Heart Roasters
If you’ve stopped by the shop more than once or twice, there’s a pretty solid chance you’ve had coffee from our friends at Heart Coffee Roasters. Not only does their packaging blend into the clean and crisp vibes on the retail shelves, their coffee is exactly what Steve and the team looks for in deciding what coffees to feature at Clarity. I got to hear from Ryan Cross, Director of Wholesale for Heart Coffee Roasters, to learn about the Heart story and what makes their coffee so outstanding.
Alex Pond roasting samples (Photo courtesy of Heart Roasters)
Heart opened its doors on October 20, 2009 with the purpose to “create an exceptional coffee experience through uncompromising quality.” For founders Wille and Rebekah Yli-Luoma, roasting coffee is about highlighting the natural qualities of the coffee: “Our goal is to offer coffees from various regions around the world that showcase distinct flavors that are found in the coffees from each specific region.”
Roasting with Care
It seems like nearly every coffee I get to drink from Heart not only honors the origin of the coffee in flavor, but does so with a clarity in taste and note that’s difficult to find with other roasters. This comes from a devotion to origin and natural fruit flavors the coffee has throughout the roasting process.
“Our focus is uncompromising quality.”
“Coffee is a seasonal product, the seed of a fruit, and should be treated with care-from start to finish. The belief is that as a roasting company, there is always something to be learned & room for improvement. We strive to push ourselves to be able to offer our customers the very best coffee we can. The foundation of Heart is a love of coffee, with a passion to innovate and produce the most delicious cup.” This level of care leads to the ideal Heart coffee, a coffee with “fruitiness and delicate sweet notes, along with a rich body, and pronounced acidity.”
(Photo courtesy of Heart Roasters)
Packaging for Transparency
“At heart, our approach is simple,” reads the back of every retail bag. “The coffee cherry is a fruit. Coffee is seasonal. We consider these facts when we source and roast the coffee. Our focus is uncompromising quality. Enjoy.” This insight to how Heart chooses and roasts its coffee isn’t the only thing Heart is willing to discuss. From the specifics of the individual plants and processing of the cherries, to the milling process, the costs involved at all levels and how quickly the green (unroasted) coffee can make it to Heart to be roasted; Heart is dedicated to telling the full story.
“We are in it for the long run and want to be sure our farmers are being paid a fair price”
“We understand that it costs a lot of money to produce the quality we are asking the farmers to provide us. It is expensive to produce the quality we are asking the farmers to provide us. This is why open communication with our farmers is important. We are in it for the long run and want to be sure our farmers are being paid a fair price, and feel good about their relationship with heart.”
Aurelio Villatoro cupping El Amate and his other coffees with some of the Heart crew (Photo courtesy of Heart Roasters)
We love our friends at Heart and are excited to see the opening of their third location in Portland soon. Right now you can find their Guatemala El Amate on both the espresso bar and the Chemex bar, so come have a cup with us!
