The journey of coffee begins long before it reaches the cup; behind every harvest lies a network of people, landscapes, traditions, expertise, and relationships that shape the quality and character of the final product. While consumers often experience coffee through aroma, flavor, and texture, each cup is also the result of years of dedication by farmers, processors, exporters, roasters, and countless others working across the value chain. Liaison Cupping was created by Accademia del Caffè Espresso as a recurring format designed to bring these stories closer to the people who drink and work with coffee every day.
Conceived as a space for dialogue, learning, and sensory exploration, the initiative aims to connect producing countries and consuming markets through meaningful encounters that go beyond traditional coffee tastings. The event is open to the public both on-site and virtually, maintaining the hybrid format first adopted in 2021. For its inaugural edition, held on 3 September 2026 at Accademia del Caffè Espresso in Florence, Liaison Cupping welcomed Neira Specialty Coffee for a journey through Rwanda and Uganda; two origins increasingly recognized for their commitment to quality and innovation in coffee production. Beyond importing coffee, Neira Specialty Coffee plays an active role in bringing producers into the European market. Through deep, long-term relationships, the company supports producers in developing their brands and creates opportunities for them to engage directly with roasters and consumers; these efforts take shape through experiences such as cuppings, live roasting demonstrations at major industry events, and other virtual and in-person initiatives. The event offered participants the chance to taste a selection of coffees while gaining a deeper understanding of the people, communities, and business models behind them.
In Rwanda, Uwitije Coffee represents a new generation of origin companies committed to redefining how value is distributed throughout the coffee supply chain. Founded by Bernard
Uwitije, the company emerged from a direct understanding of the challenges facing smallholder coffee farmers, including low incomes, limited opportunities, and the frequent
lack of recognition given to exceptional coffees produced at origin. Rather than accepting these realities as inevitable, the company was established with the goal of building a more
transparent, equitable, and sustainable system that places farmers at the center of the value chain. By investing in farmer training, agricultural support, financial services, and community
development, Uwitije Coffee seeks to create lasting opportunities for thousands of producers across Rwanda. The organization works closely with farming communities to improve quality,
increase resilience, and ensure that producers have access to the tools and resources they need to make their business succeed, demonstrating how commercial performance and
social impact can reinforce one another when long-term relationships and shared value become priorities. The company also places strong emphasis on transparency and traceability; buyers are
encouraged to understand not only where the coffee comes from, but also how it is produced and how the benefits generated by the coffee trade are shared among stakeholders. Through
this approach, Uwitije Coffee contributes to a growing movement that views specialty coffee as an opportunity to create meaningful economic and social development in producing
regions.
Uganda’s Mountain Harvest philosophy is centered on the belief that the ability to invest in farms, long-term quality improvements, and the resulting income stability is crucial in
guaranteeing a stable and economically healthier region. They believe that exceptional coffee begins with profitable farming businesses seeking to overturn a long-standing assumption
within the coffee sector – the economic vulnerability of the farmers responsible for producing the coffee. Mountain Harvest addresses this challenge by providing farmers with a comprehensive support system that combines market access, agronomic training, traceability, processing expertise, and premium pricing. Operating across multiple mountain regions in Uganda, the company has built a network that enables producers to improve productivity while maintaining a strong focus on quality and environmental sustainability, making farmers better equipped to respond to climatic challenges and investments in their future. One of the defining characteristics of Mountain Harvest is its commitment to building trust through data and transparency; digital farmer profiles, traceability systems, certification readiness, and clear payment structures help create confidence throughout the supply chain, ensuring that buyers can establish direct and informed relationships with their partners at the origin.
Despite operating in different countries and contexts, Uwitije Coffee and Mountain Harvest share a common vision; both organizations recognize that the future of specialty coffee depends on the success of farming communities; both invest in farmer prosperity as a pathway to quality; both seek to create stronger relationships between producers and buyers and to demonstrate that sustainability is not a separate objective but an integral component of building exceptional coffees. These shared values are at the heart of Liaison Cupping. The format is designed to encourage participants to look beyond the sensory attributes of coffee and engage with the broader ecosystem that supports its production. Each tasting becomes an opportunity to explore questions about origin, agricultural practices, environmental stewardship, market dynamics, and to connect with the people whose work makes specialty coffee possible. As the series continues throughout the next several months, Liaison Cupping aims at becoming a meeting point where origins, producers, roasters, and coffee enthusiasts can gather to learn from one another, celebrate the differences within coffee-producing regions, and build the relationships that will define the next chapter of specialty coffee.
