Many of you remember the unfortunate passing of Dustin Demers, one of our own, and dear friend to me, earlier this year. Something I didn't speak of for a while was the work left behind in closing his business, Turning Point Coffee. His family sought my advice in how to go about dealing with various aspects of the coffee portion of his estate and one thing that stood out above all the rest was the micro-lot of Juan Pena's latest crop of his stellar Hacienda La Papaya (Typica) coffee he had on order. The previous years lot was by far Dustin's favorite coffee he offered to his customers, so we suspected this new lot would be equally amazing. It's proven itself to be just that.

Dustin passed away just a week before he was to receive this new lot, brought in via Cafe Imports. Joe Marocco reached out to me to alert me to the fact that this amazing coffee was on hold in Dustin's name. It was, according to Joe, the highest cupping coffee so far this year even amongst the other micro-lots from Juan Pena's farm. He sent me a green sample and it proved itself to be just as amazing as the last years selection. Cole McBride used one of Juan Pena's micro-lots in this years Barista Championship and it too was spectacular. Joe and Cafe Imports were happy to honor the contract (the coffee would otherwise sell in a heartbeat) and I decided the best thing to do was to let those closest to Dustin here in the Bay Area acquire it in remembrance of him.




Enter Andytown Coffee Roasters. Friends of both Dustin and I, they've grown rapidly here in San Francisco and offer beautiful coffee drinks and baked goods in very attractive beachside shops. Dustin was very hands on with our mutual friend Patrick Chaffey in setting up the Probat roaster used in Andytown, and Dustin and Andytown's head roaster, Sandra Elisa shared a strong bond in the local roasting scene and it seemed only suiting that the coffee would go to them. What Sandra, Michael and Lauren (owners of Andytown) chose to do with the coffee, is quite a beautiful thing and I want to share it with the HB family.




Andytown has paired up with Juan Pena, in Ecuador, to form "A Turning Point Project", a unique project that commemorates Dustin's equal passion for roasting paired with Juan Pena's intense passion for farming the finest coffee he can, often thru intense experimentation and grueling hard work. Andytown is selling this beautiful coffee with proceeds going towards building a proper cupping lab right on Juan Pena's farm. It's to be an annual project that honors Dustin's efforts and to go to a good cause.

You can read more about the details of the program here and buy the coffee here. This coffee is delicate, balanced and exceedingly beautiful. At the price it's going for, it's a steal. Especially when you consider the good things that will come of it. They have less than 6 bags, so it won't last long.

This is awesome!!!!!

Tom: Very nicely written post . . . I just ordered a bag.

Could you provide Dustin's user name so I could peruse some old his postings.

erics wrote:Tom: Very nicely written post . . . I just ordered a bag.

Could you provide Dustin's user name so I could peruse some od his postings.

Certainly. It's Dustin360

/member/dustin360/

Hey Tom,

That was very cool to just read your post. I ordered the coffee, and will cheers to Dustin.

Thanks for sharing the memory of Dustin and a memorial project for him. Also a nice opportunity to try an origin Cole McBride appreciates. I picked up a bag and the espresso blend.

Thanks, Tom

Bought a couple. Special coffee for a great cause and tribute.

Received my two bags. This is a fantastic coffee with a touching dedication. Order some!

Andytown roasts really tasty coffee and sells them in 8oz bags. I wish they'd stock more of their selection in my local market. I could drive to their shop, or even walk there in about 90 minutes. But I'm too lazy.

Received my two bags. Absolutely delicious coffee, very nicely roasted. Highly recommended.

Pulled Slayer style shots, fine grind, 18.5g, Longish ristretto in ~50 sec. worked well with both Monoliths. (more preinfusion time for conical). Wonderful complex sweetness.