Higher Grounds Trading Co.

04/23/2026

Gold Label Peruvian Apex roasts are back! Welcome back, Omer Helera Flores and Miguel Padilla Chinguel—two talented producers we’ve featured previously, who we can’t wait to introduce (or reintroduce!) you to this year, with all new tasting notes for our 2026 season.

Omer Helera Flores is a medium roast natural process Maragogype featuring tasting notes of chocolate covered orange, sangria, and pleasantly earthy, berry-forward tangy aftertaste.

Miguel Padilla Chinguel is lightly roasted washed process Bourbon-Geisha blend, enhanced by hints of lime, peach, buttercream, and floral notes.

Both of these coffees are notable for their exceptional, high-scoring craftsmanship, and are therefore available in limited quantities. Omer and Miguel are both members of coffee cooperative Sol y Cafe, located in Cajamarca, Peru.

04/20/2026

🌷Bright days, meaningful impact.

☕️ Our WRC Blend is full of cocoa, almond, and toasty notes—and helps support survivors in our community.

🕊️ April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. $5 from every purchase goes to the Women’s Resource Center.

☀️A little light can go a long way.

04/17/2026

🌟Rare, limited-run drop! 🌟

Say hello to Homer Alarcon Gayoso, producer partner from Cajamarca, Peru. We’ve been fortunate enough to share several of his beautiful harvests with you over the last three years. This year, we’ve got something truly special on offer that you will not want to miss! This will go fast, and there are just 40 bags available.

Last year we tucked away a small amount of Homer’s coffee, vacuum-sealing the green coffee and storing it in our freezer to preserve freshness. Now that Spring has arrived and new crop is here, we’re excited to offer a rare opportunity to taste side-by-side two harvests of the same very special coffee. We will roast, pack, and ship it all out on the same day to highlight the subtle differences in character that naturally occur year after year.

And the fun part? We want to hear what you think! The tasting notes for this year’s Homer haven’t been determined yet; We’re waiting to hear from you!  Let us know what notable flavors and textures you find in the cup, and help us determine what this year’s tasting notes should go on the bag.

Extremely Limited. Only 40 pairs available. Pre-order only. 10 oz bags only.

04/14/2026

Higher Grounds is a proud Business Community Member supporting the NMC International Affairs Forum

How can we foster ecocentric relationships? How do you define humans' responsibility to the more than human world? On April 15, IAF explores the Rights of Nature global movement, rooted in Indigenous values, with ecological foundations relevant to northern Michigan. Join the conversation this Wednesday.

Get tickets today.
Attend in person or watch online.
Free for students & educators.
https://www.tciaf.com/event-april-2026

With Frank Bibeau, Tribal Attorney & Director of the Tribal Rights of Nature Program at the Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights (in person)

Hugo Echeverría, Attorney for the Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights, member of the UN Harmony with Nature expert network (virtual)

Nick Reo, Canada Excellence Research Chair, focused on Coastal Regeneration and Relationalities, Simon Fraser University (in-person moderator)

Gratitude to grant funders Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa & Chippewa Indians & event underwriters Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation

Northwestern Michigan College
Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights
Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians
Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation

04/10/2026

Say hello to Brittani, one of the owners of local Interlochen drive-thru favorite, MI Coffee, which has been serving Higher Grounds coffee since 2020 ☕️✨

If you’re used to seeing their friendly faces stationed outside of Blue Base Books and are wondering why it looks a little bit empty right now, that’s because Mi Coffee has moved down the street in light of the ongoing intersection construction. You can still get your morning brew, relocated less than a mile down the street at 2515 J Maddy Pkwy, by Hofbrau & Bouwman Realty. Go spread some love over to the Mi Coffee family! ❤️

04/09/2026

🫰That “morning light filtering through the glass of a Chemex” view? It’s magic. ✨

Speaking of Chemex coffeemakers, our newest blog post is up (link in stories), highlighting why we love this beloved retro powerhouse of a brewing vessel.

We’re confident you’ll love it too, so if you’re ready to level up your coffee game, we have 10-cup and 8-cup classic lab-grade glass options in both wood and color collar variants, sold in our Coffee Bar and on our website. ☕️ Pour away! 🏁

04/01/2026

Introducing our newest snack: The Puck. You’ve been asking for an edible caffeine option, and we’ve finally delivered. We take our finest espresso beans, process them into to tiny granules, mingle them with artisanal spring water set to 200 degrees, and reconstruct them into an edible, dense disc. Bitter, grainy, and absolutely guaranteed to get you buzzing with energy—just like you’ve been asking for. Expertly crafted in house, as always. Only 10.99 per puck. ✨

03/24/2026

Yep…It’s been a looong winter (looking at you, recent snowstorm!), and magical as it is to live in a winter-wonderland-snow globe here in Traverse City during the chilly months, honestly, we’re SO ready to see more blue sky patio days like this ⬆️.

If you’re headed up north for Spring Break (or just a local coming out of winter hibernation hunker-down mode), come stop by the Coffee Bar to hang out, say hi, and grab a spring special: Flower Power, Cherry Blossom, Oracle, and Midsummer Night’s Matcha are all still going strong. House-crafted syrups like lavender, Earl Grey, and Cherry are calling your name.

On the roasting side of things, we are currently smack-dab in the middle of Awaken Blend season (our current rotating Coffee for Change), but we’re also about to drop a few exciting new Peruvian roasts for you soon as well, so keep an eye out! See you soon, friends! 🌷

specialtycoffee

03/20/2026

🌻 It’s that time of year again: the Higher Grounds Spring SALE!!!

We’ve made it through another winter, and we’re celebrating the return of sunny skies with big discounts, just in time for Spring Break 🌞

☕️ Take 20% off coffee and 15% off brewing equipment and merchandise, from now until Monday3/23 11:59pm EST

*Offer excludes Coffees For Change, Subscriptions, and Gift Cards*

03/14/2026

Due to the weather tomorrow, this event has been rescheduled to April! Stay tuned for details. Thanks for understanding, and we hope you all stay warm and safe as Michigan weather does its thing ❄️. The Coffee Bar will still be open 8-3 as planned, for now.

🎭🌷🌨️

03/13/2026

To celebrate the Ides of March Shakespearean bard-crawl this Sunday at the Commons, for a limited time only, we’re launching…

🪻the Midsummer Night’s Matcha. 🌙

House-crafted earl grey syrup meets Hibiki-An matcha in a velvety-soft, green summer fever-dream. Sounds like poetry to OUR ears…or match-a made in heaven, if you will.

🎭 Swipe for event details ↩️

🌺☁️✨