What packaging format did illy caffè North America choose for its Arabica Selection, a line of whole bean, highest-quality, single-origin coffees custom-roasted to highlight the most appealing taste notes associated with each origin country? K-cups and cans.
The new line, from the family-owned Italian roaster with a rich heritage of innovation, features best-in-harvest beans in 250 gram cans each labeled to highlight prevailing natural taste notes: Brazil (Caramel), Colombia (Fruit), Ethiopia (Floral) and Guatemala (Chocolate), each at a retail price of $15. The Brazil and Colombia origins are also available in K-Cups at $12 per 10-pack.
Arabica Selection was developed through an extensive research and development process that harnessed illy’s deep institutional knowledge and resources, honed over eight decades of singular focus on producing coffee of the highest quality. Over the past 24 months, illy’s in-house Aroma Lab, Sensory Lab and Food Science Lab collaborated with roasting experts at the company’s headquarters in Trieste, Italy to create specific roasting profiles to spotlight the most beautiful aromatic and taste notes within in each origin’s bean. That is how, and why, Arabica Selection Brazil naturally carries an intense, caramel-dominant taste profile, while Arabica Selection Ethiopia is delicate and alive with floral notes.
“It all starts with the unique illy blend, developed consistently year after year, that give us deep knowledge of the coffee origins combined with our direct trade model that works closely with coffee growers to produce the highest quality Arabica beans,” says Massimiliano Pogliani, CEO of illycaffè, s.p.a. “From there, the full power of our scientific resources and expertise enter the equation, which in this case created proprietary roasting profiles for each origin to create extraordinary taste experiences for passionate coffee lovers.”
illy’s pulled on its expertise in producing its illy blend, encompassing the world’s nine best Arabica coffees, plays an essential role in this latest product development. In essence, the single origins for Arabica Selection are the backbone of the blend, deconstructed in a way for coffee lovers to experience them individually and pronounced. The research and development process included chemical and sensorial analyses with more than 50 roasting samples to fine tune each Arabica Selection variety. As part of the process, illy’s green (or pre-roasted) coffee department identified specific beans from each origin country that met criteria specially developed for Arabica Selection, which were then stored prior to roasting under optimal conditions for temperature and humidity.
Arabica Selection whole bean 250 gram cans and K-Cups are available in North America at illy caffè bars and shops, and online at www.illy.com. Each can’s descriptive graphics and sleek packaging were specifically designed with gifting occasions in mind.