96B LIBERICA PROJECT
Since 2016
96B has been working with Coffea liberica and Coffea excelsa long before their current hype. In 2016, we asked a family in Lam Ha, Lam Dong, to collect and process a 100% Liberica lot, a request unheard of at the time. This partnership, with 96B team spearheading the fermentation process, continued for five years until the septuagenarian farmers decided to retire. These very first lots were sweet and juicy, but still patchy in terms of consistency.
Nevertheless, we decided to use Liberica & Excelsa in our espresso, cold brew, and as a single-origin pourover, introducing our customers to the limitless potential of Liberica & Excelsa. ​​
From Vietnam...
We could have kept it niche, but Vietnamese Liberica & Excelsa are too good to not share with the world.
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The problem? Producing one ton of green Liberica or Excelsa is not difficult. Selling these coffees only as "rare species", without paying attention to quality, is easy.
But scaling quantity AND improving quality is a whole different game. And a long one.
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As Liberica & Excelsa are not a commonly grown species and haven't been treated as viable crops since early 20th century, finding a growing region with a meaningful supply of cherries was our bottleneck.
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In 2021, we decided to settle our root in Quang Tri, working with a group of five families. Quang Tri's unique soil type, its micro climate, its long history of Liberica & Excelsa cultivation, and its innovative farmers, make for a convincing and promising story.
Thus, 96B Liberica Project was born.
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Our mission? To turn Vietnamese Liberica & Excelsa, and Liberica & Excelsa everywhere else, into a sustainable, approachable, delicious coffee crop, available worldwide.
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We are here to Redefine Vietnamese Coffee. And 96B Liberica Project is our key step towards this goal.
...to the world
The secret got out.
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Our limited, honey-processed "purple" Liberica was used by Christos Sotiros in 2024 Swiss Barista Championship, helping him secure the Champion title.
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Vietnam's first Brewers Cup Champion, Ti Phan, used our black honey Liberica in a blend for his competition in 2025 World Brewers Cup Championship in Jakarta. In 2025 World Barista Championship, our Liberica was featured in Czech champion Jakub Smolka's performance and in Swiss champion Christos Sotiros' routine.
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Blue Bottle introduced our natural Liberica at Blue Bottle Studio Kyoto, Seoul & Hong Kong, highlighting Liberica & Excelsa as the future of coffee. We were invited to give a presentation at World of Coffee Geneva (June 2025) at a workshop focusing on coffee genetic diversity.
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We count the famed Crop to Cup, Cumpa, Paradise, Rabbit Hole Roasters, amongst others, as our customers. Our Liberica, roasted by Chloe Ca Phe, reached 500 American homes via La Marzocco Home.
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Every Liberica & Excelsa drop becomes our best-selling line immediately, and sold out quickly.
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This is when we truly believe that 96B's and Vietnamese coffee are not a phase. We are here to stay.
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Innovation & Tradition
Almost 10 years in the game has taught us one thing: never rest on your laurels.
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2025 marks the year in which we ramped up our production by threefold, by investing in new machinery for coffee sorting, drying equipment, and fermentation tools and protocols.
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Along with the tried-and-true anaerobic natural and black honey, we are scaling up our white honey and washed lots, while minimising water use and paying close attention to organic waste. Our experimentation continues with competition-worthy micro lots using champagne yeast, pichia-LAB fermentants, mosto, and wild yeast.
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We pay close attention to the drying, curing, and conditioning stages—steps often under-appreciated by coffee consumers but of utmost importance to the coffee's longevity and consistency. By honing our sequential drying methods and monitoring the dark room conditioning environment, 2025 crop promises to be clean, consistent, with an excellent shelf-life.
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Our team builds a stronger than ever bond with our partner farmers in Quang Tri. Frequent visits, daily communication, timely payment, constant feedbacks, while sound unsexy, form the backbone of 96B Liberica Project. Respecting the land and the environment, working and innovating within the constraints of the farm, remain our modus operandi, setting the parameters for our present and future practice.
