Who are you and what is your position at Boot?
My name is Rick Maas. My position is green coffee buyer, quality controller and head roaster.

Why do you work with coffee?
I think coffee is a very beautiful product. It's my job and my passion. It remains very special how different flavors can come from different coffee beans. For example, some coffees can taste very fruity, others can taste very berry or have more rum notes in them. Each stage of the journey from berry to the coffee in your cup affects the flavor: how the farmer grows the coffee, how the coffee is processed, how the coffee is roasted and how the coffee is finally brewed. So you can influence the final taste at every stage.

What is your most memorable moment as a coffee professional?
I remember it like yesterday. In 2018, I went to a coffee plantation in Colombia, in the Tolima region. When I arrived at the plantation, there was a very small and simple house in the middle of truly breathtaking nature. I met the coffee farmers and pickers who lived there. Happiness radiated from these people as I looked into their eyes. That was truly enchanting and a very valuable lesson for me: you can be truly happy with very little, as long as you are aware and content with the things around you.

And then another moment comes to mind, when I was at the Hartmann coffee plantation in Panama. There I tasted several coffees from one coffee plantation. But the fact that there are so many different flavors to discover on one plantation and that each coffee actually has a different taste, really remains so impressive to me.

And what I found a very special moment is that we were able to make a good step with the Kachalu project we recently visited in Colombia. This is where we have been buying our organic Colombia Kachalu coffee for years. And still we reward these coffee farmers extra for producing coffee with an 84+ and 85+ quality rating. We started discussions with these same farmers to see together what was needed financially. This also allows us as coffee roasters to invest in the future of the farmers and our cooperation. We were able to make another increase to accommodate the farmers. This so that they receive an extra decent price for their coffee and are satisfied with it themselves. By the way, we are the only coffee roaster who uses an extra bonus system for the better quality of the farmers of the Kachalu project.

In your opinion, what is a coffee that everyone should try?
That's actually quite a tough question. Taste is so incredibly personal. Because there are so many different types and flavors within our range, my advice is: see what you like yourself or ask advice from a coffee professional in our Coffee Shop. Try, smell and taste which kind suits you best. If I may recommend a specific coffee that is very special to try, it is the Panama Hartmann Birdsong. You can brew this one well with an espresso machine, but I personally think it might be best enjoyed as coffee brewed with a full automatic. If you brew several cups with that and experiment with the grind and intensity of the bean and see what suits you best, you'll end up with a very nice balanced coffee. You'll find lots of fruit notes, nice acidity, a nice sweetness and surprising flavors in it.