‘The wholesaler does not want to sell me original coffee. They want me to buy and sell their blends. They prefer me to fix certain prices per lb and then supply blends at these prices.

This has no attraction for me, I am not just a trader. I know that there is an infinitely wider and more wonderful scope in dealing with coffee.

In various parts of the coffee growing world there are different soils, climate and other factors that can produce characteristics in coffee unknown today.

There could be as many and delightful variations in coffee as there are perfumes in flowers if only artists in taste would work with nature as the horticulturalists have done. Coffee today is as the wild rose compared to the highest developed varieties. There has hardly been any advance in the last 300 years in aroma and flavours, and I am convinced that there could be.

To do this would bring pleasure to generations of the future. Even to demonstrate that it could be done would be worthwhile. It cannot be done by those who today are engaged in mass production, monopolies and standardisation. This work is quite necessary for feeding the masses and will always be necessary for so many in the world are underfed and even starving.

The difficulty is that the original coffees from different parts of the world cannot be obtained except through these established channels. If I demonstrate that I can use original coffees that I select and from them produce and sell coffee for better than the standard grocery coffees the wholesale merchants are not pleased- of course not! Why should they be?

The range of coffees that he could choose from was tiny by today’s standards, indeed if he were alive today, he would see his vision realised. I am now able to buy directly from individual farms and cooperatives growing and preparing their coffees with care and attention, and innovating new ways of processing to create new and exciting flavour possibilities. But it has been a slow process….

Even when I began full time in 1982 there were not so many speciality coffee roasters and direct contact with individual farms a rarity. Some of the world’s largest producers such as Colombia were mainly bulking the coffee into graded lots so that we only had perhaps 3 or 4 types to choose from.

In order to create a broad palate of flavours within our selection with such a restricted choice led to us often offering each origin in either a light, medium and/or dark roast.

Now that we are able to source such a wide variety of coffees, we can offer a far larger range of flavours by carefully selecting from those farms and cooperatives we trust and are happy to support. Then by finding the optimum roast profile for each coffee we can truly say that their potential has been fulfilled.

We are therefore discontinuing the Colombia Supreme light roast and the Brazil Yellow Bourbon medium roast. We will continue to offer the Colombia Supreme in a medium roast and the Brazil Yellow Bourbon as a dark. 

If the Colombia Supreme light was a favourite then I would recommend trying the medium roast, the Costa Rica San Jose, or the Guatemala Nueva Granada. For the Bourbon a great alternative is the Brazil Daterra Bruzzi or the Tanzania Kibo Chagga which is back in our selection after an unwanted absence.

We will always continue to source high quality coffees, maintaining our core offering but also feature some seasonal limited-edition coffees from time to time.

People often ask me what my favourite coffee is, but it changes all the time. I would get bored of drinking the same one every day. It would be like having the same meal for dinner every night. Now and again, it is good to try something new just to freshen the palate, even if you return to your old favourites.  

If you would like help with making your choices then please call us, or visit our shop in Duke Street where we serve freshly made pour overs and espresso-based coffees in the cafe. We are always pleased to speak to you.