Interviews July 2025 | I KNOW JERRY FROM TORONTO

Who was in the July 2025 box?

Invited to explore spaces with fresh eyes in Borgerhout (BE), fortunately, we bumped into each other again in Paris (FR), doing good for the planet, one thoughtful cup at a time in Tübingen (DE) and championing both Arabica and specialty Canephora with the biggest warrior in the whole coffee industry, Amsterdam (NL).

Borgerhout - Belgium

Ellen Verbiest

Ellen Verbiest makes maps, but not the boring kind.
She’s a mapmaker and print artist who turns places into art and lines into little adventures.
Ellen’s work invites you to explore spaces with fresh eyes (and a big imagination).

What originally made you want to become a Cartographer & Print Artist?

I’m an architect and urbanist, with a particular interest in how to represent space.
This began in university, where I often pushed the boundaries of drawing by experimenting with maps, layered perspectives, and spatial diagrams.
One of those experiments led to my first freelance job, and that’s how I started working as a cartographer.
Printmaking came later, when I realized I was spending too much time behind a screen.
I missed working with my hands.
That’s when I discovered the joy of ink and paper.
Today, mapping and printmaking have become two connected ways of exploring space through drawing.

How do you decide on the themes or subjects for your prints?

I developed a small obsession with industrial processes and movements, like conveyor belts and marble runs.
I’m drawn to how things move, repeat, or get stuck in space.

Is there a project you’ve done that you’re super proud of?

I started my practice because I wanted the things I make to have an impact.
One project I’m still proud of is “We Kopen Samen Den Oudaan,” where a group of architects tried to buy an iconic tower in the middle of Antwerp.
I contributed a centerfold image that helped explain a complex financial model in a clear and visual way.
It was printed and shared widely, and helped more people get involved in the idea.
And in June 2025, I finished a PhD on how drawings and maps can help people think together about circular ways of shaping cities.

Any dream projects or collaborations you're aiming for?

I’m working on my dream project right now.
I’m making an atlas filled with maps, drawings, and stories of landscapes shaped by movement and labour.
There are truck routes, strawberry fields, old tree lines, and heat hidden deep underground.
I try to catch things that go unnoticed and turn them into something you can flip through, walk along, or hang on a wall.

Why do coffee and art vibe so well together?

A cliché, but let’s say both give you a warm feeling inside and a bit of a rush after consumption.

Where can we see your work?

So far, my work has mostly appeared in niche architecture publications.
Lately, I’ve started sharing more of my uncommissioned work as well.
It’s mostly screen prints and drawings from ongoing explorations.
You can find it on Instagram.

"Thank you for the invitation, Jerry!
Enjoy the coffee.
I hope it pairs well with ink."

Paris - France

Alba

Jerry first met the Alba team in 2024 in Amsterdam, classic clumsy Jerry, he forgot their names!
Fortunately, they bumped into each other again in 2025… this time in Paris.
That reunion seals Alba Roasters on the list of must-featured French roasters.

How would you describe your coffee roastery to someone who’s never heard of it before?

We are an independent coffee roastery based in Paris, created by two coffee enthusiasts and motivated by the desire to share.
We value terroir, traceability and respect for all people involved in the coffee chain.

Tell us about where you come from.

Originally, Chloé is an engineer and Marie a finance manager.
We both worked in financial audit and that’s where we met.
We discovered specialty coffee together and we decided to jump into it and create Alba Coffee Roasters.
Before opening the shop, we were trained in roasting and as baristas by Mikael Portannier, who is the 2025 Roasting World Champion.

So far, what’s been the most memorable experience in your specialty coffee journey?

Marie : I think my most memorable experience is still the first specialty coffee I had.
It was in Johan och Nyström coffee shop in Stockholm.
It was a coffee from Burundi that tasted like blueberry jam.
It was a real discovery and I will always remember it.

Chloé : My most memorable experience is the final of the French Aeropress Championship in 2023.
I’m really passionate about having one coffee and trying everything to make the best of it.
In 2023, I managed to reach the final and finished second. It was very emotional and it motivated me even more to work on the extraction parameters.

Your stickers and coffee bags are amazing!
Did you create the designs yourself?

No, we didn't design the bags ourselves.
We work with a French artist, Priscille Depinay.
We really like her artistic world, we contacted her and she was very excited to work with us.
We didn’t impose any constraints on her because we wanted her creativity to shine.
She understood who we are and we are very proud of these packages.

Your iconic café scene started as a secret spot for revolutionaries.
Do you think the coffee scene still carries that rebellious spirit?

We think that as soon as we move away from something mainstream, there is a rebellious side.
We hope that specialty coffee will continue to promote more virtuous consumption, better traceability and respect for producers.

Jerry has been to Paris a lot, but you probably know even better places for us to check out, right?

If you’re searching for coffee places, one of our favorite coffee shops is Clove.
It is near Montmartre, the coffees are always well extracted.
And for something different, you can try Poney Club.
It’s a wine bar and cellar.
They have incredible natural wines.

"Thanks Jerry, for choosing us and we hope you will enjoy our coffee!"

Tübingen - Germany

Suedhang

Since 2022 and already made their third appearance in our box.
Time flies when you’re lucky enough to have great coffee every month!
Suedhang is more than just great coffee, what really matters is community spirit, creative thinking, and doing good for the planet, one thoughtful cup at a time.

Already featured for the third time.
How is Suedhang doing since the last time?

We are growing more and more.
In 2024, we moved our roasting machine to a bigger space just across the street from our cafe.
Even though we are much busier now we are still trying to bring delicious coffees to our customers and make every batch as close to perfection as possible!

Has your team gone through many changes in the last few years?

Since the last time, our production team has grown triple the size.
Instead of just me roasting, now it's a team of three!
We are really lucky to have Chisa and Yan in our quality/production team!

Still fighting for what’s right?
What particular mission are you focused on now?

This year, we launched iKuh, which is literally a fake cow that dispenses oat milk - a playful way to raise awareness about the unfair VAT difference in Germany: 19% on plant-based milk vs. 7% on cow’s milk.
So yes - we still try to fight and won’t give up :)

What can you tell us about the coffee you have picked for the Jerry box?

This time, we are happy to share some amazing washed arabica from Bali, Indonesia.
It comes from the Kintamani region and a farm called Karana.
We were lucky to meet Utty from CafeImports last year and source this coffee from them.
We found that it tastes a lot like apricot, toffee and cranberry.
So it has quite high acidity but it's very well balanced with high sweetness and medium body.
This coffee is one of my favorites at the moment, just a very easy and enjoyable cup for every day!

If you couldn’t work in coffee anymore, what would you miss the most?

Most probably, I would miss cuppings the most, it's my favorite part of the job!
I used to work as a mixologist back in Kyiv and since then, I just love tasting drinks.
But for sure, I would mostly miss the coffee community (those people are the best!).

Still hooked on fixed-gear bikes, or have you picked up new hobbies along the way?

Indeed!
I was quite unlucky on my bike trip in Austria and broke my arm just a few weeks ago
(So no fixed-gear for me for a while haha).

"So happy to share this coffee with you guys and looking forward to another collaboration in the future!"

Amsterdam - The Netherlands

Chunky Cherry

Chunky Cherry Coffee Roasters is an Amsterdam-based specialty coffee roastery on a mission to challenge the status quo of the coffee industry.
They focus on real impact, celebrating flavor diversity, species variety, and climate resilience.
Championing both Arabica and specialty Canephora (Robusta), they offer everything from elegant light roasts to nostalgic dark profiles.
It's not about fixing everything, it's about doing what matters, with honesty and great coffee.
Jerry is always happy to meet this guy; he always comes over super calm, but in Jerry’s opinion, he’s the biggest warrior in the whole coffee industry!

You are going hard!
Can you give a quick overview of your path and how you ended up at Chunky Cherry?

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Why Chunky Cherry?

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You wrote a new book.
(I didn’t read or buy it yet)
But what is different with the “IWLYFFMFCOTM”

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What can you tell us about the two coffees that are in the box?

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I recall that it was challenging to brew the Canephora last time.
How is the “best” way the brew this one?

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The graphics of your coffee boxes look awesome!
Who is the designer of it?

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Coffee isn’t everything.
What else do you like doing?

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“...”

we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists! we're the artists!