DFW · Serving Texas & the South · Direct from Ethiopia

Premium Ethiopian Coffee,
Direct to Texas Roasters

Houston port advantage. Grade 1 quality. Fast delivery. No Oakland or New York middleman. Direct access to Yirgacheffe, Guji, and Sidama microlots.

100%
Ethiopian Origin
Direct
Exporter Relationships
Full
Lot Traceability
US
DFW Based Direct Importer

Why it matters

Ethiopia: The Birthplace of Coffee

No other origin offers Ethiopia's combination of genetic diversity, elevation, and centuries of cultivation tradition.

Unmatched Genetic Diversity

Ethiopia is home to thousands of indigenous coffee varieties found nowhere else — each region expressing flavors impossible to replicate.

Altitude & Complexity

Grown at 1,800–2,200m, Ethiopian coffees develop extraordinary complexity — vivid florals, stone fruit, citrus, and dark berry notes.

Heritage & Story

Coffee culture in Ethiopia spans thousands of years — stories that give your roastery powerful content to share with customers.

Our Advantage

The Houston Advantage

We leverage deep, localized relationships in Ethiopia's premier growing regions—Yirgacheffe, Guji, and Sidama—to secure priority access to exceptional, high-grade microlots.

But securing the best coffee is only half the battle. By landing our containers directly in Houston and warehousing in Dallas, we eliminate the week-long delays and heavy freight markups associated with Oakland and New York importers. Premium, traceable Ethiopian green, delivered locally across the Texas Triangle.

Full Documentation

Every shipment includes lot documentation, origin certificates, and quality reports.

Traceable to Farm

Know exactly which cooperative, washing station, or farm produced your green coffee.

Consistent Quality

Pre-shipment samples and post-arrival evaluation ensure specialty grade standards.

Where we source

Ethiopia's Premier Regions

Yirgacheffe

Gedeo Zone · 1,700–2,200m

The world's most celebrated coffee region. Famous for jasmine florals, lemon zest, and bergamot.

FloralCitrusBergamot

Sidama

Sidama Region · 1,500–2,000m

Bright and juicy with tropical fruit notes. Excellent value for specialty roasters seeking Ethiopian character.

TropicalBerryBright

Guji

Oromia Region · 1,800–2,100m

Bold and complex with dark fruit and winey undertones. A darling of the specialty world.

Dark FruitWineyComplex

Our Promise

Every Bag,
Every Origin

Specialty grade only. Full traceability from the highlands of Ethiopia to your roastery dock.

Ready to Source Direct?

Request samples or ask about current lot availability. We respond within 24 hours.

Our Story

Why We Started
RAS Coffee Co.

A family-run business with deep Ethiopian roots, careers built in the US corporate world, and a shared belief that the American South deserves better specialty coffee.

Our Story

RAS Coffee Co. was born out of a simple truth we kept returning to: the US South — one of America's most dynamic, diverse, and fast-growing markets — was being left behind by the third wave specialty coffee movement.

We have built careers in the US corporate world and made Texas home — with DFW as our base. But coffee has always been more than a morning ritual for us — it's in our DNA. Deep roots in the DFW and Texas Ethiopian community mean authentic relationships and real cultural knowledge. Talk of harvests, export seasons, and lot quality has always been part of our lives.

We watched the specialty coffee world grow — and noticed that quality Ethiopian green coffee, sourced with real traceability and consistency, wasn't reaching the roasters and communities in the South who deserved it most. So we decided to do something about it.

RAS Coffee Co. is our bridge — between the highlands of Ethiopia and the roasteries building the next chapter of American specialty coffee, right here in our own backyard.

"We didn't come from the coffee industry. We came from a coffee family. There's a difference — and it's exactly why we knew this was ours to build."

— RAS Coffee Co.

LOCATION MATTERS: The Texas Triangle & Beyond

DFW isn't just our home base—it is a massive supply chain advantage. By landing our containers directly at the Port of Houston and warehousing at the top of the Texas Triangle, we completely bypass the week-long delays and heavy cross-country freight markups charged by Oakland and New York importers. We are geographically positioned to feed the fastest-growing roasting markets in the country.

  • The Texas Triangle Advantage: Immediate, cost-effective LTL (Less-Than-Truckload) freight access to the massive roasting markets of Dallas, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio.
  • South Central & Midwest Reach: Our centralized US distribution hub delivers highly competitive shipping rates and rapid transit times to roasters across the broader South, the Midwest, and neighboring states.
  • The Origin-to-Texas Pipeline: Boots-on-the-ground family ties in Ethiopia ensure we secure and control the quality of the product long before it hits the water.

The Name

RAS (ራስ) is an Amharic word meaning "head" or "leader" — a title of honor in Ethiopian tradition. It reflects our commitment to bringing only the finest to the market we serve.

What drives us

Our Mission

To consistently deliver premium Ethiopian green coffee to specialty roasters across the US South — with the reliability, traceability, and genuine origin knowledge that only comes from a team with coffee in their family history.

01

Transparency First

We share everything: lot origins, farm details, cupping scores, pricing rationale. No hidden markups.

02

Genuine Relationships

We work with exporters we know personally, and want long-term roaster partners — not one-off transactions.

03

Quality Without Compromise

We source specialty grade only. If a lot doesn't meet the standard, it doesn't go in our catalog.

For Specialty Roasters

Everything You Need for an Ethiopian Program

We make it easy to source, tell stories, and build a reliable Ethiopian offering — whether you're boutique or regional.

What We Offer

Green coffee imports built for specialty roasters, not commodity buyers.

Single-Origin Green Coffee

Core Offering

Specialty-grade Ethiopian green coffee from Yirgacheffe, Sidama, Guji, and other premier regions. Washed, natural, and honey-process available.

  • ✓  Full lot traceability and origin documentation
  • ✓  Pre-shipment samples available
  • ✓  Cupping notes and Q-grader scores provided
  • ✓  Minimum order: 1 bag (60 kg)

Container Splits

For Growing Roasters

Don't need a full container? We coordinate splits with other roasters, giving you container economics without the capital commitment.

  • ✓  Better pricing than pallet-quantity spot buys
  • ✓  Mix of origins in a single shipment
  • ✓  Regular schedule aligned to Ethiopian harvest

Sample Program

Start Here

Request cupping samples from multiple regions and lots. We'll help you find the coffees your customers will love.

  • ✓  100–200g green coffee samples
  • ✓  Cupping notes and background included
  • ✓  Sample cost credited toward first order

Origin Storytelling

Value-Add Service

We provide detailed origin content — farm narratives, region backgrounds, processing details — ready to adapt for your packaging.

  • ✓  Farmer and cooperative profiles
  • ✓  Processing method explanations
  • ✓  Ready-to-use copy for bags and websites

How to Work With Us

Simple, transparent process from first contact to delivery.

1

Reach Out

Drop us a message with what you're looking for — region preferences, volume needs, any questions. We respond within 24 hours.

2

Review Lots & Request Samples

We'll send our current lot sheet with cupping notes, origins, and pricing. Request samples from any lots that look interesting.

3

Cup & Decide

Cup the samples with your team. We're available to talk through questions about origin, processing, or positioning. No pressure, ever.

4

Place Your Order

Confirm quantity and your order. We provide a simple purchase agreement and walk you through payment and logistics.

5

Receive & Roast

We handle import logistics and deliver to your dock. You get green coffee with full documentation — ready to roast and tell its story.

Common Questions

Ready to Get Started?

Request samples or ask about current availability.

From the Source

The RAS Journal

Origin stories, industry insights, and the deeper knowledge behind exceptional Ethiopian coffee.

Featured Post

Origin Series · 8 min read

Yirgacheffe: The World's Most Celebrated Coffee Origin

What makes a small region in southern Ethiopia responsible for some of the most prized coffee in the world?

Read the full story →
Yirgacheffe
Gedeo Zone, Ethiopia

Coming Soon

Origin Series

Sidama: The People's Coffee

Exploring Ethiopia's largest coffee growing region and the cooperative system that transformed it.

Coming soon
Processing

Natural vs. Washed: The Ethiopian Question

How Ethiopia's two dominant processing methods create radically different flavor profiles.

Coming soon
Trade

Understanding the Ethiopian Coffee Exchange

How direct trade really works when navigating Ethiopia's export system.

Coming soon
Origin Series · 8 min read

Yirgacheffe: The World's Most Celebrated Coffee Origin

R
RAS Coffee Co.·Dallas–Fort Worth, TX

There is a small region in the Gedeo Zone of southern Ethiopia where coffee grows in a way it grows almost nowhere else on earth. The trees are tall and shaded by indigenous forests. The altitude pushes past 2,000 meters. And the flavors that emerge — jasmine, bergamot, lemon curd, stone fruit — have made Yirgacheffe the benchmark against which all specialty coffee is measured.

How did a collection of villages in rural Ethiopia become arguably the most famous coffee origin in the world? The answer involves geography, genetics, tradition, and hard-won quality that can't be manufactured.

Where Exactly Is Yirgacheffe?

Yirgacheffe is a town and surrounding woredas in the Gedeo Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. It sits roughly 500 kilometers south of Addis Ababa. The weredas most associated with the finest coffees include Yirgacheffe, Kochere, Gedeb, and Wenago.

The Geography That Makes It Special

Yirgacheffe's reputation rests on its terroir — the combination of altitude, climate, soil, and forest ecosystem.

Altitude: Coffee grows between 1,700 and 2,200 meters. Cool nights slow cherry maturation, allowing more time for sugars and aromatic compounds to develop — creating complexity lower-altitude coffees cannot replicate.

Soil: Deep, well-drained clay loams with high organic content. Slightly acidic — ideal for coffee — and rich in minerals contributing to the cup's bright, clean character.

Forest: Many coffees grow under indigenous forest canopy — a traditional agroforestry system preserving wild biodiversity and giving Yirgacheffe its distinctive aromatic complexity.

Processing: Two Traditions

Washed: The most common method. Cherries are pulped, fermented in water tanks for 36–72 hours, then dried on raised beds. The result: vivid florals (jasmine, lavender), citrus (lemon zest, bergamot), and stone fruit. Bright, complex, wine-like acidity.

Natural: Whole cherries dried on raised beds for weeks. The fruit ferments around the seed, imparting blueberry, dark fruit, and winey flavors with a fuller body.

What to Expect in the Cup

Washed Yirgacheffe

Aroma: Jasmine, bergamot, lavender

Flavor: Lemon curd, peach, apricot

Acidity: Bright, complex, wine-like

Body: Light to medium, clean

Natural Yirgacheffe

Aroma: Blueberry, dark cherry

Flavor: Dark fruit, tropical, winey

Acidity: Lower, soft, rounded

Body: Medium to full, syrupy

How We Source Our Yirgacheffe

At RAS Coffee Co., we bypass traditional broker networks and work directly with trusted partners in Yirgacheffe's premier washing stations. By landing containers in Houston rather than routing through coastal importers, we deliver exceptional 84-86+ cupping score lots with complete traceability—faster and more cost-effectively than the traditional supply chain. Every lot includes full documentation: cooperative or farm origin, processing method, lot number, cupping score, and flavor notes. Contact us to see what's currently available and to request samples.

Interested in Our Yirgacheffe?

We regularly carry washed and natural Yirgacheffe lots. Reach out to request a current lot sheet and samples.

Get In Touch

Let's Talk Coffee

Whether you want samples, have questions, or just want to talk Ethiopian coffee — we're here. We respond to every message within 24 hours.

Contact Information

📧
📍
Location
Dallas–Fort Worth, TX · Serving Texas & the South
Response Time
Within 24 hours, Monday–Friday

Good reasons to reach out

  • ✓  You want to start a new Ethiopian program
  • ✓  You're unhappy with your current Ethiopian source
  • ✓  You want to cup samples before committing
  • ✓  You want to discuss a forward contract
  • ✓  You just want to talk Ethiopian coffee

Send Us a Message

We respond to every inquiry within 24 hours.