the barn berlin coffee roastery germany uniqlo pop up shop sprudge

I meet Ralf Rรผller at The Barnโ€™s roastery, a soaring almost-gallery of a space with an L-shaped brew bar so long you could lap it. All the wood in the room is reclaimed, or at least looks the part, and there are these west-facing windows that light floods through before pooling all over the place. Itโ€™s like, quite literally, someoneโ€™s transplanted the bones of a barn into the center of East Berlin.

โ€œFor a long time, things in East Berlin were still bombed out,โ€ Rรผller says. โ€œThere was no gastronomy here after reunification, so it offered the most platform for change and for foreigners to move in and to find it interesting.โ€

the barn berlin coffee roastery germany uniqlo pop up shop sprudge
Ralf Rรผller.

Rรผller founded The Barn six years ago a few blocks away in a space far more like a shed in size. He still lives in the neighborhood and says he knows everyone who comes into the shop by name. But most of those customers have been and continue to be foreignersโ€”transplants from other places more familiar with coffee like The Barnโ€™s.

โ€œThe coffee scene came with very strong international influxes. When I started, there was almost nothing as far as a community was concerned, just a few people starting out. All our reference points for quality and traceability and high-quality coffee were abroad.โ€

But weโ€™re not here to talk about his companyโ€™s past, instead, weโ€™re meeting about its future. Last month Rรผller opened a pop-up in the basement of Japanese retailer Uniqloโ€™s Berlin flagship store.

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the barn berlin coffee roastery germany uniqlo pop up shop sprudge

the barn berlin coffee roastery germany uniqlo pop up shop sprudge

โ€œI lived in Japan when I was in my early 20s,โ€ Rรผller says. โ€œI still go there every other year to visit friends. So there are a lot of reference points for me from Japanโ€”our bar uses Hario equipment, and we make it a feature in all of our shops to really showcase brewing, slowing down. The Japanese element has always been there in all our philosophy and in everything we do.โ€

And so, Rรผller makes clear, first and foremost The Barnโ€™s new pop-up is a collaboration with a Japanese clothing company. Itโ€™s pared down to the nth degree: just an EK 43, a two-group La Morzocco Linea PB, two baristas, and a couple of Chemexes and V60s. But every detail seems streamlined and sharpened and very much deliberately The Barn, with a matte black espresso machine like something swiped from a Star Destroyer.

the barn berlin coffee roastery germany uniqlo pop up shop sprudge

the barn berlin coffee roastery germany uniqlo pop up shop sprudge

But more than being just another Barn, the pop-up represents an evolution for the company. In particular, by moving into West Berlin, which is predominately German in its makeup, Rรผller is making a statement.

โ€œI’m German and I feel like I’m on German soil. I want to reach out to more German people. My goal as a German roaster is to have an impact on changing the roast scene and the coffee scene in Germany. I think West Berlin is giving us that.โ€

As for plans to expand beyond the pop-up, which will be operational at least through the end of December, Rรผller doesnโ€™t hesitate.

โ€œWe’re looking at spaces all the time.โ€

the barn berlin coffee roastery germany uniqlo pop up shop sprudge

The Barn at Uniqlo is located at TauentzienstraรŸe 7b/c, 10789 Berlin. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Michaelย Lightย is a writer and editor originally from Ohio. He’s worked previously forย Viceย andย Lucky Peach. Read more Michael Light onย Sprudge.

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