Origin Trips

We took a trip to Costa Rica a few weeks back to cup coffees from Don Mayo, Luis and Oscar Monge, and Fransico Mena—all producers we know through Exclusive Coffees, a local organization that works to connect buyers and farmers and elevate the quality and experience of coffee for everyone. A few of our team members came along and got to visit coffee farms and see the beginning of coffee’s story first hand. Sean Woestehoff (barista and musician extraordinaire) shares some thoughts on cupping in a building surrounded by coffee-plant-laden hills, the anaerobic process, the many fruits he’s never tasted...

There is little argument that Panama produces some of the world’s finest coffee. Industry gurus praise Panamanian geshas as the best coffees out there, avowing rare floral qualities, tea-like body and extraordinary drinkability. Here at Crema, we're are happy to have recently served several Panamanian productions, one of which was a gesha from last fall, and if you’ve been in the shop at all in 2016, you’ve probably seen an offering from Elida Estate on our menu. This coffee came to us from Wilford Lamastus, renowned coffee producer and the most gracious host of Crema folk in Boquete, Panama. When...

HOW IT BEGAN: YEMENI COFFEE AND RAYYAN MILL Yemeni coffee exporters Mokhtar Alkhanshali and Andrew Nicholson couldn’t have known what would befall them on their voyage to Seattle for the SCAA Expo in April of last year. Upon attempting to leave Yemen’s capitol city of Sana’a, the two friends found themselves in the midst of an airstrike, unable to fly anywhere. Determined to present their coffees on the industry’s largest stage, Alkhanshali and Nicholson committed to drive seven hours to the city of Mokka, where they then convinced a fishing boat captain to tote them and 100 kilos of coffee...