Social Coffee & Tea Company

This is our second aromatic Ethiopian gem from Ontario’s Social Coffee & Tea. Aromas of flowers and fruit waft from your cup, and that’s just how owner Steve Souphanthong likes it. On his last trip to Ethiopia in February 2012, Steve made some friends who know how to source the good stuff at the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX), the market where most Ethiopian coffees are now tasted, graded and sold. The downside of the ECX is that lots of coffee get blended together and distinctive lots get lost in the mix. But it looks like Steve’s relationships were built to last because he’s done it again. From the very first sip, we were sold on this cup’s sugary foundation of blueberry, lychee and jasmine that pops with high notes of citrus acidity.

How far would you go for a great cup of coffee? Social Coffee & Tea Company would break the law—and they did. The Ethiopia Commodity Exchange forbids exporters from isolating specific beans. But this heirloom coffee was so lively, the exporter wanted it to shine on its own. So it was carefully isolated in an “inside job”, and whisked away from the crowd. If you’re feeling a little edgy this morning, now you know why. Aromas of butterscotch and jasmine perfume a cup that leads with a playful lemonade acidity, opens into a deep sweetness like apricot jam and finishes with notes of toasted coconut.

These beans are proof that even a simple morning cup of coffee can be a rewarding social experience. Social Coffee & Tea Co. in Ontario, Canada, values their coffee as a social process from start to finish – from the mindful, cooperative way it is produced to the egalitarian way it is enjoyed. It’s fitting then that this cup contains a party of three different varieties from a number of small farms in Paez, Colombia. The combination makes for a soft raspberry syrup flavor that transitions into a round and complex cup with a dark chocolate finish.