Before we dive into the origins of our coffee, here is a little story about how our appreciation for coffee began.

Growing up in India, once you enter your teenage years and beyond, a simple habit of having chai slowly becomes a ritual. It is time spent with friends, part of conversations at home, something shared with family, and almost always present at gatherings and celebrations.

And then, somewhere along the way, you discover coffee, or as we call it in India, kaapi.

From Chai to Kaapi

Indian kaapi is traditionally prepared in small portions using a simple filter that slowly brews a concentrated coffee decoction.

Once kaapi takes over, it becomes part of your routine. You find kaapi shops everywhere, and you start appreciating the differences in aroma, strength, roast, and flavor.

That appreciation eventually led us to explore specialty coffee.

At first, we were fascinated by the taste notes. Then came the curiosity about where the coffee came from. That eventually led us back to something much closer to home: coffee grown in South India.

Coffee Grown Under Shade

Having visited coffee farms in India during childhood, we immediately connected with the way coffee is grown there.

Much of the coffee grown in South India is cultivated under shade. Coffee plants grow beneath taller trees, creating an environment that supports a diverse ecosystem. Farmers can also grow other crops alongside coffee, including pepper.

One of the things I still remember seeing on these farms was pepper climbing up the taller shade trees while coffee plants grew underneath.

And then there is the landscape itself.

Some of these coffee plantations are found at higher elevations in the Eastern Ghats, where the hills, climate, shade, and elevation create an environment well suited for growing coffee.

For us, coffee became more than what was in the cup. It became a connection to the land, the farmers, and a part of our heritage.

Our Journey to Araku Valley

Our journey into sourcing South Indian coffee started with Araku Valley, a beautiful region in the Eastern Ghats near Visakhapatnam.

Araku is known for its Arabica coffee grown in the surrounding hills. We wanted to see if we could connect directly with farmers and bring green coffee beans from India in smaller quantities.

It took some time to establish those relationships, but eventually, it worked.

That journey also introduced us to another adventure: coffee roasting.

We started with a small drum roaster and began experimenting with roast profiles, learning how different coffees respond to heat, time, and development. Finding the right roast was a process of trial, tasting, adjusting, and doing it all over again.

From there, we began exploring other coffees from South India, including coffees from regions such as Ratnagiri, along with coffees processed using different methods.

Every coffee had its own character and its own story.

What We Serve

Today, the coffee we serve as espresso and Americanos comes from South India and is roasted by us in small batches in Northeast Ohio.

We roast with our farmers market and event schedule in mind, allowing us to serve coffee that is fresh and suited to the drinks we make.

For us, small batch roasting is not just about freshness. It gives us the opportunity to stay connected with the coffee and pay attention to what is in every cup.

Our Coffee. Our Story.

Our core ambition remains simple:

Use coffee from South India.
Support the farmers who grow it.
Roast in small batches.
Serve it fresh.
And share a little bit of our culture along with the coffee.

Because coffee is never just coffee.

It is the people who grow it, the places where it comes from, the way it is prepared, the conversations around it, and the stories we share over a cup.

Born in India. Roasted in America. Shared in Northeast Ohio.