Our Story

The Beginning

In 2019, three friends sat in a Vienna cafe complaining about coffee. We were drinking what was supposed to be premium blend, but it tasted like every other cup we'd had that month. Flat. Predictable. Soulless.

One of us had traveled to Ethiopia the year before and brought back a small bag of beans from a farm outside Yirgacheffe. We roasted them in a modified popcorn maker, more experiment than expertise. The result was uneven, slightly burnt on the edges, but it had something commercial coffee didn't: character.

That weekend experiment became a weekend habit. Then a weekend obsession.

Learning the Hard Way

We made terrible coffee for months. Beans roasted too light that tasted like grass. Beans roasted too dark that tasted like ash. Temperature curves that made no sense. Cooling times that were pure guesswork.

But each bad batch taught us something. We started keeping detailed notes. Graphing temperature changes. Comparing beans from different regions, different altitudes, different processing methods.

By the end of that first year, we could consistently produce coffee that we actually wanted to drink. That's when friends started asking if they could buy some.

From Hobby to Business

We never intended to start a company. But word spread. A local cafe tried our Ethiopian roast and wanted to serve it. Then another. Then a small grocery store.

In 2021, we rented a small space in Salzburg and bought our first proper roaster. Not the biggest machine, but one that let us maintain control over every aspect of the process. We named the business Alpen Bohnen, a nod to where we work and what we work with.

The business grew, but our approach didn't change. Small batches. Direct relationships with farmers. Obsessive attention to detail.

What Drives Us Now

We could scale up. Buy bigger equipment, automate more of the process, chase higher margins. But that would mean compromising on the things that make our coffee worth drinking.

Instead, we've stayed intentionally small. Every batch is still roasted by one of the three of us who started this. Every new bean is still cupped multiple times before we commit to it. Every customer inquiry is still answered by someone who actually knows the product.

This isn't the fastest way to grow a business, but it's the only way we know how to make coffee we're proud of.

Our Process

We visit farms before we buy. Not just to inspect beans, but to understand how they're grown, processed, and dried. Coffee quality starts long before roasting.

Once beans arrive, they rest for two weeks. Green coffee needs time to stabilize after shipping. Rushing this step affects the final cup.

Roasting happens in small batches, never more than 15 kilograms at a time. We monitor temperature curves in real-time, adjusting gas flow and drum speed based on how each specific batch is responding. Same origin, same farm, different harvest can behave differently. There's no autopilot here.

After roasting, beans rest again. We don't ship anything until it's degassed properly, usually five to seven days. Fresh-roasted doesn't mean roasted this morning. It means roasted at the right time before consumption.

Looking Forward

We're not trying to become the next big coffee brand. Our goal is simpler: keep making coffee that surprises people who thought they already knew what good coffee tastes like.

If you're curious about working with us, whether for wholesale, subscriptions, or custom roasting, reach out. We're always happy to talk coffee with people who care about it as much as we do.