The Journey from Cherry to Cup

It Starts as a Cherry

Coffee beans are actually seeds inside a bright red fruit called a coffee cherry. Each cherry typically contains two seeds (beans) facing each other.

Growing

Coffee grows in a narrow band around the equator — the "Coffee Belt" — between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. It thrives at altitude, which is why the best coffees come from mountainous regions in Ethiopia, Colombia, and Central America.

Harvesting

Most specialty coffee is hand-picked. Pickers select only ripe, red cherries and leave the green ones for later. A good picker can harvest 50–60kg of cherries per day — enough for about 10kg of roasted coffee.

Processing

After picking, the fruit needs to be removed from the seed. The two main methods:

• Washed (wet): The fruit is mechanically removed, then the beans are fermented in water to break down the remaining mucilage. Produces clean, bright flavours.
• Natural (dry): Cherries are dried whole in the sun for weeks. The fruit ferments around the bean, producing sweeter, fruitier flavours.

Roasting

Green coffee beans are dense, grassy-smelling, and flavourless. Roasting transforms them through a series of chemical reactions (the Maillard reaction and caramelisation) that develop hundreds of flavour compounds.

We roast in small batches to ensure precision. Each origin has a roast profile designed to highlight its best characteristics.

Brewing

And then it's up to you. Grind fresh, use good water, and pay attention to your ratios. That's all it takes to honour the journey from cherry to cup.