Welcome to our Origin Stories! We’re introducing the Coffee Addicts team one blog post at a time so you can get to know the faces behind the beans. Make sure to drop a comment below if you relate to these stories, want to share your own journey, or just want to say hi!
Our coffee program manager's journey spans championship brews, rare varietals and world-class roasters. Now bringing it all to your home cup at Coffee Addicts!
My obsession with specialty coffee started while travelling. It began with a Championship set from Berg Wu at Simple Kaffa in Taipei. It was a total "aha" moment that completely recalibrated my palate. That curiosity followed me to Seattle, where Elm Coffee Roasters introduced me to the vibrant, tea-like world of light-roast Ethiopian coffees, and I've been chasing those delicate, floral profiles ever since. That led me to my parents' hometown of London, England, where a cup at Monmouth Coffee Company's legendary Borough Market location reminded me just how good a simple, well-sourced filter coffee can be. Safe to say I like coffee a lot, which is why Coffee Addicts obviously feels like home :)
Before joining the team at Coffee Addicts, I worked at Monogram Coffee in the roastery handling shipping and fulfilment for their retail, wholesale, and cafe partners. Sharing a workspace with 7-time Canadian Barista Champion Ben Put was a masterclass in itself, helping me refine my palate and my understanding of the industry from the ground up. It gave me the incredible opportunity to cup and work with rare varietals like Geshas, Chiroso, Typica, Sidra, and a veritable rainbow of Bourbons (many of which are now my all-time favourites). Then I got into the world of V60 Switch, following the Tetsu v2 recipe and I was off to the races.
Now, I’m thrilled to be leading the coffee program here at Coffee Addicts! I’m passionate about bridging the gap between world-class roasters and your home coffee setup. Whether you’re a seasoned pro looking for that rare process or just starting your journey and trying to find the right grinder or pour over setup, I'm here to help you dial in the perfect brew for you!
If you’re looking for a coffee recommendation, these roasters are consistently at the top of my list: Tim Wendelboe (Oslo, Norway: the gold standard for light roasts), R Ki Coffee Roasters (Richmond, BC: consistently impressive with exemplary sourcing), Cafe Jindo (Calgary, AB: thoughtful and dynamic roasts that are always a treat) and Too Good (Vancouver, BC: the name says it all! This coffee is seriously too good - you've got to try it to believe it!). Next up: I'm extremely excited to be continuing our world tour of coffee roasters by bringing in the legendary Tetsu Kasuya's Philocoffea from Tokyo, Japan!! So keep an eye on our new arrivals page as I can’t wait to share more of what we’re brewing. See you around the shop!
