Our story
From my family's phin to the highlands
Six chapters, one cup of coffee, and a lot of early mornings.
Chapter 1
The phin on the kitchen bench
I grew up in a Vietnamese family in Australia. Before school, before anyone had said much, there was the sound of the phin: a small metal filter on a glass, dripping slowly onto a spoonful of condensed milk.
Nobody rushed it. You waited, you stirred, you poured it over ice. That wait was part of the coffee, and it's the part I missed most when I left home.
Chapter 2
The café years
As an adult I did what everyone around me did: a coffee from the local café on the way to work, every single morning. I loved the ritual and the people behind the counter.
But when I wanted the coffee I grew up with, the choice in Australia was mostly tins and instant sachets. Good, sometimes, but never the cup from home.
Chapter 3
Back to the highlands
So I went to the source: the Central Highlands, where most of Vietnam's coffee grows. In Đắk Lắk, around Buôn Ma Thuột, and up in Lâm Đồng near Đà Lạt and Cầu Đất, I walked the farms and asked a lot of questions.
The biggest lesson was simple. Flavour starts at picking. Farms that pick only ripe red cherries, and dry them with care, make a completely different coffee.
Chapter 4
A handshake, not a middleman
We buy directly from the farming families who grow our coffee. We agree on picking only ripe cherries, and we pay for the extra work that takes.
I go back at harvest time to taste, check and plan the next season together. Knowing the people behind each bag is the only way I know to keep the quality steady.
Chapter 5 · 2025
Roasted at origin
Our coffee is roasted in Vietnam, close to the farms, by a partner roastery that works to strict checks: green beans are moisture-tested, every roast batch is cupped before it's packed, and each bag is valve-sealed with its roast date.
Cafe Phin started in 2025 with our first harvest roasted this way.
Chapter 6 · 2026
To your cup in Australia
From 2026 we ship it across Australia, with brew guides so anyone can make it at home, phin or no phin.
Tell us what you taste. Your feedback goes back to the roastery and the farms, and it shapes the next harvest.
A letter from Henry
Dear friend,
Thank you for reading this far. Cafe Phin is small, and every bag goes out with a lot of care from a lot of people: the families who pick the cherries, the roasters who watch every batch, and us, packing orders in Sydney.
I started this because I wanted the coffee of my childhood to be easy to find here, and honest about where it comes from. If something isn't right, or if you love a coffee, tell me. I read every message.
Cảm ơn, and happy brewing,
Henry C
About 6,900 km, then to your door
Roasted near the farms in the Central Highlands, packed and shipped to Sydney, then sent across Australia by Australia Post.
Our promise, on every bag
Only authentic Vietnamese coffee
Grown in Vietnam, or made by Vietnamese coffee brands.
Straight from farmers we know
Bought directly from farming families, visited every harvest.
Roasted under strict quality control
Moisture-tested beans, every batch cupped, valve-sealed bags.
Origin and process on every bag
Region, altitude, variety, process, harvest and roast date.
Your feedback goes back to the farm
Tell us what you taste; we share it with the roastery and farmers.