// Bicycle Coffee Company
Posted on Thursday, October 1st, 2009
I love bicycles. This might be evident to you, since I have a bicycle blog. But what is not immediately evident is that I also love coffee. And I really love a combination of bicycles and coffee.
Imagine the ecstasy when I found out about a small San Francisco company called Bicycle Coffee Company. They built their own roaster and roast their own coffee in small batches in the East Bay. They then deliver the coffee by bicycle to homes in businesses in San Francisco, occasionally in the East Bay, and are planning on expanding their delivery range to include more of Oakland soon. I was intrigued, so of course I had to interview the boys behind the business. The business is owned and managed by a core group of brothers, cousins, and close friends. I set up a time to meet with Matt McKee, one of the founders of the company.
I met the guys at Etiquette, a bar in San Francisco on Market and 7th Streets, which is owned by one of the brothers in the group. There was a Mexican Independence Day-themed birthday party happening, costumes and all (see image). I sat down to interview Matt (on the right), and he started by explaining that we had about an hour to talk now, and that then he and his cohorts were going to give away free coffee at the bike-in movie down the street put on by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, and would I join them? I told him of course, and we got down to the discussion.
Essentially, this tight knit group was travelling in Central America and they noticed some things about the coffee growers there. “There was a huge demand for low quality corporate coffee,” said Matt. “The people were growing hearty beans that would withstand rough weather so they could get a larger harvest, but the coffee wasn’t good.” Matt explained that the brands that sell bulk amounts of coffee in grocery stores nationally and to hotel and gas station chains were buying lots of low quality coffee at equally low rates, and that the workers weren’t making enough money to survive. “We worked with farmers to get them growing a more quality type of bean in an organic way–no pesticides or anything,” Matt explained, “and then they could sell those beans at a higher rate.” Having graduated with a BA in Economics, I knew what he was getting at: quality products can demand a higher price.
Econ tangent: It’s true that Matt and Bicycle Coffee Company could have just paid a “fair trade” price for the coffee beans, but as all good economics students know, fair trade prices artificially alter market prices. This means that when the economy of a country grows strong operating on fair trade prices and then needs to be weaned off the artificial price system, it can crash. I loved what Bicycle Coffee Company did here–they helped people make a product that was actually worth a higher price in a more luxury good market. That’s smart economics.
Anyway, the beans are shipped to the Port of Oakland, and then have a quick car trip to the roaster, which is in Albany, California. After that, they’re never in a car. The beans are roasted in small batches in a roaster that the guys built themselves. It’s currently gas powered, but they’re working on a way to power it with the energy produced from a stationary bicycle. Then the beans are delivered to customers by bicycle in San Francisco, and a few locations in the East Bay. The company hopes to expand to Oakland next, and then to branch out more widely. Matt explains, “We’d like to have this happen in Seattle, New York, other cities–but we wouldn’t do franchises or anything big like that. Basically we’d get our friends in those places to do what we do. Have the coffee shipped to them, roast it themselves, and deliver it by bicycle.” I liked the idea. Instead of universally uniform coffee like Starbucks (burned, no matter what city you’re in!), each city would have a unique roast–the “San Francisco Roast” or the “Seattle Roast” could be your city’s signature bicycle delivered coffee.
We set off for the bike-in movie with a simple little stand (3 milk crates with a bulk coffee bag thrown over them), some coffee, business cards, and stickers. Matt, Brad, and the Trusty Boyfriend are seen here, proudly giving away coffee. Sadly, no one informed us that the party was Mexican Independence Day-themed, so myself (behind the camera) and the Trusty Boyfriend were dressed more, um, normally.
The coffee was well received at the bike-in movie, and we had a good time giving it away and talking with other cyclists. The Trusty Boyfriend liked the company a lot, and he expressed an interest in being the delivery guy for Oakland, since we’re East Bay people. We both jumped right in and gave out coffee–we felt welcomed and had a great time. And got free coffee. Can’t beat that!
I almost forgot: the coffee is good. Really good. I had some of the free coffee at the movie, and guys generously gave me a bag to take home. It’s a low acid coffee with a
medium to dark roast. Very smooth. You can be sure I’ll be
ordering more.
great post. I love this coffee so much that I have my friend in SF mail it to me in NY.
the coffee *is* amazing, isn’t it?
for your sake, I hope their idea of starting similar ventures in other cities (including New York!) happens!
Awesome info here! I am the world’s biggest coffee junkie and I am constantly tasting new varieties but also always trying to discover the perfect cup of coffee which I’m fully pleased with. Because of that I am always glad to learn more.