Zu and I have just hit the road, and coffee is always on our minds because it fuels everything else we’re going to do that day. One of our last stops as we outfitted the Never Monday van was at our coffee partner’s home office in Bentonville. Airship Coffee is a growing roaster that’s made it into mugs all over the states but enjoys an avid following in Northwest Arkansas. I’m originally from the Pacific Northwest, so I’ve been drinking Seattle’s finest for years without giving the Starbucks beans much thought, but after seeing Airship’s coffee in restaurants all around NWA, I eventually gave it a try. Between my first few cups of Airship brew and getting acquainted with owner Mark Bray, I opened up to the idea of putting in the work to learn more about bean sourcing, roasting, batching and of course, the flavors all those processes create. Since I’m just starting my coffee education, I thought I’d start by figuring out what I really like and why.

For me, this spring has been all about the hustle. The season started out with the hustle to finish the van by the deadline we had set for ourselves while also maintaining a regular job and then transitioned to the hustle of getting ready for a major mountain bike race that marked the kickoff of our year of van life. Between the hustle, we have Airship to keep coffee simple, but satisfying. The 250-gram bags are the perfect size to tuck away in the nooks and crannies of the van, which means we don’t have to choose between getting the Finca Palestina or Lima Norte beans. We can just bring them all. The bags are vacuum-sealed and come with a press seal closure instead of the roll-down tab used by other roasters. Airship’s easy online ordering is also a crucial piece of the living-on-the-road puzzle. Every month, we plan to park the van somewhere for a couple of weeks so we can have items shipped to us and a supply of fresh coffee will be at the top of our list.