general we’re dividing between espresso & filter roasts. The filter roasts are always as light and fruity as possible, for the espresso roasts we aim to develop them more balanced. That makes it a bit easier for our conservative customers to drink our espresso roasts.

What is the vision for Neues Schwarz?

At Neues Schwarz, we set ourselves several different goals. First, our aim is to express our appreciation for the farmer’s work through fair payment. Second, we value the diversity of aroma that different geographical areas and processes promote. Third, we want to give the possibility of choice to our clients by providing coffee from a single origin. By building a direct, fair coffee trade company, we could strengthen our efforts in achieving our aims. 

Where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

Still sourcing fantastic coffees, helping farmers building a sustainable business & still developing a new coffee culture in Western Germany

What is the most rewarding part of roasting?

While roasting I imagine the aromas I want to highlight. However, of course every bean has different potentials, different characteristics and you can never exactly foresee the final coffee. So the next reward for me is the first sip of the current charge – to discover the aromas that I have developed by roasting. But, the most rewarding is maybe to see our customers during the open cuppings we offer: how is the coffee perceived and accepted? Luckily, we have very open-minded customers who value diversity.

Is there any project you are working on right now that you are extra excited about?

Right now we’re working on a ‚cup project’ with a german/japan design combo. They just started their own business creating minimalistic cups produced in Japan. We’re always looking for interesting, unique & highest quality products that fits our own concept.

Would you mind sharing your favourite brewing recipe?

I prefer V60. Here’s our receipt:

- 16 g coffee

- 250 g water (95 C°)

- brewing time 2:00 – 2:30

1. clean the paper filter with hot water

2. pour 30 g water as preinfusion for 30sec

3. pour slowly up to 150 g water

4. pour in two more steps with 50 g water each

There are many of our subscribers who are trying Neues Schwarz for the first time. What can they expect?

Three coffees with quite diverse cupprofiles, all of them sweet and fruity, but different.

We hope you have enjoyed the coffees from Neues Schwarz. Be sure not to miss out on March's box, get you subscription going now! :-)

All photos shot by Tobias König

April Coffee Roasters

It’s time to present January's roaster. We're back in Copenhagen and with us this month is the youngest roastery in the capital of Denmark, April Coffee Roasters!

The founder Patrik Rolf has a lot of experience as a coffee roaster. He started his journey at da Matteo in Gothenburg and before he decided to start his own business he spent two years as Head of Roastery at Five Elephant in Berlin. When he’s not roasting coffee for April, he does consultancy for other roasteries around the world.

We had a short talk with Patrik Rolf.

What drove you to the coffee business?

Matts Johansson, founder and owner of da Matteo. We worked together on a communication project and during that time he got me hooked on coffee. He made me see the potential of the Specialty Industry.

You used to roast for Five Elephant in Berlin, how is roasting for your own roastery compared to roasting for Five Elephant?

Both were/are great in two different ways.

What sets April apart from other European roasters?

At the moment it's probably the smallest roaster I guess. And I put a lot of focus on the roasting. I want to progress the way we roast coffee. I roast to discover more than anything else.

What are your thoughts and philosophies when roasting?

You can always do better. Do your homework, understand your machine and keep the systems clean. Everything is connected, miss or change one thing and you will change everything.

What is your vision for April?

To progress the way we roast coffee.

Where do you see yourself and April in 5 years?

In 5 years April will have a new production site and hopefully placed itself as one of the more important roasters in terms of pushing roasting forward. Let's see. It is a long way to go and a lot of work ahead.

What is the most rewarding part of roasting?

The feedback I get from the people that take time out of their day to taste what I do.

Is there any project you are working on right now that you are extra excited about?

Yes. And it will be launched before the summer.

When at home, how do you like to brew your coffee?

I don't brew coffee at home. If I would I would buy a Nespresso machine and do Colonna capsules.

Would you mind sharing your favorite brewing recipe?

Recipe for the V60

1. 1:17 brewing ratio

2. Start by pouring double the amount of the dry does on the coffee stir.

3. Pour the remaining part of the water in a circle (should be done within 1:00).

4. Tap the filter.

5. Let it go down.

6. Aim for 1:32 TDS.

There are many of our subscribers who are trying April for the first time. What can they expect?

I always aim to make transparent and sweet coffee. Every coffee has its distinct quality.

Thanks for your time Patrik Rolf and good luck with your future roasting!

We hope you will enjoy January’s box! Don’t miss out on our next roaster, be sure to join for February’s box!

Love Coffee Roasters

We are very excited to let you meet our December’s roaster, Love Coffee Roasters. The roastery was our first ever featured roaster back in September 2015. Now they’re back, and we have shipped some very special coffees.

Love Coffee Roasters from Lund, Sweden, have been roasting coffee since 2009, but the founder Daniel has more than 16 years of experience in the field. Love Coffee Roasters have a must visit coffee bar in the centre of Lund, a unique spot with a great courtyard.

For December’s box we shipped three very different coffees, from three different countries. When brewing these coffees you will be able to experience the great diversity between them.

INGA APONTE

Origin: Colombia, Narino, Tablon de Gomez
Producer: Various Cooperative Members
Process: Red Honey
Harvest: 2016
Soil: Volcanic
Altitude: 2150 masl
Variety: Caturra
Tasting notes: Fresh Tobacco, Mint, Ripe Yellow Fruits, Red Berries, Milk Chocolate & Brown Sugar

Almost all Colombian coffees are fully washed, but there are a few exceptions. This Colombian coffee is a honey-processed coffee, which results in a cup that is very sweet, full bodied with a soft acidity.

Love Coffee Roaster’s words about the coffee:

“The indigenous tribe Inga Aponte was for a long time forced by guerrilla groups to cultivate coca in their territory and they have historically also been driven away from their place of origin. Today, through efforts by state and the governor of the Inga Aponte, they aspire to produce the Colombian Caturra variety. The soils of the Narino region are made up by volcanic ash and the area is highly elevated with lower temperatures than average. This unique terroir gives long maturation and excellent growing condition for the coffee trees. We love it and are showcasing our second harvest with these coffees. Many more to come!”
 

MAGARISSA

Origin: Ethiopia, Danbi Uddo, Shakiso
Producer: Gigesa Washing station
Process: Washed
Harvest: 2016
Soil: Red Volcanic
Variety: Ethiopian heirloom
Tasting notes: Lemonade, Rose Water, Bergamot & Brown Spice

Included in the 2x250 and 3x100 Tasting box.

This sweet Ethiopian beauty is as delicious as a perfectly ripe fruit. About 850 farmers deliver their coffee cherries daily to the washing station in Shakiso. The production is organic and this lot is a grade 1 coffee.

Love Coffee Roaster’s words about the coffee:

“This coffee comes from a new washing station in Shakiso. The station is privately owned by Faysel Abdosh and about 850 small scale farmers deliver their coffee to his mill. By default the production is organic and this lot is a grade 1 coffee. Processing is done by using clean water from the area and drying is done on raised beds. We chose this coffee because of its clarity and very sweet character. It will leave you wanting more and more.”

LA ESPERANZA

Origin: Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Finca La Esperanza
Producer: Eleodoro Villatoro López
Process: Washed
Harvest: 2016
Soil: Limestone
Altitude: 1400 - 1600 masl
Variety: Caturra & Bourbon
Tasting notes: Dark cherries, Cranberries & Dark Chocolates

Only included in the 3x100 Tasting box.

This is the first time we’re shipping a coffee from Guatemala, and when you’ve had your try you will see why. It has taken the farmer Fransisco Morales 39 years to reach the quality you are about to brew.

Love Coffee Roaster’s words about the coffee:

“Fransisco Morales started farming coffee in 1977 on a small plot of land. Year by year he managed to buy a little more and today he has a good size farm which produces great coffees. It has taken him 39 years to reach his destination, of which he is very proud.

The farm is run with the help of his family and he now employs other families nearby to help with the farming practises. Fransisco strives to produce coffees of the highest quality and has been doing so for a long time. 18 years ago he formed an alliance with neighbouring farmers to share knowledge and gain technical support from the agronomists at the National Coffee Organization of Guatemala. This has helped him understand what his trees needs to prosper and produce better coffees. He is particularly interested in soil biology and the surrounding environment and he wants the future generations to be gifted with the wonderful coffees he feels so fortunate to have.”

We hope you will enjoy the coffees for this month. If you don’t want to miss out on our next box, be sure to join for January’s box! Subscribe here, or buy a gift box!

We're making some changes

We love surprises. That's why we’ve decided to make Bean Portal all about surprises too. From now on, not only will the selected coffee be a surprise, the monthly roaster will too. The coffee will be just as delicious as before, you just don’t know who will roast it until it’s at your doorstep. 

Our December’s roaster will be a familiar face. One of our absolute favourites. But you won’t know who until your box arrives.

Don't miss out on our next box! Get your subscription going now at Beanportal.com/subscribe

Stay brewing,

Jakob & Tobias
Bean Portal

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

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!

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!

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.

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

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

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

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

Drop Coffee Roasters

Dear friends,

Time flies and one month has passed! We are now presenting our second monthly coffee roaster. We know you’ll love this one...

Just a block away from popular Mariatorget in Stockholm lies the café of the Swedish coffee roastery Drop Coffee Roasters. The award winning coffee roastery is one of the best in Sweden, but we would go as far as to say that they’re one of the best in the world.

Joanna Alm, co-owner and CEO, has won the Swedish Coffee Roasting Championship two years in a row (2014 and 2015), and has ended third and second in the World Coffee Roasting Championship. This sends a clear message: Drop Coffee are serious about their roast.

Drop Coffee was founded in 2009, but it wasn’t until a year later that they started roasting coffee. They now sell their coffee in the whole world, from Australia to Romania. But it is in the roastery in Västberga, southern Stockholm, where the magic happens.

Drop Coffee believes paying the farmer a higher price for the coffee not only benefits the farmer, but also their community and local environment. All of the coffee at Drop coffee is traceable, and with their clear vision of how they want their coffee to be, they roast their coffee very light, creating a clear taste of the coffee’s origin.

Articles have been written about them in e.g. Kinfolk, and they’ve been named “Notable Roaster” on sprudge.com. Drop Coffee’s café is for us a must go every time we’re in Stockholm. We are very proud to collaborate with such a talented team. We hope you’ll enjoy October month’s coffee box.

Sign up to our specialty coffee subscription now at beanportal.com/subscribe to receive your coffee box filled with coffee from Drop Coffee Roasters!

Last date to order: 8th October
We ship: 15th October