When it comes to fly fishing, constant innovation and ingenuity are synonymous with the spirit of sport. News of the next rod or wader release from our favorite big names in the game is often met with widespread excitement and attention. However, there are hundreds of small companies just like the ones our favorite big brands started out as, that oftentimes get overlooked when bringing their ideas to the market. So, to support, what we believe is the foundation of the fly industry, Flylords is looking to shine a spotlight on the little guys. Here, we’ll highlight the up-and-comers that we hope to see in every local fly-shop one day.
In this ‘Small Business Spotlight’, we’ll be taking a look behind the beans into the intriguing and complex world of coffee with, Afuera Coffee.
Background
In Spanish, Afuera means, “outside”. The name itself comes from a dream the company’s founder, Matt Igoe, had – long before he ever sourced his first bean. Matt, having grown up in Connecticut, spent his formative years on the water falling in love with the sport of fishing, more specifically: fly fishing. As Matt grew older and fell deeper in love with the outdoors, he also grew increasingly aware of the fragility of the resources he enjoyed so much, thus coming to the firm conclusion that whatever he did, he wanted to make sustainability a focus.
Once able, (post-pandemic) he and his wife, Beatriz, and moved back to her hometown of El Salvador and it is there that his ambitions found true direction. After spending some time with local coffee producers, Matt had his “Aha” moment, and realized that THIS was it. From that moment on, Matt spent years working with those same local producers to create a coffee product that was not only delicious but also properly supported the people on the ground who helped make it all possible. This meant not only making sure the farmers were treated/compensated well, but also making sure that all their beans were sourced from Certified Rainforest Alliance Farms. They also have a focus on compostable and recyclable packaging, which makes its way back to the mailing stamps they use to ship the beans.
From that first visit to now, countless hours of hard work have been poured into Matt’s vision for a better tomorrow, all coming together to bring us: Afuera Coffee.
Today, Afuera embodies all the promises it was built on, while also dedicating 5% of all sales (not just profits), to organizations that are also working to better the planet. They include (but aren’t limited to) Captains for Clean Water, which is a nonprofit organization working to restore the Everglades and wage war on corrupt legislature which puts profits above the health and safety of Florida’s home waters and its people. Afuera also supports 1% For the Planet, Bonefish Tarpon Trust, TRCP and more!
Our Experience with Afuera Coffee:
There are few greater friends to anglers than specialty coffee. Being a sport that oftentimes kicks off well before the sun rises, a little caffeine in the system goes a long way. So, when we first came upon a fly-fishing-themed coffee brand, our curiosity was peaked, to say the least. Now, I’ll start by saying we know Afuera isn’t the first coffee company to embody our sport, and it won’t be the last either. But, just like you’d never wish there to be only one fly rod on the market, we wanted to see where THIS brand of coffee fits into our little community.
Naturally, after getting the chance to link up with Matt and hear his story, we could clearly see there was just something different about Afuera – and now, we wanted to taste it. So, after Matt generously sent over a few different blends, we did what we do best: we went fishing.
As winter crept into our little river valley, we made our way out to our local waters that flowed just beneath the balcony of Flylords HQ. By the time the waders were on, the sun was just barely kissing the crest of the surrounding mountains, providing just enough warmth to justify killing the truck’s engine.
Just as so many other fishing trips began, we all eagerly congregated around the Jetboil sitting atop the tailgate, and waited not-so-patiently for the water to boil before opening up the first bag of coffee. The flavor we’d chosen was “Pacific Breeze”. This was primarily because the center imagery on the package was a jumping steelhead, and since we would be looking for some rainbow trout that morning, felt it was close enough for us.
The white packaging shined bright in the early morning sun, as if it was sent down from heaven above to break us all from the spell of sleep we were still partially encumbered by. In a similar theme, the aroma that was emitted from the freshly opened bag was nothing short of divine. As we passed the bag around for all of us to get a turn to smell, someone cracked a joke about this being the new “fish whistle”. The thing is: it just might be.
As the coffee began to bloom, the water turned to a rich, chocolatey brown. After what felt like a decade, but was more like 8-minutes, it was finally time for the coveted pour. A river of coffee as dark as the soil that the beans were grown from was poured into each of our mugs. From there, in unspoken ritual, we all clasped the coffee in our hands and enjoyed the warmth of the steam on our faces and the mugs on our hands, and slowly took our first sips. Delicious.
None of us are by any means coffee aficionados, or whatever the relative term for a coffee sommelier would be, but in a seemingly vain attempt to describe the flavor, we landed on “perfectly balanced with a note of chocolate and a smooth finish”. Naturally, initial descriptions weren’t so eloquently stated, but hey – we got there eventually.
Now, it was time to finish off the pot, pack the gear, and hit the water. The fishing was slow to start, with a few small trout here and there. In total honesty, all anyone was actually focused on was soaking up the beautiful Colorado morning and enjoying some time off work. It sounds cliche, but that morning of fishing was hardly about the fish at all.
It wasn’t long before we rang a pre-mature lunch bell, and all joined back up at a bend in the river. We were all in agreeance: it was time for some more coffee. This time, we decided to break out a bag of Afuera’s “Morning Gratitude”. The name alone perfectly matched the feeling shared by all of us sitting atop the river rocks, pondering how we got so lucky to have a morning like this…
After firing up the jet boil again and letting the freshly brewed coffee settle, it was time for a taste. This batch had more of a nutty aroma, as opposed to the notes of fruit we got with the “Pacific Breeze”. The flavor was much lighter and presented a relaxed finish, which was perfect for a lunchtime top-off. As we sat there on the bank enjoying the new mix and some sandwiches, we let the sound of the river do all the talking for us as we drifted off into tranquility.
The experience we had with these two blends on the river was one-of-a-kind. In the following days, in the comfort of our own homes, we had a chance to try the other 2 flavors, “Sunrise Sessions”, and “Black Gold” – which both had their own distinct personalities, as well. The main consistency we found with all of these blends, and really about the only similarities they shared, was the quality of the specialty coffee itself. While lots of store-bought coffee can taste burnt and bitter, all of Afuera’s coffee left us feeling refreshed. The effort and attention to detail that Afuera and its partners put into making this coffee, was easily reflected in the taste, which brought us to the conclusion that all coffee is certainly not equal. Needless to say, Afuera will be a staple on our packing list for any trip that requires coffee, moving forward – which, is pretty much all of them.
A Chat with Matt:
As part of the “Small Business Spotlight”, we wanted to take a moment to chat with Afuera’s founder, Matt Igoe, to provide a behind-the-scenes look into his efforts, process, and mission.
Flylords: Who are you? What is your affiliation with Afuera?
Matt: My name is Matt Igoe and I’m the founder of Afuera Coffee. This is a passion project created from a desire to make a difference in the outdoors all alongside a helluva good cup of coffee!
Flylords: What is Afuera’s mission, and how did the idea for Afuera come about?
Matt: My entrepreneurial dream came to fruition when my family relocated to El Salvador in the wake of the pandemic. Amidst the transition, I discovered a profound passion for specialty coffee and recognized an opportunity to address the pervasive issue of waste pollution plaguing the world’s beaches and oceans. With determination fueled by purpose, I embarked on a mission to create a business that not only delivers exceptional coffee but also champions environmental stewardship, aiming to make a tangible difference in our community and beyond.”
Our mission is simple: Afuera Coffee Co. was started by and for people who not only love exploring the outdoors, but care deeply about restoring and preserving our environments and habitats so everyone can enjoy them, both today and tomorrow. To help work towards this, we donate 5% of all sales to charities and organizations dedicated to keeping our Afuera, meaning “outside” in Spanish, as pristine as can be.
Everything we do at Afuera has sustainability as the focus: sourcing beans from certified Rainforest Alliance farms, using recyclable coffee bags/mailers/stickers and of course, donating a portion of our sales, not just our profits, to protecting Mother Nature. We dream that through many small decisions, such as brewing your go-to coffee, we can make a substantial difference in the health and cleanliness of our world.
Flylords: How did Afuera start?
Matt: As I mentioned, Afuera Coffee was driven out of the desire to make a difference. The thinking was like this….every morning or every time we (outdoorsmen and women) get prepped and ready for an adventure there is always some serious hype around the evening prior and the morning of prep. That morning-time hype was always centered around coffee, without even knowing it. Everyone “needed their coffee” before we could get going, so I quickly thought…I want to be the coffee in every outdoorsman’s and woman’s YETI cups. Our mission has begun….
Flylords: Who is Afuera for?
Matt: Afuera is for everyone. Just like the outdoors is for everyone. Now, everyone may say a cup of coffee is a cup of coffee and the same folks will say a beer is a beer or wine is wine. I disagree. We pride ourselves on using the best quality, single-source specialty coffee beans. So, the coffee is incredible!! And we feel it is complimented with the perfect cause. Everyone says they want to make a difference, but do they is the question? We do and we will. Coffee has already proven to do so, and our cause will do so over time.
Flylords: Where do fair trade and conservation come into the picture with Afuera?
Matt: Everything we do at Afuera Coffee has sustainability as the main focus: sourcing from certified Rainforest Alliance Farms, using recyclable coffee bags/mailers/stickers and of course donating 5% of our sales, not just our profits to protecting Mother Nature. We’re proud to say we work with various like-minded charities & organizations like, Captains for Clean Water, 1% For the Planet, Bonefish Tarpon Trust, TRCP, Keep Fish Wet, Evertreen and more soon to be added…
Flylords: How do fly-fishing and fishing in general tie into the Afuera Brand?
Matt: As we all know, Afuera means Outdoors in Spanish. So, I want this to apply to ALL coffee drinkers who love the outdoors. We started in fishing b/c that is what I love. We found Gavin Irwin our marine artist and wanted to start in the space I love and care about most. However, with success (which we are starting to see!) I can see Afuera Coffee Co. having verticals in whatever passion niche sport you want to support. Whether that be hunting, skiing, surfing, diving, camping, etc. We would still import and provide the freshest specialty farm-to-cup experience; we would just cater the bags and more importantly charitable organizations towards that area. However, for now…fishing and all the bodies of water that support that is our focus.
Flylords: What differentiates Afuera from other coffee brands out there?
Matt: Many coffee brands promote how they are premium coffee, but very few can say they are specialty coffee brands. We can. (Specialty coffee grades higher than premium coffee). Most other brands focus on margins first…we focus on everything else first and see where the margins kick out. What does that mean? We don’t buy cheap plastic coffee bags for $.15, instead, we spend closer to $2 to use plastic that can be recycled. Also, when people ask about K-Cups, we send stainless steel reusable K-Cups instead of using those awful plastic small cups that end up in our woods and waters. To me, it’s funny when people talk about preservation and conservation, yet they use cheap plastic and materials that pollute and don’t help. At least we have that as a core focus of everything we are doing. So, while we may not be big (yet) we know we have extremely high-quality coffee and we know our materials are making a difference.
Flylords: What’s next for Afuera coffee?
Matt: We are going to move into a new type of bag that is more favorable in terms of recycling and they will be a plastic that can be placed in everyones home recycling bin. What we found with our compostable bags is they were still on an industrial level, so this way we can address the issue on a household level. We are also going introduce a decaf (this month!), which we are stoked about. We have some new friends and fans who love decaf…so that is coming very soon. We also have some awesome new initiatives we are doing where we will be part of 1% For The Planet AND we will be planting trees with the proceeds from our purchases. Another cool thing you will be able to see on our “Impact” page. Since we still consider ourselves very new and in our infancy stage we just want to meet and work with great folks like Flylords and be involved in our awesome outdoor community the best we can.
Thank you to Matt and Afuera for taking the time to help us learn more about their mission and pursuit to bring quality coffee to the average angler! To learn more about Afuera, you can check out their website, HERE, and follow their “Impact” page. Make sure to be on the lookout for more small business spotlight features coming soon.
