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Espresso Beans

Buy Coffee Beans Online

  • Chocolatey, sweet and low in acidity
  • Medium roast keeps bitterness and acidity in balance
  • 100% Arabica beans offer a pleasantly mild taste

The specialty coffee scene isn’t just about strong or mild. In reality there are over a dozen degrees of roasting, from Light City (very light) to French (ultra-dark). Why so many? It’s very simple: to correctly match the coffee with the machine (or manual preparation method) two principles apply:

  1. Depending on the degree of roasting and type of bean, certain notes come to the foreground
  2. These flavors are best highlighted with a specific preparation method

The Four Principles for Coffee Beans and Espresso

All coffee beans – whether roasted darker for espresso from a fully automatic coffee machine or lighter for a coffee machine – should meet four decisive criteria:

  1. They must be freshly roasted
  2. They must be evenly and uniformly roasted
  3. They must be roasted slowly and gently
  4. The roasting should reflect an origin, variety and/or preparation method

You can see if these criteria have been met by checking out a bag of beans:

  • The roasting date is specified – and is close to the order date
  • The beans have a uniform color and aren’t oily or old-looking
  • The beans are free from breaks, holes and stains
  • All Information about the beans can be found on the package and website

Transparency: The Customer Should Also Be Treated Fairly!

Arne with our roasting partner

Before green coffee from Brazil becomes a ready-made espresso, many steps and even more workers are needed:

  • The beans must be grown, cared for, harvested and processed
  • The coffee must be shipped from the “coffee belt” to importers
  • The coffee beans must be resold in the consumer country
  • The roaster must roast them carefully according to a specific profile

By focusing on transparency and fair procurement practices, the specialty coffee scene has pitted itself directly against the mass-market coffee industry. This is the information you should expect to see from the right coffee beans:

  • Roast date: Freshness and flavor go hand in hand
  • National origin: Each coffee country has a specific flavor signature
  • Regional origin: Anyone who knows the farm can understand working conditions
  • Processing: Washed coffee tastes different from a natural process coffee
  • Roasting process: Small-batch roasting is the only right choice
  • Descriptions: Pay attention to terms such as “bright” and “dark” instead of “mild” or “strong”

Not all this information has to be displayed on a bag of beans. For clarity, we have limited our label to include only the most important points: origin country, roast date, roast profile and tasting notes. Further information can be found here in the shop and on the product pages.

Fair Trade, Direct Trade, Conscious Trade: Are Certifications Really Necessary?

Fairtrade has become particularly established as a buzzword in the coffee world. This certification ensures that all participants in the supply chain receive their fair share of the profit. However, the fees for this certification are quite substantial. Plus, the conditions for retaining the certification are difficult to understand and only take care of the basics.

Our coffee supplier, Ocafi, does things differently. Dedicated to sustainability and transparency, Ocafi ensures traceability and fair prices at all stages of the supply chain. And seeing as Ocafi is involved in production, processing and import/export, farmers don’t need to worry about jumping through hoops to retain expensive certifications.

In short, we can proudly say that all our coffee beans are:

  1. Purchased directly and without unnecessary middlemen
  2. Produced by farmers with an environmentally sustainable economic approach
  3. Purchased at a price that’ll ensure fair living wages

By the way, Luis and Niklas from Ocafi manage their coffee farms in the regions of São Paulo and Minas according to all the rules of organic agriculture. We were quickly convinced of this during our source trip to Brazil. Because direct trade also means visiting the site to independently assess all the promises being made.

If you have any questions about our offerings, buying practices and partnerships, please feel free to contact us.

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