Backcountry

About the Coffee

Backcountry is a three-origin espresso blend drawing from Brazil, Colombia, and Papua New Guinea. The Brazilian component comes from Santa Helena, a well-known estate in the Cerrado or Sul de Minas regions with a long history of consistent, high-volume specialty production. The Colombian component is sourced from Cauca Sotara, a mountainous municipality in southwestern Colombia where smallholder farmers typically work plots at elevations between 1,600 and 2,000 meters. Papua New Guinea's Nebilyer Valley, in the Western Highlands Province, rounds out the blend, with farms sitting between 1,500 and 1,800 meters in a region that began producing specialty coffee in the mid-20th century.

Blending across three countries is a deliberate choice for espresso. Each origin anchors a different part of the cup: Brazil tends to provide body and low-acid foundation, Colombian highlands add structure and brightness, and PNG Nebilyer contributes a wilder, more distinctive character that sets this blend apart from more conventional South American-only espressos. The blend is designed to stay consistent across seasons, with No6 able to swap in comparable lots from each region when harvests shift.

No6 sources exclusively through specialty importers who apply moisture content analysis, water activity measurements, and sensory evaluation to every lot before it ships. Green coffee is stored in sealed GrainPro bags in a low-humidity environment and roasted in small batches, which keeps the coffee fresh and reduces the risk of quality degradation between roast and delivery.

About No6 Coffee Co.

No6 Coffee Co. was founded in 2015 in Nelson, British Columbia, with a tasting bar and roastery operating out of the same space. Nelson is a small city in the Kootenay region, and No6 has built its identity around the community there, running a no-single-use-cup policy and a returnable glass jar program for local customers who want to cut down on packaging waste.

Their sourcing runs through independent importers who work directly with small farms and cooperatives, and No6 pays above fair trade premiums to encourage farmers to reinvest in their processing and facilities. The relationship they describe is a full chain: roaster to importer to producer, with each link accountable to the next.

"I sat with Denis, owner of No6 Coffee Co, this past January. One of the more memorable moments from our conversation was when he explained that No6 is is not looking to roast the most unusual or headline-worthy coffee, but to master the technique of coffee roasting and produce simply great cups of coffee for just about everyone."

- Dean, Director of Coffee