As ubiquitous as coffee is in our culture, many coffee drinkers still don’t fully appreciate the relationships that are formed along the supply chain, from coffee farmers to importers to roasters to baristas. Enter someone like Brandon Bir, director of education and sustainability at Crimson Cup Coffee. Crimson Cup is based in Columbus, but supports coffee shops all across the world. Brandon travels the world developing direct relationships with coffee farmers, helping them build sustainable and profitable businesses while providing a conduit for their beans to shops and roasters in the States. He’s also the guy who trains coffee shops, roasters, and baristas. We chatted (over coffee, naturally) about how he got into coffee at a young age, what he does for Crimson Cup, and how these direct-to-farmer relationships benefit coffee consumers.
Their website: crimsoncup.com
Facebook: facebook.com/crimsoncup
Twitter: @crimsoncup
Instagram: @crimsoncupcoffee
My 2016 post on their Innovation Lab: breakfastwithnick.com/2016/01/19/coffee-talk-crimson-cups-innovation-lab/
My 2019 post on their Clintonville coffee shop: breakfastwithnick.com/2019/11/19/crimson-cup-coffee-house-clintonville-columbus-oh/
My 2015 post on their Upper Arlington shop: breakfastwithnick.com/2015/07/29/crimson-cup-coffee-house-upper-arlington/
