As well as revolutionizing pour-over coffee with our xBloom machine, one of the projects we’re working on that we’re most excited about is our marketplace that will connect you with some of the best coffee roasters out there.
We’ve been forging relationships with incredible individuals focused on bringing the highest quality beans from some of the world’s most far-flung regions in an ethical way. With every pour, we celebrate and empower the people behind the beans. By sharing their stories, we breathe life not only into your mornings but into local and global businesses, independent suppliers, artisan coffee shops, and incredible growers.
Our marketplace is about authenticity and connection to origin; you’re here to be inspired and learn about the journey your beans have been on. Of course, we’ll add more wonderful roasting partners to our network in the coming weeks and months. But for now, we wanted to introduce you to some of the amazing people we’re already working with, so you can also get to know their stories, coffee, and what they stand for.
Let’s jump in!
Kaveri Coffee Works
Hailing from a legacy of coffee enthusiasts, Tanya Roa founded Kaveri Coffee Works in 2019 to keep her family’s tradition alive and thriving. Delicately roasting coffee in Berkeley, California, the origin story of this woman-owned, family heritage business begins a little further afield.
Throw your imagination back to the bustling streets of Bangalore, India, in 1941. Tanya’s grandfather, M.V. Rao, opened the India Coffee Kiosk, which became the first privately owned coffee-trading company in 1947 under India Coffee Works. Twenty years later, her father had joined the business and in 1965, her grandfather became president of the wholesale coffee traders association at the Indian Coffee Board (a role her father would take on too 15 years later).
Tanya moved from Bangalore to the United States in 1997 to pursue higher education and explore better job opportunities. But after dabbling in various more conventional career paths, Tanya couldn’t shake the thought of starting something herself related to the world of coffee.
“Even though I had no formal coffee experience, it all seemed so familiar and pulled me strongly back to my roots.”
And that’s how Kaveri Coffee Works was born!
“I take immense pride in following my grandfather and father’s footsteps and continuing their lifelong dedication to delivering fresh and delicious coffee.”
Tanya sources her coffee from small estates in the highlands of Southern India. Today, 75 years on, the age-old traditions of quality, authenticity, and dedication so important to her family’s coffee heritage still hold strong.
“Delicious tasting coffee requires exceptional care all along the supply chain.”
And this care is something that Tanya (and everyone at Kaveri) takes seriously. One example is that all of their Indian coffees are hand-picked to ensure that only the perfectly ripened beans are harvested. The meticulous coffee pickers return three to four times during the two-month picking season and collect the beans as and when they are ready!
Sustainability is another important topic for Tanya, who is adamant that Kaveri Coffee does everything in its power to support the world we live in and the farmers who work so hard to produce the raw ingredients. The organization recently became a member of the 1% for the planet movement that inspires businesses and individuals to support environmental solutions. Kaveri has pledged 1% of its annual revenue to assist non-profit organizations protecting our planet and encouraging sustainable energy production!
When we heard about all the incredible things Tanya is doing at Kaveri to ensure her coffee business has a positive impact, we knew we wanted her to join our stellar line-up of roasting partners. And lucky for us, she agreed! Welcome, on-board :)
Soul Blends Coffee Roasters
Our next partner is making waves in Oakland and around the world through Soul Blends Coffee Roasters, a BIPOC-owned specialty coffee service dedicated to providing deliciously handcrafted, quality-sourced, fair-trade African coffee.
Born from the desire to make a daily impact in various communities and environments worldwide, founds Jenna Garrett and Justice Chambers are also heavily involved in building community in the "Black Wave" coffee movement as one of the area's newest Black-owned coffee roasting companies.
“We believe that our coffee is more than just a beverage. It is an opportunity to engage and inspire communities everywhere through shared experiences and meaningful connections.”
With more than half of their coffee hailing from the highest altitudes of prime growing regions in Africa, Soul Blends Coffee only works with farms that are established as leaders in high-grade organic coffee, ensuring that their blends are both flavorful and ethical. They invite consumers to be a part of something bigger than themselves within a comfortable and inclusively driven space where they guarantee you will enjoy every sip.
“We wanted to honor our ancestry. You lose a lot with the past. Coffee can be a gateway to learning more about ourselves.”
You might be noticing a theme here! Justice and Jenna are focused on the bigger picture and the incredible impact coffee can have when sourced ethically. Their focus on community caught our eye at xBloom and we feel so happy that Soul Blends Coffee Roasters agreed to join our marketplace.
Boxx Coffee
Armed with an engineering background and a wealth of knowledge of the nuances of thousands of different coffee beans they have roasted since Boxx Coffee was born in Istanbul, Turkey, eight years ago, Altug Baser and Arda Barlas are obsessed with giving customers an unforgettable experience.
Now based in LA and selling coffee in one of the city's hippest areas, which Altug describes as the Mecca of coffee, Boxx is all about bringing out the best of each bean. Their roasts come from across the world, from Central America to the plains of Africa, and after almost a decade of experimentation since quitting his day job as an electronics engineer, Altug told us how proud he is to showcase the unique flavors and aromas that they have unlocked in the process.
Their passion and expertise are what caught our attention at xBloom! And our shared mission made Boxx a perfect roasting partner in our quest to connect our community to the best-quality coffee out there.
“The thing that excites me most about our partnership with xBloom is that we get to showcase our coffee but it doesn’t take away from the experience of the customer. They can play around with the water temperature, the timings, anything really. It’s fun and experimental and they can come up with their recipes.” Arda
Compared to the coffee shop experience, the biggest problem at home is that people might not have all the kit, the patience or time to replicate the process, and most importantly, the vast knowledge required to best brew whichever coffee they want to drink. Joining forces to democratize specialty coffee, Boxx will be providing us with their tried and tested recipes and the xBloom machine will be automatically programmed to brew their beans accordingly so you can enjoy that wow experience in the comfort of your home.
This is just the start…
As we said at the start, this is just the beginning. In our next blog, you’ll be able to learn more about our rockstar roasting partners! And as new coffee entrepreneurs join our network in the future, we’ll make sure to introduce you. Not only will you be able to discover top-quality coffee that might not have been on your radar otherwise, but you can sip assured, knowing that you are supporting ethical and sustainable businesses that play an important role in protecting the environment as well as communities where coffee is produced.
