We have been sourcing coffee from Bolivia since 2011, as it is one of our favourite origins and one that we feel very proud to represent. The coffees we source from Bolivia are grown at exceptionally high altitudes, and many come from very dedicated smallholder producers, who own a couple of hectares of land and produce limited amounts of incredibly sweet and clean coffee each year. Here, we also source tiny micro-lots of unique varieties, such as Gesha, Ethiosar and Java, and an incredibly clean and well-processed Cascara tea.
Typically, we do a number of shipments from Brazil over several months, due to the long harvest period. We buy from higher altitude farms in Brazil, so our coffees land a little later than those from lower altitude farms, typically arriving in Australia from late October - March. We buy some exceptional lots from Piatã and Chapada Diamantina in Bahia, and Serra do Cabral in Minas Gerais. Lot sizes are vary from small to large (20 bags – 200 bags+). We’re very proud of the quality of the Brazilian coffees we source, the diversity of the producers we represent and the flavour profiles of their coffees.
Coffees from Colombia are some of our most important offerings. This is due to the quality, versatility, diversity and relative value of the coffees available, and the fact that we’re able to source delicious coffees from there almost all year round. We typically receive between 3-4 shipments out of Colombia, made up of clean and refined small producer regional blends, as well as exceptional single estate micro-lots.
Ethiopia produces some of the most elegant and nuanced coffees in the world - even though it is an incredibly complex country to source coffee from. Here, we select coffees from quality-focused washing stations and, when possible, from coffee estates and single producers. On the cupping table, we look for exceptional washed lots that are multilayered, floral and tea-like, as well as carefully processed naturals that are intensely sweet, rich and fruit-driven, but clean and balanced. All of the Ethiopian coffees that we purchase are selected on the basis of their exceptional cup profile, and they tend to land between June-October each year.
Guatemalan coffee has been a staple of our coffee offerings since 2008, and it is one of our most treasured origins. We purchase coffees from regions all over Guatemala, including Huehuetenango, Cobán and Antigua. As different areas peak at different times, we get multiple shipments out of Guatemala that land in Australia over the months of May - September. Most of the farms we work with perform well in the annual Cup of Excellence competition, and we find that the general quality and diversity of flavour profiles out of Guatemala is exceptional.
We select coffees from single producers and small cooperatives and seek to establish long term, mutually beneficial relationships with our supply partners in Kenya. All of the lots we buy are vacuum-packed and available in 30kg lots. We typically have Kenyans on offer from May / June, but due to the high density of these coffees, we find the quality holds up really well, and they can be used throughout the year. We look for Kenyans that are juicy, sweet and complex and buy the very best quality we can find on the cupping table.
We travel to Rwanda to select our favourite coffees in early June every year. We buy lots from washing stations in the North, South and Western provinces. We have strong, long-standing relationships in Rwanda and we’re very passionate about supporting and promoting these coffees. We love the profile of Rwandan coffees: they tend to be incredibly floral and sweet, with notes of dried fruit, stewed fruit and chocolate. In the past, the potato defect was a concern to many roasters, but we’ve thankfully found that incidents of this have been very low in recent years, thanks to a lot of hard work on the ground in Rwanda.