Coffee bags in the photo are ordered by roast date from left to right, top to bottom. Click to get a closer look.
| Name | Roaster | Tasting Notes | Roast Date | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aggie Blend | UC Davis Coffee Center, Davis, California | sweet, caramel, dark chocolate | April 6, 2026 | Blend |
| Ethiopia Wuri | Maru Coffee, Los Angeles, California | peach, blackberry, black tea | May 4, 2026 | Gedeb, Gedeo, Ethiopia |
| Ethiopia Yukro | Best Boy Electric, San Francisco, California | jasmine, candied lemon, honey | May 25, 2026 | Ethiopia |
| Ethiopia Tariku Kare Bombe Natural | Rogue Wave, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada | cherry, nectarine, blueberry, floral, orange | June 9, 2026 | Ethiopia |
| Two Partners | Elysian Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada | milk chocolate, orange marmelade | June 2, 2026 | Huehuetenango Region, Guatemala |
| Peru Cerro Blanco Natural | Bird and Bear, San Francisco, California | fruity, creamy, stawberry, aged rum | July 1, 2026 | Peru |
| Letty Bermudez | Hydrangea, Berkeley, California | white peach, jasmine milk tea, dried rose | July 26, 2026 | Diego Samuel Bermudez, Cauca, Colombia |
| Budan | Le Mil’s San Francisco, California | milk chocolate, toasted hazelnut, aamia (indian gooseberry) | August 7, 2026 | Bhagavathi Ram, Navilu Mane Estate, India |
Couple more bags of coffee over the last, well, it’s August now and the first date listed is April so I’d say that’s about four months. Let’s go through them all real quick. Each one has a fun little backstory.
This year, UC Davis had picnic day on April 18. Last year I took Amtrak from Emeryville to Davis but this year, I had a car. We drove up the morning and parked pretty close to the Coffee Center. I got talking to the students, very science-fair-esque but it’s fun to learn a little from them. I’m sure it’s fun for them to show off some of their knowledge, at least that’s how I would have felt when I was a student. At the end of the tour, after a couple of coffee samples, I spun the wheel and won a free bag of coffee.
Next up, the Maru coffee and Best Boy Electric were both brought home by my girlfriend. She got the Maru bag on a trip to LA and Best Boy Electric she picked up local at their coffee shop in SF’s Japan Town.
The next two, Rogue Wave and Elysian, I acquired during a summer climbing trip in Squamish. The 1914 coffee company in downtown Squamish sells a variety of beans from Canada’s premier roasters. I’ve known of this spot for a few years now. The first time we went, Mike still had an espresso machine, but now he only sells beans. He always seems a bit cranky, which feels a bit off putting but the coffee is always good. I also tried his first ascent that trip, Laser Blade 5000, a powerful climb with a long slaby topout. The Elysian beans I picked up from a coffee shop called The Ledge which doubles as a church on Sundays. I chatted with the barista a bit, he mentioned that he put the espresso tonic on the menu after trying it in Mexico.
The last three bags are all local.
My friend goes to Bird and Bear’s house (they roast in their garage) once a month to pick up and she got me a bag this time. It’s great value for the price, about $20 for a pound, and the beans are excellent. I’ve known of them for some time, a friend living in Cole Valley first mentioned them to me a few years ago, but this was my first time trying their beans.
The Letty Bermudez from Hydrangea is a gesha so it was pretty pricey at almost $50 for a half pound. The barista from Paper Son, where I bought the bag, said “most people only get one bag but it’s worth trying”. In the past, I had a delicious melon flavored coffee from Hydrangea so I took his word at face value. It’s an interesting brew for sure, very floral and tea like with a rich mouth feel. I’m trying to gather a few friends together to try it since it’s worth sharing at that price point.
Finally, Le Mil’s just opened a shop on Polk. I went for their soft opening and picked up a bag. The owners are a couple. The wife, Milana, has family that runs a coffee farm in India. It’s quite rare to find Indian coffee in the US. I brewed it today and it has a papery mouth feel.
Well, that’s all of them. I’ve had a rich coffee adventure as of late. Lot’s of bags from different places. In the past, I was mostly buying local coffee from Wholefoods, which gets a bit boring once you’ve tried all the roasters the buyer bothered to order. Thankfully, some of the recent additions to the SF coffee scene have diminished my reliance on that grocery store. Cheers to more good coffee.