Populus Coffee is a family roastery founded by Sari and Henrik Haavisto. It was born in Neukölln in 2016, with the seed planted years earlier in Helsinki, and took its name, which means people, from a trip to Guatemala and Honduras that Henrik made in 2014 through his work in journalism. The same trip produced its first and longest-lasting producer relationships, and the Arturo Paz Geisha marks ten years of buying through the San Vicente mill in Honduras.

Sourcing is as direct as possible. Populus visits at least two origin countries a year, stays in contact with producers through the season, and prints the FOB price and the year each relationship began for each coffee. It is a Nordic specialty coffee roastery, with Finnish filter-coffee roots reflected in how it sources and roasts, and it roasts in Berlin and Shanghai. In Berlin it founded Euro Roast, a shared roasting space in Neukölln used by five roasteries, next to the Neukölln U- and S-Bahn station. Occasional events are announced on social media.

The shop is split into a Filter / Omni selection and an Espresso selection, with filter, espresso and cappuccino descriptions on most coffee pages. There is a sugarcane-process decaf called Peace Easy, a seasonal espresso blend called Zeitgeist, and the everyday Brazilian espresso formerly sold as Big Shot, renamed Capim Branco after the farm. Roast day is Monday. The current retail range is listed below with the roaster’s own tasting notes.

Coffee on the shelf