Welcome to Shady Lion Coffee Co.

Let's Go!!

This might be the first time some of you are hearing about this, but it's official, Shady Lion Coffee Co. is officially open and we have amazing coffee ready to be roasted and shipped directly to you.

 What started as an idea 5 years ago has come into full motion, and us 3 amigos (myself, my sister Araya, and our head of design and friend Brian) have been hard at work this year to bring you one of the best coffees you've ever tasted.  

I'll put the link here just in case you don't need to hear anymore and want to go look, but will also write more down below just in case you'd like to know more. Click Here for our website or to purchase.

***Also, right now get free shipping on all orders***

My personal journey with coffee started like many others, working in an office environment, studying for finals in college, and finding the extra mental stimulation and focus coffee granted me empowering.  Over time, my relationship with coffee morphed, and when I lived In Brazil it really began to evolve by making it more of a ritualistic experience, adding butter, hand crafting one cup at a time, and literally getting local coffee about as local as it can be in state of Para in the Amazon. 

Coffee became an adventure for me, learning about the health benefits, the different ways to make it, the different roasts, and I really began to enjoy it instead of simply consume it.  I also really got into the cultural differences of coffee. Why different people drank it  and when, how., and I started reading and learning about the history of coffee as well.

And then one time, when I was engaged in a variety of business endeavors, including consulting and venture development, I met this incredible person named Brad Fassbender and learned about his beautiful mission with coffee, people, and faith.  Brad is the founder of Guadalupe Roastery, an incredible organization founded on high virtues, principles, and value.  Brad and I spoke many times over the years, and even did a podcast together, and at one point back in 2018/2019 we wandered  down the path of taste testing potential coffees for me to work with, however it didn't happen...yet.

Fast forward to 2022 and speaking with my sister Araya one day we decided it was time to get this coffee business going!  We started researching, again, and diving deep into the best ways to get coffee directly from the source, how to import it, roast it, make sure that people were getting great quality and value, and how to setup our distribution channels.  We started calling different roasteries, and reaching out to people in ethiopia and other places through linkedin, whatsapps, and instagram, gathering info and feeling out the right path. 

During our research, we connected with Brad, and he immediately opened up his arms and his resources to offer us support and guidance as he has been running Guadalupe for years and has deep roots in the coffee business, with strong relationships all over the world.  He welcomed us and supported us with open arms from the moment we spoke.  

For the last few months we've been behind the scenes putting all the pieces of the puzzle together, from flopped website development to learning the ropes in all the other areas of a business like this, it has been super fun and continues to be, and the feedback from our early customers has been so incredible (some really amazing posts across social media, emails and texts, thank you!).  What we know so far is we were very right in the choosing a quality high end Ethiopian coffee, because many of you have shared you've never tasted something with this type of flavor before - it's real good. 

Here's a little bit more about the coffee itself.  Shady Lion Coffee Co.'s Ethiopian is one of the top 1% of all coffee beans on the planet when it comes to rating.  It has a consumer cup rating in the low 90's, 90-93.  This is an incredibly hard rating to achieve, as you'll find other coffees with cup ratings in the 80's charging significant markups and high high prices.  While Shady Lion isn't cheap, it isn't supposed to be, BUT, it is priced in a way that if you love coffee and love the finer things in life, or simply want to level up your coffee experience, this is the way to go. Because of our relationships we have been able to source this Sweet Ethiopian Lily from the Guji Zone of the Oromia Region in Southern Ethiopia and provide it at a great price. 

Our Ethiopian is naturally processed - because if you know me, natural is the ONLY way to go - and from smallholding farmers around the Biru Bekele washing station.  A deeply sweet coffee, it has magnolia-like floral notes, an undercurrent of stone fruit and myrrh, and it's just plain delicious. 

You can purchase it by the bag, either whole bean or already ground, and we recommend subscribing because it makes life easier and you get a discount and free shipping for being a loyal customer.  Also, our bags are top notch and a special keep-fresh resealable so you don't have to worry about how to store it.  Oh, and did I mention, we don't roast it until you order it.  Yup, it's not sitting around in warehouses or shipping stations waiting for you to buy.  When you press the button to buy, our team roasts the beans and ships them generally within one day so they arrive to you at peak freshness. 

 Thanks for being a part of our journey, and we hope to have you as a customer for life. 

 Kindest Regards,

Derek LaCrone

derek@shadylion.com