A cup of coffee is the culmination of a four-year cycle as a coffee plant matures to the point where it produces beans explains Luis Meza. As owner of Mezza Caffé, Luis has long appreciated coffee, first tasting the beverage as it was prepared for him by his grandmother in Venezuela. It wasn’t until university that Luis drank coffee in earnest, though.
Unable to find a consistent cup after his barista left, Luis started a coffee business in Venezuela. There he perfected his own Selecto blend of both Robusta and Arabica beans and created a niche coffee experience that he first took to Ancaster after immigrating to Canada in 2008 and then to Hamilton in September 2013.
“I was competing with sharks in Venezuela so I had to develop a niche, one that focused on details,” Luis explains, noting that his enterprise is a coffee blending company first in that his roasted beans are his primary business. Even the business’ name, Mezza, or half in Italian, and the company’s logo of both Arabica and Robusta beans allude to the blending of tastes that goes into Luis’ roast.
Ultimately, Mezza Caffé is a showcase for his beans, which Luis has commercialized to provide an upscale coffee service to corporate customers. His clients are supplied with Swiss-made coffee machines, receive training, weekly servicing visits and all the cups and accessories needed to uphold the quality experience Luis is cultivating.
“That last sip of coffee stays in your mind,” Luis says of how he is trying to establish Mezza Caffé as the brand of choice for people who are serious about coffee. “People love coffee through taste,” he asserts.
