The Coffee Quest
Specialty green coffee importer with roots in Colombia, now operating from the Netherlands (Europe) and the US. Originally founded by journalists who wanted to bypass middlemen and connect Colombian farmers directly to European consumers. Grown into a multi-origin importer with clients across Europe and North America. DAK Coffee Roasters (Amsterdam) is a confirmed client — relevant because DAK is already an identified WoC Brussels 2026 target for Kaiserblick.
Website: https://www.thecoffeequest.com European HQ: Netherlands Fit: LOW for direct sales — Colombia-primary; no El Salvador; useful for understanding DAK’s supply chain
(source: The Coffee Quest (website))
Company overview
Founded: 2013 in Colombia by Ronald de Hommel and Jeroen Kuiper, journalists. Initially a D2C storytelling project; evolved into a B2B green coffee importer.
2017 expansion: Three new partners joined — Stephen Levene (US, sourcing in Colombia), Michiel Lampers and Friso Spoor (Europe, based in Netherlands). Now three separate business entities: TCQ Colombia (exporter), TCQ Europe (importer), TCQ US (importer/exporter).
Mission: Bypass traditional middlemen; transparency about producers, prices, and supply chain.
(source: The Coffee Quest (website))
Active origins
Primary: Colombia — three regional stations in Huila and Antioquia; also Nariño, Tolima. Colombian operations include exporter role with full supply chain control.
Other origins:
- Guatemala (Huehuetenango: Las Camelias, Finca La Libertad — Juan José Ariano, multi-generational)
- Ethiopia (Odako Gatta Farm, Bensa)
- Honduras, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Brazil (US arm)
No El Salvador in current or historical portfolio based on crawl data.
(source: The Coffee Quest (website))
DAK relationship
DAK Coffee Roasters (Amsterdam) is a confirmed partner roaster of The Coffee Quest — their logo appears on the TCQ website’s partner list. This confirms the already-known data point that DAK sources via The Coffee Quest (alongside Nordic Approach).
For Kaiserblick: approaching DAK directly at WoC Brussels 2026 remains the priority, since TCQ does not source from El Salvador.
(source: The Coffee Quest (website))
Relevance to Kaiserblick
The Coffee Quest is not a viable route for Kaiserblick’s green coffee given their Colombia-primary focus and absence of El Salvador. However, knowing they supply DAK is useful context: DAK’s buying decisions for non-TCQ origins likely happen directly at trade shows or through Nordic Approach.
Sources
- The Coffee Quest (website) —
raw/International export/thecoffeequest-com-crawl.md