LAB Tostadores de Café

Overview

LAB was founded in 2014 by Alexis Zagdañski and Paula Zyssholtz in Palermo Hollywood, Buenos Aires, with a two-storey Humboldt 1542 space that puts the bar and kitchen on the ground floor and the roastery on the second. The business grew out of a 2012 Buenos Aires Emprende competition win, which funded the early micro-lot roasting model. They now run a sister bean-to-bar chocolate operation (Cacao Roasters) out of the same group.

Known for

• First wave of Argentine specialty roasters; opened 2014 in Palermo Hollywood
• Won Buenos Aires Emprende 2012 startup competition before opening
• Two-storey Humboldt 1542 site: ground-floor café, second-floor roastery
• Diedrich IR-12 production roaster
• Sister operation Cacao Roasters — bean-to-bar chocolate from the same founders

Why it matters

LAB introduced African coffee acidity and fruit-forward profiles to a Buenos Aires market that, until 2014, was almost entirely Brazil-via-Italy. Their decision to keep the roastery visible inside the cafe was deliberate consumer education, and the Buenos Aires Emprende win effectively turned the Argentine specialty industry into a fundable startup category for the first time.

Production

destoning

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head roaster

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color sorting

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roaster machine

Diedrich IR-12

filter equipment

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cupping frequency

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roastery location

Humboldt 1542, Palermo, Buenos Aires (second floor of café)

espresso equipment

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annual volume tonnes

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Café

Humboldt 1542, Palermo, Buenos Aires

Recognitions

• Buenos Aires Emprende 2012 winner

Sources

• https://www.labcafe.com.ar/index.html
• https://www.lanacion.com.ar/economia/lab-tostadores-de-cafe-nid1572287/
• https://coffeeforbeginners.com/lab-tostadores-de-cafe-buenos-aires/
• http://exportargentina.org.ar/companies/3263
• https://www.facebook.com/labtostadores/