Blog

Let's be clear: one does not simply walk into the Coffee in Good Spirits competition and come away a winner. To do that, our very own Sam Schroeder had to conjure up some seriously magical coffee cocktails. And none more fantastical than this one: a veritable unicorn of a drink, served up in an iridescent ice cream cone with a pearly bubble—a BUBBLE—on top. For competition, Sam called this cocktail the "Kenya Crush" and used our Ichamama AA, a coffee perfectly suited to deliver a balancing act of refreshing, grapefruit-like bitterness and floral stone-fruit sweetness. But any coffee of a...

Our co-founder Sam Schroeder returned from Portland with a shiny first-place trophy from the U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship... and half a mind to take a couple days off after a very long weekend. So, after some well-earned rest, he was gracious enough to meet us back in our Training Lab to chat about what’s next at the World stage of this competition. And to make one of his winning cocktail recipes: a custom creation that he's whimsically dubbed the "Hot Mama." For competition, Sam was tasked with mixing up three cocktails: two of his own creation, one hot,...

What's it like to be the Cup Tasters Champion in the United States? For Jake Donaghy, it's back to work as usual... but with the fun memories of Portland to take with him, and even more excitement ahead to look forward to."I just wanted to go and have fun and see friends and meet people," he admitted of his reasons for entering the competition. "But I ended up winning."As the reigning cup tasting champion in the U.S. division of SCA, Jake now advances to compete on the world stage, which will unfold in Greece in June of this year. How's...

In a weekend abuzz with the nation’s most prestigious coffee competitions, Olympia Coffee showed up strong and took not one, but two first-place wins in the 2023 U.S. Coffee Championships! In the U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship, Olympia Coffee co-founder Sam Schroeder took the top spot. And, in the U.S. Cup Tasters Championship, roaster and green coffee buyer Jake Donaghy nabbed first place with a perfect score sheet and the fastest time. The Coffee in Good Spirits Championship tests the limits of both coffee and cocktails, and Sam showed off his mastery of both mixology and coffee craft. After...

Welcome to Specialty Coffee Week! This Friday through Sunday, April 21–23, the U.S. division of the Specialty Coffee Association is holding its annual Expo in Portland, Oregon. It's an incredible opportunity to spend precious time with old friends and new, to learn from others in our industry with knowledge and wisdom to share, and to push the limits of what coffee—and those who brew it—are capable of. The latter is the arena of the U.S. Coffee Championships. And, at this high-profile level of competition, we are proud to be cheering on four fabulous folks from Olympia Coffee. Four! Here's who...