Episode 58 - Ida’s Coffee Journey: From Barista to Business Owner

In this episode, I talk with Ida, the founder of Tøllefsenhjørnet in Tromsø, about her journey from working in some of Norway’s pioneering coffee shops to opening her own coffee shop and natural wine bar. Ida shares stories from her years at Tim Wendelboe, where she eventually became wholesale manager, and how her experience in specialty coffee shaped the way she approached her own business. We discuss her decision to return to Tromsø, reconnect with her family roots, and revive the building where her great-grandfather and grandfather once ran Tøllefsen Kolonial. Starting the business came with significant financial and personal challenges, from renovating the space on a tight budget to surviving the difficult first year. Ida talks about the changes that helped turn the business around, including longer opening hours, introducing simple food options, and her homemade pumpkin spice latte syrup. We also discuss the realities of running a coffee shop in Norway, where high labor costs make profitability particularly challenging. Despite the challenges, Ida has built a strong team and a welcoming place where coffee, wine, and community come together. Music by my uncle, Jens Wendelboe.

In this episode, I sit down with Yurany, the farm manager at Finca El Suelo in Colombia, and the daughter of Elias and Bellanid at Finca Tamana. We reflect on a year of farming under the Biofilia Project and discuss the challenges and progress of managing the farm using 100% biological techniques, without synthetic fertilisers, pesticides and fungicides . The year brought extreme drought and intense sunlight, highlighting the importance of shade trees for protecting coffee plants and soil. We also discuss the difficulties of establishing new Sudan Rumé coffee trees and the use of biological inputs such as compost, biochar, and soil drenches to improve soil health and plant resilience. Despite the challenges, the coffee quality has been very encouraging. Around 120+ samples from Finca Tamana and Finca el Suelo were cupped, ranging between 84 and 88 points, with clean, fruity, juicy and sweet profiles. Looking ahead, we discuss the importance of establishing shade before planting new coffee, as well as the farm’s new partnership with a new exporter named A Coffee Family, to improve milling, quality control, and shipping to Norway.   Music by my uncle Jens Wendelboe.

In this episode, Tim speaks with Andreas Tribsch, a Professor of Botany at the University of Salzburg. Andreas brings a unique perspective as both an expert in plant evolution and a partner in an Austrian coffee shop, offering insights into the coffee plant from a biological and systematic viewpoint. We dive deep into the history of coffee, discussing how Coffea Arabica evolved as a coffee species in the highlands of Ethiopia roughly 350,000 - 600,000 years ago. Andreas explains the genetic complexity of Arabica, being the only tetraploid species in the coffee family, and how its narrow genetic base makes it both unique and vulnerable compared to other domesticated crops. Our conversation also covers the potential impacts of climate change on wild coffee populations, and the biological importance of diversification on coffee estates to ensure long-term resilience.   Music by my uncle Jens Wendelboe.

In this episode, I return to our Oslo studio to welcome back a very special guest: Stephanie, our Espresso Bar Manager, who has been an essential part of Tim Wendelboe for 15 years. As the person responsible for training our baristas and overseeing the daily operations of the espressobar, Stephanie is the heartbeat of our retail experience. We discuss the impact of being ranked 2nd in the world on the 2026 "The Worlds 100 Best Coffee Shops" list, a recognition that has brought a surge of tourists and high expectations to our 50-square-meter space. Stephanie explains her philosophy on hospitality. While she always strives to make every coffee an exceptional one, her main goal is to make every guest feel seen and comfortable, as if they are entering her "living room". Looking ahead, Stephanie and I discuss the challenge of maintaining our quality while managing long lines and trying to live up to our guests expectations. For us, success isn't about opening more locations, it is about perfecting the one we have and ensuring that every cup remains a true reflection of the farm it came from.   Music by my uncle Jens Wendelboe.

In this episode, I am back in Santa Bárbara, Honduras, to sit down with Benjamín Paz. Benjamín is a key collaborator in our Biofilia Project, an initiative focused on improving coffee production through biological techniques that restore the natural balance of the environment. We discuss Benjamín’s decision to transition his entire farm to the Biofilia system, moving away from the traditional reliance on synthetic NPK fertilizers and fungicides. This shift was inspired by the need for long-term sustainability and the success of similar regenerative practices seen in other world-class farms. Benjamín shares the early results of this transition, noting that while some sun-exposed varieties have struggled with coffee leaf rust, others like Parainema and Geisha have shown incredible resilience and immediate improvements in cup quality. We emphasize that this is a holistic process requiring a "mental shift" and the reintroduction of shade trees to protect the plants and soil. Looking ahead, the goal is to replicate these results across more farms in the region. Benjamín is planning to host workshops for other producers to demonstrate how reducing chemical dependency can lower production costs and secure the future of Honduran coffee.   Music by my uncle Jens Wendelboe.

In this episode, I am in Marcala, Honduras, visiting Finca El Puente to sit down with Moises Herrera. Moises and his wife, Marysabel Caballero, are world-renowned producers we have worked with since 2010. Their operation is incredibly professional, as they manage every step of the process, from the seed to the final export bag, through their own wet and dry mills. In our conversation, Moises shares the harsh realities of the last two harvests. The 2025 crop was severely affected by frost, which damaged about 50% of the coffee of some farms and forced them to sort the beans up to ten times to maintain quality. We also discuss the first year of our TW Biological Project on their land. Moises explains the mental shift required to move away from farming with agro-chemicals and synthetic fertilizers toward biological solutions working with shade trees and soil micro organisms. Looking ahead, Moises and Marysabel are focusing on consolidating their cultivars and increasing shade tree populations on their farms. They are now planting around 10,000 shade trees per year to protect the coffee from stress and support local wildlife. A process that requires patience but is necessary for the future of their farms. Music by my uncle Jens Wendelboe.

In this episode, I travel to the top of the Tecapa volcano in El Salvador to sit down with Diego Baraona, a fifth-generation coffee producer and the owner of Los Pirineos farm. Diego took over the family business in 2020 after his father passed away and he has since become a vital partner in our mission to produce more resilient and mindful coffee. In our conversation, we focus on the progress of the TW Biological Project, an initiative we launched together in 2023 with the goal of transitioning his farming practices toward a regenerative model over a ten-year period. Diego explains how he has managed to drastically reduce his reliance on chemical fertilizers and herbicides, cutting his annual input costs from nearly $100,000 down to just $12,000. This was achieved by building aerobic bioreactors to grow beneficial microorganisms and fungi, such as mycorrhizae, to restore the natural biology of the soil. We discuss the critical role of shade trees, the use of traditional varieties like Pacamara and Bourbon, and his recent experimentation with new genetics like Geisha from Malawi and Arara from Brazil. Beyond the technical information, Diego reflects on the shift in mindset required to be a modern producer: having the patience to let the ecosystem heal and the desire to create a farm that is not only a source of high-quality coffee, but a thriving home for local biodiversity. His optimism after seeing the first visual improvements on the farm is a promising sign that the path toward regenerative agriculture is the right one for the future of specialty coffee.   Music by my uncle Jens Wendelboe.

This episode was recorded "live" from the C. Dorman cupping lab while Tim was in Kenya in January in order to taste and select coffees for purchasing. Like many of our listeners and followers already know, we prefer to work directly with farmers over years in order to improve the quality of their coffees and their farms.  Due to how the Kenyan coffee industry is organised, it is the only origin we buy from where we do not have a direct relationship with a single farmer.   This is because the majority of the best coffees are coming from smallholder farmers who sell their coffee cherries to co-operatives, where the coffees are bulked together for processing and drying. Buying coffees in Kenya is therefore a bit different to what we are used to and Tim visits Kenya on an annual basis in order to taste through hundreds of coffee samples to make his selection every year.  Listen in on Tim's thoughts around Kenyan coffee quality and how he approaches buying coffees in Kenya. 

As the year comes to a close, I sit down with Ben Symes, our wholesale manager, to reflect on 2025 and look back on what has made this year special. In this episode, we talk about the farms we work with around the world, reflect on the 2025 harvests, the coffees that stood out to us, and the relationships we continue to build with the people who produce our coffees. We also share highlights from our projects this year, including our biological farming initiative, producing long-format films from the farms, and following the achievements of our team. Alongside the farms, we look back on experiences that made 2025 memorable: being recognized 5th on the 100 Best Coffee Shops list, celebrating Stephanie’s 15-year anniversary and Ben’s 10 years with the company, traveling to inspiring coffee events and destinations, and, for the third year in a row, receiving the Sprudgie Award for Best Coffee Podcast, an achievement we are truly grateful for and could not have done without the support of our listeners. Above all, we want to thank you for supporting us. Every day we strive to make the coffees we roast and share as good as they can be, and we look forward to sharing more great coffee experiences with you in 2026.

In this second episode with Tom Hopkinson, Head of Coffee and Customer Success at ROEST, we continue our conversation about roasting, technology, and the development of modern sample roasters. If you haven’t listened to Part 1 yet, we recommend starting there to get the full story of Tom’s background and the origins of our collaboration with ROEST.   In Part 2, we dive deeper into how roasting practices have evolved, the challenges and possibilities of automation, and the way ROEST approaches innovation in both hardware and software. Tom shares his perspective on where roasting technology is heading, what roasters still misunderstand, and how better tools can lead to better coffee.   Tune in if you are interested in roasting, sample roasters, and the future of coffee technology.   Learn more about ROEST on their website here: https://www.roestcoffee.com/   Music by my uncle Jens Wendelboe.