Six specialty coffee partners. One booth. Three themes that define where the industry is headed.
At World of Coffee San Diego, MiiR hosted a series of coffee tastings in our booth, inviting six specialty coffee partners to pour, share, and connect with attendees from across the industry. What followed were conversations about craft, sourcing, producer relationships, and what it means to serve coffee with intention.
We asked each partner the same four questions. Their answers, taken together, reveal something bigger than any single cup: a picture of where specialty coffee is, and where it's going.
3 Key Takeaways from World of Coffee 2026
Before diving into partner perspectives, here's what stood out across all six conversations.
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01 |
The people behind the coffee matter as much as what's in the cup. Every partner at the MiiR booth described their work in relational terms — friendships with farmers in Honduras and Colombia, long-term sourcing partnerships, producer stories shared over a single-origin pour. Specialty coffee has always been a relationship-driven industry, and at World of Coffee 2026, that was the throughline in every conversation. |
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02 |
Transparency is no longer a differentiator — it's the expectation. From published transparency reports to direct farm relationships in Ethiopia and Colombia, the partners at our booth demonstrated that traceability isn't a trend. When Metric mentioned that attendees had already read their transparency report before arriving at the booth, it said everything: today's coffee professionals and consumers want to know where their coffee comes from — and the best roasters are answering that call. |
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03 |
World of Coffee is a reunion as much as a trade show. Partner after partner described WOC less as a business event and more as a place where the relationships built across supply chains, time zones, and years of shared work get to exist in the same room. For coffee industry professionals, attending World of Coffee means seeing the full picture of what it takes to get a great cup from farm to hand — and connecting with the people who make it possible. |
Meet the Partners
Six roasters joined us in San Diego. Here's what each one served — and what they had to say.
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Verve Coffee Roasters |
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| Coffee featured | Ethiopia single origin - Producer Tofik Nura |
| What makes it special | Tofik Nura is an independent Ethiopian producer managing his family's 20-hectare farm at just 33 years old. Using a classic washed process with an unconventional parchment-resting step to control water activity, the result is a beautifully balanced cup with florality and delicate sweetness. |
| Customer reactions | People were captivated by Tofik Nura's story as much as the coffee itself — drawn in by both the florality of the cup and the depth of the producer relationship behind it. |
| What makes them unique | Founded in 2007, Verve has kept quality, transparency, and innovation at the forefront for nearly 20 years — continuing to push boundaries while staying true to its roots. |
| What they love about WOC | Verve loves that everyday coffee drinkers are developing a greater appreciation for the effort producers put in before coffee is even roasted. WOC brings together perspectives from every stage of production in one place. |
“Every year it feels like everyday coffee drinkers are becoming more and more interested in where their coffee is from, and developing a greater appreciation for the massive amount of effort and work that is required from producers before coffee is even roasted.”
— Verve Coffee Roasters
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Bridge City Coffee |
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| Coffee featured | Peru Lucero |
| What makes it special | A wonderfully complex yet accessible coffee. Drink it once and enjoy it immediately. Come back to it and you'll keep discovering new flavor notes. It hits just right — even in a quick tasting moment. |
| Customer reactions |
The most rewarding moments were when attendees stopped to be fully present with the cup — a real feat at a show with a literal ocean of coffee to try. |
| What makes them unique | Winner of Roaster of the Year, Bridge City measures success not just in coffee quality but in the growth of the people who make and drink it. If great coffee comes at the expense of producers or staff, they consider it a failure. |
| What they love about WOC | Bridge City loves that the specialty coffee industry creates real, lasting relationships across the supply chain — friendships with farmers in Honduras and Colombia that go far beyond a transaction. |
“There aren't many other industries where it's a regular thing for businesses to interact and have real relationships with the producers and farmers who grew what we use.”
— Bridge City Coffee
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Anodyne Coffee Roasting Company (co-hosted with Fairwave Tea & Coffee) |
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| Coffee featured |
Ethiopia Guji Natural — pour over |
| What makes it special |
A blend of cherries ranging from well-ripe to over-ripe, yielding green apple and apricot notes with exceptional body, fruit, and balance. An example of what a Natural Ethiopia can be at its best. |
| Customer reactions |
Partnering with HUGO Tea in the booth created great energy and conversation — giving attendees the chance to put faces to Midwest brands and discover businesses they may not have encountered otherwise. |
| What makes them unique |
A 27-year Midwest legacy brand, Anodyne is known for quality, affordability, support of local music and artists, and hosting large community events in Milwaukee. Part of a collective that enables shared relationships across brands. |
| What they love about WOC |
The curiosity and creativity of the specialty coffee industry keeps it compelling — coffee is about more than the best cup. It's about creating space to support one another, and WOC embodies that. |
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Fairwave Tea & Coffee (co-hosted with Anodyne Coffee Roasting Company) |
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| Tea featured |
Ethiopia Guji Natural — pour over (co-hosted with Anodyne Coffee)
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| What makes it special |
Fairwave and Anodyne co-hosted their booth presence and served the same coffee — an Ethiopia Guji Natural with green apple, apricot, full body, and exceptional balance. Both teams shared the same Q&A responses, reflecting their collaborative approach. |
| Customer reactions |
The partnership between Fairwave and Anodyne created a platform for Midwest brands to connect with the broader specialty coffee community — and for attendees to discover what's happening beyond the coasts.
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| What makes them unique |
Part of the same collective as Anodyne, Fairwave shares the mission of quality, cost-effective products that support local communities and artists. |
| What they love about WOC |
World of Coffee is a place to see what other brands are building, track updates in roasting and scoring, and experience the new wave of designers and roasters shaping the industry. |
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Metric Coffee |
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| Coffee featured | Colombia Alma Pineda SL-28 — El Cedral Farm |
| What makes it special |
Originally a Kenyan varietal, the SL-28 grown at altitude on Alma Pineda's El Cedral farm produces exceptional clarity and vibrancy. A long-term producer partnership that Metric has showcased across multiple varietals. |
| Customer reactions |
Several attendees had already read Metric's transparency report before arriving at the booth — a powerful signal that striving for transparency in sourcing doesn't go unnoticed by the specialty coffee community.
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| What makes them unique |
Metric dedicates significant thought to showcasing the stories of their producing partners. That responsibility to relationships makes it second nature to treat every producer's product with care — and their commitment to transparency has stayed steady even when shortcuts were tempting. |
| What they love about WOC |
World of Coffee fills in the big picture of how many minds contribute to a single cup. You can't fully see all the parts that make up coffee as a daily pleasure until you're in a room where all of them are represented. |
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Olympia Coffee Roasters |
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| Coffee featured |
Gatta Farm, Shantawene Village — Sidama Bensa, Ethiopia (2,120–2,210 masl) |
| What makes it special |
An estate that also functions as a training center and seasonal residence for workers and trainees. Exceptionally clean, dynamic, and balanced — one attendee called it their favorite coffee of the entire show. |
| Customer reactions |
One guest said it was their favorite coffee of the whole show — so the team gave them a bag on the spot.
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| What makes them unique |
Olympia's 'fair-for-all' direct sourcing model ensures every coffee they purchase meets the highest standards of transparency and benefits for the people who produce it — quality of life for producers and communities is at the center of every decision. |
| What they love about WOC |
The dynamic interaction of people from all aspects of the supply chain coming together in person to taste and talk is what makes the specialty coffee industry remarkable. |
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Perc Coffee |
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| Coffee featured |
Colombia Jhon Rodriguez — Ombligon varietal |
| What makes it special |
The Ombligon is not a varietal you see every day. Jhon Rodriguez brought out a cherry candy flavor that is approachable, fun, and a genuine crowd-pleaser. |
| Customer reactions |
It means a lot when coffee professionals at an event like WOC stop to genuinely enjoy what's been prepared — a validation of the full team effort that goes into making a coffee feel like a PERC coffee.
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| What makes them unique |
Perc meets coffee drinkers wherever they are in their journey — from chocolate-nutty crowd-pleasers that pair with cream and sugar to intense fruit bombs. Approachable and fun, without compromising on quality. |
| What they love about WOC |
It's always the people who make the coffee industry great. World of Coffee is the one time all your favorite people are in the same room — from producers to manufacturers. |
Community at the Center of Coffee
World of Coffee continues to bring together a global community of people committed to craft, quality, and innovation. Hosting tastings in the MiiR booth created space to connect with longtime partners, meet new collaborators, and share ideas about how the coffee experience continues to evolve across retail, hospitality, and everyday routines.
We're grateful to every partner who joined us in San Diego and shared their craft — and their stories — with the community.
Interested in developing a merchandising program or partnering with us on future tasting experiences?Connect with your MiiR representative to learn more about programs designed to support café retail environments and elevate the customer experience. ↓ |
