Journal — August 2023

Less marketing, more coffee. That’s what Friedhats’ website says (and has said since the last time we featured them in 2019). After all this time, the only thing that’s changed is I think their coffee’s gotten better. This is Yonder’s 61st month in a row mailing coffee out to our subscribers from some of our favorite roasters all over the world. That’s 5 whole years.

When I started this project I don’t think I could have pictured being here today, writing this dispatch from the bar at my own coffee shop. I say it a lot, and still not enough, but I’m so grateful for each of you. Thanks for trusting us to choose the coffee you wake up to each morning. It really means so much to me to get to share the world of coffee with you each month.
Amsterdam is one of the world’s best cities for coffee, and is home to so many fantastic roasters. But Friedhats (an anagram of Headfirst, Lex’s previous roastery, which had to close due to a naming conflict) stands out among them. In an industry that tends to take itself pretty seriously, Friedhats never does. Founded by Lex Wenneker and Dylan Sedgwick in 2016, coffee veterans hailing from two different hemispheres. Dylan is from New Zealand and worked pretty much every job in the coffee industry across several countries before moving to Amsterdam. Lex is a highly decorated and accomplished barista, winning the Dutch Barista Championship in 2015, 2016 and 2018, and placing second in the 2018 World Barista Championship. When they started Friedhats they wanted to approach roasting free of ego, from the ground up, removing all the bells and whistles and letting each coffee sing for itself.

This month’s features play really nicely with the past few months, with fresh harvests from Ethiopia and Kenya just reaching Europe, and wild new experiments from Colombia always popping up. Karamikui tastes like summertime and (as we push through the last few heatwaves on our way to fall) it’s the perfect iced coffee accompaniment. Kelloo Uraga is such a delicious treat—you’ll love it. The La Maria Gesha is a stunning coffee with layers of complexity that come in waves but still manage to taste clean and balanced. Dylan recently spent time with the indiginous Arhuaco and Kogi peoples who produce Everts Moron. I recommend learning more about each of these coffees on the Friedhats website. Enjoy them! Thanks for 5 amazing years!