Ride Fast Live Slow

About the Coffee

Ride Fast Live Slow is a dark roast espresso blend built from two Central American coffees: a Brazilian lot from the Mogiana region and a Colombian lot from the Nasa Wesx indigenous community in Gaitania, Tolima. The Mogiana region sits across the border of São Paulo and Minas Gerais, known for its rolling hills and uneven terrain. The farms here average around 60 acres, smaller than typical Brazilian operations, and this lot is graded Fine Cup (FC), the highest cup category in the Brazilian grading system.

The Colombian half comes from Gaitania, a village in the Planadas municipality in Tolima. The Nasa Wesx are an indigenous community spread across Cauca, Huila, and Tolima, and the coffee from this region carries a long local history. Planadas itself has roots as a place where political divisions gave way to cooperation over time, and the community there is known for that reputation. One coffee in this blend is naturally processed, the other washed, and together they create something built specifically to hold up in milk-based drinks without disappearing into the background.

This is a blend designed with espresso in mind, but it works equally well in a drip brewer or French press. The combination of a natural process and a washed process gives it both body and clarity, which is why it was formulated to balance across different brewing methods rather than optimize for just one.

About Alternate Route

Alternate Route Coffee Co. was founded by Ian and Kellie Wahl in Alberta, Canada. What started as a shared idea between two people grew into a small-batch roastery based just outside Edmonton, near the international airport. Today, the operation is led by Kellie Wahl and Head Roaster Corie Sackville, and the team is majority women-owned and women-run. That shift happened organically, not as a positioning strategy.

They roast on a Probat P12, a German-made drum roaster common in specialty roasting for its consistency and control. Their sourcing spans Colombia, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Ethiopia, with an emphasis on producer relationships over commodity buying.

"Alternate Route is our first women-owned and operated roaster, and this month I'm proud to announce every Alternate Route coffee we're featuring is sourced from women coffee producers. I'm particularly excited to share their coffee from Huila, Colombia with you - this is one of my favourite balanced coffees this year."

- Dean, Director of Coffee