Cherry Hill Coffee – Celebrating over 25 years in the Okanagan

Cherry Hill Coffee. Photos by Jasmin Dosanj

Add artisan coffee roasters to the list of good things happening in the Okanagan. One of the first, Kelowna’s Cherry Hill Coffee has been hand-roasting coffee beans since 1986, and provides many of the Okanagan’s best independent coffee shops, bakeries and restaurants with their custom roasted-to-order coffee beans.

While coffee aficionados connect the link between the name cherry and coffee, for many it is a surprise to learn that coffee beans are the seeds that come from red or purple cherries that grow on shrubs and small trees in the “coffee belt”. The belt is a narrow subtropical region located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.  Unlike mass-marketed coffee roasters, Cherry Hill Coffee sources their exceptional coffee beans from small-scale 100% certified organic farmers. For Cherry Hill, organic farming is better for the farmers, the land and the environment. Organic farming also helps to keep the genetic diversity of coffee beans alive.

Cherry Hill Coffee makes single point of origin coffee as well as custom blends. For their single point of origin coffees, they list the region, co-op/farm, varietal, altitude height and processing method. All of their coffee is roasted by hand in small batches in their custom rebuilt 1960’s Vittoria roaster using the time-honored tradition of sight, sound and smell to determine when the beans are properly roasted. To guarantee the freshest coffee beans possible to their loyal customers they hand-roast all of their coffee beans to order.

If you are in Kelowna, it is worth a visit to their industrial location, housing both their roastery and coffee bar. See and smell the coffee beans being roasted on site while sipping on espresso, latte or cappuccino.  Cherry Hill Coffee also shares their passion for coffee with their Cherry Hill Brew School. Geared towards the general public, students learn single brewing techniques using the Hario, Chemex or Siphon methods, as well as practice the process known as “cupping” –  tasting and evaluating coffee by a distinct appraisal system. Like fine wine, the best coffees offer a balance of aroma, flavor, acidity and body. Classes sell out early, so it’s worthwhile to book in advance.

The care that Cherry Hill Coffee has taken in sourcing their beans and hand-roasting has paid off, with their coffee beans now found in over 500 locations across Alberta and British Columbia.

Cherry Hill Coffee

1404 Hunter Court Unit 1

Kelowna

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