Specialty coffee in Europe, traditionally linked to Scandinavia and Western European nations, has found a new contender in Spain. The Spanish specialty coffee movement reflects an increasing appreciation for coffee complexity and a commitment to elevating the coffee-drinking experience. Our selection this month shows that Spain is a country that continues to shine as a place for outstanding coffee!

(Barcelona, Spain)

The second largest city in Spain, Barcelona attracts tourists and people looking for a fresh start in life, just like the owners of Three Marks Coffee.

Founded in 2018, sits close to the city center, the company was named after three friends/co-founders, Marc Aguyé who oversees store management; Marco Paccagnella, in charge of brand marketing and Italian born Marco De Rebotti who is responsible for all things coffee. Three Marks aims to serve a sophisticated selection of coffees with style. The cafe & roastery have impeccable design and showcases their attention to detail. Since its inception, Three Marks has solidified its presence on the Barcelona coffee scene. Our second time featuring them in the Coffee Club and this time with a very special coffee from their ‘Silver Coffees’ Limited Edition.

(Barcelona, Spain)

Founded by Àgatha and Dani, Harmony Coffee Roasters represents a commitment to seek ‘harmony’ throughout the coffee production chain. From fair trade agreements with producers to sustainable practices, the brand emphasises environmental impact and final product quality. Their roasting philosophy involves minimal interference, aiming for defect-free beans to create the perfect coffee expression. Even though they are new to the Spanish specialty coffee scene, Harmony has an impressive reputation with the titles such as the first place in 2021 Spain Roasters Competition & 2022 Catalunya Roasters Competition.

We are very pleased to be introducing Harmony as our discovery roaster this month, with this very unique SL28 Colombian coffee.

Produced by Luís Aníbal Calderón, the owner of the Villa Betulia farm. When he was just 9 years old, Luis received his first plot of land as a gift from his father. Since then he has passionately grown more than 13 different varieties of coffee on his farm. Villa Betulia is well known for its soil, particularly composed of volcanic and clay ash, as well as its excellent location near a dense tropical forest. Such a location allows for below-average daytime temperatures that cause the beans to ripen slowly offering a coffee with a fruity flavor and a sweeter cup.

The coffee was fermented 150 hours aerobically and another 150 hours anaerobically. It offers a complex cup not only due to the fermentation but also due to the SL28 varietal, commonly found in Kenya.

(Dos Hermanas/Seville, Spain)

The further south you travel in Spain, the less specialty coffee there is but in the small town of Dos Hermanas, located near Seville in Andalusia is where you’ll find Ineffable Coffee Roasters. A company born as a project which aimed to help shed a different light on Spanish coffee culture.

The co-founders Omar, Jose & Alejandro all lived in different countries where the specialty coffee was firmly recognised and established. They then brought back their experiences back home after working there for over 10 years. Now Ineffable is providing a curated selection of the most complex and dynamic seasonal coffees to their community and highlighting the unique qualities of each coffee according to origin, processing method and farmer’s decisions in the most transparent and delicious way possible.

When Wendy Alvarado and her sisters decided to venture into cultivating specialty coffee on their La Fila Farm in the Brunca region of Costa Rica, it was something innovative as this area was not considered suitable for coffee cultivation. However, Wendy and her sisters have managed to take advantage of the altitude, the rich soil, and the climate, along with a lot of effort, passion, and knowledge, to achieve an exquisite coffee that has changed the perception of the entire region.

The cherries are handpicked at their optimal point of ripeness, then depulped and left to ferment with the mucilage in dry tanks for 24 hours before being placed to dry on raised beds for 12-15 days, until they reach the appropriate moisture level.

(Valladolid, Spain)

With much of the focus around big city roasters, it’s particularly interesting to find an exciting specialty coffee roaster out in the countryside. Not only that, they also set up in a barn formerly used an organic chickens farm.

Paloma and Marco, from Spain and Italy respectively, after living in London for several years, decided to stop, reflect and take a new approach to life.”We travelled to new places and met incredible people along the way, whose love for the exciting world of coffee rubbed off on us. Together, we created Puchero, which has grown since 2015 to become a leader in specialty coffee and one of the best roasters in Spain.”

The Chacón’s family has been growing coffee on Finca Las Lajas, on the slopes of Volcán Poas in Costa Rica, since 1936. Oscar took over the farm in the early nineties and developed the farm into a brand recognised for top quality and risk-taking with his innovative and entrepreneurial courage. In 2000, Finca Las Lajas became the first organic coffee farm in the country and they have been one of the pioneers for honey and natural processing in Costa Rica.

This lot comes from the Milenio variety, a first-generation hybrid of the T5296 and Rude Sudan varieties. This was part of the first wave of F1 hybrid varieties created by the French research institute CIRAD in collaboration with a network of national coffee institutes in Central America PROMECAFE and CATIE.