COFFEE, CONSERVATION & COMMUNITY: THE CIUMENENE WAY

A few days ago, after almost three years of hard work, we became part of the global B Corp community. In addition to the sheer joy of being part of this progressive movement, we also hope to gain access to the most innovative and experienced minds when building a company that makes a positive difference.

Nestled amidst the lush landscapes of India's coffee country, Yellikodige is a gem that stands out in the world of coffee farming. Located in the picturesque Kodagu district of Karnataka, this Demeter-certified coffee farm is a testament to the harmony between nature and agriculture and the vision of its young, energetic owners.

At Finca San Jeronimo Miramar it is said that “Good coffee can energise tired bodies and even inspire weary souls”. During our visit to the Bressani family, we were enchanted by the charm of their coffee farm.

Colonialism led to the rapid and widespread distribution of coffee and created inhumane socioeconomic systems that continue to fuel inequalities today. In the context of coffee sourcing, we advocate an honest approach to this issue and place human relations at eye level at the center of our efforts.

First, a word about the name: Miju is the middle name of Alemayehu Daniel's father, Daniel, who inherited the name of his grandfather Miju. And Miju is, above all, a terrific coffee with an equally exciting story. This coffee comes from twelve small farms. Farms, which in turn belong to twelve siblings. These are the sisters and brothers of Alemayehu, the elder.

Look, smell, taste: Today we're taking you on an expedition into our world of coffee. A journey in six stages.

We regularly portray people here who are important to ViCAFE. Today we visited our barista's Carlotta and Sinan with their new canine family member Kai in their old apartment in Basel.

We are celebrating our birthday. Not a round one, but an even one.Here are eight reasons why it's worth traveling to Eglisau, where ViCAFE originated, this year of all years.

Mondul Coffee Estate in Tanzania grows sustainable coffee for ViCAFE. We are proud of our partnership with Mondul. Why? We'll show you in our new film.

We regularly feature portraits of people who are important to ViCAFE. Today we pick meet Joël, a barista at ViCAFE, after his shift and accompany him on his BMX.

While it is autumn in Switzerland, we fly to the summer in East Africa. We want to get an idea of the local conditions and developments and are searching for a new partner farm. It is our first origin trip since the beginning of the Covid19 pandemic and we are heading to Kenya – just in time for the main harvest season.

Fahrt auf Mondul Coffee Estate ALLE POSTS Willy on Mondul Coffee Estate During our visit to the Mondul Coffee Estate, we’ll look at the success of our jointly developed projects, make new plans for the future, and experience first-hand the day-to-day operations of a coffee farm. We’ll stay on the farm for two weeks and, […]

We’ve curated this list to include products and accessories to make your #ViCAFEExperience this holiday season magical! Whether coffee is a way of life or just an energy boost in the morning, we’re sure our guide will help you find the perfect gift for the coffee lover in your life.

We get our Indonesian coffee from a small group of farmers called Wih Bershi, which is named after a village in the Gayo Highlands in the far north of Sumatra. This coffee is called Orang Utan Coffee and is part of an incredible project. We’d like to tell you more about it here, and introduce you to one of its driving forces, the tenacious Regina Frey. We visited Regina at her home in Berg am Irchel at the beginning of January.

In March 2017, Kurt and I visited the coffee farmers in northern Sumatra. We were warmly welcomed at the airport in Medan, Sumatra’s largest city. The itinerary included a visit to the Orang-utan Conservation Project near Medan and a trip to the coffee farmers in the province of Ace, about 400 km north of Medan. […]

When we picked up our rental car, we had no idea that this day will be all about “cars”. He had arrived in Neiva the day before, after almost 24 hours of travel. Today, we continue to Pitalito, where Oscar Hernandez’s farm, Finca Los Nogales, is located. The journey leads us through an avenue flanked by gnarled trees, which transforms the road into a green tunnel. The road takes us past a reservoir, small villages, forests and agricultural zones, and over narrow, winding passes towards the southwest. The four-hour journey is not so much due to the number of kilometres, but rather to the sluggish driving style of the buses and trucks in front of us and the large number of potholes.

A visit to Ngila Coffee Estate, Blackburn Coffee Estate at Ngorongoro Crater and Taylor & Winch dry mill in Moshi. The first days in Arusha, a city of 800,000 inhabitants at the foot of Mount Meru, were somewhat frustrating as it was relatively difficult to get in touch with the coffee farmers. Not least because […]

In the country of origin of the Arabica coffee In the country where coffee originated, coffee beans are cultivated at altitudes of up to 2000 metres above sea level, or higher. Ethiopian coffee is as complex in taste as it is rare. No wonder, as it’s the only country with thirteen months of sunshine. Ethiopia […]

This was our second coffee trip to Tanzania. While two years ago we had been looking for coffee in the north, at the foot of Kilimanjaro in the region Arusha (Ngorongoro), we now visited the Mbeya region in the southwest. The goal was the Itende Coffee Estate, from which we had already obtained and roasted […]

Coffee and smoking volcanoes Already in the approach we were enthusiastic about the volcanic peaks of Guatemala, which also accompanied us in the distance in the following days From the moment we arrived, the volcanic peaks of Guatemala inspired us and in the following days accompanied us in the distance. Despite many warnings about the […]

Girl Power! In February 2016, ViCafe visited the COMUCAP Women’s Cooperative in Honduras in the middle of the harvest season, and we were very impressed by them: The coffee is 100% organic and produced to the highest standards of quality. We have been very touched by the COMUCAP project. Domestic violence against women is unfortunately […]

Kenya lies in the middle of the equator and through it cuts the Big African Rift Valley, which was formed millions of years ago and expands by two centimetres per year. The landscape is characterised by savannahs and lakes, which rise into a central, fertile highland. And we’re particularly interested in this highland, because it’s […]

ALL POSTS LOCKDOWN Zurich, 16 March 2020. We’re sitting in front of our TV screens when the Federal Council announces the nationwide lockdown at 5:30 pm. All ViCAFE Espresso Bars are to be closed on 17 March. Switzerland holds its breath and, as an SME, we’re faced with a scenario for which we don’t have […]

We launched ViCAFE in June 2010. What started with a small shop roaster in the old town of Eglisau is now a multifaceted company that is driven with a lot of passion by over one hundred employees. In this article we give you a personal account of our journey – from the first roasting machine to the ninth espresso bar.

We regularly feature people who play an important role at ViCAFE. We want to bring you closer to the person behind the espresso or roasting machine, or on the other side of the screen. We met Julia, Head Barista and HR Assistant at ViCAFE, for a walk during the lockdown. She tells us what she loves about Zurich and what makes her tick, and that she also wants to maintain her multifaceted life as a mother.

Consumers become more and more aware of seasonality and start making their food choices based on the crop calendar. In the following piece we have a closer look at the seasonality of coffee.

We asked ViCAFE customers to tell us more about their coffee experiences at home. The feedback that we received gave us a lot of interesting insights that we we would like to share with you. The new ViCAFE mini cantucci is one of the many learnings.

Espresso is is a wonderful thing with its intense taste that people either love or hate. But how do you evaluate the quality of this short, black coffee? 

Livia, shop manager at ViCAFE, has taken on the challenge of producing the best possible coffee using her Bialetti (moka pot). Here, you can follow her story and find some useful tips and tricks for this old Italian brewing method.

Every day, dozens of small and large parcels leave the ViCAFE Roastery in Zurich. The team at the Roastery pulls out all the stops to provide home baristas with fresh ViCAFE beans.

On a rainy Friday afternoon, we walk with Celine through the old town of Basel. It’s not just a meeting to get to know Celine better, but also a personal tour through this wonderful city.

Since January 2020, ViCAFE in Zurich has been buying milk from the organic-certified Birkenhof in Uster. We took the opportunity to meet two generations of the Pfister family on the farm. We take a look behind the scenes and hear some thoughts on milk and agriculture.

Coffee is produced in almost every corner of Guatemala. Volcanoes, rainforests, high plateaus, and lowlands not only create very diverse climatic conditions but also unique coffee profiles. Unfortunately, the country is facing major economic and climate-related challenges.

We regularly portray people who are important to ViCAFE. We want to bring you closer to the person behind the espresso machine, the roasting drum or the screen. Today, our roaster Christoph shows us that everything is possible - with passion and confidence.

The journey from the coffee tree to the cup is long and labor intensive. We want to bring you closer to the individual steps on the farm. Oscar, the owner of Finca Los Nogales, explains how he processes the coffee - from the coffee tree to the farm gate.

Oscar Hernandez and his family are the owners of the Finca Los Nogales in Pitalito, Colombia. In this portrait we want to introduce you to Oscar, his story and personality.

Thousands of kilometres separate us from the coffee farmers. Nevertheless, we are not only united by our passion for coffee, but also by a personal relationship – an irreplaceable commodity, in our opinion.

We regularly feature people who are important to ViCAFE. We want to bring you closer to the person behind the espresso machine, the roasting machine or the screen. We start with our barista Laura.

Fabian Gass, Head of the ViCAFE Roastery and Q-Grader, brings extensive coffee knowledge to the company. We met at our roastery to find out from him what is important when it comes to roasting.

Time and again baristas or dedicated coffee drinkers talk about Q-Grading. What is it all about? We shed some light on a supposedly simple topic.

We are proud of our Orangutan Coffee: Not only are we absolutely loving this coffee with its sweetness, citric acidity and full-bodied intensity, but we can also support a good cause.

Mondul Coffee Estate in Tanzania grows sustainable coffee for ViCAFE. We are proud of our partnership with Mondul. Why? We'll show you in our new film.

In March 2017, Kurt and I visited the coffee farmers in northern Sumatra. We were warmly welcomed at the airport in Medan, Sumatra’s largest city. The itinerary included a visit to the Orang-utan Conservation Project near Medan and a trip to the coffee farmers in the province of Ace, about 400 km north of Medan. […]

When we picked up our rental car, we had no idea that this day will be all about “cars”. He had arrived in Neiva the day before, after almost 24 hours of travel. Today, we continue to Pitalito, where Oscar Hernandez’s farm, Finca Los Nogales, is located. The journey leads us through an avenue flanked by gnarled trees, which transforms the road into a green tunnel. The road takes us past a reservoir, small villages, forests and agricultural zones, and over narrow, winding passes towards the southwest. The four-hour journey is not so much due to the number of kilometres, but rather to the sluggish driving style of the buses and trucks in front of us and the large number of potholes.

A visit to Ngila Coffee Estate, Blackburn Coffee Estate at Ngorongoro Crater and Taylor & Winch dry mill in Moshi. The first days in Arusha, a city of 800,000 inhabitants at the foot of Mount Meru, were somewhat frustrating as it was relatively difficult to get in touch with the coffee farmers. Not least because […]

In the country of origin of the Arabica coffee In the country where coffee originated, coffee beans are cultivated at altitudes of up to 2000 metres above sea level, or higher. Ethiopian coffee is as complex in taste as it is rare. No wonder, as it’s the only country with thirteen months of sunshine. Ethiopia […]

This was our second coffee trip to Tanzania. While two years ago we had been looking for coffee in the north, at the foot of Kilimanjaro in the region Arusha (Ngorongoro), we now visited the Mbeya region in the southwest. The goal was the Itende Coffee Estate, from which we had already obtained and roasted […]

Coffee and smoking volcanoes Already in the approach we were enthusiastic about the volcanic peaks of Guatemala, which also accompanied us in the distance in the following days From the moment we arrived, the volcanic peaks of Guatemala inspired us and in the following days accompanied us in the distance. Despite many warnings about the […]

Girl Power! In February 2016, ViCafe visited the COMUCAP Women’s Cooperative in Honduras in the middle of the harvest season, and we were very impressed by them: The coffee is 100% organic and produced to the highest standards of quality. We have been very touched by the COMUCAP project. Domestic violence against women is unfortunately […]

Kenya lies in the middle of the equator and through it cuts the Big African Rift Valley, which was formed millions of years ago and expands by two centimetres per year. The landscape is characterised by savannahs and lakes, which rise into a central, fertile highland. And we’re particularly interested in this highland, because it’s […]