Every wall worth its salt needs a good map. And if you are in possession of a wall and like coffee, you should probably have some sort of coffee map. Luckily, the good folks over at Cafe Imports have you covered. The green coffee importer have just released the first edition of their World Specialty-Coffee Map, and it will make any wall better.
A few years in the making, the 27” x 39” map depicts the global specialty coffee-growing origins along with insets of the 26 countries represented, “mapping the world of specialty coffee, at least as [they] know it.” To come up with the first edition, Cafe Imports consulted with other 30 individuals or entities worldwide to figure out how best to depict the growing regions for what constitutes “specialty coffee,” a term Cafe Imports admits is hard to pin down, especially in this context.
In order to meet the challenge of mapping that specialty-coffee world, we needed to establish a methodical process: While mapmaker Andy [Reiland] was diving deep into vectorized topographic world maps, we also consulted with our export partners to ensure the greatest possible accuracy in the information and details presented. A sort of back-and-forth design process was developed as we placed and replaced regions on the map, either as they are determined by political boundaries or more colloquial/local understandings of coffee regions.
For the first edition, only 500 copies of the World Specialty-Coffee Map were printed, but it is only the start of this project. Cafe Imports is seeking to expand upon what they’ve built with the first edition with each new iteration of the map, and they are asking for help. They “welcome feedback and insight about the map that will help us refine and improve future editions,” which can be done by contacting them at maps@cafeimports.com.
To get a copy of the first printing (while they last), visit Cafe Imports’ official website here and fill out the sign up sheet. Then hang it proudly on your wall. Your wall deserves it.
Zac Cadwalader is the news editor at Sprudge Media Network.
*top image via Cafe Imports
