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ABOUT NORTHBOUND
A roastery built around one idea: the best coffee in our region is grown in our region.
Founded in Kuala Lumpur in 2021, Northbound Coffee Co sources exclusively from Asian high-altitude origins, Sumatra, Sulawesi, Bali, Vietnam, Yunnan, PNG, the Philippines. The Asian coffee belt is one of the most under-told stories in specialty coffee. We exist to tell it, one named cooperative at a time.
OUR STORY
It started with a Mandheling.
In 2019, on a trip through Sumatra's Lintong highlands, our founder cupped a single-origin Mandheling that quietly rearranged everything he thought he knew about Asian coffee, cocoa and earth, yes, but also clean stone fruit, tobacco leaf, and a syrupy weight that drank more like a fine Burgundy than the commodity Sumatran he'd had a hundred times before.
It started a question: how many of these lots are out there, hidden inside the bulk supply chain because nobody bothered to separate them? Two years and farm visits across Aceh, Toraja, Bali, Da Lat and Yunnan later, Northbound Coffee Co opened its doors in Bangsar with a Probat L12 and a simple promise: roast only Asian single-origins, source only from cooperatives we've walked, and tell the story of every bag.
SOURCING
Smallholder farms, named cooperatives, and a shorter chain.
We work directly with five cooperative groups across Sumatra (Aceh Gayo, Lintong), Sulawesi (Toraja), Bali (Kintamani), Vietnam (Da Lat) and Yunnan (Baoshan), each visited at least once a year. We pay 25–40% above commodity price, in exchange for full traceability and the right to refuse lots that don't meet our cupping bar.
ROASTERY
Roasted Monday, in your cup by Friday.
Our Probat L12 sits in a 600 sq ft loft above the Bangsar café. Roasts run Mondays, small batches, never over 5 kg, each profile developed over 3-5 development roasts before going to retail.
Every bag is dated. Every cup we sell across the café is brewed within 28 days of that date. If a lot ages past peak, it goes into staff cupping rotation, not the till.
WHAT WE STAND FOR
Four principles that shape every decision.
01
Honest sourcing.
Direct trade, paid above commodity, transparent on origin.
02
Quality over volume.
Small batches. Slow profiles. Refusal to scale past what we can taste.
03
Education matters.
Every bag ships with brew specs. Every café offers free pour-over lessons.
04
Community first.
Members get cupping invites. Profits fund origin trips for KL baristas.