The Most Impactful Trip of our Careers: Valor’s Colombia Trip – 04/16/2025

JOIN THE VALOR COFFEE COMMUNITY – Courses, Exclusive Videos, PDFs, Spreadsheets and more:⁠ https://community.valor.coffee/landing-page?utm_source=spotify&utm_campaign=ep138Thanks for listening, following/subscribing, giving us a good review, and sharing with your friends on social media. It goes a long way!We just got back from one of the most impactful trips in the history of our company — a sourcing trip to Colombia that’s bound to shape our business for years to come. In this episode, we reflect on everything from getting searched by police on the streets of Jardín to the transformational conversations we had with coffee producers whose livelihoods depend on the volatile C-market.From walking through coffee farms in Andes to partnering with inspiring producers like Santiago Arango and Andres Cardona, this episode gives a behind-the-scenes look at what it really means to build a sourcing model based on relationships rather than just flavor scores and price points.We also dig into the nuances of green sourcing, the importance of understanding your true cost (on both the roasting and farming sides), and why the future of specialty coffee depends on young, innovative farmers like the ones we met. A must-listen for anyone in the coffee world, or anyone interested in how meaningful relationships can fuel better business.*If you purchase something through one of our links, we may be entitled to a share of the sale*Buy Valor Coffee: ⁠https://valor.coffee/shop⁠Watch on Youtube: ⁠https://youtube.com/valorcoffee16⁠Want to become a Wholesale Partner? Email us at [email protected] to set up an account!Want to send us coffee? Have a question you want to answer on the show? Send us an email to [email protected]'re partnered with Clive to bring you sweet deal at a discounted rate! Use Discount Code VALOR5 at checkout for 5% off Mahlkonig, Anfim and Eureka products!Shop Clive products here: ⁠https://clivecoffee.com?sca_ref=5315485.6axWuRlcEr⁠Want to get your business in front of more people? We partnered with Local Eyes Growth to grow our business through SEO and the results have been incredible. Local Eyes is offering a FREE backlink ($300 value) to Valor Coffee Podcast listeners who partner through our exclusive link. Visit ⁠https://localeyesgrowth.com/valor⁠ to get the ball rolling!Follow the Valor Coffee Podcast on Instagram: ⁠http://instagram.com/valorcoffeepod⁠Follow Valor on Instagram: ⁠http://instagram.com/valor.coffee⁠Subscribe to Riley's YouTube Channel: ⁠https://youtube.com/@rileywestbrook⁠Follow Riley:  ⁠https://instagram.com/rileywestbrook⁠Follow Ross: ⁠https://instagram.com/rosswalters⁠Follow Ethan's Parody Account:  ⁠https://instagram.com/ethanrivers77700:00:00 Start00:00:33 INTROOOOOOOOO 00:03:33 Progrum START 00:06:18 Ross, Let's begin the Recap 00:16:23 Day II 00:19:50 Marker 5 00:27:45 Vocab check 00:33:51 Busted 00:38:20 Fermentation Bootcamp 00:43:55 The coolest part of the trip, maybe ever... 00:55:28 Ethically Sourced Coffee