elysian coffee roasters

visiting elysian was one of my favourite experiences. not only did i learn so much about them that i didn’t know before, but it was also my first time ever visiting a roastery, and for someone that has been really into the coffee scene lately, it was a big thing!

i met up with chris at their ontario location. that’s not their first location, but its the main one where the roastery is. i couldn’t have gotten a more informative tour then with chris. not only has he been in the coffee game for a very long time, he’s been with elysian for a while, and now he mostly does tours and classes, as well as keep in contact with coffee farmers and producers all over the world.

he tells me that elysian has been in the specialty coffee world for years and years, one of the first in vancouver with their location on fifth and burrard. i’ve heard and seen elysian locations all over the city but didn’t know how far back they went. not only that, but they are supplied by so many coffee shops including two of my non-coffee shop favourites, cartems donuts and earnest ice cream! this whole time I’ve been going cartems to chill and have a donut, little did i know i was dunking it in an elysian coffee! that affagato, or espresso bean ice cream i get from earnest was actually elysian coffee beans! super cool.

chris also mentioned to me how important it is to them to buy beans from reputable farms, of course. elysian’s owner was able to make good relationships with with other reputable coffee roasters like intelligentsia. so many ties within the coffee world. and you can see that by the variety of beans in their roastery. the roastery itself was amazing. seeing all the behind the scenes work before packaging was a treat. watching the beans roast from green to brown, and cool down, and then enjoy a cup right outside, was something i’ll always remember.

its important to give credit where credit is due, and elysian deserves credit. i definitely learned a lot with chris, and with that knowledge leads to respect, respect to OG roasters like elysian that have worked so hard in the coffee world, especially in a little city like vancouver, and keep a low profile.

so next time you walk by one of their locations, stop, and enjoy a cup, because you’ll be having a coffee thats been around for a very long time, something we don’t have much of these days.