From Ratnagiri to Cork

Velo Coffee Roasters welcomed members of Cork’s coffee community to its roastery this week for their event, ‘Sip Happens’, a behind the scenes look at how coffee journeys from the farm to your cup in partnership with Covoya Specialty Coffee.

This is the first time the Cork-based specialty coffee company has opened their roastery doors to the public, and served as a rare opportunity to connect Cork’s local coffee scene with the wider global coffee industry.

The event brought together local coffee professionals, industry partners and coffee lovers for an afternoon focused on connection, education and a shared appreciation for coffee.

The highlight of the event was a visit from Ashok Patre of Ratnagiri Estate in India, a progressive coffee producer who is looking to make a positive impact on the coffee industry locally and globally.

He shared insights into coffee cultivation, sustainability, and the evolving landscape of specialty coffee farming.

Joining him was Howard Barwick of Covoya Specialty Coffee, who offered a broader perspective on the global coffee market, current industry challenges, and what the future may hold for specialty coffee.

“This event series is the perfect opportunity to gather together the coffee community, experience unique coffees and explore some truly special regions of the world,” he said.

The event’s organiser, Sophie O’Keeffe said she wanted to give guests the opportunity to “step inside Velo’s roastery, put faces to the team behind the company, and hopefully gain a deeper understanding of the journey coffee takes”.

O’Keeffe joined Velo as a marketing intern this year and was excited to have the opportunity to host this event.

As Ireland’s first B Corp certified coffee roastery, Velo said that it continues to focus on quality, transparency, and community.

This event served as the perfect platform for them to show people how coffee brings local and global communities together one sip at a time, creating meaningful conversations between producers, importers, roasters, and consumers.

Rob Horgan, owner of Velo Coffee Roasters, said the company plans to host more roastery events.

“We would like to build on this in the future, continuing to bring together people from Ireland and around the world, all connected by coffee,” he said.