About Us

Sam “Sample”

I found Būn by Sample as I was searching for a familiar cup of coffee. Growing up as a Yemeni-American, coffee was prevalent in my home but I noticed a major difference between the coffee I would drink in the States and what I tasted in Yemen. In the summers I would spend abroad, I would watch my grandmother pick beans from her coffee plants, leave them out to sun-dry, roast them, and make fresh coffee for our family. The coffee would be made with love and it can be felt like a homemade meal.

As the Yemen civil war broke out in 2014, I would no longer spend summers in my home country. Access to this coffee that I loved became extremely limited. As I was searching for something similar in the States, I decided to roast imported raw coffee beans from Yemen. Eventually expanding to roasting coffee from around the world. After eight years of missing that connection to coffee I grew up on, I finally reconnected with it and decided to share it with the world. 

I have made it my mission to bring that cup of joy to as many people as he can. This is why we offer 6 oz bags of all our coffees so you're not stuck with one type of coffee for a long time. A standard coffee bag is 12 oz, so you can purchase a couple bags with us and experiment with various coffees more frequently.

In addition, I want to support small coffee farmers like those in my war-torn country by giving back proceeds from sales. As coffee was a vital piece of my joy, I want to bring that joy to everyone in the States and abroad.

Haneef

My coffee journey starts with my grandmother making her pot of coffee in the morning before work. If she made a little too much she would give me the rest, which was usually half a cup or less. To make a full cup I would fill the rest up with milk. The bitterness would still be too much so here comes the sugar! I would rarely drink coffee, but when I did it was in this fashion. I would always decline coffee if offered in gatherings because it wasn't an enjoyable experience to me. 

When am launched Bun, I was extremely happy for him but had no way of supporting him. Sam kept telling me I have to try it, that it's not like other coffees. I've heard this all the time so the claim didn’t entice me. When Sam wanted to do a pop up, this was my time to support. We talked about when, where, and how to do it. On the day of the pop up, I was extremely exhausted from having a late night and early morning. Sam highlighted a Yemeni variety roasted three different ways (light, medium, and dark). People were stopping by to try the coffee and really enjoying it. Listening and seeing people's reactions really got the best of my curiosity. That plus the exhaustion and lack of sleep hahaha. 

I tried the medium roast first and when I tell you, WOW! My mind was blown that coffee could taste this way. I had to try all of them. Next was the dark roast. I had to look into the cup to see if there was chocolate covered fruit at the bottom and why the taste of it was so strong. When the light roast hit my pallet, the color rays came out of my head and I was taken to a different place. It was the best thing I have drank in my life. It was everything I was looking for, bright, fruity, complex, and the perfect mouth feel. Sam explained to me this was called a specialty coffee roast. 

I had no coffee equipment so I set out chasing that cup I had. There were a lot of coffee cups that were converted to half milk and a lot of sugar after one sip. Three years later, a dear friend of mine introduced me to a local coffee shop in Oakland. First sip and I was taken back to that cup at Bun's pop up. After tasting the whole menu and building a relationship with the workers at the shop, I asked what makes it special? That's when the art of roasting was explained to me. I went down a very deep rabbit hole on roasting coffee. Now I needed a coffee roaster in my life. I talked to Sam about my plans and he says I have an extra one if you want it. He said practice and start helping me out with Bun (talk about full circle). I went to the coffee shop and learned that they have classes so I took a few and learned from one of the best roasters in the world. I wouldn't have written this any better if I could. And now here we are.

What does Būn mean?

“Būn” is one of the words used for coffee in Sample’s home country of Yemen, along with the word “qahwa”. The word “coffee” actually derives from the word qahwa and many countries use their own variations of the word as well, unlike būn. However, there are some countries that use similar words like "būna" in Ethiopia.

What makes Būn by Sample special?

Freshness – Most coffee found at your local stores and cafes have been roasted for months (and sometimes years) before you purchase it. With time, coffee gets old, loses flavor, and becomes bitter. Our coffee is roasted and available within days to maintain that perfect taste and no bitter aftertaste.

Energy – Everyone knows that most coffee contains caffeine and people often drink it for that purpose. However, fresh roasted coffee retains a lot of caffeine that is lost through aging. Our coffee has high levels of caffeine that is safe for beginners and felt by coffee experts.

Health – Caffeine is found in almost every commercial fat-burning supplement — and for good reason. It’s one of the few natural substances proven to aid fat burning. Several studies show that caffeine can boost your metabolic rate by 3–11%.

Coffee is also high in antioxidants. Studies show that many people get more antioxidants from coffee than from fruits and vegetables combined.

In addition, coffee serves as an appetite suppressant and reduces sugar cravings. With the exceptional smooth taste of our coffee, unhealthy sugars and creamers are not needed and the health benefits remain intact.

Questions/Comments?

Please contact us at Sample@BunBySample.com.