FAQ

There are only two ingredients for a great coffee experience: Coffee and people. We take both very seriously. We carefully select our coffees and roast them in our roastery in Zurich Altstetten, and our well-trained baristas extract your coffee on a perfectly calibrated espresso machine in one of our ViCAFE Espresso Bars. We apply the same level of care to the products and services offered to our private as well as corporate clients.

We know our coffee suppliers personally. We visit their farms in Guatemala, Colombia, Brazil, Honduras, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, India and Indonesia regularly. These personal relationships are critical to us. It’s the only way to truly understand the challenges that the farmers face. In return, we can introduce the farmers to the final product. We strongly believe that such trust-based relationships have a positive impact on quality. Read more on our Blog.

ViCAFE pays prices that are well above the average global coffee price. In addition, we pay stable prices so that farmers are less exposed to volatile price developments. Through the personal relationships we build with the coffee farmers, we can be sure how much of the money actually reaches the farm. Find more information on our Blog.

Though we believe that certification schemes, such as Rainforest Alliance(RFA), Fair Trade or UTZ, play an important role in the coffee industry, we don’t use any seals for the time being. We strive towards building personal relationships with our coffee suppliers. We personally visit all their farms to make sure that the coffee not only meets our quality standards, but also our social and environmental requirements. For more details please visit our Blog.

ViCAFE has been certified organic since 2018. At the moment, we sell two coffees with the organic label: Miju from Ethiopia and the coffee from the Aprolma women’s cooperative in Honduras. To keep costs low for farmers, our orangutan coffee from Indonesia is not formally certified. The farmers are, however, following strict Indonesian organic guidelines.

“Specialty Coffee” describes coffee that meets the standards of the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). The Q Grading standard looks at the defects as well as the sensory quality of the coffee. The coffee needs to score above 80 points in order to be called “Specialty Coffee”. Read more about Q-Grading in our Blog.

Although we’re convinced that you are missing out big time, we look forward to your visit! In the ViCAFE Espresso Bars we are happy to serve you hot chocolate, a chai latte or an ice-cold Vivi Kola or Vivi Soda from our sister company.

On our online shop you’ll find a decaf produced by Finca Los Nogales in Colombia. This coffee is also available at all of our Espresso Bars. The decaffeination takes place in Bremen at CR3. For the process they use subcritical CO2 and does not involve the use of any chemicals.

We recommend brewing the coffee within two months after the roasting date. Although the coffee loses intensity, our bags generally allow storage for up to 12 months. We do everything we can to ensure that the coffee is always freshly roasted and reaches you as quickly as possible. We also recommend that you buy high-quality coffee more often. Only order as much coffee as you need. Our Coffee Subscription allows you to manage your coffee supply easily. We send you fresh coffee on a regular basis.

After opening the bag, we recommend enjoying whole bean coffee within two weeks. Unfortunately, you must drink ground products faster! We recommend enjoying it within a week.

Proper storage is crucial! Oxygen, water, and light are the enemies of fresh coffee and its aromas. Store the coffee in a cool, dry place, away from direct sunlight. Please do not keep the coffee in the refrigerator as is often recommended. The temperature difference when removing it causes condensation.

All our coffees are available as a whole bean product as well as a ground option suitable for moka pots (Bialetti). For quality reasons, we no longer sell ground coffee for use in espresso machines. For proper espresso extraction, the texture of the grind needs to be adjusted according to your particular coffee machine model. We recommend that you buy your own coffee grinder. It’s a great investment! Here are some suggestions, depending on your budget or available kitchen space:

• Baratza Encore
• Comandante C40
• Macap M2M
• Eureka Mignon

Coop is selling only bags of 250g, while the Espresso Bars and the ViCAFE Online Shop are selling bags of 350g. The price difference is driven by the weight difference.