The Story
In December 2010, on a quiet, dead-end street in Kreuzberg, Five Elephant opened the doors to its first café. Berlin’s specialty coffee scene was still forming.
Founded by American Kris Schackman and Austrian Sophie Weigensamer (later Schackman), who opened the roastery and its corresponding coffee shop in 2010.
Raised in Massachusetts, United States, Kris was immersed in the region’s coffee scene from the early mid-1990s. His experience of coffee shops opened by industry figures like George Howell and Scott Rao shaped his philosophy around specialty coffee.
Based in the hidden-away region of Hinterhof in Berlin, Five Elephant was one of the city’s first specialty coffee roasters. Five Elephant opened in 2010, at a time when Berlin’s specialty coffee scene was much smaller.
“You could count on your hands the roasters around the globe that you really identified with and who you were friendly with. There were fewer than ten worldwide back then,” Kris explains.
The history of Five Elephant began when the couple built a coffee shop using only a saw and an electric screwdriver. When they started, they didn’t expect a lot of customers, but as they focused on supporting communities and providing quality customer service while roasting and baking cakes, the sales and the number of staff increased accordingly.
As Five Elephant celebrates its 15th anniversary this year, it’s already looking to the future. Kris and his wife and co-founder Sophie have reimagined the coffee menu and now offer limited edition releases alongside its signature single origins and blends.
Today, Five Elephant has grown to a total of four coffee shops in Berlin, but the thought at the core has not changed since its founding.
Sourcing & Relationships
While Five Elephant opened at a time when roasters in Berlin had no alternative to direct trade, it’s a philosophy that the roaster still retains now. “For us, sourcing isn’t just about buying green coffee; it’s about building partnerships that honor the heritage and legacy of coffee-growing families,” Kris emphasises.
Five Elephant has been roasting coffee in-house while sourcing coffee through direct trade from coffee producers since its founding in 2010.
“Some of our earliest partnerships have turned into lifelong relationships with families in Brazil, El Salvador, Kenya, and Colombia. Their stories and dedication fuel our passion every single day.”
We believe that the Fair Trade label is somewhat limited, and does not always serve producers in the ways its advocates claim it does. Applying for certification is expensive, and many smaller farms simply cannot afford it. But yes, we source all of your coffees in a way that we fully believe is responsible and appreciative of the people who produce the lots we purchase. We pay, on average, more than twice per a kilogram of coffee than what Fair Trade exporters pay, but more importantly, we work hard on building a close relationship with the people we do business with - our partners at origin.
The owners, Kris and Sophie, travel to the coffee-growing areas themselves in order to build up sustainable relationships and closely monitor the process of coffee from cultivation to processing. The beans for the in-house roasting come from Ethiopia, Guatemala and Kenya. The Five Elephant pays great attention to fair production of the coffee.
His wife, Sophie recalls, “We visited several producers in Costa Rica and Panama and were struck by the enormous amount of labor that goes into producing coffee. At the same time, I was also struck by how little I knew about this reality.”
Roasting Philosophy
Coffee is one of the most flavor rich foods we consume and we like to taste the flavors available in the bean, before they are eclipsed by the more advanced stages of chemical reactions in the roasting process. It seems to us a waste of our sourcing efforts, let alone the efforts of our partner producers who grow the coffee we roast, for us to eclipse the unique flavors of their beans with a generic roast flavor.
Our roasting philosophy aims to present the different qualities of each coffee, so they all taste different.
Head roaster Wojtek Białczak, who placed fifth at the 2019 World Barista Championship in Boston representing Germany, oversees quality on a Diedrich roaster, ensuring every batch meets exacting standards. The roastery offers espresso, filter, and omni roast profiles, with their Meridian Collection showcasing diverse terroirs and varietals from Ethiopia, Guatemala, Kenya, and the Mogiana region of São Paulo, Brazil. Every coffee is cupped after roasting for quality control and flavor profiling, a discipline that reflects their commitment to consistency across four Berlin cafe locations.
Five Elephant generally sources minimally processed washed coffees. In Kris’ opinion, this allows unique flavour notes to come through more clearly. “There’s something magical about a clean, well-roasted coffee where you can taste the history of the land,” he explains.
For this reason, we perform numerous test roasts on our coffee before establishing our production profile, to learn what a bean has to offer. If we are at this state, we have already cupped numerous samples and decided there was something in the bean we liked. At this point we have bought the coffee and are trying to find its sweet spot.
What to Try
Colombia Villa Betulia Java — Limited Release. Piña colada, green apple, lychee. Silky texture, tropical acidity, and a clean, fruit-driven cup that stays composed all the way through.
One of their signature coffees — Orange Bourbon from Fincha Mahajual in El Salvador — has become legendary. It’s complex, layered, and rich — like a journey across continents.
House Blend is a user-friendly, approachable espresso which is meant to provide customers with a reliable and easy to brew coffee.
From our single-origin coffees to the Meridian collection, we celebrate the diversity of terroirs and varietals that honor the legacy of generations past and those yet to come.
Our curated collection boasts beans sourced from the lush landscapes of countries like Ethiopia, Colombia, Brazil, El Salvador, Rwanda, Mexico, and Kenya. Each bean tells a story, a journey from its native soil to your cup. Offering a unique flavor profile that captures the essence of its origin.
Beyond coffee, the “Five Elephant Cheesecake” has earned a reputation that extends far beyond the city limits. The recipe is simple but brilliant: a creamy, dense New York Cheesecake that is neither too sweet nor too heavy and rests on a perfect cookie base.
Their cheesecake is widely considered the best in Berlin — creamy, perfectly balanced, and unforgettable. The combination of expertly sourced and roasted coffee with Sophie’s legendary baking has become integral to the Five Elephant experience.