NBC San Diego: Bird Rock Coffee Roasters' $11 Cup of Coffee Dubbed Among Best in U.S.

By Monica Garske

A "farm-to-cup" coffee varietal from San Diego-based Bird Rock Coffee Roasters won the Good Food Award for one of the best coffees in the U.S.—even if the perk is pricey

A very expensive cup of coffee – $11 per cup, to be exact – sold by a San Diego-based company has just been declared among the best javas in the United States.

Bird Rock Coffee Roasters (BRCR) – with three locations in San Diego: 5627 La Jolla Blvd.; 2295 Kettner Blvd.; and 1270 Morena Blvd. – churns out a Geisha varietal coffee from the Lino Lot on the Panama Esmeralda Estate in Panama, which sells for $100 per pound.

The company says the varietal is one of the most expensive coffees in the world to grow. Because it is an extremely rare varietal, it’s also difficult to grow and low-yielding, according to BRCR.

On Friday night, that pricey pick-me-up won the coffee category at the 2016 Good Food Awards in San Francisco – alongside 16 other coffees from around the country considered top notch.

The Good Food Awards celebrate outstanding American food producers who responsibly create tasty food and drinks with a focus on craftsmanship, sustainability and fresh ingredients from the farming and agriculture communities.

The San Diego-based coffee roaster was the only winner from San Diego at the 6th annual Good Food Awards. Winners were decided after a blind tasting featuring 203 judges. A total of 242 companies were awarded, including BRCR, among 1,927 entrants.

Chuck Patton, owner of BRCR, said it’s an honor to bring home the accolade.

“This award captures everything we stand for, including quality, taste and social responsibility. We hope this award brings awareness to the fact that not only do we have incredible tasting coffee, but that the direct trade methods and compensation for coffee farmers that we engage in are a national model,” he said.

According to the company, the Geisha varietal coffee gaining all the buzz boasts “notes of jasmine, honey, dried raspberries, cream and lavender with a velvety texture.”

The coffee is on sale now at the San Diego-based BRCR shops, selling for $50 per eight ounces. Patrons can also get it freshly-brewed and piping hot for $11 a cup at the shops’ pour-over coffee bars.

BRCR specializes in high-quality “farm-to-cup” roasting. After selling small batches of hand-roasted coffee at local farmers markets, Patton opened his first BRCR location in the La Jolla community of Bird Rock in 2006, sourcing his coffee beans directly from farmers across the globe.