Coffee
Sourcing
We purchase the best tasting coffee regardless of its certifications and we always pay well above Fair Trade prices on every coffee we purchase. The world’s best coffees are known as specialty coffee and specialty coffee is purchased based on quality. We do not use “Direct Trade” terminology because we do not want to discredit the crucial role that exporters and importers play in the specialty coffee industry.
We believe coffee producers should receive the best prices for producing the best coffee. In addition to always paying producers above Fair Trade prices, our relationships with coffee producers, exporters, and importers are very important to us. We honour the producers by telling the story of their coffees, which you can read in our online coffee shop.
Click here for information about Over & Above, JJ Bean’s locally and globally focused charitable program.
Organic
Two of our blends (Railtown and Decaf) are certified organic. These coffees and our roasting facilities are certified organic by the Fraser Valley Organic Producers Association (FVOPA).
Swiss Water® Decaf
Our decaf beans are processed by Vancouver’s own Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Company. While other decaffeination processes use chemicals such as benzene or dichloromethane to remove caffeine, the Swiss Water® Process is 100% chemical-free.
Roasting
Our roasting style is characterized by a balance between complexity and drinkability. Every coffee requires individual care and attention to coax out its inherent character and harmonize acidity with sweetness.
Flavour
Every coffee is unique and requires individual care and attention to coax out its inherent character and to harmonize its levels of sweetness and acidity. Our single origin coffees are generally roasted to the end of first crack, producing a light roast coffee that boasts both complexity and balance. We aim to present coffees with defined origin characteristics paired with a high level of drinkability.
All our coffees are initially sample-roasted in a vintage Jabez-Burns four-barrel roaster inside of our Commercial Drive café. After that, it’s batch-roasted to order in a vintage 90kg cast-iron Probat drum roaster at our Powell Street café.
Freshness
Once coffee is roasted, it naturally produces carbon dioxide as an oxygen barrier for about two weeks. After that off-gassing period, staling begins. Vacuum-packing does not stop this process. Like freshly baked bread, nothing beats freshly roasted coffee. That's why we roast coffee to order five days a week and print the roast date on every bag that goes out of the warehouse.