Irving Farm Coffee Roasters

Daterra is recognized as one of the most advanced and consistent producers of quality coffee in the world. Over the past 35 years they have worked to track every single part of the process their coffee goes through and how each step affects cup quality. Daterra is also known for their commitment to sustainable farming: they maintain Rainforest Alliance Certification and have set aside more than half of their farm—3,250 hectares—as a nature preserve. Daterra’s success has also enabled them to do revolutionary things for their workers. They provide profit sharing to all their employees as well as free day care and health care. Daterra is setting the standard for producing quality coffee without sacrificing care for the environment or their employees.

If you’ve ever wondered why the specialty coffee world cares so much about direct relationships between farmers and roasters, you’ll find a clear answer in Los Lirios from New York City’s own Irving Farm Coffee Roasters. Coffee buyer Dan Streetman fell in love with this one in 2011 while judging a competition at the Capucas cooperative society, in the Copan region of Honduras. Smallholder farmer Jose Luis Rivera and his family took second place in the competition with this savory coffee from their hometown of Los Lirios (“the lilies”), but Dan clearly thought it was a showstopper. He purchased the entire lot through the cooperative without hesitation and has since forged a long-term partnership directly with the Riveras. It’s a true win-win scenario. Irving Farm has a steady supply of this fantastic coffee, and the Riveras were able to gain control over their coffee processing by building a small mill on their farm. We think Irving’s role in supporting the dedicated work of the Rivera family deserves as much praise as the coffee itself - and that’s saying a lot! Los Lirios has crowd-pleaser written all over it, with an uncanny ability to light up the taste buds of coffee drinkers across the board. Its dense body will easily stand up to the addition of milk and sugar, but its complexity will reveal new secrets in each cup if you choose to drink it black like we do.

High in the Amaro Mountains in southwestern Ethiopia, one woman is doing her part to improve the quality of Ethiopian coffee and the lives of Ethiopian women. Her name is Asnakech Thomas, and she is Ethiopia’s only female coffee mill operator. As she rose to prominence in her community, Asnakech decided to use her position to focus attention on the dire state of women's issues in the region. That combination of high-quality coffee and social awareness stood out to Irving Farm Coffee Roasters, whose masterful roast made our taste buds dance with delight. This certified organic coffee—-our fourth feature from the wonderful team at Irving Farm—-is naturally-processed, bringing out a distinct strawberry flavor that is clean and sweet til the last drop.

A group of 100 farmers in the Nyamyumba region of Rwanda formed the Coopac Collective in 2001 to help each other grow better coffee and get paid fairer prices for their beans. Something must be working because today the cooperative numbers 2,000 members and produces award-winning coffee with state-of-the-art equipment. This selection, roasted by New York’s Irving Farm Coffee Roasters, is the first ever Certified Organic coffee from Rwanda. This classic Bourbon variety tastes sweet and creamy, with notes of clove and crisp pear, leading into a tangy cider-like finish. Warm, savory notes of dark rum and maple round out this comforting coffee.

In a shining example of the adage, “it takes a village,” the coffee from Cooperative Cafetelera Capucas Limitada in Honduras is a community affair. More than 80 families from the village sell coffee to the co-op, which places an emphasis on ripe cherry selection, micro-mill processing and modern washing and drying techniques. It’s no surprise, then, that these high-quality beans are roasted by Irving Farm Coffee Co., the first roaster we’ve ever featured twice. Their work continues to impress here: the coffee emerges like a pastry chef’s dream, balanced and syrupy with flavors of almonds and raw sugar.

Volcanoes, by definition, are epic. And they’re part of why this Red Bourbon varietal coffee from Jose Antonio Salaverría of Las Cruces in El Salvador is excellent - It’s grown at 1450-1750 meters in hills that are loaded with billionaire-rich volcanic soil from the nearby Santa Ana volcano. Then it’s sorted three times after being washed in one of El Salvador’s most modern processing facilities. Roasted by New York’s Irving Farm, the result is zesty, sweet and spicy, followed by notes of chocolate, stone-fruit and citrus—all in one cup.