We talk with Al Liu, Vice President of Coffee at Colectivo Coffee Roasters, about production, traceability, and building customer connections in this episode. Colectivo Coffee has been roasting coffee for almost thirty years and specializes in specialty coffee roasters. They presently have 20 retail outlets and a variety of wholesale clientele that range from local cafés that do not roast their own coffee to large-scale store chains. We discussed having a production section that roasts five days a week and a café where people can come in and see what’s happening. Al talks about consumer experiences and how the coffee business is built on relationships between growers, importers, and farmers. He talks about coffee belts and has gone to places where coffee is grown. He discussed numerous coffee bean varieties as well as processing processes. We discuss consumer perceptions and current coffee business developments.

About Colectivo Coffee Roasters- Based out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin They have been purchasing coffees from origin and carefully roasting every batch since 1993. They are active in all aspects of providing a wonderful coffee experience by forming farmer and co-op partnerships.Its name was inspired by the colorful and artistic buses used for public transportation in Latin America, known as “colectivos” (co-lec-TEE-vo), and the iconic element of everyday life they represent. In Milwaukee’s Riverwest area, they are independently owned and roast our award-winning coffees on a pair of vintage Probats.