To say that this coffee has been keenly anticipated would be a bit of an understatement. We were very sad to see that this year's Rocko Mountain Reserve lot arrived in the UK with quality issues - but thrilled to secure this organic lot, Tariku - from the same washing station and very much in keeping with the Rocko imprint that we all love so much. 

Natural coffees from the Yirgacheffe region are undoubtedly amongst the most interesting and exciting coffees around and this one fits that bill perfectly. In the cup, you can expect huge booziness and a zinging lime acidity. The strawberry notes are less dominant than they were last year but they really come through in espresso and complement the acidity perfectly. 

This is coffee for the adventurous. It is wild and unsubtle. I hope you love it as much as we do. 


Tariku Mengesha is the sole owner and produced this natural coffee entirely on his farms, the farm is located throughout the Banko Chelchele kebele (neighbourhood) of Gedeb woreda, south of Yirgacheffe and just west of the bulgy border with the vast Oromia region.

Tariku applied the basic agronomic practices and keep the field free of any weeds. He grows pulse crops in his coffee field so as to maintain the fertility of the soil.

He processed the coffee with the help of Tesfaye Roba, first by soaking the cherries to remove all immature, floaters, overripe and foreign matter - and than drying on raised beds for 28 days.

While coffee is Mengesha’s primary income, which he uses to support his family that includes 10 children (3 boys and 7 girls), he also grows navy beans and false banana, called “enset,” which produce no edible fruit but whose root and heart ( rhizome and pseudostem, if you want to be botanically accurate) can be harvested. The average enset matures in four or five years, and the plant can provide around 80 lbs of starchy food, usually fermented underground for up to a year, after which the doughy substance can keep for up to a decade. While the fibers in the heart of the plant can be boiled, the most popular iteration is a fermented enset “bread” or “cheese,” called “kocho” – quite strong and foreign to the western palate, but a staple in Southern Ethiopia.

Origin:  Tariku Mengesha's farms. Gedeb Woreda, Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia
Varietals: Ethiopian Landrace

Rocko Mountain (Tariku)

Transforming mornings since 2012. Finest speciality coffee.

Foundry Coffee Roasters

This is the first time that we have bought coffee from Peru and this particular coffee really stood out for us on the cupping table. It's got this really nice nougat thing going on, with just a hint of red, tangy fruit. It reminds us of dried cranberries. Fabulous everyday, easy-drinking coffee, ideally suited to all the brew methods. 


Day lots of coffees from producers all over Cajamarca were purposefully blended together based on cup profile, one typical of the region. All of the day lots come from the early part of the harvest in high altitude areas, which were processed and dried on the producers’ farms.

Most producers in Northern Peru have their own hand pulping machine and fermentation tank where they process the coffee, before drying it on their patio or raised beds. Once the coffees have been processed, farmers deliver them as parchment to the Falcon warehouse in Jaen, where they are graded, analysed for moisture content, roasted and cupped.

This lot is a blend of lots from the end of the harvest and is named after the micro region that it comes from.

Falcon have been working in Northern Peru for several years, buying speciality coffee from cooperatives and associations with whom we have built lasting relationships. Whilst a lot of the arrival quality we have seen in previous seasons has been good, we have struggled to impact upon that quality or make improvements in the supply chain as much as we would like. 

More importantly, the premiums we had been paying for quality rarely makes it directly back to producers, something we have had very little control over in previous years. In Peru, like some other origins, coffee farmers are sensitive to market changes and often lack basic training and the incentive to produce higher qualities of coffee, as premiums often don’t materialise. For these reasons we decided we needed to change the way we buy coffee in Peru and work directly with producers, allowing us to control and improve upon the existing quality and have full financial traceability.

Ensuring these two factors would help us to pay higher prices for the coffees and make sure that producers received a fair price for the coffee they delivered to us, above the market price. In order to do this, we set up a warehouse in Jaen and started to buy in parchment directly from producers. The Cajamarca region holds a lot of potential for quality coffee, with ideal growing conditions and great varieties, but quality is often lost in picking, processing and drying, with producers lacking infrastructure and knowledge. The most vulnerable producers are those that are unassociated – those who aren’t members of a cooperative, association or organisation – and they represent 75% of producers in Northern Peru. These producers don’t have access to training sessions or premiums for quality or certifications, and their income is totally dependent on the market price.

Often, local aggregators – a buyer who lives in the same area – will come to the farm or house of a producer and buy their coffee for cash before selling it on; in some cases, directly to an exporter or more often to other traders and middlemen. This results in the producer being paid very little for their coffee and a lot of quality coffee is lost. This shift in approach to sourcing will allow us to forge long term relationships directly with farmers, improve the coffee quality we can offer from these areas and increase producer household income through access to quality premiums. We now have over 438 registered farmers across the San Ignacio and Jaen provinces.

Origin: Vista Hermosa, Cajamarca, Peru
Owner: Various local farmers
Varietals: Mixed

Vista Hermosa

Here is another addition to our 'Adventure' line-up. Experimental micro-lots can yield unexpected results and it's always a thrill for us to get hold of coffee where the producers have tried something different. We're grateful that there are farmers out there that are open-minded and focussed on trying to push things forward and in this case, it has really paid off.

In the cup, you can expect a complex coffee with warming cherry notes and a hint of bonfire toffee. It is bold and full-bodied but with a fizzy, gentle acidity that reminds us of sherbert and finishes the taste experience perfectly. We'd recommend grinding a little coarser than usual to make the most of the complexity in this coffee ad if you can wait, it really opens up a lot two weeks after roasting.


Oliverio Lara Lopez and his son Jolman Walter own and manage the farm Bella Vista in the Gualme area of Corquin, Copan. The 3 and a half hectare farm sits 1350masl and is planted with Catuai, Lempira and IHCAFE90.

Oliverio is a very experienced coffee producer, but also very open-minded and was keen to experiment with processing and improve the quality of his coffee. He was one of the first members of the coop to join the micro-lot programme and saw a huge improvement in the quality of his coffee as a result.

This lot comes from Oliverio's farm at higher altitude in Gualme, where he grows IHCAFE 90, Lempira and Catuai. This coffee is a natural process of the Lempira variety. The producers will receive about 70% of the FOB price for their micro lots.

This year the harvest for all producers was extremely difficult with increased rains during the harvest and a lack of pickers meaning a large amount of coffee was lost from either falling to the ground or swelling and splitting on the tree. The mill is at 800MASL which gives a drier, more stable climate to dry the coffee compared to up at the farms where the weather can be less predictable.The coffee will be delivered to the mill where they assess the cherry and decide on the process for the coffees depending on space and what the producer has done already. 

Origin:  Corquin, Corpan. Honduras
Owner:  Oliverio Lara Lopez and son
Varietals: Lempira

Oliverio Lara Lopez

There aren't many things that get Team Foundry as excited as a new coffee from the Yirgacheffe region of Ethiopia. Famed for stunning natural processed coffee - we were absolutely blown away when this washed lot turned up on our cupping table this summer. 

In the cup, you can expect a beautifully complex coffee. It has an atypical full body and a silky creamy mouthfeel. There are stunning lychee, melon and apricot notes and a hint of citrus too which sits alongside those subtle floral and black tea flavours that you might expect in high quality Ethiopian coffee. However you like to brew, this one is special - you're going to love it. 

Located in Gedeo zone of the Gedeb district, Worka Chelbesa is one of the finest coffee producing areas within the famous Gedeb Woreda. Known for its dense layered semi-forest vegetation structure encompassing false banana trees as well as shade grown coffee trees, Chelbesa is a great example of best coffee growing agro-ecology.

SNAP Specialty Coffee built their new wet mill in 2019 in a small hamlet called Danche within the Chelbesa Village with the hope of reaching out to purchasing exclusively red cherries from the nearby farmers in Chelbesa Village. Their ambition became a reality after completion of the project. The fermentation tanks of the wet mill were built by ceramic which will help bring clarity in the coffee that they process as well as help fasten the fermentation through keep heat inside the ceramic.This lots it has been put together with the production of 476 smallholders farmers delivering their cherries to the mill, in the area the most common type of soil is redbrown a particularly fertile type rich in iron and with high acidity content.

Origin:  Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia
Varietals: Wolisho and Dega

Chelbesa

Everyone loves San Francisco!! - and there's also a hilly town in the US with the same name too apparently. Easily in our top five most popular coffees ever and the third time we've taken it in the last four years. It's impressively similar to previous years. It's rare to find coffee that has such a fruity hit whilst being so elegant and well-balanced with an utterly dreamy, smooth and long finish that reminds us of Galaxy chocolate. 

In espresso, this will blow your mind. Yes, it's fruity - but the acidity is balanced by the chocolate notes and it's an extremely addictive combo. Brewed? - think clean and classy, delicate yet complex and distinctive. Just try it, you'll love it. 

San Francisco is the name of one district in the ‘Cordillera Central’ also called ‘La Zona de los Santos’ but this is also the name of the farm from Edgar Fallas Solis, his wife Ligia and their son Willian. The family owns 10-12 hectares, intercropped with avocados, citrus and banana trees. This micro lot was grown at 1,800 + masl.

Edgar is the second generation working on this 55-year-old farm originally planted with Caturra with now the addition of Catuai and Catimore. They get seedlings from the national research center Icafe. A lot of biodynamic technics are used in the farm (use of garlic, chili, intercropping, etc.). He’s really aware of climate change and of the necessity of adapting his farming.

At the peak of the season, 15 people are working with the family to harvest all the cherries. Willian, the son, took brewing classes for 4 years and is now competing and won a national championship. He knows a lot about the coffee supply chain and quality and will take over the farm when his dad retires.

Origin:  San Francisco, Cordillera Central
Varietals: Caturra and Catuai

San Francisco

We're loving our new comfort offering! This is clean, delicious, everyday coffee. Expect a sumptuous drink with a hint of praline and a lovely smooth toffee chocolate finish. Satisfyingly solid, well-balanced coffee that is really easy to brew whether you are using an espresso machine or any other brew method. It's already becoming our dependable, go-to brew, especially in a flat white.


Antioquia situated in the northwest is the largest department in Colombia with an estimated 95,000 coffee growers.

Most of these are smallholders with 2- 5 ha of land but there are also larger family farms in the department that have been part of families for generations. Only recently has speciality coffee been associated with this department as there have been significant quality improvements over the past number of years.

The climate and dramatic valleys make this a very challenging environment in which to produce speciality coffee. Finca La Ricuarte is a 150 ha farm with 50 ha given to the natural forest and environment. This farm belongs to the Velez family who have owned the farm for generations. The main variety on the farm is Caturra with some Colombia and Castillo as well on the land.

The farm is also certified RFA as it is important to the family to be responsible for the environment as well as for the people they employ.

Origin:  Antioquia, Northwest Colombia
Owner:  The Velez Family 
Varietals: Castillo, Colombia and Caturra

La Ricuarte

A popular coffee last year and tasting even better this time. In the cup, when brewing for filter, you can expect a beautifully balanced and complex cup. The mouthfeel is syrupy and plum notes give it a pleasing depth. A subtle, tart raspberry note adds a different layer. The finish is long and sweet. In espresso, that raspberry note really comes to the fore and it's easy to end up with a bright, zingy acidity in your shots. Either way, this is great coffee and we're sure you'll love it. 

The Red de Mujeres, or network of women, is a large group of female coffee producers covering five different areas of Huehuetenango. The group is made up of 830 women. Within the entire community of women there are 8 different Mayan languages spoken, highlighting the diversity of culture and language in this area of Guatemala.

All of these women have been either widowed during the 36 years of civil war in Guatemala, or were left when their husbands fled the country during the coffee crisis between 2001 and 2004. Since Huehuetenango was one of the areas hardest hit by the crisis, many people decided to give up altogether and find work elsewhere, leaving their families behind.

With the help of ACODIHUE, these female producers have been united to market their coffee and find international buyers. ACODIHUE has also supported them in training in organic farming methods, from producing and applying fertilizers, to rust and pest control methods. our importer partner has started working with ACODIHUE to improve the quality of production even further, starting with Red de Mujeres.

Red De Mujeres - Guatemala

'There aren't many things that get Team Foundry as excited as a new coffee from the Guji region of Ethiopia'. This is how we started our description of our insanely popular Dambi Udo from last year. This coffee is from the same washing station and it's amazing, but quite different!

In the cup, you can expect some really intriguing flavour. We get a wonderful ripe blueberry note, followed by a hint of liquorice and a finish that reminds us of black tea. So, this isn't your classic natural Guji fruit bomb but it is supremely classy, intriguing and thoroughly moreish. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do, it's sheer class.

Daannisa is the name of a sub kebele (Hamlet) where the this group of 37 farmers are located. Average farm size of each member is 3.35 hectares. The coffee grows under a canopy of natural forest, much like most of Guji Coffees in the area.

The fertile red land is made of Clay and Loam.

All of these farmers are trained in agronomy and post-harvest practices by the "King of Guji", Ture Waji. What's unique about how these drying stations are managed are the drying beds themselves: each day lot is tracked with a tag for each bed, listing the specific delivery and the start date of drying and relative Moisture Content Readings for each day.

Origin:  Daanissa, Guji. Processed at Dambi Udo
Varietals: Gibirinna and Serto

Daanissa

You can expect a really sumptuous drink with a sweet and lovely, smooth caramel, butterscotch finish. This is really solid, well-balanced coffee that is super easy to brew and it's been designed specifically for espresso - a first for us! The roast is just a tad more developed than usual (but still no oil on the beans or anything like that - yuk!) and it's just perfect for those of you that like just that little bit more intensity and boldness in the cup. It tastes amazing in espresso-based drinks as frequenters of Cafe No.9 in Nether Edge will no doubt tell you.

Anyone looking for an easy-drinking, easy brewing coffee - look no further. Absolutely perfect for bean to cup machines too! 


Antioquia situated in the northwest of Colombia.

Most of these are smallholders with 2- 5 ha of land but there are also larger family farms in the department that have been part of families for generations. Only recently has speciality coffee been associated with this department as there have been significant quality improvements over the past number of years.

The climate and dramatic valleys make this a very challenging environment in which to produce speciality coffee. Finca La Ricuarte is a 150 ha farm with 50 ha given to the natural forest and environment. This farm belongs to the Velez family who have owned the farm for generations. The main variety on the farm is Caturra with some Colombia and Castillo as well on the land.

The farm is also certified RFA as it is important to the family to be responsible for the environment as well as for the people they employ.

Origin:  La Ricuarte, Antioquia, Colombia
Owner:  The Velez family
Varietals: Castillo, Colombia and Caturra

No. 9 Roast

Released just in time for Christmas and you'd be hard-pressed to find a more festive tasting brew! This is delicious coffee and our first-ever natural from Nicaragua. In filter, you may pick up subtle Christmas pudding flavours, stewed dates, mulled wine and cloves. There's a delightful black tea finish and the natural process lends a hint of booziness that finishes the coffee off beautifully. In espresso, you'll get a slight nuttiness coming through too, delicious.

Luis Bernardo Paguaga is the owner of the 8-hectare farm, Buena Vista, in the Dipilto area of Nueva Segovia. Luis inherited the farm from his father and since then he has been working to improve everything on the farm. He plants new varieties like Obata and Marselleza and is experimenting with longer fermentation times in order to improve cup quality. Luis has started processing naturals this year with great success. This lot is a natural processed Marselleza variety which was dried on raised beds at his farm.

Origin:  Buena Vista, Dipilto, Nueva Segovia
Owner:  Luis Bernardo Paguaga
Varietals: Marselleza

Buena Vista

This decaf is creamy, full bodied and has a slightly bitter, dark chocolate finish. With subtle pear and almond notes too. Easy drinking, easy brewing, you can't really go wrong.  

Located in Timbio just to the south of Popayan in Cauca is where the Cosurca Cooperative is based and represents 11 farmer organisations and 1500 families spread across the Colombian Massif here in central & south Cauca.

The Coop was established in 1993 and at looking to work for its members to help farmers and their communities prosper both economically & socially. The cooperative has a number of programs looking at post conflict resolution, women’s empowerment, youth promotion, general education, ethnic minorities & environmental harmony. The coop is working to have all its members working organically as they believe this is best for the prosperity and future of the farmers and environment together.

Origin:  Timbio, Colombia
Owner:  Cosurca Co-operative
Varietals: Colombia

Foundry Coffee Roasters

0.0

Foundry Coffee Roasters

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

Coffee items

Buena Vista

Chelbesa - Ethiopia

Daanissa

La Ricuarte

Luis Anibal Calderon - Colombia

Mustefa Abakeno - Ethiopia

Ndundu Peaberry - Kenya

No. 9 Roast

Oliverio Lara Lopez

Palo Grande

Red De Mujeres - Guatemala

Rocko Mountain (Tariku)

San Francisco

Victor Mejia Heredia - Peru

Vista Hermosa

Coffee archive

Chelbesa