Sebastian De La Pena was an early adopter of great tasting coffee. Growing up in a family full of coffee lovers, Sebastian got his first taste as a toddler. “I was fed spoonfuls of coffee! I don’t know how safe that was,” Sebastian laughed. It was only natural that he developed a lifelong love of coffee.
While living in Mexico, the De La Peña Gonzalez family quickly fell in love with the unique chocolaty and nutty flavor notes of Mexican specialty coffee. When the family moved to Washington, D.C., they began to wonder why quality, specialty Mexican coffee, wasn’t available in the US. As with all great entrepreneurs, they set out to create their own brand to solve the pain point that they identified. Thus, Americano & Co. was born!
The De La Peña Gonzalez launched Americano & Co in 2019. Through Phase One: Concept of the Union Kitchen Accelerator, the team decided to rebrand the company name from Americano to 1790 Coffee to better reflect the company’s value proposition. The new name pays homage to the year that coffee first arrived in Mexico.
Coffee plants arrived to Mexico by way of Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Mexican specialty coffee and its production processes have been passed down from generation to generation for over two centuries. While living in Mexico, the 1790 team learned the art of harvesting coffee beans from these same families with centuries of coffee manufacturing experience.
Today, 1790 continues to work closely with the best coffee plantations in mountainous regions of Mexico, including Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Puebla. Coffee beans grown at high altitudes have a slower growth cycle and better drainage due to the elevation. In the mountainous regions, shade-grown methods are used, which gives the coffee beans a slower maturation process, developing the natural sugars and resulting in more complex flavor profiles. The 1790 Coffee team is proud to work with coffee plantations that are certified organic, free from synthetic chemicals, and use sustainable fair trade practices.
When Sebastian reflects on the path leading up to their product launch, he cites the COVID-19 pandemic as one of their greatest obstacles. It impacted everything from finalizing their food business license to delays in packaging. At one point, the sample beans were damaged in transportation after prolonged exposure to humidity and sunlight due to shipping delays.
The team pressed on, navigating through the new normal, and is now launching their coffee line in Union Kitchen stores. “We aim to provide as many people as we can with high quality Mexican coffee through sustainable practices with a lot of passion and integrity,” says Sebastian. The hallmark of Mexican coffee is bold and rich flavor with tasting notes of a more chocolaty variety and 1790 Coffee is no exception.
1790 Coffee offers three varieties of ground and whole coffee beans. The Márago Moonlight Roast is a medium roast with notes of chocolate, malt, and almond. The Signature Roast is a medium roast featuring notes of graham cracker, milk chocolate, and orange. The Red Seal Espresso is a dark roast with notes of orange, milk chocolate, and brown sugar.
When asked about advice for fellow food business entrepreneurs, Sebastian keeps it simple, “Keep the big picture in mind, keep the original idea in mind, and keep your values in mind.” You can find 1790 coffee at Union Kitchen stores, on their website, and soon in other local retailers around the DMV.
Comments