The Cupping Table - By M-Cultivo
by M-Cultivo Coffee
On The Cupping Table, iconic coffee producers share their stories in making world class coffees. Join us for a candid conversation about the realities of coffee production and the incredible journey that makes each coffee a unique experience.
Episodes
-
Terroir and fermentation: Inside the World Championship Winning Coffees of Jamison Savage
In this episode of The Cupping Table podcast, David Paparelli sits down with Jamison Savage, Founder and Producer of Finca Deborah, Iris Estate, and Savage Coffees. Jamison shares his journey from global-macro investment manager in Florida to pioneering the Fourth Wave of coffee through…
more -
Why Colombia Almost Banned Natural & Honey Coffee
Has coffee processing gone too far, or is traditional terroir clinging to the past? In this episode of the Cupping Table Podcast, host David Paparelli sits down with Vicente Mejia, founder of ClearPath Coffee, to unpack the evolving world of Colombian specialty coffee and the launch of the 2nd...
-
How Bolivia’s Most Elite Coffee Farm Broke a New Record
In this episode of the Cupping Table Podcast, host David Paparelli sits down with Mariana Iturralde Costa, owner of Finca Takesi, the most sought-after coffee farm in Bolivia. From fetching a record-breaking $3,000/kg in their recent auction to navigating competition with local gold mines and...
-
UK Barista Champ Paul Ross on The Economics of High-End Coffee
What does it actually take to build a sustainable, high-end coffee business around rare, unique, and auction-lot coffees? In this episode of the Cupping Table Podcast, hosted by M-Cultivo co-founder David Paparelli, we sit down with Paul Ross: two-time UK Barista Champion and founder of Special...
-
Beyond Geisha: Meet Taiwan's Top-Scoring Coffee Farms
Taiwan is one of specialty coffee's most surprising origins, and this October you can bid on its best lots. On October 28–29, the Taiwan Coffee Auction goes live on M-Cultivo.In this episode of The Cupping Table, M-Cultivo co-founder David Paparelli sits down with Leo Liu, Director of…
more -
Wildynamics: Inside Longboard Specialty Coffee's Philosophy
What happens when the philosophy behind one of Panama's most celebrated coffee farms was never written down, only lived? In this episode of The Cupping Table, David Paparelli sits down with Noemi and Sophia of Longboard Specialty Coffee to talk about Wild Dynamics, the minimal-intervention...
-
30 Years Inside Panama's Coffee Revolution with Ricardo Koyner
What does it actually take to turn a coffee-growing region into the most sought-after luxury coffee origin in the world? In this episode of The Cupping Table, David Paparelli sits down with Ricardo Koyner — a 30-year veteran of Panama's coffee industry — to unpack how Panama went from an…
more -
How Microbiology is Changing Colombian Coffee with Luis Cerquera | Cafe Granja La Esperanza
In this episode of The Cupping Table podcast, host David Paparelli sits down with Luis Alfredo, Quality Analyst at the world-renowned Cafe Granja La Esperanza (CGLE) in Colombia. Luis shares how CGLE stays at the forefront of the specialty coffee industry through advanced microbiology, meticulous...
-
Building a Coffee Legacy with Wilford Lamastus Jr.
What makes a single bag of coffee worth tens of thousands of dollars? ☕️🇵🇦In this episode of the Cupping Table Podcast, host David Paparelli sits down with Wilford Lamastus Jr.—4th generation producer at the legendary Lamastus Family Estates (Elida, El Burro, and Luito Estates) in Boquete,...
-
Tamiru Tadesse on How This Ethiopian Coffee Sold for a Record $1,739/kg
Welcome back to the Cupping Table podcast! In this episode, host David Paparelli catches up with Tamiru Tadesse, founder and CEO of Alo Coffee. Known for producing some of the most sought-after nano-lots in Ethiopia out of the Sidama region, Alo Coffee shocked the industry by breaking the record...
-
Richard Hide on Discovering the Untraceable Coffee
Welcome back to the Cupping Table podcast! In this episode, host David Paparelli sits down with Richard Hide, founder of Africa Coffee Connect and co-founder of The Best of Congo Cooperatives. With over two decades of on-the-ground experience in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Richard...
-
Why Award-Winning Farmer Enrique Navarro Harvests Coffee at Night
Welcome back to the Cupping Table podcast! In this episode, host David Paparelli is joined by fourth-generation Costa Rican coffee producer Enrique Navarro of Monte Copey. They were pioneers in Costa Rica’s micro-mill revolution, and now Enrique is leading the charge into the next era of coffee:...
-
Michael Girma on Building an Ethiopian Coffee Empire with 25,000 Farmers
Welcome back to the Cupping Table podcast! In this episode, host David Paparelli sits down with Michael Girma, CEO of Romina—one of Ethiopia’s highly diversified agribusiness and hospitality brands. Managing a massive supply chain that includes 25,000 smallholder farmers, 20 washing stations, 5…
more -
Why Sidama is Revolutionizing the Specialty Coffee Industry ft. Endale Asfaw
Welcome back to the Cupping Table podcast! In this episode, host David Paparelli sits down with Endale Asfaw, the founder and managing director of Aroma Coffee Trading and Consultancy Services. With over 30 years of experience across Ethiopia's coffee value chain and a definitive background as a...
-
Selling a Whole 2000m Coffee Harvest in ONE Auction? | Finca Sophia
Finca Sophia is one of the most high-demand, high-altitude coffee farms on the planet, growing elite Geisha varieties at over 2,000 meters in Nueva Suiza, Chiriqui, Panama. But this year, they are doing something completely unprecedented.In this episode of the Cupping Table Podcast, host David...
-
Kenneth Barigye | Rewriting Uganda’s Coffee Story
There are limits to what is possible in Uganda—until you choose to push past them. In this live episode of The Cupping Table recorded at the London Coffee Festival, host David Paparelli sits down with Kenneth Barigye, the founder and Managing Director of Mountain Harvest. Kenneth shares how his...
-
Ian Kissick | Balancing Competition and the Coffee Business
Description: Ian Kissick is a titan in the specialty coffee world—holding the titles of 2023 UK Barista Champion and consecutive 2024 and 2025 Irish Barista Champion, alongside placing 6th in the world. But after 9 years at the peak of competitive coffee brewing, he is walking away. In this…
more -
Kenny Vidurrizaga | Why This 4th-Gen Coffee Producer Refused to Declare Bankruptcy
What do you do when a century-old family legacy is on the absolute brink of collapse? That was the exact crossroads facing 4th-generation coffee producer Kenny Vidurrizaga and his brother Alex.In a single season, a devastating wave of leaf rust ("La Roya") ruthlessly wiped out 50% of his family’s...
-
Diego Baraona | From Barcelona to the Volcano: Saving a Family Coffee Legacy
In 2020, Diego Baraona faced an impossible choice: stay in Barcelona to start a new life or return to El Salvador to save a 5th-generation coffee legacy on the brink of collapse. When his father (known as the "King of Pacamara") passed away during the height of COVID-19, Diego inherited more than...
-
Frederick Bejo | The Future of Luxury Coffee: Sourcing, Competition, and AI
In this episode of The Cupping Table podcast, host David Paparelli sits down with Frederick Bejo, a visionary leader in the UAE coffee scene and co-founder of Archers and Benchmark Coffee. Fred, the 2023 UAE National Brewers Cup Champion, shares his fascinating journey from arriving in Dubai in...
-
Abdulrahman Alosaimi | Is Dubai the New Capital of Specialty Coffee?
In this episode of the Cupping Table Podcast, David Paparelli, co-founder of M-Cultivo, sits down with Abdulrahman (Abdul) Alosaimi, the former airline pilot turned founder of Toga. Abdulrahman reveals his specialty coffee story, which began with a life-changing drip coffee in Sydney back in…
more -
The Reality of Coffee Sourcing, Failure, and Resilience | Emily McIntyre
In this episode of the Cupping Table, David Paparelli sits down with Emily McIntyre, co-founder of Swift Coffee Sourcing, to discuss the professional evolution of specialty coffee importing. Drawing on two decades of experience, Emily provides a factual account of the operational challenges...
-
Why Drying is the Secret to World-Class Coffee | The Science of Janson X Geisha
Forget what you know about traditional coffee farming. At World of Coffee Dubai, David Paparelli (M-Cultivo) sits down with Kai Janson to discuss the "elevated" future of specialty coffee. While many producers are stuck in "tribal scarcity," Kai is pushing Janson Coffee into a new era of…
more -
Frederick Ruben | Why You’re Using the Wrong Milk for Your Coffee
Join us on the Cupping Table as we sit down with UAE National Barista Champion Frederick Ruben to uncover the fascinating journey of one of the industry's most innovative minds . In this episode, Ruben reveals the harrowing story of how he was scammed into moving to Dubai and how he climbed from…
more -
Jay Ruskey & Kraig Lee | The New Era of North American Specialty Coffee
In this special episode recorded live in Dubai, we sit down with two legends of the US coffee-growing scene: the late Jay Ruskey (Frinj Coffee, California) and Kraig Lee (Kona Farm Direct, Hawaii).From the first 47 "test" plants in Santa Barbara to breaking price records in Kona, Jay and Kraig...
-
Long Miles Coffee | Finding the Future of Specialty Coffee in Burundi, Kenya & Uganda
In this episode of the Cupping Table podcast, David Paparelli sits down with Ben Carlson, co-founder of Long Miles, to discuss their 15-year journey of investing in Burundi coffee communities. Ben shares the harrowing reality of producing coffee in East Africa, from fighting off bandits armed…
more -
Hacienda La Esmeralda & Daterra | How Panama & Brazil Transformed Specialty Coffee - Producers Panel
In this panel discussion, David Paparelli, CEO of M-Cultivo, sits down with Rachel Peterson of Hacienda La Esmeralda and Jeferson Santos of Daterra Coffee to explore how their estates have fundamentally reshaped the global specialty coffee industry. The conversation delves into the evolution of...
-
Roland Glew | Building Relationships in Coffee Sourcing
In this episode of The Cupping Table, David Paparelli sits down with Roland Glew, the green coffee buyer at Ozone Coffee, to explore the intricate realities of global coffee sourcing. Roland shares deep insights from his travels to origins like Peru, Malawi, and Costa Rica, emphasizing how...
-
Kenneth Barigye | Challenging the Status Quo of Ugandan Coffee
In this episode of the Cupping Table podcast, David Paparelli sits down with Kenneth Barigye, the founder of Mountain Harvest and Chairman of the Uganda chapter of AFCA. Kenneth shares his unique journey of entering the coffee industry in 2017—tasting his very first cup of coffee only after...
-
David Paparelli | Understanding the Dubai Coffee Auction
In this special episode of The Cupping Table, M-Cultivo co-founder David Paparelli breaks down the "nuts and bolts" of the 2026 coffee auction season, specifically focusing on the unique hybrid format of the Dubai Coffee Auction. Following a record-breaking year in 2025 where coffee reached…
more -
Finca Nuguo | Why the Best Coffee Needs Soul
In this episode of The Cupping Table, David Paparelli sits down with José "Pocho" Gallardo, the visionary engineer behind the world-renowned Finca Nuguo in Panama. Pocho shares his unique perspective on what it takes to master high-altitude Geisha, detailing how his background in engineering...
-
Al-Khanshali Estate | From Ancient Coffee Roots to Global Luxury
In this deep-dive interview, Mokhtar Alkhanshali explores the intersection of heritage, identity, and the high-stakes world of luxury coffee production at the Al-Khanshali Estate. As a self-described "third culture kid," Mokhtar discusses how his upbringing between San Francisco and Yemen allows...
-
Mi Finquita | Breaking Paradigms in Panamanian Ultra-Specialty Coffee
In this episode, we are joined by Ratibor Hartmann and Tessie Palacios of Mi Finquita, a nine-hectare farm representing the third generation of the Hartmann family’s 100-year coffee legacy in Panama. We delve into their revolutionary approach to ultra-specialty coffee, focusing on their...
-
Kona Farm Direct | The $910 SL-34 That Is Reshaping Hawaii's Specialty Coffee
In this episode of The Cupping Table, David Paparelli sits down with Kraig Lee, the founder of Kona Farm Direct and a 30-year veteran of Hawaiian coffee farming. Fresh off a breakout year where his coffee sold for a record-breaking $910 per kilo at the Dubai coffee auction , Kraig shares the...
-
Finca Santa Rosa | Mastering the Salvadorian Pacamara
In this episode of The Cupping Table, David sits down with Raul Rivera, the visionary behind El Salvador’s legendary Finca Santa Rosa. Raul shares the emotional journey of taking over the family farm after his father's passing and transforming it into a four-time Cup of Excellence winner. They...
-
FRINJ | Defying Altitude: How California is Re-Writing the Rules of Coffee Growing
In this episode, David sits down with Jay Ruskey, the founder of FRINJ Coffee, to discuss how he pioneered the California-grown coffee movement by transforming avocado groves into high-end coffee farms. Jay dives deep into the agronomy of coffee, explaining why stressing plants is actually a...
-
Inmaculada Coffee Farms | Engineering the World’s Rarest Coffees Varieties
In this episode of The Cupping Table, we sit down with Jorge Castro, Director of Production at Inmaculada Coffee Farms, to discuss how an industrial engineering background helped them produce some of the world's most successful competition coffees, including the legendary Eugenioides. Jorge…
more -
Mikava | From Family Hobby to Holding a COE Record in Colombia
Join host David Paparelli as he sits down with Kevin Doyle, co-founder of the celebrated Colombian coffee farm, Mikava. Kevin shares the incredible journey of how a family "hobby" transformed into a world-record-breaking operation, securing a 92.71 Cup of Excellence win for a natural processed...
-
Daterra | Unlocking the Flavor of Laurina
We're joined by Gabriel Agrelli, the Product and Marketing Development Director for Daterra in Brazil , a company he's been with for 16 years and one he calls a "driving force" in the Brazilian specialty coffee scene. Gabriel shares his unique journey, which started as a 13-year-old in a…
more -
AFCA | Celebrating the Diversity of African Coffee
The Africa Fine Coffee Association (AFCA) is challenging the idea of a simple competition by relaunching Taste of Harvest as an event to celebrate the entire coffee community. AFCA Executive Director Gilbert Gatali joins The Cupping Table to discuss the vision for this continental platform and…
more -
Clearpath Coffee | A Decade of Social Impact, Quality, and Innovation in Colombia Coffee
Celebrating their 10th anniversary, Clearpath Coffee founder Vicente Mejia discusses the company's idealistic origins, which focused on creating a social impact by connecting remote Colombian producing families with the global market. We also talked about "new school" innovative processing (using...
-
Finca Sophia | 10 Years of Growing Geisha at the Edge of Possibility
Finca Sophia defied skeptics by proving high-altitude Geisha farming was possible. Founding partners Willem Boot and David Pohl join The Cupping Table to discuss the 10-year waiting period and the immense risks involved in establishing an award-winning farm on the "very edge of what is possible"…
more -
Will Woodhouse-Banks | Becoming UK Barista Champion
UK's 2025 Barista Champion, Will Woodhouse-Banks, details his four-year journey culminating in preparation for the World Barista Championship (WBC). The Innovation Developer at Taylor's of Harrogate and evolved Q Grader competes not just for the title, but also for professional growth and to…
more -
Longboard Coffee | The Spirit of Longboard
For the last 25 years Longboard Coffee has produced beautiful Panamanian coffees. Justin Boudeman founded Longboard through a love of Panama and a love of surfing. Over the years he took an unconventional, meticulous approach to coffee farming, that emphasized the authentic expression of the...
-
David Paparelli | Auction Buying Trends
Why do certain coffees get extraordinary prices? In this episode of The Cupping Table our co-founder, David Paparelli, discusses auction buying trends. The recording was done in 2024 at the Producer Roaster Forum in Guatemala. The next Producer Roaster Forum is in El Salvador in March 2026 for…
more -
Monte Copey | Carrying a Costa Rican Legacy
Enrique Navarro is a fourth generation coffee producer in Costa Rica. In this episode we discuss the evolution of the Costa Rican specialty coffee industry, the history of Monte Copey, and the innovation that Enrique is bringing to his micro mill to carry on his family's legacy.
-
Alo Coffee | Starting Strong in Ethiopian Coffee
Tamiru Tadesse founded Alo Coffee in 2020 and won Cup of Excellence in 2021. In this episode Tamiru shares his experience starting strong and navigating the complexities of Ethiopian coffee. From community to the processing methods to the cupping table to the market, Alo strives towards excellence.
-
Lamastus Family Estates | Luxury Class of Coffee
Wilford Lamastus Jr. is the next generation at Lamastus Family Estates. Lamastus sold a coffee last year for $13k USD per kilogram. It takes more than excellent quality coffee to get to that price. In this episode Wilford Jr. shares his experience in the Best of Panama competition, the future of...
-
Hacienda La Esmeralda + Julith | Paying $30k per Kilogram for a coffee
Julith and Hacienda La Esmeralda meet for the first time in this episode. An interesting conversation on any day, but Julith and Esmeralda just made history. Serkan of Julith won Rachel Peterson and the Esmeralda team's geisha washed, the best coffee ever produced, on auction for $30k USD per...
-
Hacienda La Esmeralda | Best of Panama's first ever Triple Crown
21 years ago Hacienda La Esmeralda became synonymous with Geisha coffee. Rachel tells the remarkable story of what led to Esmeralda's historic "Triple Crown" victory at the Best of Panama competition. For the first time, a single farm won first place for its Natural, Washed, and varietal coffees,...
About this show
On The Cupping Table, iconic coffee producers share their stories in making world class coffees. Join us for a candid conversation about the realities of coffee production and the incredible journey that makes each coffee a unique experience.
Hosted by
M-Cultivo Coffee
Categories