The Portal

About the Coffee

Santa Helena is a large family-owned farm in São Paulo state, Brazil, operating across the Mogiana plateau at around 1,100 to 1,300 meters. The farm has been producing coffee for decades and is known for its consistent, well-processed naturals. Natural processing in Brazil means the whole cherry is dried in the sun with the fruit still intact, which typically produces heavier-bodied, sweeter coffees compared to washed lots.

The Ethiopia component comes from Gigesa, a washing station in the Gedeo zone of southern Ethiopia. Gedeo is a densely farmed region where smallholder farmers, many tending less than a hectare each, deliver ripe cherries to centralized stations for processing. At Gigesa, the cherries are dried on raised beds as naturals rather than being pulped and washed, which is less common for Ethiopian stations historically associated with the washed process. Raised bed drying allows for better airflow and more even drying than drying directly on the ground.

The Portal blends 75% Santa Helena with 25% Gigesa. Brazil provides the body and sweetness; Ethiopia adds fruit complexity and aromatic lift. Both lots are natural process, which keeps the flavor profile consistent even though they come from very different origins and growing conditions.

About No6 Coffee Co.

No6 Coffee Co. was founded in 2015 in Nelson, British Columbia. The roastery operates as a small tasting bar and roasting operation in the city's downtown core, with a clear focus on traceable, specialty-grade green coffee sourced through importers who work directly with farms and cooperatives.

No6 stores all green coffee in sealed GrainPro bags in a low-humidity environment and roasts in small batches each week. They source exclusively through independent importers they know personally, prioritizing long-term relationships with producers over spot purchases. Every lot goes through standard specialty quality checks, including moisture analysis and sensory evaluation, before it reaches the roastery.

"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