Wholesale Gourmet Coffee

Welcome to our site. Here you will find information on gourmet coffee beans and accessories.

Purchasing Coffee in Bulk 

Wholesale gourmet coffee is usually available to retailers or other businesses.  The coffee that wholesalers sell is almost always supplied in bulk and rarely, if ever, available to the regular individual consumer.  Due to being sold in bulk, the price of gourmet coffee purchase via wholesalers is always lower, but can still cost substantially, especially if buying high quality beans. 

Coffee falls into two general categories:  Arabica and Robusta.  For a coffee to fall into the “gourmet” category, it technically needs to fall into the Arabica category.  Robusta coffees have a higher level of caffeine, but the downfall of this type of coffee is the slightly burnt taste that the beans prodocue and a bitter aftertaste.  Arabica has a more intense flavor, and the aroma of the beans is outstanding, hence, the gourmet classification.

Ethiopia and Yemen are two of the top producers of many of the beans that are available through wholesale gourmet coffee suppliers.  Coffees from Brazil or Africa usually fall into the non-gourmet category of Robusta coffees. 

If you are looking for suppliers of wholesale gourmet coffee beans, then it is crucial that you build strong relationships with various suppliers.  Wholesale coffee companies often produce exclusive blends that they make available occasionally, or sometimes, only to specific companies.  The relationship you have with their sales team may include you to these occasional offerings.  Larger suppliers often carry many brands and will switch during the season to accommodate popular flavors (i.e. pumpkin spice during the Christmas season) but contrary to what you may have assumed, the price at the smaller suppliers may be cheaper overall.  Granted, the brands and selection they carry may be different, but a smaller selection doesn’t necessarily mean the coffee itself is any less than that of their larger competitors’. 

When starting the search for a supplier, do your homework.  Larger doesn’t mean the company is better, and most companies, big or small, should be happy to provide you with a list of references.  Granted, this list will mainly contain happy customers, but call and ask if they have ever encountered a problem in the past, and ask how the supplier resolved the problem.  Ask if the bean quality has always been reliable.  Also ask the clients for other companies that they use; this is a great way to establish a complete list of choices available to you. 

Keep in mind that there is no regulatory agency when it comes to the production of “gourmet coffee”.  While the technical distinction is the difference mentioned above, anyone can call their coffee by this name, especially if an expert has deemed their coffee to be notable.  Ultimately, what is gourmet to you may not be to someone else, so the most important consideration when purchasing wholesale gourmet coffee is to taste it yourself.  The origin, selection, drying process, and finally the roasting process all make a huge difference, and choosing a taste and cost that you like and are proud to serve will be of the utmost importance.