When I met Paul, we really hit it off. We both come from a pub & bars background and enjoyed the move into coffee. It's a story I'm finding echoed more and more in the coffee world. Paul and Dov, who I've met the most in the small team of committed coffee professionals, collectively bring years of experience, expertise and thirst for knowledge to the cupping table - to ensure that their commitment to quality is never compromised.
I'm often asked about brew guides and they have a great set of videos (link here) with step by step instructions for V60s, Aeropress and French press - what I love about these videos is at the end of each one there is a table to show you how to adjust your brew next time round, depending how you found it.
To see with a video to introduce Vagabond - click here.
Vagabond Coffee Roasters, based in north London, roast in 5kg batches on their trusty Giesen. Part science and part craft, they are never afraid to experiment so that they can truly express a coffees’ unique character every freshly roasted batch at a time.
Vagabond take their role in the coffee value chain seriously by seeking to build long-term sustainable relationships with coffee growers wherever possible.
This coffee is one that they have worked on long before I met them and they continue to work directly with the grower.
La Lomita is a family-run business with almost 40 years of experience growing some of Colombia’s best coffee. With more than six hectares of land growing coffee, and another four dedicated as a forest reserve, the farm employs three permanent workers who receive free housing and health care, as do their families. During the year's two harvests, La Lomita’s coffee pickers are rewarded for quality, not quantity, and receive above the market price for their labour. The team at La Lomita take their environmental responsibility extremely seriously and use no chemicals, fungicides or herbicides in their agricultural practices on the farm.
Roaster - Vagabond Coffee Roaster
Location - North London
Coffee Origin - Colombia
Grower - La Lomita
Location - Farallones, Valle del Cauca
Process - Washed
Variety - Castillo
Taste notes - Pomelo, Red apple, Black grape, Fresh.
You can see this coffee and the full Vagabond coffee range on their website here.
Don't forget to follow Vagabond coffee roastery on Instagram here