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Imbibe Coffee Roasters
Gary runs the team over at Imbibe. Dublins own Imbibe specialises in exceptional coffees that are sourced with fairness in mind. Something coined as "conscious capitalism" is the motive in all they do. This approach takes into consideration all the elements that relate to the business from the community, to the staff, customers, suppliers and most certainly the environment. While their coffee is indeed special, the projects they have their hands in away from the beans are game-changer. They are zero waste advocates and 90% of their output is organic on top of that.
Upon experiencing the recession as well as watching a documentary called "Black Gold", Gary decided to leave his career in financial services and set out to become the best roaster in Ireland. Not the biggest but the best. After seeing the unfair treatment coffee bean farmers experience Gary was intent on selling coffee as ethically as possible. The last ten years have been a journey deeper into coffee for Gary as they have honed their craft and established an ethos that reflects the desire for fair ethics across the board.
What is the biggest challenge the specialty coffee community is facing in 2020?
Many coffee producers have faced difficulties posed by climate to their crops and then Covid came along. Cafes have obviously struggled too and are having to adapt to a whole new world and in instances change their business model.
Where is your favourite spot to drink a coffee OR WHAT was your favourite place that you had a coffee?
I can't answer this. We're a wholesaler :).
What is your favourite & least favourite coffee trend at the moment?
I tend not to look at trends but rather focus on what we're doing. We've brought coffees never before seen in Ireland and were delighted that Brew Box were part of that with our Wush Wush. This is something we'll continue to do. We've recently bought three coffees from Ninety Plus and will again soon have new crop coffees from Cafe De Panama. We want to continue to bring coffees here that are the "actual" best in the world.
Tell us about coffees featured in this month's box?
We've all been big fans of Kenya for a long time but their naturals are a relatively new phenomenon with a different profile. We were very happy with this one. It's only our second time to do a naturally processed coffee from Kenya. This one is sweet and complex with notes of strawberry jam, apricot and lime. We hope your subscribers will enjoy it.
Here more on Imbibe and Gary's story here:
https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/bonus-ep-how-to-build-an-ethical-coffee-company/id1464983578?i=1000485598774