ubunye coffee Company

Ubunye is a Xhosa word for “Togetherness.” It is the perfect word to describe who we are and what we are about. When the idea to begin a journey into coffee was proposed we were in agreement immediately, we want the only origin of our beans to be from Africa. Africa boasts upward of 7 coffee producing and exporting countries with Ethiopia and Kenya among the worlds top 10. Coffee has gone from a casual experience, to a more sophisticated and multi-Billion Dollar industry. At Ubunye, we strive for only the best quality beans, roasted to perfection and packaged fresh. We have a team full of Ubunye and we hope to bring Ubunye to you. Ever evolving together, we will bring new knowledge and experiences to you our wonderful clientele.

As we begin our journey with you, it is our hope, that you will be able to experience the Ubunye that makes each cup possible.

Finest Roast

Light Roast

Light Roast coffees are characterized by their light brown colour, lack of oil on the beans, and light body (or viscosity). These beans are allowed to reach a temperature of about 177º–210º c. When roasting, beans typically pop at around 177º. This popping sound—known as the “first crack”—serves as the cue that the beans have reached a Light Roast. A common misconception is that Light Roasts don’t have as much caffeine as their darker, bolder counterparts. However, the truth is exactly the opposite! As beans roast, the caffeine slowly cooks out of the bean. Therefore, because lightly roasted beans cook for a shorter time and at a lower temperature, they retain more caffeine from the original green coffee bean.

Medium Roast

Medium Roast coffees are brown and have a little thicker body than a Light Roast. Unlike Light, Medium starts to take on a bit of the taste from the roasting process, losing some of the bright floral flavours that are typical of a Light Roast. Instead, they carry much more of a balanced flavour with a medium amount of caffeine. A Medium is roasted until just before the second crack, usually at about 210º–226 Celsius.

Dark Roast

Dark Roast coffees are dark brown, even close to a blackened colour. The beans are characterized by drawn-out oil that glosses the surface. Coffee made from a Dark Roast has a robust, full body. The flavours from the coffee’s country of origin are almost entirely roasted out, taking on a very bold and smoky taste. To be considered Dark, beans roast to a temperature of anything higher than 226ºCelsius or essentially the end of the second crack. If beans roast much hotter than 226º Celsius, the coffee will start to taste more and more of charcoal. Many other big-batch roasters cut corners by roasting larger quantities faster at extremely high temperatures for a short amount of time, thus burning their beans and killing the flavour. At Ubunye Coffee co., we refuse to lower quality to boost quantity. We go to great lengths to make sure every single batch of coffee is perfectly roasted by our professionals.