Bear Canyon Coffee

Do you have any dark roasts?

If you’re into dark roasts, we’d recommend you try our Guatemala or Sumatra origins. However, these coffees are more of a medium-dark roast so probably not as dark as you might usually drink. While we certainly don’t discriminate against dark coffee drinkers, it’s just not our thing, for a few reasons. We want to ensure we’re providing a clean, flavorful, low acidity coffee that showcases all the natural characteristics of the bean. We’ve converted quite a few “dark” drinkers into Bear Canyon customers so we hope you’ll still give us a try!

How often do you roast/ship/deliver coffee?

At a minimum, we roast 3 days a week - typically Sundays, Wednesdays, and Friday - and we ship the next day. Depending on orders, we may roast more or we may roast less. Our goal is to ship you coffee within 72 hours of your order. Please plan accordingly!

Why can’t I get coffee from the same origin/farm that I purchased last time?

Being a small micro-roastery has its advantages - higher quality coffee, more transparent supply chain, more attention to detail, etc. - but it also means we don’t have the purchasing power of larger coffee companies. We buy our coffee on the “spot market”, meaning we buy what’s available. Larger roasters can set up purchasing agreements to ensure they receive the same coffee from the same farm. We strive to offer consistent origins even though the farms may differ from time to time. 

What is air-roasted coffee?

Air roasted coffee is a method of roasting coffee beans using hot air rather than direct contact with a heated surface. The beans are suspended in a fluidized bed, allowing for even heating and roasting. This method can produce a cleaner taste with less bitterness and acidity than traditional drum roasting. It also allows for greater control over the roasting process and a more consistent product.

Do you sell wholesale?

By law we cannot sell “wholesale” but we can sell at a discount to business/corporations who are the “final consumers” of our coffee. We’re unable to sell wholesale to grocery stores, restaurants, or cafes at the moment. Contact us for more info on our business to business program.

Why don’t you sell to grocery stores, restaurants, or cafes?

We currently operate under New Mexico’s “Homemade Food Act,” which only allows us to sell direct to consumers in the state of New Mexico. While we’re grateful we’ve been able to start our business in the comfort of our home, it’s a bummer we cannot sell to everyone who wants to purchase our coffee.

What’s the “Homemade Food Act?”

The Homemade Food Act (Act) is a New Mexico law that became effective July 1, 2021 which allows individuals to make certain low risk foods in their private farm, ranch or residence without a food permit from NMED and then market/sell those products made directly to consumers. Under this act, we can only sell in the state of New Mexico and only directly to consumers (no wholesale to restaurants, cafes, retailers or anyone who will be reselling our product).

Why Bear Canyon?

Bear Canyon is the area of Albuquerque where we live and the gateway into the foothills of our beautiful Sandia mountains. Our family spends a lot of time there biking, hiking, and running. It’s where our son learned to mountain bike when he was just two years old. Sunrises over the Sandia mountains are incredible. We’re proud of our city and so fortunate to have this open space playground in our back yard.

Is your coffee fair trade and/or organic?

All of our coffee is responsibly sourced regardless of its certification status. We partner with coffee importers who share our same values, meaning they pay fair prices to the farmers and, even better, reinvest training and other resources back into the coffee communities.

Also, while many of our coffee producers do have organic certification, many small farms that produce organic coffee simply cannot afford the price it takes to get certified. We do our best to ensure our suppliers have social, environmental, and ethical business practices. We won’t settle for any less.

We are a small batch, family-owned, coffee roastery located in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Milly Castañeda Ledwith: Co-founder and Director of Business Operations

Kevin Ledwith: Co-founder and Director of Coffee

Our story starts in Guatemala

Kevin was first introduced to the coffee industry in 2005, as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guatemala. He worked with coffee producers in the Alta Verapaz department, near Coban. Coban is also Milly’s hometown and where the two of us first met. It was a life-changing experience in many ways.

We’re passionate about coffee but not just because it’s a delicious way to start our day. We love everything about coffee, from the communities it’s grown in, to how it’s harvested and produced, to the way it pops/cracks/smokes while roasting, to how it brings people together, to the enjoyment people get from drinking a fresh-roasted, responsibly sourced, and delightful cup of specialty coffee.

Kevin had been home roasting coffee for over 15 years but always dreamed about running a small batch roasting company. Now, instead of just thinking about it, we’ve finally decided to take the plunge and share our love of coffee through Bear Canyon Coffee!

We roast all of our coffee medium to medium dark, which are relative terms. We strive to keep the integrity of the coffee bean, preserving each origin’s unique flavor profile while also adding a “hint” of roastiness in the cup. Our goal is to provide you with the smoothest, cleanest, most flavorful cup of coffee you’ve ever tasted!

Why Bear Canyon? 

Bear Canyon is the area of Albuquerque where we live and the gateway into the foothills of our beautiful Sandia mountains. Our family spends a lot of time there, biking, hiking, and running. It’s where our son learned to mountain bike when he was just two years old. Sunrises over the Sandia mountains are incredible. We’re proud of our city and so fortunate to have this open space playground in our back yard.

Beans - high quality and responsibly sourced 

Coffee bean selection is extremely important to us. It’s not just about having the highest quality beans (although we only roast specialty coffee beans with high SCA ratings). It’s also about the connection to the community and making sure farmers and their families are receiving fair wages for their work. Being a small roaster means it’s a challenge to buy direct from the farm so we’ll only partner with coffee importers who share our same values. 

Shipping policy

Our coffee beans are roasted in small batches, as needed, for our online customers. All coffee at Bear Canyon Coffee is roasted with precision and handled in a way to preserve the beans’ freshness from each small batch roast.

All orders are processed within 1-2 business days (excluding weekends and holidays) after receiving your order confirmation email. You will receive another notification when your order has shipped.

We strive to ship your order as quickly as possible once the order is received. We will use the shipping information you provide. Please ensure it is correct when you place an order: Any incorrect shipping information might result in lost or delayed orders that cannot be shipped in a timely manner.

The purchaser is responsible for providing an accurate shipping address. Incomplete or inaccurate addresses are the responsibility of the purchaser.

Our shipping methods are USPS First Class for one bag of coffee and USPS Priority Mail for all other orders. Both average 1-2 business days for delivery but Post Office-related delays occasionally push that expected time frame up to 5 days or more. Bear Canyon Coffee is not responsible for packages once they leave our facility and we cannot guarantee arrival times.

Shipping Rates and Estimates

We are currently only able to ship within the state of New Mexico. Shipping charges for your order will be calculated and displayed at checkout. 

• Shipping/delivery fees will be applied in relation to the total weight and size of your order.
• Free shipping/delivery on orders of $50 or more.

Damages

Bear Canyon Coffee is not liable for any products damaged or lost during shipping. Please do contact us at info@bearcanyoncoffee.com and let us know about any lost or damaged products. Be advised that you will need to contact USPS directly to file any claims. Save all packaging materials and damaged goods before filing a claim.

Return Policy

We handle returns case-by-case to ensure each situation is handled appropriately and to the satisfaction of each individual customer. Please reach out to us at info@bearcanyoncoffee.com if you are unsatisfied with your order.

Coffee: we don’t accept returns on coffee since it’s a perishable product but we will ensure any issues with your coffee or order are addressed. If you have any problems with your coffee or an incorrect order, contact us at info@bearcanyoncoffee.com within 48 hours of receiving your coffee. We’ll do our best to make things right.

Merchandise (non-coffee): all returns or exchanges on merchandise must be within 30 days of the purchase date. Please email us your order confirmation, name, item(s) to be returned/exchanged, and reason for return/exchange to info@bearcanyoncoffee.com. We’ll then send you info on how to proceed. Shipping costs for returns/exchanges are at the customer’s expense. Bear Canyon Coffee cannot refund shipping costs.