When Zjevaun Janga won his first Dutch Barista Championships in 2012, I was just getting started with The Coffeevine. I was still in the process of understanding what specialty coffee was in the first place, taking beginner Barista courses with a friend and learning about the different brewing techniques. I was vaguely aware of Zjevaun but it wasn’t until many years later that we got to know each other after I started frequenting Harvest Coffee Brewers in Rotterdam, the hugely successful café and bakery that he founded with his partner Loes Beljaars. Today, they also roast coffee under the name Ripsnorter.
At a time when most brunch or breakfast cafés kind of serve the boring dishes, Harvest really stands out because it combines creative cooking with largely locally sourced ingredients to come up with delicious plates that have people queuing outside with their mouths watering. On weekends, good luck trying to get a table. One day, when the space nextdoor became available, they jumped at the opportunity to break through the wall and add a bakery slash patissery to critical acclaim.
One time, when I was there, I caught Zjevaun and he showed me his latest project. Funky carboard tubs with striking branding. “This is our coffee brand,” he proclaimed and pushed a tub into my hand. I was intantly smitten with the fun and unusual packaging and told Zjevaun there and then that once he was happy to roast the quantities we need for our box, we should link up. Well, a few months have gone by, also because he was training hard for the 2024 Dutch Barista Championships and after winning those, the World Barista Championships. Thus, Coffeevine had to wait.
But luckily, we finally found a moment to connect and to bring you one of Ripsnorter’s finest coffees for the upcoming November 2024 Coffeevine edition. And yes, I heard you saying already for the duration of reading this article… “Ripsnorter, say what now?” Obviously, picking a very unusual name has its benefits and downsides. I also had no clue what this meant until Zjevaun explained. “It’s an Aussie expression. When something is really awesome, they say it’s a bloody ripper.” He looked at me with some enthousiasm but developed an expression of consternation when he saw the wheels in my head turning for a tad too long.
Whether you think this name is a stroke of genius by a very talented barista or not, is up to you. What matter is that the coffee is epic just like Zjevaun’s winning performance. For the first time ever, we will feature a super delicious washed Indonesian coffee. For Zjevaun this coffee has a bit of a personal meaning. He had been looking for an Indonesian coffee for some time, partly because he wanted to reconnect with his maternal roots. His granparents were Indonesian you see? He ended up picking this lot from Ciwidey because it is really clean, sweet and well structured.
And if the 2024 Dutch Barista Champion things that, how am I supposed to disagree? Order yours.
To receive this excellent coffee or to order any of our other offerings, just visit our shop now.
Pre-orders close on 15.11.2024 / Ships globally on 20.11.2024
