There are two things that we feel flow through the veins of all Portlanders, and Northwesterners for that matter. Can you guess what they are? If one of your guesses was beer, then you are certainly on the same page as we are. Can you guess the other one? We’ll give you a hint, some people like it the way they like their partners… (black and strong)
Okay, bad references and jokes aside, we’re talking coffee people! Many of us here in the Northwest live and breathe the stuff and, if you’re like us, you can’t function before noon without it. This would explain why the Northwest, and Portland in particular, is building a bit of a reputation for quality coffee, the glorification of barista artistry and frothy masterpieces (like a foam pikachus).
So for you coffee connoisseurs of Portland, you may have heard of your favorite delivery company’s (one of the best for food delivery Portland can offer) newest buds and addition to the Portland Pedal Power friends list, Nossa Familia. If you have heard of them, then you’ve likely heard of them as one of Portland’s top coffee wholesalers since 2005. Nossa Familia is owned and operated by Augosto Carneiro, who sells his family grown coffee from Brazil to local area businesses and grocery stores. Just a few months ago, they moved from beans to roasters when they switched locations back in December to NW 13th and Johnson where they began roasting using the sustainable, only one of its kind in Portland, Loring Roaster.
Now, to bring the chain around full circle and complete the full coffee cycle, Nossa Familia is looking to open their first retail location in the Pearl District. In order to open up this Brazilian espresso bar in the heart of the Pearl district, Augusto has begun a kickstarter account for his business, with which he hopes to raise $15,000, the final amount needed to open his little slice of Brazil. Currently the account stands at $12,425 with 5 days left to donate. With your help, there’s no doubt in our minds that he can reach and even exceed his goals.
Want the whole story? Want to know what makes this story different than other coffee companies?
Many coffee companies begin with a small roaster and small batches of beans which they roast and sell at their
cafe. As they sell more coffee, they purchase more beans, until eventually they can travel to a coffee farm, meet the farmers and buy direct. Nossa Familia Coffee took a different path, the farm route. Nossa Familia began on a Brazilian farm and the owner loves to share the farm with visitors, hosting a public tour annually.
The company has its roots in Brazil and they go deep. Brought to Portland from the owner’s family farm in the Mogiana Region of Brazil, Nossa Familia coffee heralds from coffee plants that were planted as far back as 1890. When Nossa Familia’s owner, Augusto Carneiro moved to Portland, he studied mechanical engineering. He quickly realized that Portland’s refined palate would appreciate his family’s coffee and Nossa Familia was launched in 2005. What makes Nossa Familia so unusual is that it is farm direct – so direct that the owner takes visitors to stay with his family on the farm, pick ripe coffee beans and meet farm workers and their families.
Nossa Familia Coffee sources their coffee from farms Fazenda Cacheoira and Fazenda Racherio, both have been in the family for five generations. These farms have utilized what we now called sustainable business practices as part of their traditional way of doing business. To sustain the business of growing award-winning beans, the family installed practices such as using husks removed at harvesting to power processing equipment and as fertilizer. By self-generating power from by-products and waterfall-driven generators, they can stay almost entirely off the power grid. To maintain ecological balance, they set aside untouched habitat areas and plant thousands of native species.
So support your local business and coffee shops, as we all know you’re so good at doing Portland, and visit Kickstarter to help grow the business of some of the best coffee Portland has seen in a long time. (We could all use another local espresso shop, I’ve noticed Portlanders getting antsy and going through withdrawals as of late.)
For more information on new Portland companies, vendors, events, or yak yaks (whatever that is) follow our Portland Pedal Power blog or check us out on Facebook.
