Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/581281
During this time the first international coffee champion- ships were launched in Norway, and the country fostered sev- eral champions among them Wendelboe. Roasting became a highly competitive business. Sourcing fine coffees, individually roasting to bring out the best attributes in each lot was a vital part of his new job. He was energized and felt really present in life. He partici- pated in every coffee event and developed close relationships with his customers, consumers, and coffee suppliers. Sourcing ultra fine coffees became an increasing challenge. A roaster the size of Solberg & Hansen was just another brick in the coffee wall for most international traders. Wennersgaard needed and wanted something more so he decided to go directly to the source, taste and select coffee. He put on his boots and began traveling to ori- gin where he became deeply involved with growers. He was happy at Solberg but in time left seeking new adven- tures and to broaden his coffee horizon. In search of arabica He was not alone; he brought along his wife Anita and their 4-year-old daughter Thalma. The family toured a half dozen countries expanding Wennersgaard's knowledge of coffee, discovering new ideas and a new partner. He teamed up with Wendelboe to form Nordic Approach trading before he left and shared his adventures online with old and new coffee lovers in various social media. And so the adventure began. Wennersgaard did not even have an office or a postal address. Wendelboe let him use his while on the road. He entered the emerging micro age. Microbreweries were in fashion and soon micro roasters began roasting micro lots. Wennersgaard decided to become a micro trader, dealing in 60- kilo bags rather than 250 bag container loads. Adapting to the needs of the new "micro" regime soon became a hunt for 10- kilo nano lots even smaller than micro lots. This new breed of trader had different values and priorities than traditional coffee traders. Nordic Approach His philosophy is simple: "Quality. Traceability. Social respon- sibility." Anyone who has been around in coffee for a while knows that "quality" is an elastic expression, explains Wenne- rsgaard. "Coffee trading can be like selling elastic by the meter (sometimes stretching the truth). Integrity and solid evidence in the cup are fundamental, but quality should also include person- ality," he said. Covering natural processed coffee to prevent over drying.