Our Story | Cortez Coffee Roasters

30 YEARS OF COFFEE EXCELLENCE

Ron Cortez, a coffee kid born in the coffee fields of Costa Rica, moved to the United States to create a coffee company rooted in sustainability and driven by quality. Since buying our first roaster in 1993, we have been on a journey of making friendships with ambitious coffee farmers looking to improve their yields every year.

our values

more than fair

We call our sustainability model "More Than Fair", which strives to value the farmer among all aspects of the supply chain, paying our partners on average 200% more per pound compared to the current Fair Trade minimum.
Never Ending Roasts

For our coffees, we're looking to improve every roast. Our sensory analysis team constantly roasts, cups, and analyzes all of our coffees to get unparalleled quality direct to you. We roast daily to make sure every batch you receive is fresh.
unparalleled customer service

Customer satisfaction is our number one priority. That's why we take our time to source and roast coffees that please anyone; ranging from award winning baristas to regular coffee drinkers. We strive to treat our customers like family.

1993 - CORTEZ IS BORN

Ron Cortez, 3rd generation coffee farmer, purchases his first roaster and starts Cafe Cortez in 1993, named after his grandfather. Our first roastery was in the back of an auto shop in Tempe, AZ.
1995 - THE TUCAN

Our first mascot, The Tucan, comes alive to showcase our Costa Rican identity. Now we like to think of Ron Cortez as our mascot.
2002 - ROASTER PURCHASE

Cortez purchases it's first commercial roaster, a Vittoria Intercommercial handmade in Spain. This first of it's kind air-roaster produces a unique super-smooth flavor. We still use it today!
2002 - KEVIN JOINS THE TEAM

Kevin Briggs joins forces with Cortez and develops our first roaster softwares. His unique research on specialty coffee is still incorporated in every roast we do today.

2004 - More Than Fair is Born

Ron meets Matti Foncha, coffee producer from Cameroon. Ron and Matti develop a "More Than Fair" coffee purchasing model that puts more money and resources in farmer's pockets.
2007 - Volcan Azul relationship

Ron meets coffee producer Alejo Castro in Costa Rica. His expertise on coffee farming transforms the quality of our coffees. We're proud to be one of the only roasters of his coffee in the US.
2009 - Finding Nepalese Coffee

Ron meets Abi from Nepal to acquire some of the toughest coffee to source. We worked with Abi for over 7 years just to get our first shipment. We're proud to be the only roaster in the US to carry his extremely unique coffee.
2011 - THE CORTEZ FAMILY GROWS

Ron's daughters are born and introduced to coffee at the age of 2. Ron's son Patrick joins the team and roasts his first batch at 13. We believe in child labor! (just kidding)

2014 - cortez goes retail

Believe it or not, we didn't start doing retail until 2014! We were primarily wholesalers. A brand for Cortez was built and retail starts to grow.
2018 - Cacao Sourcing Starts

Cortez starts experimenting with roasting cacao and making chocolate. This is the start of what eventually became Midge Chocolate, our cacao project.
2020 - Shift to Ecommerce

Covid times forced us to switch gears into focus on eCommerce. We haven't gone back since and are super happy to share our coffee to all 50 states.
2022 - Finca Amalita Purchase

The beginning of a new journey! We purchased farm land in Naranjo, Costa Rica to control our entire process, from Farm to Cup.