January’s RISE Coffee Box: A Fresh Start with Seriously Good Specialty Coffee

January is all about fresh starts, brighter mornings and getting your morning ritual sorted is key to having a good year ahead... and there’s no better way to do that than with great coffee. Our January RISE Coffee Box was designed to shake off the winter gloom and kick-start 2026 with flavour, energy and discovery!

As a coffee subscription built around independent roasters, ethical sourcing and genuinely exciting specialty coffee, January’s box brings together bold crowd-pleasers, meaningful impact and a little education along the way. Whether you’re a long-time subscriber or just discovering RISE, this box is a brilliant example of what we’re all about.

So let’s dive in ☕️

This Month’s Chosen Coffees: Designed to Power Your Day

January’s box features two standout specialty coffees from roasters who perfectly embody what we look for: quality, character and purpose.

Hard Lines Coffee (Cardiff)

House Party – Brazil

If January needs a hype squad, this coffee is it.

Hard Lines Coffee are known for their bold flavours, playful branding and seriously good roasting — without ever taking themselves too seriously. Based in Cardiff, they’re a roaster that instantly lifts your mood, whether you’re visiting one of their buzzing cafés or brewing their coffee at home.

Their House Party Brazil is a comforting, crowd-pleasing cup that feels made for winter mornings. Expect a super smooth brew with milk chocolate sweetness, dried fruit notes and creamy Brazilian richness. It’s equally delicious black or with milk, making it a perfect daily driver as you ease back into routine.

Coffee details:

• Roast: Medium Dark

• Process: Washed

• Origin: Brazil

• Tasting notes: Milk chocolate, dried fruit

• Altitude: 1,800–2,000 masl

Hard Lines are also proud members of 1% for the Planet, meaning every cup contributes to positive environmental impact — something we love to support through our specialty coffee subscription.

Old Spike Coffee (London)

Honduras & Nicaragua

Old Spike Coffee Roasters are a firm favourite among RISE subscribers — and for very good reason. This London-based social enterprise pairs incredible specialty coffee with a powerful mission: tackling homelessness through training, employment and housing support.

Their January coffee is a two-origin blend combining washed Nicaraguan beans from El Diablo farmers with a natural anaerobic Honduran coffee from El Matazano. The result? A vibrant, juicy cup bursting with chocolate, caramel and plum, with natural sweetness and a seriously moreish finish.

This coffee is bold enough to feel energising, yet balanced and approachable — a perfect “New Year pick-me-up”.

Coffee details:

• Roast: Medium to Medium-Dark

• Process: Washed

• Origins: Honduras & Nicaragua

• Tasting notes: Chocolate, caramel, plum

• Altitude: 1,400–1,600 masl

Even better, 65% of Old Spike’s profits are donated, making every cup part of real, tangible change.

For the Decaf Drinkers Out There

We know great coffee isn’t just about caffeine — and January’s box made sure decaf drinkers were just as spoiled.

Hard Lines Decaf – Brazil

Processed using the natural Sugar Cane (EA) method, this decaf keeps all the flavour without the buzz. Smooth, comforting and endlessly drinkable, with dark chocolate and hazelnut notes, it’s perfect any time of day.

Old Spike Decaf – Brazil Regionals

Another washed sugar cane decaf that goes toe-to-toe with caffeinated coffees. Expect toffee sweetness, chocolatey depth and almond notes, thanks to Brazil’s increasingly selective harvesting and processing methods.

Decaf that doesn’t feel like a compromise? Always the goal.

Mould, Myths & Specialty Coffee: Busting the Noise

January’s box also tackled one of the biggest online coffee myths: mould and mycotoxins.

There’s a lot of misinformation out there, but here’s the truth: all coffee entering the UK and EU is tested for mycotoxins at import. If it doesn’t pass, it simply doesn’t enter the country. On top of that, the coffee roasting process (at temperatures of 180–240°C) destroys mould spores, making freshly roasted specialty coffee extremely low risk.

Claims of “mould-free coffee” are largely marketing — and often imply a problem that doesn’t really exist in regulated specialty coffee. At RISE, we focus on trusted independent roasters, high-quality sourcing, and proper storage practices from farm to cup.

How Does RISE Compare on Value?

One of our subscribers recently compared RISE vs Nespresso, and the results surprised even us.

• Nespresso: £0.39–£0.53 per cup

• RISE Coffee Box: ~£0.33 per cup

Based on a 3-bag subscription, that’s a saving of £36–£105+ per year, while drinking fresher, better-quality specialty coffee — and supporting independent roasters instead of big corporations.

Not bad for a coffee subscription that’s also named “Best Value” by Good Food.

A Look Back and What’s Next

January’s box also marked a moment of reflection. In 2025 alone, RISE took subscribers on a journey through coffees from Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Guatemala, El Salvador, Uganda, Costa Rica, Tanzania and Sumatra, working with some of the UK’s best independent roasters.

As we head further into 2026, your feedback continues to shape what we do — from whole bean options to gifting ideas, brew guides and limited editions.

Why a RISE Coffee Subscription?

At its heart, RISE exists to make great coffee easy — without compromise.

Every month, our coffee subscription delivers:

• Ethically sourced specialty coffee

• Independent UK roasters

• Freshly roasted beans

• Stories behind every brew

• Real social and environmental impact

All without choice overload, confusing jargon or sacrificing flavour.

If January’s box is anything to go by, it’s going to be a very good year for coffee ☕️