Did you know 14 billion cups of coffee are consumed in Canada every year?
Coffee is integrated into our everyday lives. It is energy, a morning tradition or a midday pick-me-up.
Coffee is also social—a perfect excuse to get together with friends or talk business.
If you’re looking to support local while enjoying your morning brew, there’s a place you can find a ton of local roasters all in one place!
The Vancouver Island Coffee Tour Map highlights over 50 independent coffee roasters across Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands, meaning you could try a coffee from a different local roaster every week of the year!
And the list doesn’t stop there.
“The list continues to grow as I get recommendations from adventurous coffee lovers around the island and up the strait,” Joshua Gillingham, the creator of the map said.
So how did it start?
When the COVID-19 pandemic began and cafes closed, Gillingham’s fascination with coffee led him down a rabbit hole that included coffee origins, roasting methods, brewing devices and more.
Gillingham wanted to learn more and, with travel out of the picture, set out to explore Vancouver Island.
“While we have enjoyed exploring this incredible part of the world, from road trips down to Port Renfrew to back-backing out to the Cape Scott lighthouse, I had the idea that seeking out local coffee roasters might help us uncover more hidden gems,” Gillingham said.
“What began as a personal summer travel itinerary blossomed into the Van. Isle Coffee Tour – a self-guided community tour map of local coffee roasters on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.”
During his exploration, Gillingham realized there was superb coffee both in Vancouver and right here on Vancouver Island.
Gillingham, wanting to share his love of coffee and spread the word of the amazing roasters he had discovered, created the Vancouver Island Coffee Tour Map.
The map allows users to see all the local roasteries across Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands, inviting them to try something local and close to home or try something new while exploring.
The map is divided by North Island Roasters, Gulf Island Roasters, Mid Island Roasters, South Island Roasters and Wild Coast Roasters.
The website also includes some articles to help with coffee and brewing basics, as well as practical resources for Islanders such as how to brew a good cup of coffee on the beach.
Upon launch on Victoria Day Long weekend, the site already had over one hundred people subscribed to the newsletter, the Vancouver Island Coffee Quarterly.
“There is clearly a lot of excitement around discovering and celebrating local coffee so I hope to continue down that path by building bridges between local roasters, coffee lovers, and seasonal visitors.”
Ready to get out and discover all the best locally roasted coffee? You can take a look at the map here.
