An unique take a look at the Rotterdam bookstore devoted solely to espresso literature.
FROM STAFF REPORTS
Featured picture courtesy of Tigger Chaturabul
Editor’s observe: Rotterdam’s Contributor Espresso will likely be promoting books at their sales space on the Nordic Espresso Fest in Gothenburg, Sweden, from February 28 to March 1, 2026. Comply with them on Instagram for extra updates.
In an period the place espresso information strikes on the pace of Instagram Reels and Discord threads, Contributor Espresso is quietly insisting on one thing slower, deeper, and extra lasting: the e-book.
Primarily based on-line and working out of a by-appointment-only studio house in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, Contributor Espresso is a bookstore devoted solely to espresso literature. This concept sounds area of interest till you step again and notice simply how a lot the worldwide espresso dialog has expanded. Behind the venture is founder and proprietor Tigger Chaturabul, herself a espresso writer, researcher, and longtime observer of how concepts form the trade.
Contributor Espresso exists someplace between a library, a private bookshelf, and a cultural archive. It’s not nearly promoting books; it’s about curating the mental report of specialty espresso at a second when the sector is quickly maturing.
“Now’s the proper time for a store devoted to espresso books,” Tigger says. “In 2025 alone, not less than six new extremely anticipated titles had been printed all over the world.” She rattles a few of them off with the convenience of somebody deeply embedded within the scene: the latest version of James Hoffmann’s “World Atlas of Espresso,” Mikolaj Pociecha’s deep dive into “Robusta,” Jonathan Gagné’s long-awaited “The Physics of Espresso,” and her personal e-book, “Bloom: Mikael Jasin on Espresso as an Agent of Change.”
“All of them point out how far espresso analysis and information have come lately,” she continues. “The data inside them accommodates the newest updates to what we find out about espresso.”
A Class Greater Than It Appears
To outsiders, the thought of a bookstore devoted solely to espresso titles might sound extravagant. What number of books might there actually be? In keeping with Tigger, there are way over most individuals notice, and so they span much more disciplines than brewing guides alone.
“The books cowl every little thing from coffee-brewing expertise, agricultural origin info, anthropological research on espresso tradition and historical past, deep dives into barista careers, and extra,” she says. “Persons are wanting to be taught extra about espresso, and there’s no substitution for a superbly curated and composed e-book that they’ll reference repeatedly.”
That want for depth—and permanence—is central to Contributor Espresso’s mission. Whereas blogs can disappear and social media posts vanish into feeds, books endure. They mark what the trade is aware of at a selected second in time.
Tigger additionally factors out a extra sensible drawback that impressed the store’s creation. “It was all the time my private frustration that these books, which are sometimes independently printed, had been arduous to entry and needed to be bought one after the other throughout a large number of nations and webshops,” she says. “Contributor was born as an answer to that, and to be a one-stop store for as many espresso books as one cares to dive into.”
In different phrases, Contributor Espresso isn’t simply promoting books; it’s lowering friction for curiosity.
A Rigorously Constructed Shelf
At current, Contributor Espresso carries greater than 40 titles, however the quantity alone doesn’t inform the story. The stability issues. And extra are on the best way. “I’m delighted to be including yet one more youngsters’s e-book, yet one more nonfiction biography, and two fantasy novels themed round cafés very quickly,” Tigger says, excitedly noting she has each of legendary Irish espresso retailer Colin Harmon’s books coming in, in addition to the U.Okay.’s well-known coffee-nerd-turned-water-scientist Maxwell Dashwood’s latest on the best way. Tigger calls Contributor’s assortment “a beautiful mixture of upskilling, nonfiction, leisure, and comfortable reads.”
Contributor Espresso doesn’t deal with espresso as a single topic however as a lens by means of which to know science, labor, design, enterprise, tradition, and creativeness. A youngsters’s e-book can sit comfortably alongside a dense technical textual content on extraction physics. A café-themed fantasy novel belongs simply as a lot as an trade biography. This breadth can also be mirrored in how prospects navigate the store on-line.
Procuring by Feeling, Not by Class
Fairly than sorting books strictly by style or talent degree, Contributor Espresso organizes its choices by means of one thing referred to as the “Present Temper” menu bar, a characteristic that feels intuitive the second it’s defined.
“When folks ask me what my favourite espresso is, or what espresso I’d advocate to them, I all the time say it relies on the temper,” Tigger says. “With books, it’s no completely different.”
She continues: “Generally you’re within the temper for one thing academic, however generally you simply wish to get cozy with a light-weight novel. I’m so joyful that Contributor can provide espresso books that fall in a variety of moods. So whether or not you’re a newcomer to espresso or a seasoned skilled, there’s one thing on the shelf for no matter temper you’re in.”
The temper filters do greater than information looking; additionally they subtly reinforce the concept that espresso information isn’t hierarchical. Studying could be rigorous or light, playful or technical, relying on what the reader wants at that second. “Additionally they assist pair sure books with different espresso merchandise obtainable on the webshop,” Tigger provides, hinting at Contributor’s broader ecosystem.
Espresso to Drink Whereas You Learn
Contributor Espresso is a bookstore; you received’t discover cabinets of roasted espresso right here. However Tigger does promote greater than books, and there are espresso choices. Within the case of Contributor, although, the coffees on the market are chosen to enrich studying, not compete with it.
“Along with espresso books, Contributor additionally shares espresso drip baggage and specialty on the spot espresso sourced from roasters all over the world,” Tigger says. “As a result of Contributor is in the beginning a bookstore, I don’t wish to provide simply perishable espresso beans, nevertheless it’s completely mandatory to supply a very good cup of espresso to take pleasure in with what you’re studying.”
Her personal habits formed that call. “I do most of my studying whereas I journey, and drip baggage and on the spot espresso are essentially the most handy methods for me to brew a very good cup on the go,” she says.
There’s additionally intention behind which roasters she chooses. “Lots of the roasters I supply from are additionally associated to the books I provide,” she explains, pointing to the connection between Colonna Espresso’s on the spot
choices and U.Okay.-based roaster/retailer and former U.Okay. Barista Champion Maxwell Dashwood’s “The Enterprise of Specialty Espresso.”
Contributor Espresso additionally shares choose brewing tools—filter papers, brewers, and water minerals—for readers who really feel impressed to behave on what they’ve realized. And, Tigger notes with a smile, “As with every bookstore, there are additionally a few enjoyable reward gadgets comparable to espresso bean pins or bookmarks for a little bit deal with.”
Testing the Waters at Rotterdam Espresso Fest
Contributor Espresso made its public debut on the first-ever Rotterdam Espresso Fest within the fall of 2025, aligning its launch with that of a brand-new specialty-coffee competition.
“It was nice to make a debut on the pilot version of Rotterdam Espresso Fest,” Tigger says. “The launch of a brand-new specialty-coffee competition in tandem with a brand-new espresso bookstore enterprise reveals simply how a lot rising curiosity there may be for espresso within the space.”
The response validated the idea. “Folks had been very a lot fascinated by beginner-oriented books like James Hoffmann’s titles,” she says, “however others had been additionally excited to discover a very sought-after e-book like Karl Wienhold’s ‘Low-cost Espresso’ extra readily accessible.”
One shock bestseller stood out. “Christine Rollings’ ‘My Barista ABCs’ was additionally a bestseller among the many rising phase of espresso professionals with younger households,” Tigger says.
The takeaway? Espresso readers are various—and more and more multigenerational.
Staying Grounded, Rising Thoughtfully
As Contributor Espresso continues to seek out its footing, development stays deliberate somewhat than expansive for its personal sake. Competition appearances and commerce reveals are a part of the image—however fastidiously chosen ones.
“Whereas I’d like to exhibit at extra reveals, the problem of hauling round such heavy stock may be very actual,” Tigger says. “It forces me to assume deliberately about the place it actually is sensible to point out up, and the way these appearances could be significant somewhat than simply seen.”
That intention is what makes Contributor Espresso’s upcoming sales space on the Nordic Espresso Fest in Gothenburg, Sweden, such a pure subsequent step. The competition, which takes place February 28 by means of March 1, presents the uncommon alternative to position espresso books—usually dense, impartial, and troublesome to supply—straight into the fingers of an engaged, curious viewers. On the sales space, guests will have the ability to browse and buy a big selection of titles in individual, in addition to soak up a number of particular appearances by espresso authors, creating house for dialog between writers and readers who would possibly in any other case by no means cross paths.
Whilst Contributor begins to step onto a broader stage, Tigger stays rooted in her unique focus. “It nonetheless makes essentially the most sense to maintain my base within the Netherlands and prioritize the webshop and native occasions,” she says, viewing festivals not as a touring circuit however as extensions of the identical community-driven ethos.
That philosophy additionally shapes Contributor’s future as a platform. “I’m all the time open to recommendations about books to hold,” Tigger says, noting that she plans to characteristic interviews with different espresso authors on the
web site—writers she sees as fellow contributors to a shared physique of data. “We’re all a part of a really cozy area of interest,” she provides, “and I’d like to construct a group of espresso authors and improve their visibility on Contributor’s cabinets and channels.”
In a world saturated with fleeting content material, Contributor Espresso is betting on one thing quietly radical: that espresso folks nonetheless wish to decelerate, learn deeply, and return to concepts that last more than a scroll, whether or not on-line, in a small room in Rotterdam, or at a competition sales space in Gothenburg.
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