This past weekend was Downriver's first time at the Glasgow Coffee Festival which took place at The Briggait on the 11th and 12th of May. It was a weekend packed with coffee, community, and fun & creative innovations in the coffee industry.
There were 30+ exhibitors on both days, along with cupping sessions, talks, and latte art and roasting competitions. We got to try some incredible coffees and see some coffee industry friends compete in competitions.
We also made sure to stop by Hub International's stall, who were using our Boilermaker Espresso Blend to brew up some drinks for attendees! Hub International is a hospitality training organisation that provides people the opportunity to get training and skills in various hospitality areas including barista training. They also run the Hi Cafe in Glasgow where trainees can get hands-on experience.
On the Sunday, we hosted our first ever coffee pop-up in Glasgow! Coffee consultant & barista trainer Adam (@adamscoffeeglasgow) organised a guest pop-up bar in Gallowgate at Us V Them, an iconic coffee shop that specialises in coffee engineering. We were serving up pour overs of Finca Medina, a Guatemalan yellow honey-processed coffee from Antigua that's bursting with fruity and juicy flavour as well as our half-caff blend Low-Key which is a sweet, crispy apple, subtle blend of Peruvian and Rwandan coffees.
It was an exhausting but exciting weekend in Glasgow and it was really inspiring to chat with other coffee professionals and see what cool things they're doing. As a new & small business, we're grateful to have been included & feeling really hopeful about the future of the industry and our place in it. Now for a bit of rest before we jump right back into things....