"An artisan’s approach to this darkest of drinks."

The Portland Mercury

"Although I live in Los Angeles, my very favorite beans in the whole wide world are from Portland, Oregon. Can you smell that fruity, almost floral aroma? Trust me, the flavor is just as rich."  

The Foodinista!

“Best espresso.” 

The Fearless Critic Portland Restaurant Guide

"Just this morning I had perhaps the best single shot of espresso I've had in a long time. Din Johnson sources out organic, single-origin beans from around the world and uses an obviously sure hand to coax the best from them."

Eat. Drink. Think.

“Best coffee in the Northwest.”

500 Things to Eat Before It’s Too Late

"The espresso was a perfect balance of caffeinated punch and smooth, chocolaty flavor."

RoadFood.com

The Bean

Our philosophy: roast each type of bean to the peak if its individual perfection. A Panama Honeyed is not a Ethiopian Harar, so why would you treat them the same?

We travel the world to source our coffees directly from small farmers who care as much about the quality of their craft as we do. Many of the growers we buy our beans from are small family businesses. We look beyond labels and are pleased to partner with growers whose commitment to quality matches ours.

As much as possible, we also contribute directly to local programs that directly benefit coffee farming communities and enhance the lives of workers.

The Roaster

The coffee odyssey began in 2000, in Los Angeles. Din brought home a coffee roaster the size of a small popcorn popper and began roasting beans a half-cup at a time. After working all day as a contractor, he would come home and fire up the tiny roaster. In the fall of 2003 Din returned to Portland, where he had grown up.

Did Din want to continue to be a contractor, which meant working eight months of the year in the rain? He was 37 years old; he’d had enough of banging nails. His wife, Nancy, asked him: "if you could do anything, what would it be?"

“Roast coffee,” he said.

It was decided: he would roast for a wholesale-only business, based in the garage. He bought a vintage Probat roaster on eBay. It was driven from North Carolina by two stoned teenagers. Din and his sister wrote a business plan, got up some money from family and friends, and Ristretto Roasters was born.

ristrettoroasters.com
 

The Moto

CorsaCaffe founder Arun Sharma is devoted to Italian motorcycles. These fine machines are for him the embodiment of craftsmanship, artistry and savoring the moment. Many trips to Italy exposed Arun to the Italian culture and ritual of slowing down to share coffee with friends.

Beginning his moto career as an art broker & night club promoter who was a part-time Ducati salesman on the side, Arun has now managed MotoCorsa, an award-winning Ducati dealership in Portland, Oregon, for the past ten years.

Determined to preserve classic traditions in his Pacific Northwest home, Arun sought out acclaimed roaster Din Johnson. Proposing the idea, he discovered Din's mutual love for Italian motorcycles - and thus CorsaCaffe was born.

motocorsa.com

 

The Art

Elizabeth Raab is a photographic artist specializing in creative and automotive portraiture. Her images often contain a visually strong emotional sensuality that crosses the boundary between her subjects and objects. Uniquely vivid color palettes and a detached sense of forlorn beauty and intrigued silence permeate most of Elizabeth’s scenes, as realism and objectivity are commonly set aside.

Elizabeth is native to the NW but currently resides in New York with her husband and their two children. Her work has been featured in exhibitions and many areas of publication in the US and Italy. Features include a range from the Seattle Art Museum, to published works of David Lynch, to Joseph Kosuth’s “Perloined.” She has recently been most noted for her work inspired by Ducati motorcycles

elizabethraab.com