Finding the Right Coffee Is Not Scary

Indaba Coffee Roasters roasts right here in the heart of Spokane, Washington, but our coffees come from all over the world. The geographic boundaries of commercial coffee growing, called the Coffee Belt, lie between 25°N and 30°S latitude. This is where all your favorite coffees start their journey. We roast and sell specialty coffee exclusively. Specialty coffee is grown and processed under specific conditions that increase quality and flavor.

Single origin

Single origin refers to coffee from a single growing region. Many growing regions share similar characteristics, so getting to know some general flavor profiles of specific regions can help you find coffees that fit your palate. As you travel the world of coffee, one cup at a time, you'll certainly find some favorites. We'd love to know what they are! You can filter your search in our webstore by flavor notes and origin.

Blends

There's an art to blending coffee. Blends are a selection of coffees combined to create a targeted flavor profile, an art form we at Indaba Coffee Roasters excel at. Our roaster is obsessed with coaxing and combing flavors in an endless pursuit of that best cup. Blending combines the inherent qualities of a variety's origin with the skill and pallet of the roaster. You can filter your search in our webstore for blends or single origins.

Light

Lighter roasts let the intrinsic flavors of the beans shine. Generally, you can expect a fruit-forward, bright cup with sweet, nutty and floral notes. Lighter roasts tend to have a lighter body and are often favored by coffee purists who drink their coffee black. They can be more temperamental, so a good recipe and solid technique will help coax out their best qualities.

Medium

Medium roasts are known for offering the best of both worlds. Roast flavors like chocolate, caramel and roasted nuts come to life, while the bright, fruit-forward and juicy character of a lighter roast remains to round out the cup. Medium roasts lend themselves to drip, pour-over and espresso almost equally well. Medium Roasts are a great starting point for the coffee curious. 

Dark

Dark coffees have a reputation for tasting burnt or flat. At Indaba Coffee, our roaster achieves the bold roast flavors dark coffee lovers crave while preserving the distinct flavors unique to each coffee's origin. Darker roasts pair wonderfully with milk or cream, and a French press doubles down on their bold, in-your-face flavor. Do not fear the Dark Roast. 

When choosing coffee, it's important to know how you plan to brew it. Every coffee expresses itself differently depending on how you choose to brew it. In general, quicker extraction methods like the V60 or AeroPress highlight brighter, floral notes, while a French press will pull out more deep, roast and chocolate notes. Look out for our favorite recipes, coming soon to our website! The Indaba coffee quiz above takes your brew method into account.

Caffeine content varies by origin, roast and preparation. Generally, the lighter the roast, the higher the caffeine content. Longer contact time between water and coffee will extract more caffeine. Here at Indaba Coffee Roasters we offer the full spectrum of coffees from ultra-light roasted, to Half-Ass our half-caff blend, to Swiss Water Decaf. 

Certifications

We will dig into certifications in more detail in future blog posts. For now, it's important to know that every coffee we sell is specialty grade. Fair pay, environmental sustainability, human rights, and quality are all factors we look at when purchasing the coffees we roast and sell. It is important to us that we are able to trace our coffees to their farms of origin. Please let us know if you have any questions about coffee quality or certifications!