“Changing The World One Cup At A Time”
When asked about the “Third Wave” coffee movement, director of wholesale at the famous Irving Farm Coffee Roasters, Teresa von Fuchs said, “It seems elitist, but really it’s just nerdiness.”
Coffee enthusiasts will agree that this is a great time to be in love with the beverage. Coffee can no longer be spoken about as a wake up call from our Garfield like Monday blues. With a focus on the bean like never before, we see the hazy curtains that blinded us from the source, slowly lifting up. This wave is about coffee in all its natural glory and nuance. Anirudh Sharma, co-founder of the “Third Wave Coffee Roasters” talks about bringing the third wave to Bangalore and finding entrepreneurship in specialty coffee.
Guava in my coffee
“The original dream was to open a boutique hotel in Rajasthan, which is where we are from. Coffee just happened to us“, says Anirudh as he talks about his and Ayush Bathwal, his childhood friend/co-founder’s foray into the world of these magic beans. While working in the US in the IT sector, Ayush once visited a local coffee shop where they offered him a cup of black coffee. Expecting it to be bitter, he took a sip and was surprised to taste guava in his coffee. He called Anirudh to share this incident and his awe for all that a coffee cup could represent. “This is what got him interested in coffee. ”
Changing The World One Cup At A Time. Third Wave Coffee Roasters Bangalore. Click To TweetAnirudh is a trained chef and comes from a family of restaurant owners. “Both Ayush and I were settled in terms of work, but the monotony got to us. We are both passionate about giving people a quality product. When we stumbled into the world of specialty coffee, we realized we could wait no longer and decided now was the time to live our dream.”
Moving to Bangalore in 2015, they began work on Third Wave.
Learning trade the coffee way
While Ayush was already hooked onto specialty coffee, Anirudh was relatively new to the concept in the beginning. Hearing Anirudh talk about beans, roasting impact and subtle undertones, it’s hard to imagine that at one point he cringed about gulping down coffee without the dairy carriers. “It’s an acquired taste, like wine. You develop the taste over time. If I could do it and relish a cup of coffee to its full potential, so can everyone else. This is what we strive to do at the Third Wave. Make people realise what they are missing out on.”
The duo decided to learn the trade on the ground. This included multiple trips to coffee farms, interning at coffee shops, understanding all the infrastructural support needed, and setting up a small R&D unit in a garage. “Our roaster is a custom made batch roaster from Idaho. We would source coffee beans from different farms in small lots. We roasted the beans and performed about 15-20 profile tests for every bag. Friends and family were a part of these tasting sessions, and their feedback helped us decide what we wanted to showcase in our cafe.”
Third Wave Coffee Roasters opened its doors to customers on 24 September 2016.
The Third Wave Movement
Walk into the Third Wave Coffee Roasters, and you will see the interiors reflecting the two sides of this coffee movement. One one side are consumers who know exactly what they want in their coffee cups or are curious to know what this experience would entail. On the other side of the counter, you will see coffee beans in gunny bags, jars that tell you where the beans they display are from, a roaster, blenders, espresso machine, hand press coffee makers, all set out to work. It’s like taking a quick walk through the whole process.
Anirudh shares that since they opened shop, they have witnessed a steady stream of coffee enthusiasts. But what excites the team is helping more people take their first step into this world of single origin specialty coffee. “Just like Ayush discovered his love for specialty coffee in a coffee shop, we want people to discover their coffee interests here. We often recommend a pour over for our customers to try out if they are new to the concept. We also give a 15-minute tour for anyone interested in the processes behind coffee making. We talk to them about the estates so that they understand how coffee flavors are influenced by where the bean comes from, and what single origin actually means.”
Anirudh explains that they chose to relocate to Bangalore because they wanted to be close to the source. Third Wave Coffee Roasters initially sourced coffee from 6 different estates in Chickmagalur. They are already in talks with 25 estates across Nilgiris, Coorg, Shevaroy Hills, Araku Valley and Sakleshpur. They are also working on creating catalogues that will describe the estates and give information about the beans.
Plans Ahead
“When I reach out to my cup of coffee in the morning I am not looking for a wake-up call. I am looking for an experience,” says Anirudh.
Apart from their own trials with the beans, Third Wave Coffee Roasters is working with the farmers to see how various processes post-harvest can be worked on to get the best end results. Third Wave also has plans of sourcing the best coffee across the globe.
India is the sixth largest coffee producer in the world. While most of it is exported, the wave of single origin coffee has begun making rounds in metro cities. So how does one crack the specialty coffee market?”With passion“, comes the quick response. “You may be able to build a place but to keep it running and have people coming, passion for what you do is key. When we started working on Third Wave, our core team worked 16 hours a day. It was and still continues to be hard work, but we are learning something new about coffee every day. The journey so far has been both daunting and exhilarating. ” Looks like coffee literally keeps them going.
For more information visit Third Wave Coffee Roasters. Follow them on Facebook here.
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I’m regular to this place & all I could say is that : From my day 1 to the present day, Everytime I experimented with different blends. They never disappointed me. I even attempted for flavors that may sound weird to people but that’s what is the key to dig for your target coffee. I don’t know what ahead in their minds, but they’d definitely give their customers a great variety ahead with tasty cups poured with their passion. This place never bores me up. I’ve read so many books over here. There had been times when I was hungry, but I skipped my meals to sip coffee over here just because it was always somewhere in the middle of my way. Yes, I tend to choose coffee over food but if it comes to taking a glance at their food menu, it’s absolutely creative in terms of presentation, hygiene & deliciousness. I wish them good luck & they surely inspire me to follow my passion instead of money. Everything here is churned with passion, sincerity, patience & creativity, be it the interiors or be it their menu. If you’re looking for something interesting, third wave is for you. My overall rating from past 2 years is excellent for staff management, ambience & taste. Shine on, Folks !
~ Hans Rajpal !
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