Coava Coffee Roasters

ORIGINS

Coava began in Matt Higgins North Portland garage in 2008. The veteran barista and roaster bootstrapped the company by repairing motorcycles. Having spent years in specialty coffee, Matt dreamed of starting his own company where he could roast and prepare coffees that would be exciting for professional baristas and inviting to everyday drinkers. Matt knew that in order to accomplish this goal, sourcing exceptional “coava” would have to be the bedrock upon which his entire company was built.

So he studied agriculture, farm practices, and sustainable business. He sought farmers who were committed to producing quality crops, and focused his attention on under-sourced regions. His hard work and willingness to go above and beyond eventually earned him a reputation among coffee producers as a respectful, diligent, and honest person. Those early years were difficult, but exciting, and laid the foundation for many of the long­standing partnerships Coava has with farmers to this day.

FARMERS

Coava is committed to long term, sustainable partnerships with coffee producers. As far as we’re concerned, obtaining high scoring green coffee is just the beginning. We are dedicated to a sourcing model that is not only good for farmers, but is good for the specialty coffee industry as a whole. Being socially responsible, honest, and investing in infrastructure allows us to get the same great coffees each year, to build trust between us and our producers, and to offer stability and security to the coffee producing communities we partner with. We recognize that it is the growers, not us, who determine a coffee's potential, and we are honored to work with producers who take such pride in their work.

QUALITY

As one of the premier coffee roasters in the United States, we embody a relentless focus on quality, and quality doesn’t come easy. It’s the result of hard work, experience, and persistence. It’s found in the details. Whether it’s traveling to farms around the world, developing roast profiles, or logging hours behind the espresso machine, we’re dedicated to refining every area of our craft, so that quality comes through in every bag of beans, every handcrafted drink, and in every interaction with our team.

​​​HOSPITALITY

In the end, it’s all about people. The relationships we have with coffee farmers, importers, wholesale partners, customers, and co­workers make it all worth it. We never forget how fortunate we are to get to work with the coffees we have, and we love being able to share them with you.

Inviting our customers ­who quickly become friends ­to try our coffees, hang out in our cafes, and laugh with our baristas is what brings us the greatest joy. Despite our years of collective experience, we know there’s always room to learn and improve, and we'd like to invite you to learn with us, to grow with us, and to experience the joy that comes from a great cup of coffee.