The Weeknd is brewing what he hopes is another hit. But this one is music for your taste buds. The musician has partnered with Oakland, California-based specialty coffee company Blue Bottle Coffee on Samra Origins, a new brand of coffee products, the first of which became available on May 9.
Samra Origins is named after The Weeknd’s mother and honors his Ethiopian roots and the culture of the country long considered the birthplace of coffee.
Born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye in Canada, The Weeknd is the son of Ethiopian immigrants Makkonen and Samra Tesfaye. “Ethiopian culture is an important part of my identity and I’m proud to work alongside the Blue Bottle Coffee team to shine a light on Ethiopian traditions, values, and of course, coffee,” he said in a press release.
The first Samra Origins coffee available is the Exceedingly Rare Ethiopia Wolde Faye Koricha COE #7 ($65 for a tin of 100 grams of beans, about four ounces), a single-origin, whole bean coffee purchased through the prestigious Ethiopia Cup of Excellence competition and auction, and represents the pinnacle of Ethiopan coffee.
For the upcoming Summer blend series, Benjamin Brewer, Blue Bottle’s head of innovation and quality, created three blend variations for The Weeknd and his mother to taste; they sought to arrive at a coffee similar to what she brews at home.
“We went back and forth with tastings and research to come up with the perfect blend,” The Weeknd said in an email interview. “I wouldn’t put anything out that I wasn’t hands-on with.”
The coffee is exclusively available online at bluebottlecoffee.com and at select Blue Bottle cafes in the U.S. as a warm and cold brew. Founded in Oakland, Calif., in 2002, Blue Bottle has cafes in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, and internationally in Korea, Japan, and China.
The buzz on The Weeknd’s coffee
Recently named the world’s most popular artist by Guinness World Records, The Weeknd said his coffee taste has evolved from lattes – made with espresso and steamed milk — to Americanos, which are made with two espresso shots and hot water. “Coffee is key for me, it helps me focus and tap into creative flow in a really concerted way,” he said.
He teamed up with Blue Bottle Coffee, because “they have the best tasting coffee – it’s really that simple,” he said in an email interview with USA TODAY. “I have become really tuned into coffee and feel my palate has been honed and Blue Bottle is always so consistent.”
On a normal day, he only has coffee in the morning. But while on set of “The Idol,” the HBO drama series he co-created with Sam Levinson (“Euphoria”) that arrives June 4, he might have coffee all day, The Weeknd said. And when it comes to music, he said, “many coffee-fueled days and nights went into the making of all the music for the show — The Idol.”
What historic connection does The Weeknd have to coffee and Ethiopia?
The entertainer says he recalls watching his mother perform Buna Tetu, a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony meant to show a sign of respect for guests. “This sensory experience helped shape my understanding of community and taught me to always honor my roots,” he said in the press release. “Samra Origins is a true passion project that I hope will inspire curiosity and encourage support for Ethiopia’s people, while also spreading the warmth and friendship so ingrained in Ethiopian culture.”
Blue Bottle is making a donation to The Weeknd’s XO Humanitarian Fund, which is administered by World Food Program USA and will target emergency food assistance in northern Ethiopia. His commitment to Ethiopian culture and charity made collaborating with The Weeknd an easy decision, Blue Bottle Coffee CEO Karl Strovink in an email interview.
“We share a mutual love for Ethiopia — its coffee, culture, and people — and a commitment to helping those in need,” Strovink said.
How much coffee do Americans drink?
Americans drink an estimated 491 million cups of coffee daily, according to the National Coffee Association.In its spring 2023 National Coffee Data Trends report, released April 4, it found 83% of U.S. coffee drinkers had coffee at home in the past day, an increase of 4% since January 2020. More than one-third (35%) had coffee away from home, up from a low of 31% in January 2021 but still down from pre-pandemic levels of 41% in January 2020.
Traditional drip coffee makers remain the most popular way to make coffee at home, used by 41%, followed by single cup brewers, cold brew and espresso machines.
Read more at usatoday.com.
