Roaster Series - Cloud Catcher

Cloud Catcher Roastery is our long time roaster partner. We met founder Elvin and Tristan when we first started Blaq Coffee in 2014 (Elvin was one of our early subscribers). Since then, they started Cafe Crema in Mont Kiara and Cloud Catcher Roastery, building sustainable relationship with coffee farmers and bringing lots of delicious coffees from all around the world.

Here's a short interview with Elvin, check it out!

1. What is specialty coffee and why does it matter?

Specialty coffee is defined by its quality, from the seed to the cup. It is important so the whole journey of coffee is being told and appreciated. It is one of the biggest traded commodities in the world and its consumption has increased tremendously over time. Yet, many people do not know much about coffee except of its bitterness and that it fixes one’s caffeine needs. 

Specialty coffee comes into the picture; it brings quality and the story of the coffee so that every cup and every effort is appreciated, from producers to importers, roasters, baristas and consumers.

2. What separates Cloud Catcher from its peers?

At Cloud Catcher, we take pride in learning everything about the journey of our coffee. We seldom send samples of our coffee; instead, we invite our customers to experience Cloud, and to learn how we source, make, store, and roast our coffee. We take you on a journey of coffee.

The roasting process often appears mythical to many people because, most of the time, it is done behind closed doors. On the contrary, we are an open book, a showroom where you can immerse yourself in the journey. A Disneyland of Coffee, if you will.

We listen, we taste, we adjust, we improve and we grow together with our clients.

3. Can you tell us about the Chapola Project?

Chapola (which means sprouted coffee seedling) was created during an origin trip to Honduras. It's a project founded by four roasters, namely The Maling Room, Cloud Catcher, Tim Adams and Dramanti Artisan Roaster. Chapola works with coffee producers to improve the quality of their lives, as well as to refine and to build their production infrastructure. By dealing directly with farmers, our premium prices benefit the people who deserve it the most. 

Here is the Cloud Catcher Commitment: for every one kilograms of green beans or roasted coffee beans sold, MYR1.00 is donated to the Chapola Project and other international charitable organisations. For every purchase, you are indirectly helping someone in the chain. When you are drinking every cup of coffee, you know that it has benefited someone in need.

We have helped build school in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Water Well in Ethiopia, Rohingya Refugees School in Malaysia and many more.

4. What do you look for when creating a coffee blend?

The coffee taste is very subjective. There is no perfect cup, there is no perfect blend. It is important to understand your clients’ needs based on the demographics. We have customised blends for our clients with minimum commitment of course.

We seek to find a good balance between acidity, body and sweetness.

Certain demographics might have a slight preference for body over acidity, thus we will adjust our formula, coffee origin and roast profile to suit them.

5. What is Cloud Catcher’s role in promoting specialty coffee in Malaysia?

We believe we have set a competitive benchmark in the industry by having an open concept roastery. We are constantly doing research and development from ways of processing coffee, making coffee to roasting coffee. 

6. Any tips for the novice coffee lovers? 

Never say you don't like something unless you have tried it all. Be adventurous and you might find yourself a new favourite every-time.

For more information about Cloud Catcher, check it out here.