Our History of Italian Coffee Passion

Sandalj Trading Company Ltd arose over half a century ago out of a series of family enterprises. We are a Trieste-based company that specializes in importing quality green coffee from around the globe. As the only importer who evaluates lots through espresso cup tasting, we are able to guarantee outcome in espresso for each lot we sell, advising on the best roasting and extraction for any client’s target market.

TRIESTE COFFEE CAPITAL

At the time of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Trieste’s status as port franc established it as a leading maritime trade centre and point of entry of coffee through the Mediterranean into Europe. Today, we ship all of our lots into Trieste and keep them close: in this way we are able to regularly sample and cup the lots we stock, and guarantee their quality to clients.

COFFEE TASTER BY PROFESSION AND INVETERATE TRAVELLER BY DISPOSITION

In the 1970’s, long before niche coffees started gathering much interest, Vincenzo Sandalj’s work experiences sparked a lifelong commitment to quality. SCAA and SCAE founding member, ICO and UN International Trade Centre advisor, co-founder of the Trieste Coffee Cluster, co-founder and President of SCAE and the Associazione Caffè Trieste, and Honorary Consul of the Republic of Indonesia, he was a pioneering believer in building for coffee a culture of quality.

EVER-EVOLVING SPECIALTY COFFEE: OUR COMPANY PHILOSOPHY

The coffee industry’s recent developments highlight a strong focus on quality and origins. Our principal desire is that roasters, baristas and consumers around the world know what’s behind their daily coffee fix: the origins, the farmers’ hard work and the techniques to best extract its aromas. To achieve this, we follow the same principles that have made Sandalj Trading Company a pioneer in the industry: we don’t market concepts for profit, and we don’t over-state. We’ve been focusing on coffee quality since 1946, through the decades, through the birth of the specialty movement and its evolution.