Thank you all of you for the love in 2021! It's a long, sometimes lonely but never dull slog here for way too long but the amazing notes I get from you keep me going. The winter and pandemic will continue to present challenges for all of us but we'll get through it! Coffee rituals make my day, every day, and I know I'm not alone.

Trying to keep up with the dwindling Spot (readily available to be shipped to me) market is, er, interesting. New coffees are coming in and while Boutique du Jour offerings are going to be sparse for a while, I'm looking for sweet additions to the inventory and will, blog-permitting, try to keep up. Occasionally you might get something in your package other than you ordered...stuff has been flying out of here and often too quickly to be replaced. I endeavor to keep it tasty no matter the origin!

Keep the faith!

love you all...badbeard

Hard to avoid hearing in the news about supply chain woes besetting just about every aspect of manufacturing world-wide. The coffee sector is no exception, and while we've been rolling with the gut punches since the pandemic woes struck, things have gotten worse. The principal driver of the market cray was Brazil's frost announcement many months ago, which roiled the commodity markets as the prospect of a future shortfall minimally a billion pounds of coffee...no way for the rest of the producing world to make up for it...

Much "panic" buying has ensued, especially among large coffee roasters who depend on future supply of green, without which they can't run, or plan. "Spot" coffee is in the biz what's sitting in a warehouse and available (at higher prices of course, these days), so things that would be available in my market for weeks or months sometimes disappear overnight, and even before being unloaded at said warehouses. As small an operation at I/Badbeard's am/is, it has been a rollercoaster, and hence why often the coffees you're receiving from me are not the ones you selected. I try to keep enough same-country offerings around as is humanly possible but it's a stretch, and also [mea culpa] why I have been lax updated the website.

Bear with me please! This is what I do, with great passion and integrity, and I try to please as many old customers and newbies alike with the world's finest java.

The iconic Juan Valdez would tip his sombrero to the new natural process produced by Caldas Department wizard Juan Felipe Aristizabal. He purchases ripe cherry from local smallholder farmers and introduces them to an anaerobic (sealed container) maceration/ fermentation for 24 hours before moving them to dry on raised beds. In the ultimate "embarrassment of riches" Aristizabal also produces a 48-hour fermentation natural but we preferred the fruit-bomb nature of the 24-hour coffee. Any natural process coffee producer in Ethiopia would be proud of this! Light roast only.

LIFT- and Utz-certified farm Honduras Finca Los Cedros has produced a beautiful, fruity natural (dry) process which gives many African naturals a run for their money. Love this stuff!

My assistant roaster Gary has been a serious coffeehead since I've known him, and his diligence trying out new Badbeard formulations has earned him his own espresso! The current iteration of "Gary's Rx" includes washed and natural process Ethiopia and washed Mexico Chiapas highlands. Very crema-rich and decadent. 

The omission on the inventory list of our highly-rated Colombia Pink Bourbon, with proceeds benefitting local breast cancer org Pink Lemonade Project, is just temporary. Grateful to the many of you who have bought this coffee! We started in the middle of December, 2020, and have netted over $1100 for Pink Lemonade Project. 

Next week adding natural process Uganda Rwenzori to the lineup...makes a delightful tasting pair with the  current washed process version from the Kisinga washing station. Stay tuned!

Finca La Bastilla in Jinotega, Nicaragua is doing some very special things on their Rainforest alliance-certified farms. Blueberry Candy has been a hit here and yon..and only a small quantity was made available (it was sold out 2 months before even landing in the 'States). This new microlot Honey Process (partial pulping before raised bed-drying) comprises the same varietals as the Blueberry Candy, which is a full natural process, but is more like drinking a strawberry ice cream cone.

While the pandemic has taken a harsh toll on the world coffee industry and markets, things are brightening up of late. We welcome a new Kenya (Mandela AB washed, and in drip AND single origin espresso-y roast profiles)and Uganda (Rwenzori Kisinga Station washed)into the fold, and will be posting entries as they arrive in the next couple of weeks.

Sounds sweet and it is indeed, with blueberry and other mouth-watering fruitiness and chocolate. Ecofriendly (Rainforest alliance certified) Finca La Castilla in Jinotega, Nicaragua has a host of interesting estate coffees...stay tuned for more of them! This was a limited-scale offering and only 200 lbs available...

From exotic, tantalizing Colombia La Reina natural process Geisha to several East African gems the spring lineup continues to grow in scope. Rwanda, one of our favorite origin countries, is represented by the Hingakawa Womens' Cooperative, Kanyege Honey Process, Mahembe Murando Triple-washed (special du jour boutique), and Rusizi Nyakarenzo. Burundi Migoti Hill is an awesome single origin espresso offering and also can be had in a light-medium roast. In the boutique du jour tab also, for the fourth year in a row, the tantalizing Mexico Finca San Carlos "Jade Centennial" from the Chiapas region, near the Guatemala border.

Aligning ourselves with the enthusiastic owners of home espresso equipment who have asked for alternatives to blended offerings, we're selected a couple rockstar coffees to begin in the Single Origin (SO) Espresso category. Roasts will be on the medium-darker side, which suits best for consistency, density, crema, and chocolatey goodness. Small lot production will be common in the offerings, which we're kicking off with Sulawesi and Rwanda.